text:
Dr. Jean-Pierre Lagacé, optometrist
Welcome to the world of children's vision!
Archive for the 'Myopia progression' Category
Myopia and outdoor activities: new study
For about 5 years, a new theory was launched: kids who do not play outdoors regularly are on average more myopic (or less farsighted) than those who practice outdoor activity on a regular and prolonged basis. Children with few outdoor activities and who practice activities requiring near vision (reading, video games on portable console, etc.) were three times more likely to be myopic as those who practice many outdoor activities and some reading activity.
Professor Ian Morgan (from the Australian National University), highlights another risk factor: for him the crucial factor is simply the lack of natural light. A neurotransmitter produced in the retina under the influence of light, dopamine, could avoid excessive growth of the eye in childhood. If spending hours reading, playing or working on a screen promotes myopia, according to Morgan, this is indirectly because children spend much less time outside {1}.
These data were corroborated with those of a study of adolescents in Singapore, which were much less myopic (or farsightedness) when they practiced much more outdoor activities. {2}
It seems that this is the time that is spent outside that protects against myopia, rather than the sport itself (no influence of indoor sports on the prevalence of myopia). This was corroborated by a more recent study by Guggenheim et al. {3}
Rose et al. Outdoor activity reduces the prevalence of myopia in children. Ophhalmology 2008 115: 1279–1285.
Dirani et al. Outdoor activity andmyopia in Singapore teenage children. Br J Ophthalmol. 2009; 93: 997–1000.
Guggenheim JA, Northstone K, McMahon G, Ness AR, Deere K, Mattocks C, St Pourcain B, Williams C. Time outdoors and physical activity as predictors of incident myopia in childhood: A prospective cohort study Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2012 Apr 6.
Source: http://www.alancarlsonmd.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/im084057.jpg
Another recent study (February 2013) conducted in Denmark shows that for children with myopia, vision deteriorated rapidly when the days were shorter (winter period) and more slowly during the summer months. This study aimed to determine whether daylight could slow the progression of myopia in children.
"Most likely it is the light exposure that causes the reduced myopia progression during periods with longer days," said lead author Dr. Dongmei Cui, an ophthalmologist at SunYat-senUniversity in Guangzhou, China.
Cui and his colleagues analyzed data from a clinical trial that included more than 200 children aged 8 to 14 years old with myopia, or nearsightedness, in Denmark – where day length ranges from seven hours in winter to almost 18 hours in summer.
Over the six months with the least daylight, nearsightedness progressed by 0.32 diopter. In comparison, children's vision deteriorated by 0.28 diopter over the sunniest months.
Accumulated hours of daylight ranged from 1660 to 2804 hours. Significant correlations were found between hours of daylight and myopia progression (P = 0.01). In children with an average of 2782 ±19 myopic progression was greater.
With the increase in the length of the eyeball (axial length) from the front to the back, myopia tends to worsen. During the winter period, the axial length among study participants increased by an average of 0.18 mm compared to 0.14 mm in the summer, according to results published in the journal Ophthalmology.
Note: if statistically there is a difference in the progression of myopia between the two groups, can we say that these results are clinically significant? No! Over a period of one year, we can estimate an increase of 0.60 diopter if the children of both groups react in the same way. The only difference is the seasonal variation during the year.
Source: http://www.cataract.com.sg/neuro.htm
The researchers did not analyze how much time the children spent outside, just how much they probably did based on the season. Danish children spend much more time outdoors in summer, and very little in winter, when temperatures hover around freezing for four months, according to Cui.
Past research on nearsightedness in children in the U.S. found the condition deteriorated more during the six months of the school year and less during the six months that include summer. But another study in Singapore, where days are about the same length all year, found no seasonal difference in the progression of nearsightedness.
The idea that daylight might protect children from worsening nearsightedness is a relatively new theory, said professor Jeffrey Cooper of the College of Optometry at the State University of New York in Manhattan.
Studies in mammals and birds have found that light exposure plays a role in the development of the eye, and that animals reared from a young age with frequent exposure to high intensity light may be somewhat protected from myopia. No similar effect has been seen with light exposure in adulthood.
The new study's results can't prove that daylight causes vision loss to slow down, Cooper said. "There is no evidence that increasing outside exposure will actually reduce the progression of myopia," Cooper, who was not involved in the work.
Myopia, Myopia progression, Optometry, Vision
Jean-Pierre Lagacé
myopia progression
Headaches, again…
In the previous text, we shared a study on headaches in children and the lack of relevance to either having to wear glasses or changing the lens power of the glasses. One of the issues discussed was the biased scientific methodology and the art of making such statements without seeing further than one's nose…
Contrary to the statement of the authors and of the American Association of Ophthalmology, there is a source more relevant and of more scientific relevance about headaches and vision of children that is free of any bias examiner. In 2009, a major study both from optometrists and ophthalmologists concerning convergence insufficiency and its symptoms, the CITT study (Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial) began. They created a questionnaire called CISS (Convergence Insufficiency Symptom Survey) to link the symptoms to convergence insufficiency. All one has to do to determine if the visual requirements are linked to headaches is to ask! The CISS questionnaire showed that it could be done reliably. You will find the questionnaire at the end of the text. Note the number of items that relate to visual discomfort. You can also download it from: http://www.aoa.org/x13917.xml
Q1: Do your yes feel tired when reading or doing close work?
Q2: Do your eyes feel uncomfortable when reading or doing close work?
Q3: Do you have headaches when reading or doing close work?
Wait a second! Why is it that the best standardized questionnaire in the history of joint studies of optometry and ophthalmology, studies funded by the U.S. government, directly ask a question about headaches associated with visual tasks, while the recent study talked about "proofs beyond doubt" that it is not relevant?
Let's dispense with the simplistic notions of the latest press release, and set the record straight:
Headaches can be associated with vision problems. Unless you ask the question, you can't get an answer.
Pediatrician screening is not a substitute for a complete eye exam performed by an optometrist. A child who complains of headache associated with visual tasks near (reading, writing, drawing, etc.) might show a functional problem (alignment problem like convergence and/or focusing), while having no problem with distance visual acuity (vision of 20/20 or 100%).
A change in glasses may sometimes not completely solve the headache. But often wearing new glasses for an individual who was not wearing any will solve the problem.
If the underlying cause of headaches is a functional problem, the treatment of choice according to proved scientific studies is proven optometric vision therapy.
Adapted from VisionHelp Blog (a super blog!): http://visionhelp.wordpress.com/
The abstract of the study on the CISS questionnaire can be found here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19289977
Even in ophthalmology, here is what is said about eyestrain and headaches:
"The visual symptoms are caused by because focusing of the eyes becomes increasingly difficult due to fatigue especially at the end of the day after prolonged reading. Vision becomes blurred and sometimes even double. Vision at near can be uncomfortable.
Eyestrain occurs mainly in the late afternoon as near vision is constantly at work by efforts of focusing in work and in leisure with particularly computer screens, mobile phones, television, console games…
Eye symptoms reflecting visual fatigue include a feeling of discomfort, tension, and heaviness in the region of the eye, orbit or eyelids. There may be feeling of irritation, burning, stinging, and itching, sometimes with red eyes, some tearing or irritation due to dry eye. The subject may feel dull pain but not very intense that may become acute generally behind the eyes.
Headaches can be felt around the eyes, on the forehead above the eyebrow line, temples or behind the head. These headaches are related to eye strain, occur after a certain period of work at the end of the day, fade and disappear after cessation of work." (Source: http://www.ophtalmologie.fr/fatigue-visuelle-yeux.html)
Learning problems and vision, Myopia, Myopia progression, Optometry, Posture, Reading problems and vision, Vision
Young myopes: go play outside?
An early study in Australia reported that playing outdoors more could have a link with a lower prevalence of myopia in children was published in 2008 by Kathlyn Rose and colleagues (1) ; this study was impressive with the number of children involved: over 4000 children were included in the "Sydney Myopia study", which took place between 2003 and 2005.
The authors showed that higher levels of outdoor activity (sports and leisure) were associated with more hyperopic refractions and lower myopia prevalence among students 12 years of age. Students who performed a lot of near work indoor and spent the least time playing outside showed less hyperopia and more myopia. The opposite is also true.
The same research team (2) measured the presence of myopia in two of age- and ethnicity-matched primary school children participated: 124 from the Sydney Myopia Study and 628 from the Singapore Cohort Study on the Risk Factors for Myopia.
The prevalence of myopia in 6- and 7-year-old children of Chinese ethnicity was significantly lower in Sydney (3.3%) than in Singapore (29.1%) (P< .001). The prevalence of myopia in 1 or more parents was 68% in Sydney and 71% in Singapore. Children in Sydney read more books per week (P < .001) and did more total near-work activity (P = .002). Children in Sydney spent more time.
On outdoor activities (13.75 vs 3.05 hours per week; P < .001), which was the most significant factor associated with the differences in the prevalence of myopia between the 2 sites.
They then examined teenage children (3) (1249 participants) in the Singapore Cohort study Of Risk factors for Myopia (SCORM), during 2006.
The mean total time spent on outdoor activity was 3.24 h/day. The total outdoor activity (h/day) was significantly associated with less myopia. In addition, the total time spent outdoors was associated with significantly less myopia. Total sports time was also significantly associated with less myopia, but not indoor sports.
Participants who spent more time outdoors were less likely to be myopic. Thus, outdoor activity may protect against development of myopia in children, supporting recent Australian data (see above).
Other studies have followed thereafter and future research will surely come.
In 2010, Deng (4) investigated the association of children's refractive errors with their visual activities assessed by questionnaire in the school year and summer break (June, July, and August).
During the school year, myopes spent significantly fewer hours (8.25 ± 6.24 h/week) than non-myopes (10.95 ± 5.95 h/week) in sports/outdoor activity (p < 0.05). In addition, myopes (12.78 ± 9.28 h/week) watched more television than non-myopes (8.91 ± 5.95 h/week) (p = 0.02). No significant refractive group differences were found for other activities.
A new finding is the high number of sports/outdoor activity hours for both myopes and non-myopes during the summer break, which may contribute to slowed eye growth in all children during these 3 months.
Guggenheim (5) followed participants in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) who were assessed at ages 7, 10, 11, 12, and 15 years, and classified as myopic (≤-1 diopters) or non myopic. Physical activity at age 11 years was measured objectively using an accelerometer, worn for 1 week. Time spent outdoors was assessed via a parental questionnaire administered when children were aged 8-9 years.
Time spent outdoors was predictive of incident myopia independently of physical activity level. The greater association observed for time outdoors suggests that the previously reported link between "sports/outdoor activity" and incident myopia is due mainly to time outdoors rather than physical activity.
Dharani et al. (6) analyzed the time spent outside in, using a log notes and a light meter over a period of 1 week in Singapore for 117 children aged 6-12 with and without myopia. All children wore the light meter for 1 week and parents completed the log outdoor activities for children for 7 days.
The agreement between the light meter measures and the activity logbook was poor to fair. Both instruments measure different parameters, without doubt, time spent outside and the light intensity that results, and it does not seem a useful approach to understand the different aspects of risk in future studies for myopia.
Donovan (7) has analysed seasonal variations in the myopic progression of Chinese children.
They examined a total of 85 Chinese children with myopia between -0.75 D and -3.50 D and astigmatism ≤ -1.50 D, who wore glasses to see far away. They measured refraction and the axial length of the eye at 6 month intervals. The growth rate of the right eye was defined for the first and second 6 months of the study and classified according to "summer", "autumn", "winter" or "spring."
The average increase of 6 months was -0.31 ± 0.25 D for the summer, -0.40 ± 0.27 D for the fall, -0.53 ± 0.29 D for the winter, and -0.42 ± 0.20 D in the spring (p <0.001). The increase in axial length was 0.17 ± 0.10 mm for the summer, 0.24 ± 0.09 mm for autumn, 0.24 ± 0.09 mm for the winter, and 0.15 ± 0.08 mm for the spring (p <0.001). In addition, data for summer and winter were different from each other for the progression of myopia and axial elongation.
Myopia progression in summer months was approximately 60% of that seen in winter, and axial elongation was likewise significantly less in summer. It is unclear whether more time spent outdoors in summer vs. winter is a contributing factor, or the difference in progression rates is a result of "seasonal" variations in the intensity or amount of close work performed.
Jones-Jordan (8) has also investigated the association between myopia progression and time spent outdoors and in various visual activities.
Their results indicate that the number of hours of reading for pleasure per week was not significantly associated with annual myopia progression, nor were the other near activities. The magnitude of effects was clinically small.
Despite previous associations between time spent outdoors and the risk of developing myopia, these authors were unable to obtain the same results …
One of the surprises of recent research is the importance of how the increased time spent outdoors helps prevent myopia. At present, it seems that 14 hours per week or more outside are significantly effective in reducing the progression of myopia.
Why this surprising relationship? Here are some suggestions:
• Exposure to sunlight increases the production of vitamin D (vitamin D is produced by the skin, using sunlight)? But a study showed that blood concentrations of this vitamin is not significantly different in children who spend more time outdoors than others…
• Exposure to sunlight increases the production of chemicals in the retina such as dopamine which controls the growth of the eye?
• Children often look away when they play outside?
• Exposure to beneficial microorganisms (production of serotonin, which is part of the signaling system in the retina of the eye to counter the growth of the eye)?
We know it is not sports and physical activities are involved. The benefits are possible for the children to play outside without organized sport activity.
(1) Rose KA, Morgan IG, Ip J, Kifley A, Huynh S, Smith W, Mitchell P.Outdoor activity reduces the prevalence of myopia in children. Ophthalmology. 2008 Aug;115(8):1279-85.
(2) Rose KA, Morgan IG, Smith W, Burlutsky G, Mitchell P, Saw SM. Myopia, lifestyle, and schooling in students of Chinese ethnicity in Singapore and Sydney. Arch Ophthalmol. 2008 Apr;126(4):527-30.
(3) Br J Ophthalmol. 2009 Aug;93(8):997-1000. Epub 2009 Feb 11. Outdoor activity and myopia in Singapore teenage children. Dirani M, Tong L, Gazzard G, Zhang X, Chia A, Young TL, Rose KA, Mitchell P, Saw SM.
(4) Deng L, Gwiazda J, Thorn F. Children's refractions and visual activities in the school year and summer. Optom Vis Sci. 2010 Jun;87(6):406-13.
(5) Mutti DO, Marks AR. Blood levels of vitamin D in teens and young adults with myopia. Optom Vis Sci. 2011 Mar;88(3):377-82.
(6) Dharani R, Lee CF, Theng ZX, Drury VB, Ngo C, Sandar M, Wong TY, Finkelstein EA, Saw SM. Comparison of measurements of time outdoors and light levels as risk factors for myopia in young Singapore children. Eye (Lond). 2012 Jul;26(7):911-8. doi
(7) Donovan, L, Sankaridurg, P, Ho, A. Chen, X. Lin, Z. Thomas, V. Smith, E L. III, Ge, J. Holden, B. Myopia Progression in Chinese Children is Slower in Summer Than in Winter. Optometry & Vision Science. 89(8):1196-1202, August 2012.
(8) Jones-Jordan LA, Sinnott LT, Cotter SA, Kleinstein RN, Manny RE, Mutti DO, Twelker JD, Zadnik K; for the CLEERE Study Group.Time Outdoors, Visual Activity, and Myopia Progression in Juvenile-Onset Myopes. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2012 Oct 15;53(11):7169-7175.
New study supports orthokeratology for myopia control and for astigmatism correction
The Faculty of Health and Social Sciences at Hong Kong's Polytechnic University issued a press release today on the results from two studies on orthokeratology. One, called the "ROMIO" study (Retardation of Myopia in Orthokeratology), was a single blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial on the effectiveness of orthokeratology for myopia control. The other, called the "TO SEE" study ((Toric Orthokeratology-Slowing Eyeball Elongation), looked at the effectiveness of orthokeratology for astigmatism correction.
Brief description of orthokeratology
Patients who wish to receive an orthokeratology treatment must undergo a comprehensive oculo-visual exam and specific measures of the shape of their eyes to see if they are good candidates for the treatment. Using computer software, the optometrist is able to design special contact lenses adapted to the shape of the eyes of each candidate. These contact lenses are rigid gas permeable lenses and are made from high oxygen content materials, which can be worn during sleep. The aim is to reshape the cornea in order to obtain perfect vision the next day without having to wear glasses or contact lenses.
Orthokeratology is the only non-surgical treatment that allows you to be free of corrective lenses like eye-glasses and contact lenses. For cons, the treatment must be continuous.
Progression of myopia
Myopia and its progression is a serious problem. Not only does it cause a gradual decrease in the uncorrected vision, but it ensures that the individual needs thicker and thicker and more expensive glasses. In addition, severe myopia increases the risk of retinal tear.
After 24 months of research, the ROMIO study found that the increase in eyeball length (also called "axial length" — the progression of myopia is measured by observing the elongation of the eyeball) in a group of subjects that were treated with orthokeratology was 0.36mm. In the group that was not treated with orthokeratology and only wore spectacles, the eyeball length was 0.63mm longer. The results indicate that orthokeratology slowed down the progression of myopia by 43%.
Researchers at the same university also concluded the "TO-SEE" (Toric Orthokeratology-Slowing Eyeball Elongation) study which looked at 37 children aged 6 to 12 years to study the potential of orthokeratology for the reduction of astigmatism. The team found that toric design orthokeratology lens retainers effectively reduced astigmatism by 79% after one month of wear. At the end of 24 months, the eyeball length of the participants was 0.31mm which indicated that myopia was also being controlled.
Orthokeratology is a reversible treatment and can be stopped anytime. The results of these two studies show that orthokeratology is a safe and effective solution for refractive error correction, myopic control and astigmatism reduction.
Myopia, Myopia progression, Optometry, orthokeratology, Vision
Myopia (3)
Previously, we said that when we correct myopia regardless of near vision (see image below), one will use an inadequate corrective power (too strong) while reading if the child reads with his glasses. The visual system is highly adaptable, and additional myopia will be created initially at near, and then will appear at far vision. If we increase simply the correcting glasses, a vicious circle sets and myopia progresses over time … This also applies to some adults whose myopia progresses.
But if we respect the balance that exists between distance and near vision, there will be less effort when focusing and there will be less chance of progression. Unfortunately, this option will not always prevent some children to progress.
When bifocals are necessary, they may incorporate either a small round bifocal that does not show much or we can design a special glass with two zones (far vision at the top and reading at the bottom) and the transition between both areas is invisible. Aesthetic is no longer an obstacle to an adequate correction for children.
Child glasses with a small circular bifocal.
Invisible bifocal suitable for children
I do not really like to use a progressive lens in the case of young myopic children. While glasses with two zones can be adjusted to prevent reading with the upper zone, you never know which area of the progressive lens will be used for reading. If the child leans his head too much, he no longer uses the reading portion essential for the proper control of myopia. The small hallway in the near vision portion of progressives will require the child to move the head and not your eyes. The more we obstruct peripheral vision, to more visual stress we cause.
Progressive lens with narrow reading area
See : http://www.myopiaprevention.org/references_environment.html
Wearing contact lenses
One day or another, many nearsighted young myopic teenagers will want to wear contact lenses for sports or simply to get rid of their glasses…
Regular contact lenses correct only the far vision as glasses that contain only the myopic power, unless they are multifocal. Regular lens wear creates the same situation as to wear glasses for distance vision only: if used for reading, writing and computer for prolonged periods, we may see a more rapid progress of myopia.
So, wearing regular contact lenses should be limited to outdoor and sports wear. As there are many reading and writing activities at school, wearing these contact lenses is not recommended.
Some studies have shown that there is a more rapid myopic progression with contact lenses that correct distance vision only than glasses to see far.
The results found in this study show a definite trend towards poorer accommodative (focusing) and vergence (alignment) function with the use of contact lenses in comparison to glasses. This downward trend is possibly creating a lag in accommodation to reduce associated overconvergence. The higher accommodative lags found in this study with single vision contact lenses indicate that prolonged use of these lenses in near tasks may provoke a continuous hyperopic retinal defocus, a risk factor for the onset and progression of myopia, as indicated in numerous studies.
Jiménez R, Martínez-Almeida L, Salas C, Ortíz C. Contact lenses vs spectacles in myopes: is there any difference in accommodative and binocular function? Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2011 Jun;249(6):925-35.
Alternatives?
Before the availability of multifocal contact lenses (which contain both a correction for distance and near vision), a young myope who wanted to wear contact lenses often had to wear reading glasses (spectacles) for near vision in order to counter the effect of the power of his myopic lenses, or remove the contact lenses.
Today, there are multifocal contact lenses specially adapted for young myopes. Here's an example:
Contact lenses for young myopes: distance vision is at the center of the lens and reading vision lies in the periphery. Example of a contact lens Proclear EP (from Cooper Vision). There are now several other designs.
Bifocal contact lenses are worn during the day and removed at night. They give clear vision for objects far away and objects nearby. Generally they are worn every day although occasionally a day without the lenses will not adversely affect the treatment. The lenses are worn as long as myopia progression is considered a risk.
Bifocal contact lenses have been shown to slow the progression of myopia. The reason they apparently work is not that they reduce the reading effort, which they do, but rather that they create a ring of increased power surrounding central vision that the eye interprets as a "stop signal" for further growth thus reducing the progression.
New studies about bifocal contact lenses in children
There have not been many published studies of soft bifocal contacts being used for myopia control, but the Aller and Wildsoet study showed an 87% reduction in myopia progression for the first year.
Another example of bifocals with alternating zones for distance vision and near vision.Insight® lens (from Cooper Vision)
Dr John Phillips of the University of Auckland, New Zealand described a dual-focus soft lens with a central correction zone and concentric treatment zones. The lens reduced myopic progression by 37 per cent over 20 months in children aged 11-14 years compared with a standard contact lens. Half of those wearing the lens had their myopia progression slowed by 50 per cent or more, but the effect might be up to 80 per cent in future if combined with medication.
Anstice NS, Phillips JR. Effect of dual-focus soft contact lens wear on axial myopia progression in children. Ophthalmology. 2011 Jun;118(6):1152-61.
Professor Earl Smith of the University of Houston said that myopia control lenses needed to be fitted at an early stage and to very young children.
"In the very near future we'll be using contact lenses to guide eye growth," he said. "The principle could be applied to all corrections and might also work for hyperopic eyes. "
Earl Smith, III OD, PhD (Optometry & Vision Science September 2011 – Volume 88 – Issue 9 – pp 1029-1044
Each of these studies is for one year. Other non-contact lens methods have been found to have less effect after the first year and so it remains to be seen if the contact lens effect is multi-year.
This study has altered our thinking with regard to myopia development and effective treatments to reduce progression. Through extensive research Dr. Smith found that peripheral defocus triggers growth of the eye in a way that leads to an increase of myopia. The signals for this growth are in the peripheral retina. This axial elongation of the eye increases myopia and promotes myopia progression.
For other info or references on bifocal lenses and myopia:
http://www.myopiaprevention.org/bifocal_contacts.html
http://www.myopiaprevention.org/references_contact_lenses.html
Ortho-K (short for orthokeratology) is a process of gently reshaping the front surface of the eye (in fact, the cornea) to give a clear and comfortable vision. Indeed, the corneal tissue is very malleable and by a slight pressure due to the contact lens, we can change the curvature of the central cornea. This is a non-surgical procedure using specially designed customized contact lenses that are worn only at night and removed when awakening.
The result is a clear vision all day without lens wear during the day and without glasses. The lenses are inserted in the eyes every night since the procedure is not permanent (such as laser treatment), making this therapy safer for children. When the lenses are removed from the eye for a few weeks, the curvature of the cornea slowly returns to its original shape and myopia also returns after several days or weeks, to its initial pre-fitting parameters.
There are many designs of OK lenses but they are mostly equivalent, and all have the goal of reducing myopia overnight by changing the central curvature of the cornea. Orthokeratology is a great way to slow the progression of myopia (see www.myopiaprevention.org).
Children are excellent candidates for orthokeratology because they are motivated, quick to learn how to care for the lenses and respond quickly to the treatment. Ortho-K lenses are also great for kids who participate in sports activities, because they do not have to worry about losing their contact lenses while they are active.
It is a safe alternative to LASIK or other refractive surgery procedures that are not even available for children.
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthokeratology
Source : http://www.orthokdoctors.com/what_is_orthokeratology.html
Orthokeratology lens worn on the eye (coloring has been added)
Learning problems and vision, Myopia, Myopia progression, Optometry, Vision
What we must understand
Even if myopia cause blurred vision at distance (at far), we know that the origin of the problem comes from using our eyes at near. And often we need to correct the near vision to try to solve the problem.
What can be done? Can we prevent this condition?
We consider that the refraction state "normal" when a child's shows a light farsightedness (or hyperopia) which protects against myopia, by acting as a "shock absorber». With time, we can note in the visual examination that some children decrease their farsightedness towards emmetropia (meaning that the child is neither farsighted nor nearsighted). When the child is emmetrope, there is only a slight step to become myopic. And this step sometimes happens very fast.
This is what happens:
Pre-myopia
When we realize that the farsightedness is disappearing, it is necessary to begin to correct the near vision before appears myopia.
We favor bifocal lenses so that the child can see at far and at close without removing his glasses constantly. It is also possible to consider reading glasses only. These lenses are adapted to the near vision: they decrease the tension of how the eyes center and improve the functioning of the focusing system of the eyes.
When the child becomes nearsighted
Even with a little degree of nearsightedness, far vision is significantly reduced.
A complete visual examination will allow us to estimate if we have to correct the near vision and if we have to correct only a portion of the myopia present.
An option, which we unfortunately see too often, is the sole correction of myopia, without taking in consideration the near vision. This last option is the one that can cause most disadvantages. Indeed (see the figure which follows), if we simply correct the myopia, the child will see more clear at far but will be reading through a power of myopia which is not needed for reading.
Thus, the myopia will tend to increase ceaselessly. Sometimes, we see children who double the quantity of their myopia every year!
Peripheral defocus
From 0 to 6 years old, the eyes, like the rest of our body, will grow and all parts of the eye are involved and thus, in the retina, the eye should always receive a clear picture. This growth is called emmetropization and should end around the age of 6 years. This process attempts to eliminate nearsightedness or excessive farsightedness in children.
It seems that in some children, emmetropization does not stop. This creates a defocus (or blurring) called "hyperopic defocus" in the region of the peripheral retina, thus the periphery of the retina sends a chemical message (via modulators) which will aim to restore the focus by changing the refractive power or size of various parts of the eye… resulting in myopisation. The problem would be that focusing of the central retina and the retina in the periphery is not simultaneous.
This is the same process that is triggered when one corrects myopia regardless of near vision (middle image). Visual acuity is restored but the peripheral defocus persists when the child uses his near vision. Hence the possible increase in myopia over time. A correction that takes into account both distance vision and near vision (right image) is much more appropriate.
Studies show that prescribing single vision glasses (for distance vision only) that are used when reading is the option that causes the greatest increase in myopia. For example:
"Previous investigators have suggested that peripheral hyperopic defocus may play a role in the development and progression of myopia. We have shown that SVLs used to correct myopia can result in increased hyperopic defocus at the peripheral retina in the eyes of Chinese children. The magnitude of this increase tends to escalate with increasing refractive error and eccentricity, especially in cases with moderate levels of myopia."
Lin Z, Martinez A, Chen X, Li L, Sankaridurg P, Holden BA, , Ge J. Peripheral defocus with single-vision spectacle lenses in myopic children. Optom Vis Sci. 2010 Jan;87(1):4-9.
KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT MYOPIA (NEARSIGHTEDNESS)
Myopia in children and adults is a complex subject, both by its origin and by its evolution. We will try to clear up all the notions which relate to myopia.
Simplistic explanation:
In a simplistic way, in a nearsighted eye, rays of light are going to focus in front of the retina, which causes blurred vision at distance (far away).
When we correct myopia with concave or myopic lenses (also called "minus" lenses), rays of light are going to focus in the plane of the retina and the vision is clear. But this is that a simplistic explanation. In fact, a new study finds that myopia develops in children when the crystalline lens stops adapting to the eye's continued growth, according researchers at The Ohio State University College of Optometry:
The crystalline lens stopped thinning, flattening, and losing power within ±1 year of onset in children who became myopic compared with those who did not become myopes. Myopia onset is characterized by an abrupt loss of compensatory changes in the crystalline lens that continue in emmetropes (non myopes) throughout childhood axial elongation. The mechanism responsible for this decoupling remains speculative but might include restricted equatorial growth from internal mechanical factors.
Mutti DO, Mitchell GL, Sinnott LT, et al. Corneal and crystalline lens dimensions before and after myopia onset. Optom Vis Sci. 2012 March;89(3):251-62
Why Myopia?
There are two theories: the genetic theory and the environmental theory.
Genetic theory
The genetic theory asserts that people become nearsighted because it is registered in their genes and that there is no relationship between nearsightedness and the use of the eyes… The familial incidence, according to this theory, persuades that children who have nearsighted relatives (father and mother) will have no other choice than to become, them too, nearsighted.
Environmental theory
The environmental theory asserts that besides children that are born nearsighted (often they show a very important nearsightedness), nearsightedness is a possible adaptation to "visual stress": schooling, long hours to read, write and draw, long hours at a computer, at video games, reading and writing, too short reading, writing and computer distance, body posture while reading, etc.
Several scientific studies show that when we compare two populations presenting homogeneous genetic characteristics (Amerindians, Inuit), the proportion of schooled people who become myopic is significantly more. Optometrists qualify this myopia as "school, stress-related or work-related myopia". We can even assert that today, children become nearsighted younger and show a progression of their myopia that is more rapid than even twenty years ago! So, it is not surprising that the best readers are often myopic.
Today, adults can also become myopic further to a new and important use of the eyes (working in front of a computer is a good example). We qualify this kind of nearsightedness as "late-onset adult myopia". At the beginning of the century, it was said that the condition would stop progressing with puberty… but this is true but not «really» true. People at the time would stop going to school at a much younger age than today, stop reading and go work hard with their hands. With all the visual requirements our eyes have to face, it often happens that myopia does not stop progressing. It is then necessary to act upon it.
Morgan & Rose, in 2005, discussed the relative importance of genetics versus environmental induced myopia:
A small proportion of myopia is clearly familial, generally early in onset and of high level, with defined chromosomal localisations and in some cases, causal genetic mutations. However, in economically developed societies, most myopia appears during childhood, particularly during the school years. In addition, high heritability sets no limit to the potential for environmentally induced change. There is in fact strong evidence for rapid, environmentally induced change in the prevalence of myopia, associated with increased education and urbanisation. Environmental change appears to be the major factor increasing the prevalence of myopia around the world.
Morgan I, Rose K. How genetic is school myopia? Prog Retin Eye Res. 2005 Jan;24(1):1-38.
This should not convey the idea that the only correction possible are glasses or contact lenses to see at far and that there is nothing we can try to warn or control the progression of myopia. This is not really true.
Myopia, Myopia progression, Vision
Concussion in Kids: Less-Recognized Visual Changes
More evidence that outdoor time may help prevent nearsightedness
Concussions and Vision – 2
Children, adults and mTBI (mild traumatic brain injury) – 1
Concussions and vision
Harmon distance
Learning problems and vision
Reading problems and vision
TBI and vision
Traumatic brain injury and vision
Canadian Optometrists in Vision Therapy & Rehabilitation
Clinique d'optométrie Centre-Sud (Dr. Jean-Pierre Lagacé, optometrist)
College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD)
The Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association, International, (NORA)
The VisionHelp Blog
Visual perception
Playing outside


It was a privilege to design the corporate identity and offer creative direction for Handmade by Toby. Toby van Reenen is a South African entrepreneur and creates bespoke wooden serving boards. The brief was to create a fresh and modern brand that enhances the desirability of the product as a luxury homeware item.


Hello I'm Mike, an independent web developer from Australia. I've worked on some of Australia's largest websites as well as some of the smallest community sites. When I'm not building sites or blogging I like to experiment with code. I love learning new things and finding techniques that challenge what we think is best practice. When I'm not exploring the digital landscape I like to explore the world. Currently trying to find a way to do both those things at the same time.


Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, a Republican, is likely to survive a recall election on June 5, according to recent nonpartisan polls of the state.
Mr. Walker leads his Democratic opponent, Mayor Tom Barrett of Milwaukee, by an average of six percentage points in those polls and has not trailed in any poll since February.
Some polls issued by Democratic-affiliated groups have shown a somewhat tighter race, with Mr. Barrett trailing by about three percentage points instead. Partisan-affiliated polls have a long track record of somewhat exaggerating their candidate's standing, however, and it may be telling that even these polls do not show Mr. Barrett ahead.
In a typical November election, a 6-point lead with two weeks to go would translate into a high probability of winning — roughly on the order of 90 percent, based on the historical accuracy of polls of governors' races.
The dynamics of a recall election may be slightly more uncertain. But with high turnout expected, which tends to make polling more reliable, Mr. Barrett would most likely need a last-minute change in momentum to have much of a chance of prevailing.
Mr. Walker's approval rating was poor at this time last year, after he stripped collective bargaining rights from most of the state's public workers. In May 2011, his job approval rating averaged 42 percent across different polls, versus an average disapproval rating of 55 percent.
In an average of polls conducted so far this May, however, Mr. Walker's approval rating averages 50 percent, with 46 percent disapproving.
If Mr. Walker's approval-disapproval ratings were even, he might be a favorite to win the recall election because some voters who are on the fence might nevertheless object to the idea of removing a governor from office in midterm. Since his approval rating now appears to exceed his disapproval rating by a couple of points, that should give him a clearer advantage.
But why has Mr. Walker's approval rating improved?
The most obvious reason might be that Wisconsin's economic climate has improved. The statistics on that are mixed, however.
On the bright side for Mr. Walker, Wisconsin's unemployment rate is 6.7 percent, lower than the national average of 8.1 percent, and it has improved since Mr. Walker took office in January 2011, when it was 7.7 percent.
The 1-point decline in state unemployment parallels a 1-point decline in the national unemployment rate, to 8.1 percent from 9.1 percent, over the same time frame.
An alternate measure of the job market is to look at the number of jobs or employed persons, rather than the unemployment rate. According to the Labor Department's household survey, the number of employed people in Wisconsin has increased to 2.86 million from 2.83 million when Mr. Walker took office, an improvement of about 1 percent.
On the other hand, the Labor Department's establishment survey, which measures the number of payroll jobs and is sometimes considered more reliable by economists, shows a slight decline in the number of jobs in Wisconsin. That survey lists 2.73 million payroll jobs in Wisconsin in April, versus 2.74 in January 2011, a decline of about 0.5 percent.
By contrast, the number of payroll jobs in the United States as a whole grew to 132.99 million from 130.46 million over the same period, an increase of 1.9 percent.
Broader measures of economic activity in Wisconsin, like the leading index and the coincident index, also slow more sluggish growth in Wisconsin than in the nation as a whole, and forecast somewhat less growth going forward.
However, the mixed data gives Mr. Walker an argument to make, and he has had a lot more money to make it. Mr. Walker has had a substantial edge in fund-raising, having raised about $25 million since becoming governor, about 60 percent of it from groups and individuals outside the state.
Although labor unions from inside and outside Wisconsin have also devoted substantial money toward the recall effort, Mr. Barrett's campaign itself has relatively little money, in part because he faced a contentious primary in which cash and support was split between several candidates. As of May 7, Mr. Barrett had raised only about $1.1 million.
A recent poll from Marquette University found that more Wisconsin residents believe the state has lost jobs than added them over the past year. But there is some optimism about Wisconsin's economic future; 45 percent of residents expect the state's sconomy to get better over the next year, against 12 percent who expect it to get worse. Those numbers were closer to even in surveys a year ago.
Meanwhile, the collective bargaining issue that inspired the recall effort seems to have faded from memory and does not appear to be much of a burden for Mr. Walker. According to the Marquette poll, 50 percent of Wisconsin residents prefer the law as it is now under Mr. Walker, while 43 percent would prefer the old one.
Mr. Barrett has de-emphasized the collective bargaining issue, instead running a more traditional gubernatorial campaign.
Generally, however, it is difficult to oust an incumbent governor from office. They win about 80 percent of the time when they decide to run for another term and it usually requires some sort of special circumstance to beat them.
Mr. Barrett does not appear as though he'll have quite enough of a case.
Instead, Wisconsin seems to have reverted to the mean in which elections there are normally close. But Mr. Walker's fund-raising advantage and his status as the incumbent, coupled with swing voters' being uncomfortable with the idea of a recall, will likely be enough to push him over the top.
Such a result will undoubtedly be disheartening to Democrats, although they should remember that an embattled incumbent of their own, President Obama, will be running for re-election in a similarly divided electorate with similarly mixed economic data.


text:
It's all about working together better - KLM
Air Transport IT Review > Case studies
Contact us Share Print
"I've already learned that a company like KLM, which is 95 years old, can have a great history and a track record of innovation but there's still the need for a transformation office as the pace of change picks up, both in the industry and in our modern lives."
Jappe Blaauw, KLM Chief Transformation Officer, and President of the SITA Council
Why create a Chief Transformation Officer role?
The world is changing faster than ever. For long established companies, being agile enough to tackle rapidly evolving airline and IT market dynamics is a major challenge.
To address these dynamics, at KLM we decided to undertake a big transformation as a company, to create a more agile organization and work together better across different divisions.
Our transformation office is focused on breaking down barriers – to make sure we remove any silos in the organization. We are a light and tight team, as we want to avoid the risk of creating another silo.
Our goal is to look for ways to transform KLM internally, in areas where we believe it's necessary to improve efficiencies and services to our customers. Of course, we take outside views on board too, to see what dynamics in the marketplace we should address in our organization.
Is this broader than your previous CIO role?
Yes. I'm fully focused on KLM's transformation, and it's much broader than IT. It's about working together better as a company, de-layering the organization, making us highly responsive to customer requirements, and achieving operational excellence.
So is IT a critical part of the transformation?
I made a statement when I was KLM's CIO that, next to people, IT is a crucial area where we can make a difference in terms of creating more efficiencies and proximity to the customer.
The dynamics around IT in the airline industry are huge, not just because of the speed of IT development, but also because technology is integral to our daily lives as customers and as people.
That determines how we interact with customers flying with KLM. It means we need to make a connection between people's personal lives and expectations, and the services we offer to customers as an airline.
The people in the B2B parts of our business are increasingly influenced by technology as well. So, yes, IT is crucial to transformation and this is certainly the case at KLM, where it's driven at Board level.
Integral to our daily lives
The dynamics around IT in the airline industry are huge,
not just because of the speed of IT development, but also
because technology is integral to our daily lives as customers
and as people.
Jappe Blaauw, Chief Transformation Officer, KLM
What are your priorities?
We've made a start on those major projects that will make a big difference at KLM, such as taking away hierarchical layers. We want a closer link between our front line staff (and the issues they deal with), and other parts of the company.
It involves creating a mind shift where it's clearly understood that the more we empower front line staff, the better we can take care of our customers, and the more we will make a difference.
We're very aware that some projects will take a year, others maybe three years, and that six months down the road we could be looking at the next wave of projects that will make a difference.
IT comes into the equation, with mobility high on the agenda because you have to provide the right tools and information for staff to take responsibility, make decisions and put actions into motion, even better than is the case today.
This 'digitization' is a big step and will extend across the company, so we can help our customers better whether we're on board in the cockpit or cabin, or on the ground at the airport.
Look at our European network, KLM City Hopper. On board we're completely digitized. Both cockpit and cabin are equipped with iPads, removing paper from the plane and giving staff access to the information they need to take action. This is fundamental to KLM's transformation.
Our priorities include examining the value chain for customers and understanding how to best optimize processes there. Again, it means working across the organization. You need staff to be constantly in touch and informed, and you need the same information to flow through the whole value chain.
So that means better mobility, intelligence and analytics?
Absolutely, and not just for front line staff. If you think about our ground engineers, we want to empower them to be in the hangar taking care of our aircraft. We call that 'keeping their hands on the metal'.
Mobility does that. We don't want our engineers to have to go back and forth to an office PC to enter or find information. Intelligence and data analytics come into play because they allow you to understand what you might expect of your passengers, how they will travel, and how we can optimize passenger flow.
How are you encouraging collaboration and innovation?
First by investing more in collaborative tools within KLM, so that we capitalize on knowledge we already have. We need to make sure people don't keep information in silos, because customers couldn't care less about silos. They just want to fly and to be served well at the various touch points along the way.
So all of us must collaborate across divisions – whether we're cabin crew, ground handlers or IT guys – to serve the same customer and have the same perspective on our customers through the whole process.
As for innovation, much of that will come from working together and optimizing processes. Added to that, we have a big history in IT of working collaboratively with external companies, giving us fresh insights and enabling us to ramp up teams quickly for new developments.
We've worked with several companies in the area of mobile for instance, because of its major importance. It would be impossible for a company like KLM to take on such momentous developments by itself.
We collaborate with other stakeholders too, such as airports and air traffic control. I see even more collaboration and innovation in the future.
What are the main lessons you've learned?
I've already learned that a company like KLM, which is 95 years old, can have a great history and a track record of innovation but there's still the need for a transformation office as the pace of change picks up, both in the industry and in our modern lives.
We've been very innovative in areas such as check in, digitized aircraft, social media, transatlantic joint ventures and much more. But we've now entered a phase where we must work together more closely across teams for our company to better serve customers and reach good decisions more quickly.
We face a big challenge but we'll get there, and I'm sure I will learn more as we progress.
Switching to your role on the SITA Council, what would you say is the Council's main advantage?
The main advantage of the SITA Council is that you have customers at the executive level of SITA and they're working with the company to help steer it strategically.
I think that's of high value because Council Representatives act with the SITA Board and senior management to identify and address challenges that face the air transport community.
SITA is a growing company, delivering great products for different parties in the air transport community. It's beneficial to have customers close by to help make sure that SITA is still delivering a good product for the community. That's a real asset.
SITA's community role is one reason we have the SITA Council. We represent the industry and we also look out for the best interests of SITA, knowing that if SITA is providing the right portfolio then we as a total industry will profit from that.
Community role
SITA's community role is one reason we have the SITA Council.
We represent the industry and we also look out for the best
interests of SITA, knowing that if SITA is providing the right
portfolio then we as a total industry will profit from that.
Jappe Blaauw, President, SITA Council
What's the main benefit of this role?
I think SITA's community role allows it to stay in close and constant touch with the air transport community's real requirements. If that were to change, we would lose an important asset, and SITA would be just another normal IT provider.
SITA's governance structure enables this focus on the air transport community. The way that the Council, as a body representing the air transport community, works with the SITA Board and senior management is unique. It differentiates SITA.
What's interesting is that in an industry where we see fierce competition, we also see cooperation through SITA for the greater good of the community. SITA Council Representatives, as airline or airport IT professionals, are often competitors with one another in their 'daily lives'.
So to have a forum where fiercely competitive air transport industry players are all looking all in the same direction is inspiring. You don't see anything like the SITA Council elsewhere in the industry.
SITA has 'community value' in its corporate objectives … what's your opinion of that?
It's very important. We know from experience that there are areas such as communications and infrastructure where making an investment is of no interest to an airline. But investment is very much needed for the industry to benefit and this is where SITA steps in and provides value.
SITA's infrastructure is the community's backbone and it goes to the end of airlines' networks, which is extremely important.
This relates to SITA's original community remit to share communications resources and investments, and to remain neutral, which are still of value today. As an industry we would miss those capabilities without SITA.
There are a lot of areas where standards are required, where there's no need for competitive difference and where shared services and community approaches make sense.
SITA offers community value here as well – enabling airlines and airports to buy collectively. And often, by making some products almost the standard, SITA is contributing to the dynamics of the market.
If you talk with any SITA Council Representatives, they'll say this is what people expect of SITA. We need to be sure investment continues.
Good examples of investing for the community are the major programs in customer service excellence through SITA Global Services; and the new agreement with Orange Business Services and regional providers to offer new levels of connectivity for airlines and their industry partners.
We have to continue with such programs because that really is SITA's position in the market, where we can develop a healthy business and serve all customers across the community.
To be just another competitor alongside other providers is not SITA's marketplace. At the same time, however, the commercial part of SITA must also continue to invest to make the difference for our customers. I think SITA is well positioned to do that, and it's an interesting balance.
Given the emphasis on community value, what's your view of the new SITA Air Transport Community Foundation?
I am proud of the proactive role the SITA Council has played in the development and creation of the Foundation.
It's a great example of providing value because the Foundation will work with charities to deliver technology and educational programs to communities in need, with an initial focus in Africa.
I believe this is an important role and a great opportunity for SITA, and its 430 member organizations, to provide value to the community by sharing our resource and expertise.
What do you think the Council's focus will be next year?
Well after the SITA Annual General Assembly in June, if the proposed refinements to SITA's governance are voted for, we will see further enhancement to the Council's ability to represent the air transport community.
The Council has played a key part in making recommendations for that to happen and our involvement underlines the importance and keenness of SITA members in steering the organization forwards. After June, we will then be focusing on the next steps for SITA in delivering value to the community.
Subscribe to the Air Transport IT Review
Our offices | Archive | Visit corporate website
© 2020 | SITA services and Web privacy statement | Liability disclaimer | Copyright & trademarks

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Albany, NY is a vibrant community full fun things to do and great businesses. Learn more about this historic city. Searching for more information about parking in Downtown Albany? A detailed history of Albany? Information on local colleges & universities? Business & Community resources? You have come to the right place to Discover Albany!


Asalta Inventory Management system manages your inventory and check stock levels in real-time and makes inventory management easier and more efficient. Take control of inventory health and scale your business with confidence.
Easily add, edit, and remove products Create multiple product sizes, colors or any variations you need No matter what types of products or services you sell. You can track product details like color, size, design and more, and sell items in a bundle or combination.
Create and edit purchase orders. Items can be added on a purchase order via barcode scanners Email purchase orders to your suppliers directly from Asalta Inventory system.
Once you have received all your goods, change the status to 'Received'. The received state indicates that all goods have been received, your stock levels are automatically updated, and you can record the payment made the supplier one every purchases made.
Generate the barcode within the store interface, print it and stick, or scan the existing barcode which the manufacturer printed, and add the UPC to database easily. Scan the barcode label to find the product and add it to cart, or update inventory, or modify the product properties.
Sales module gives you quick access to various aspects of this system related to Quote, Purchase orders and Invoices by which you can keep a trace on sales activity.
Stock Management helps you to track individual items from purchase to sale and keep control of the company's stocks. This module gives you quick links to various aspects of Inventory Manager related to your product list, prices, current inventory levels, Count Stock, Transferred stock, Adjust stock and New Product.
Creating consignees are made easy Asalta Inventory, it's as easy as clicking a button and filling out the fields in this little screen. You can specify the default commission rate for particular Consignees.
When it's time to pay by your consignors, Asalta Inventory has some nifty tools which help you track the pay, how much should they pay and who should pay you, It will even help track the reports for your consignors. We just want to make your life easier.
On sales orders, you can specify the location you wish to send goods from. The stock from that location will automatically decrease when the sales order is fulfilled.Select a warehouse or stock location and check its stock on hand, committed stock.
Asalta Inventory seamlessly integrates with accounting software, payroll software system, Procurement, POS and many more.


text:
By Dan Brosgol
Israel Sports Update: Maccabi Tel Aviv on ESPN3 and Maccabi Haifa Sinking Fast
Maccabi Tel Aviv on ESPN3 As they continue their quest to win back-to-back Euroleague titles, Israeli basketball powerhouse Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv has begun Euroleague Top 16 play in recent weeks. After qualifying for this third-to-last stage in the competition, they will play 14 games from ...
January 12, 2015 Edit 0 0
Maccabi Tel Aviv on ESPN3
As they continue their quest to win back-to-back Euroleague titles, Israeli basketball powerhouse Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv has begun Euroleague Top 16 play in recent weeks. After qualifying for this third-to-last stage in the competition, they will play 14 games from now until April, aiming to make the top 8 for the early-April playoff round, which will feature home-and-home contests between the remaining teams. The winner of that penultimate stage will advance to the Euroleague Final Four in Madrid from May 15-17.
The best part about this year's run-up to Madrid is that ESPN3, which you can watch online or via the WatchESPN app, is broadcasting most, if not all, of the games as the teams work their way through the qualifying process for the playoffs.
Euroleague has up-tempo and entertaining basketball, and almost no TV timeouts, so it's a nice change of pace from interminably long NBA games. Maccabi, as usual, sits at the top of the Israeli league standings, and in Euroleague Top 16 play, and after losing their first game in Top 16 play against PAOK Athens by a 83-76 score, they won their next one against Crvena Zvezda (Belgrade) 78-67.
This month on ESPN3 you can catch Maccabi Tel Aviv's playing Barcelona on January 15 at 2:05 pm, Zalgiris Kaunas (Lithuania) on January 23 at 12:45 pm, and Real Madrid on January 29 at 2:05 pm. Full the full broadcast schedule, click here.
A Double Defeat for Maccabi Haifa
In the only Sunday soccer match on the Ligat Ha'Al calendar, Maccabi Haifa hosted Maccabi Tel Aviv at the Sammy Ofer Stadium with an eye towards pulling an upset over the 2nd place visitors. It was not meant to be. Eran Zahavi's 78th minute penalty have the guests a 1:0 victory and kept Tel Aviv just one point behind HaPoel Kiryat Shmonah at the top of the standings. After scoring a goal in an astonishing 17 straight games, Zahavi was held scoreless in the two games leading up to Sunday's clash, but his goal from the penalty sport gave him his 18th goals in Tel Aviv's 17 matches thus far this season.
To say that the two teams are heading in opposite directions would be a fair assessment. Tel Aviv has claimed 13 points from their 4-0-1 record over their last five games, while Haifa has grabbed a mere 2 points from their 0-3-2 record over the same span. The Haifa'im have slipped from 4th place to 8th place since December 22, but even worse, have fallen behind their crosstown rivals HaPoel Haifa on the league table.
Dan Brosgol
I work, write, coach and volunteer my time, all while loving my five kids and trying to run every day.
Parents in Prozdor: The Best Day of the Year
Teens usually under-report to their parents about the things they do in school and at Prozdor. Every year, Parents in Prozdor gives their parents an authentic look as to what actually goes on each Sunday. For me, it's the highlight of every year.
The Rooting Interest: A Historic Double For Beer Sheva
The Power of Not Doing Nothing: Sukkot 5777
Shana Tovah: Three Beers for 5777
The Rooting Interest: Milan Has Fallen
The Rooting Interest: Champions League Matchday 1 Edition
Nir Bitton played three games in eight days for Israel and for Celtic. It was quite a football frenzy for one of Israel's finest players, which unfortunately ended with a 7:0 defeat in Barcelona last night.
A Bar Mitzvah in Israel: Our Story
Jewish Teen Foundation of Greater Boston: Apply Now
The Rooting Interest: Back-to-School Edition
Desert Foxes: Be'er Sheva Shocks Olympiacos in Champions League Qualifying
The Rooting Interest: Heat Wave Edition
Ghostbusters: Plenty to see here
Go east, young man: Eran Zahavi joins Guangzhou R & F
Singles: Peak Seattle
Dushez Catering: Letting You Be a Guest at Your Own Event
The Rooting Interest: An Icelandic Saga & An American Tragedy
Independence Day: A Look Back on the Eve of "Resurgence"
The Rooting Interest: On The Cusp Of Making History Edition
End of an Era: Goodbye Aroma, Hello Domino's?!


text:
Remembering Dan McDermott - Former Chapter Director, Sierra Club Ontario
Dan McDermott (May 6, 1947 - January 4, 2017)
Dan McDermott, Sierra Club Canada's Ontario Chapter Director for 13 years, passed away peacefully on January 4th 2017. It is wonderful to see his influential life mentioned in these posts, which have featured in the news recently with reflections and thoughts on Dan's life, what he dedicated it to, and his passing three weeks ago.
Summer with the WILD CHILDREN
Blog by Jenn Whittaker (with Tony Reddin)
Sierra Club's Wild Child PEI is sad to say that nature immersion visits have finished for the summer- over 30 visits to 15 child care centres in Charlottetown, Summerside and Montague! These were wonderful experiences for me and the centre workers to let children explore, run free and unleash their inner curiosity about the world around them.
Honouring Bob Hunter's Legacy-The Robert Hunter Memorial Lecture
Dan McDermott — April 14, 2016
John Bennett and I have shared a lot of experiences over our forty years of environmental collaboration. Our friendship with Bob Hunter was an important one for us both. We were pleased and honoured to be asked by the Hunter Family to give the year's lecture on Thursday April 14th at the University of Toronto.
100% Is Possible: Join the World to Rally for Global Climate Agreement
Diane Beckett — November 6, 2015
100% Possible is part of the Global Climate March, with hundreds of marches large and small in cities across Canada and around the world.
Sierra Advises Senior Officials on Rebuilding Canada's Environmental Leadership
If Canada is to re-establish itself as a global leader in environment and sustainability, a great deal will depend on the public servants who step up to implement the new government's policies.
An Audacious Plan for 24 Sussex Drive
By last night, the decision had been made. CBC carried the news that the PM and his family will move into Rideau Cottage, on the grounds of the Governor General's residence "until further notice."
The Day After the Election Was Even More Exciting for Sierra
We need our country to commit to deeper carbon cuts and a 100% renewable energy future, to build momentum toward a robust global agreement at the Paris summit.
The First Hundred Days: Ottawa Must Move (Even) Faster on Climate
Forty-one days from now, on November 30, the United Nations climate change summit convenes in Paris. It's a make-or-break meeting where...
#PledgeToVote
Election results matter. Pick an issue, any issue. Pick the topic that first brought you to the Sierra Club. Whatever you're most concerned about, the federal government probably has an impact, for good or for ill.
4 questions to ask candidates when they come knocking at your door
John Bennett — September 28, 2015
There's an election going on. But did you notice almost none of the candidates are talking about the environment? I have, but I can't say I'm surprised.


Well, 2012 has finally wound down. I scheduled a couple of posts for later this week and made a good deal of progress cleaning up the Recipe Index. Goals for 2013 include making this website more user-friendly, posting at least 2-3 times per week, and improving my food photography skills.
Best wishes for a health and happy 2013!


text:
Steampunk, Chap-hop and Professor Elemental - Music
Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction characterized by a lot of different elements, depending on what you're looking at.
With Robocop, it's ultraviolence, a future dripping with dystopia, urban sprawls with hordes of oppressed poor dominated by inhumanely rich CEO's, rabid consumerism and the harsh effects of technology on humanity's soul.
In the film Blade Runner, it's the bleeding edge between humanity and science against the dark vista of an acid rain-drenched megacity where technology is oppressive and humanity's future is as grim as it is gruesome.
Cyberpunk also conjures the image of a swaggering, gun-wielding, kung-fu capable ultrastylish superhero who rules the sprawl like a cybernetic ronin. Eyes glowing with digital targeters, his metal fist holds a monokatana that serves the highest bidder, but usually it's to fight the Man in the name of The Street.
So what if that guy rapped about his life?
The primary authors of cyberpunk, including Roger Zelazny, Michael Moorcock, William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, all work with cyberpunk in their own ways. Above all they displayed the effects of future shock on the culture of human civilization, future or present.
Steampunk is also about the interstitial subspace between humanity and technology, but in steampunk, technology is anachronistic, zany, and just plain works. My robot runs on steam. My time machine is propelled by ether. My pistol fires glass bullets, infused with small charges of life-killing electricity.
With steampunk, the science is more fantasy than fiction, but the end result is still the same. Human culture and civilization is affected. If a person invented a working steam computer based on the original design by Charles Babbage, what would happen to Victorian England? More importantly, what would happen to the way people live their lives?
Hip-hop is all about language. The musicians who work in the genre work with rhymes, metaphors, allegories and everything in the environment around them to create modern poetry containing euphemisms that has given us words and expressions even the most square members of the mainstream eventually wield: gat, bust a cap in yo' ass, ho, word, fo shizzle, the po-po, etc.
Referencing the culture and language of the era, chap-hop is rap from a whole new angle. Imagine a dis song composed by Captain Nemo from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea about the land dwellers that he hated so much, or if Sherlock Holmes composed a rhyme about his weekend.
With the language of the Victorian Era, and the fact that you suddenly can't rap about 40 oz. bottles of booze or 9mm pistols or crack, the familiar becomes exotic and hip-hop is changed for the awesome. Chap-hop is hip-hop, old-skool British-style, but with an emphasis on the most extreme upper-middle class caricatures you think of when you imagine posh English gentleman rhyming about scones, tea time or cricket.
Paul Alborough is Professor Elemental, a time-traveling British scientist who raps about his adventures using language you probably won't get the first time around. A lot of suburban white kids didn't understand everything N.W.A. was talking about, but the music rocked just the same.
Professor Elemental's brilliant single, "Fighting Trousers," is an Internet sensation with good reason. Aside from being a kick-ass song about getting ready to kick some ass (like a gentleman, of course) it's also a serious tune that eschews electric guitar, synthetic keyboards or modern samples for oboes, violins and brass instruments.
You can find Professor Elemental's album, The Indifference Engine, here.
Professor Elemental
How long have you been performing music?
I have been emceeing about ten years, but only the last five in my current guise. There's a very small market out there for a white, middle-class, happy UK rapper- but a rather more exciting one when you are a Steampunk mad professor with a monkey butler and fondness for sticking different wild animals together.
Where did chap-hop come from? Did you come up with it, or was it developed by another artist?
I have no idea where it came from. It just sort of arrived on hip-hop's doorstep one day, like an eccentric uncle who says he is just popping round for tea, but ends up moving into the attic.
How did you come up with the concept for Professor Elemental?
Mushrooms. A documentary on Vivian Stanshall. Tom Caruana's inspirational music. A night spent up a tree. The details are sketchy, but all of those ingredients were definitely involved.
In the video for "Fighting Trousers," it's amazing how you incorporate all of the factors you usually find in a dis song, but translate it all to a time period that comes across as visually striking because of it's authentic language, costumes and instrumentals. Where did you get the idea for such a cool music video?
I have to say, the concept of the video comes entirely from Moog, the director of both that and 'cup of brown joy'. Everything you see in that video was his idea. The man is a genius, A GENIUS I tell you! He can be found at www.peculiana.com.
What other chap-hop artists are worth mentioning?
Are there any others? I think it's just me. That isn't arrogance. I just don't think there are any more out there, apart from that fellow with the Ukeleyle and the moustache of course.
Mr. B the Gentleman Rhymer
We have a whole genre, all to ourselves.
I've noticed that in a lot of your songs, from "Splendid" to "Fighting Trousers," you make use of a lot of truly authentic British argot. What time period do you borrow your wordplay from?
Hang on, let me just go and look up what 'argot' means. Ah yes, 'the special language used by a particular group of people', I rather like that. I shall use argot more often now. 'Argot', the more you say it, the better it sounds.
Anyway. What were we talking about? Ah yes. Erm, well, I do have a fondness for old expressions that need a good airing. Things like 'codswallop' and 'fiddle sitcks' are ripe to be brought back into circulation- but generally the language I use on the tracks is the same that I use in every day conversation. Particularly when I am excited.
When you are incorporating the old-skool British slang into your songs, does the specific style of the language inspire you, or can putting it all together be a challenge, especially when you are dealing with some words and expressions that, let's face it, are not often used in modern English?
Ooh no, not a challenge, quite the opposite. The key to a good, memorable rhyme is using words and phrases that aren't over used. That's why an emcee like MF DOOM is so great, he has a superb voice and puts together phrases that you don't associate with each other. One of the things that I teach on my rap workshops is to never use the first rhyme word that comes into your head. And that's much easier if you are already using a quite distinctive voice or unusual slang.
I've noticed that the instrumentals in your music also seem authentic to the period. Is that the case? Was that intentional?
Again, I can't take any credit at all for the music- that's all the work of Producer Tom Caruana. His beats are incredible, both in the range and the originality of the stuff that he puts out. There's no one quite like him. Amazingly, he puts out lots of free projects too, you can find them at www.teasearecords.net.
Have you been approached by any directors or producers about starring in a Professor Elemental film or cable television series? The concept really is cool, and shows like Doctor Who and the recent Sherlock Holmes films have certainly proved to be popular.
Funny you should mention it, we are just working on a pilot now. The script is being written and we are aiming for shooting early next year… watch this space, or at least www.professorelemental.com for more details.
What's next for Professor Elemental?
Everything and anything. I have quit my day job so to concentrate on this full time- so next year I am touring the world (well, some of the nice bits of it anyway) and getting a brand new album out for the Summer. We are also working on a comic.. Which is a dream come true. My ambition is to be at least 50% fictional before the end of 2012.
Written by Jasen T. Davis at 10:07:00 AM
Labels: chap-hop, Hip-Hop, Music, Professor Elemental
lostsailors December 10, 2011 at 1:50 AM
Hey there! Heather sent this to me, I'm glad because I had a chance to look up Professor Elemental yet. Now I just went through all his videos on Youtube. Hilarious! It'll be cool when the comic and series come out.
It's funny you should mention Doctor Who, because after all the videos I was thinking how the Doctor is probably good friends with the Professor on some time stream!
Lionize - Music
Kottonmouth Kings - Music
Dave Ross and Holy Fuck, Part II - Comedy
Ozomatli - Music
Dave Ross and Holy Fuck, Part I - Comedy
Paperplanes - Music
Potluck - Music


text:
Il ponte di Turbigo sul Naviglio Grande (detto anche Ponte napoleonico di Turbigo o Ponte Napoleone sul Naviglio a Turbigo) è un ponte ad archi a via superiore della provincia di Milano, costruito a più riprese tra il 1606 e il 1889. Rivestì un'importanza strategica fondamentale durante la seconda campagna napoleonica in Italia, nel corso del Combattimento di Turbigo del 31 Maggio 1800 (Napoleone Bonaparte). Successivamente, durante la seconda guerra d'indipendenza italiana,  il 3 Giugno 1859 (Napoleone III e Vittorio Emanuele II), divenne un nodo strategico nel corso della battaglia di Turbigo, preludio della successiva battaglia di Magenta. Infine nelle ultime fasi della seconda guerra mondiale in Italia, fu ritenuto dai tedeschi un obiettivo strategico da far saltare durante la loro ritirata. In tutti i 3 casi sopracitati, il ponte fu minato, ma è comunque giunto, fortunosamente, in piena efficienza, fino ai nostri giorni ed è tuttora pienamente funzionante.

Storia

L'attuale ponte in pietra sul Naviglio Grande sostituì quello in legno dei primi anni del Seicento, quando tutti i ponti su questa grande via di comunicazione furono completamente rifatti per facilitare il passaggio delle barche che conducevano merci e vettovaglie a Milano. Poi, alla fine dell'Ottocento (1889), quando l'attuale via Roma divenne la strada provinciale Novara-Gallarate (poi diventata SS. 341 "Gallaratese" con la realizzazione della circonvallazione), fu facilitato il passaggio sul Naviglio Grande e l'ingegnere Paolo Tatti progettò l'allargamento dell'arcata, lato paese, del ponte anche per facilitare il passaggio delle barche sulla riva sinistra del Naviglio (un tempo l'alzaia utilizzata dai barconi era la destra). Nel 1987, durante i lavori di ampliamento della fognatura, oltre ad affiorare la strada sottostante al preesistente manto di copertura, ne è comparsa un'altra a più di un metro di profondità dell'attuale livello. Era la strada medievale che conduceva al porto di Turbigo sul Ticino, in quanto, fino al 1606 il ponte in pietra sul Naviglio non esisteva. Fino al quel tempo, i viandanti che volevano andare in Piemonte attraversavano il Naviglio a valle di qualche metro dall'attuale ponte, in corrispondenza del cancello ancora oggi esistente, su un ponte in legno. Con l'edificazione del ponte in pietra nel 1606 venne ristretta l'attuale via 3 giugno e con un terrapieno fu alzata la strada per raccordare le pile ed arrivare alla situazione attuale. Nel 1889, l'allora Sindaco del paese, come abbiamo detto, predispose un progetto di allargamento del ponte a seguito dell'aumentato numero di carrettieri, ma fu realizzata solamente una maggiore campata dell'arcata lato paese. L'ingegnere Tatti progettò le modifiche al ponte e ne pagò anche il costo. Da allora si succedettero una serie di iniziative per abbattere il ponte in pietra e costruirne un altro in cemento armato. L'ingegner Ettore Allemandi di Busto Arsizio ne predispose uno nel 1936. Il podestà fece pervenire il progetto di massima alla Provincia che invitò a costruire un nuovo ponte distante 1,5 metri dal vecchio, al fine di evitare la sospensione del traffico. Nel 1948, al fine di allargarlo, il sindaco Luigi Bianchini chiese all'Ufficio Tecnico della Provincia di demolire i due parapetti. La Provincia rispose negativamente perché "con il progetto della nuova variante stradale la strada con il ponte in pietra verrà abbandonata". Era già prevista la circonvallazione che sarebbe stata realizzata nel 1956. Una nuova fase riguardante il ponte sul Naviglio si aprì con la richiesta da parte dell'Enel del potenziamento della centrale termoelettrica. L'Amministrazione dell'epoca chiese in cambio della licenza edilizia la risoluzione del problema della strozzatura realizzata dal ponte secentesco in pietra. La prima proposta dell'Enel, della fine del 1967, fu quella dell'abbattimento e della costruzione di un altro ponte in cemento armato. Proposta che venne sostenuta anche nei mesi successivi fino a convincere l'Amministrazione. L'interessamento di alcuni cittadini evitò l'abbattimento, anzi le belle arti posero il vincolo di interesse storico per gli avvenimenti che videro protagonista il ponte nell'Ottocento. Si decise per il raddoppio e un ponte in cemento armato sarebbe stato costruito, a totale carico dell'Enel, affiancato, lato monte, a quello già esistente in pietra. Avrebbe avuto un andamento inclinato, quasi tangente agli archi esistenti in modo da non impattare con l'antica presenza. II Consiglio Comunale del 20 febbraio 1968 approvò il progetto di massima del nuovo ponte in cemento precompresso, nominando l'architetto Angelo Vittorio Mira Bonomi "assistente controllo lavori" in rappresentanza della Soprintendenza ai Monumenti della Lombardia.

Avvenimenti Storici
Diversi sono gli avvenimenti storici che videro il ponte di Turbigo  protagonista.

Su tutti i 2 episodi del 1800, protagonisti i Bonaparte:

 31 Maggio 1800, l'avanguardia francese dell'armata napoleonica, guidata dall'aiutante di campo, generale Jean-Baptiste Girard, conquistò e difese il ponte dai reiterati tentavi austriaci di riconquistarlo. Come citano testualmente i bollettini militari dell'epoca il "generale Girard si coprì di gloria". Il cittadino Jean Baptiste Louis Morin, fu il vero artefice della conquista del ponte e durante questa azione rimase ferito. Per il suo comportamento sul campo di battaglia fu promosso capo squadrone di cavalleria dallo stesso Napoleone Bonaparte. I rinforzi guidati dal Generale Monnier e dal Generale italiano Domenico Pino, arrivarono solo a tarda sera e conquistarono, definitivamente, alla baionetta, il ponte sul Naviglio. Questo episodio fu risolutivo per l'ingresso in Milano di Napoleone Bonaparte.
 3 Giugno 1859, proprio all'inizio della seconda guerra d'indipendenza italiana, le truppe francesi di Napoleone III, riuscirono ad occupare il villaggio di Turbigo passando proprio su questo ponte, che nonostante fosse stato fatto "esplodere" dagli austriaci, rimase in piedi. Con il successivo scontro che ne scaturì, consolidarono la loro testa di ponte che permise prima di vincere la Battaglia di Magenta e poi l'intera campagna, permettendo così la nascita dell'Italia come Nazione.
 Sul finire della seconda guerra mondiale il ponte fu minato dai tedeschi con lo scopo di proteggersi la ritirata. I segni di quest'ultima azione sono ancora oggi riconoscibili al disotto della terza arcata e visibili percorrendo l'alzaia Naviglio. La fortuna ha voluto che il ponte arrivasse fino a noi intatto.

Note

Bibliografia
Giuseppe Leoni, ''Turbigo e la sua Storia, Comune di Turbigo – edizione 2008

Voci correlate
 Battaglia di Turbigo
 Combattimento di Turbigo
 Naviglio Grande

Altri progetti

Turbigo
Turbigo
Turbigo

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Detra Lynn Mills – Round Room LLC
Connecting communities means more than cell sales
Written by: David Harry
Produced by: Julianna Roche
Detra Lynn Mills is in love with a red brick, century-old former elementary school in Indianapolis, but not because of its artful floor-to-ceiling windows or its placement on the National Register of Historic Places.
Instead, it's what happens inside the repurposed school building at an agency called Coburn Place Safe Haven that caught her attention. Coburn Place empowers victims of interpersonal abuse to live as survivors, Mills explains, through a housing first model that includes counseling, support and advocacy. Last year, 250 adults and 300 children sought refuge through the nonprofit's programs.
Mills, a survivor of domestic abuse, serves on the Coburn Place Board of Directors. Her employer, the telecommunications company Round Room LLC, also offers its support for the agency as part of its overarching mission to improve lives in the community it serves.
"That my company embraces my passion for this cause and has adopted the need to affect a change in the area of interpersonal abuse is a gift that I could not have anticipated," says Mills, the Round Room deputy general counsel and compliance officer.
Culture of good
Based in Carmel, Indiana, Round Room operates two of the largest Verizon retailers with its TCC and Wireless Zone stores. TCC, short for The Cellular Connection, has almost 900 stores in 38 states. Wireless Zone franchises have been located throughout the U.S. for 30 years.
A third Round Room company, Redux, makes a system that dries out phones or tablets and restores data. Another company is at work on a medical device it hopes will restore people's sense of smell, Mills says.
But what Round Room operations do is only part of the story, she adds.
"We do so much more than sell cellular phones at retail stores; both companies have tremendous philanthropic arms," she says of TCC and the Wireless Zone.
Grant programs are carried out through TCC Gives and the Wireless Zone Foundation, the philanthropic arms of the companies. Mills says employees are given 16 hours of company time annually to volunteer. Employees can use the time individually or join together for a particular cause.
Round Room CEO Scott Moorehead and the former director of customer and employee relations Ryan McCarty also founded Culture of Good, which emanates from philanthropy at TCC and teaches others how to embrace causes in their communities and the world.
Some causes are already traditions; stores take part in what are called "Big Goods," such as "Teachers Rock," where boxes of school supplies are distributed annually each first quarter. In the third quarter of the year, there is a drive to donate backpacks to students and, so far, close to a million backpacks have been given out nationwide.
Employees involved in individual causes or nonprofits can also get financial help for them through TCC Gives, a funding program which makes grants of $150,000 each quarter, with individual grants capped at $10,000. Nonprofits located in communities with TCC stores are eligible, but TCC employees must sponsor the agencies seeking the grants.
To help Coburn Place, TCC Gives and TCC provided more than $30,000 of time and materials in the form of computers and Wi-Fi connections for staff and residents.
TCC Gives also developed the More Than a Phone program to donate cell phones and data service to survivors of domestic violence. Coburn Place was one of the initial recipients when the program began in 2017. In October 2018, More Than a Phone was elevated to a national program.
"Some people have the means through family education, or sheer grit, to move forward after the trauma of domestic violence," Mills says. "For those who don't have an outlet, they need to have hope. TCC helps offer that hope."
Day-to-day, Mills' role includes providing ethics and compliance training to employees, overseeing litigation, ensuring the company complies with data and privacy regulations, handling escalated employee and customer complaints, and overall risk management.
Before joining Round Room, Mills had her own practice in Indianapolis for three years, handling mediation, litigation and compliance, an experience she also viewed as a platform to be a "legal leader for good." At Round Room, she says she has found a culture that still enables her to help in and out of the workplace.
Mills draws from her personal experience in an abusive relationship when it comes to helping Coburn Place and its residents.
"I feel like I have reached a point in my personal evolution where I know my story can help others find their voice," says Mills, adding that what happened to her decades ago means less than helping others escape lives of abuse now.
"It is not the details that matter anymore, it is the notion that people who are involved in interpersonal abuse experience it in many ways, perhaps physically, sexually, economically, religiously—abuse shows up as control," Mills says. "It changes the way you see the world and the people you trust to protect you."
regions: Midwest
categories: Technology, Women in Law
Showcase your feature on your website with a custom "As Featured in Vanguard" badge that links directly to your article!
Copy and paste this script into your page coding (ideally right before the closing
tag) where you want to display our review banner.
<script type='text/javascript'> (function (d, t) { var us = d.createElement(t), s = d.getElementsByTagName(t)[0]; us.type = 'text/javascript'; us.src = 'https://www.vanguardlawmag.com/widget.js?cid=detra-lynn-mills-round-room-llc'; s.parentNode.insertBefore(us, s); })(document, 'script'); </script>
Embed Review Link
Strategic Partnership(s):


Political Science was offered at the subsidiary level from 1967 onwards when B.A. English and B.A Economics main courses were started. B.A History course was started only in 1981. As a response to the increasing demand from the women students of the surrounding areas the Department applied for the Post-Graduate Course in Political Science instead of the Undergraduate course. As a result of the combined efforts and dynamic leadership, the Post-Graduate Course in Political Science was sanctioned in 1995. Alphonsa College is the only institution affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University and in the State of Kerala having a Post Graduate Course in Political Science solely for women. The Department offers Politics at the PG level and as a complementary course at the U.G. level. The members of the faculty render meritorious service for the smooth running of the department. Dr. Alice Jose promoted as the Principal of the College (01/04/2016 to 31/03/2018). Out of the six members five have PhD degree.


Do I have to hire an attorney for my Social Security Claim?
There's a difference between "have to hire" and "should you hire." As far as whether you have to hire, no. You do not have to hire an attorney to represent you. You can go it alone, and you can go through the entire process without representation. However, with respect to should, our office generally recommends that you hire somebody to represent you.
Statistics have shown that those who are represented stand a greater chance of winning their case, primarily because of the development of the claim, making sure that the evidence is complete, getting competing evidence from doctors, preparing the client for what to expect, coming up with a theory of the case. Those are all very important components of the case that having good representation can help you with.