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Chicago Teachers Conduct Remote Classes Outside in Defiance of District Plans
Teachers at Brentano Math and Science Academy sat at socially distanced tables outside the school, wearing masks and full winter gear as they taught classes virtually
By Natalie Martinez	• Published January 4, 2021 • Updated on January 4, 2021 at 11:15 pm
Chicago Public Schools teachers bundled up and conducted remote learning sessions outside one school in a sort of protest against the district ordering some staff back into schools on Monday despite safety concerns as the coronavirus pandemic continues.
Teachers at Brentano Math and Science Academy on the city's Northwest Side sat at socially distanced tables outside the school, wearing masks and full winter gear as they taught classes virtually.
Thousands of CPS pre-kindergarten and cluster program staff members were ordered to return to classrooms Monday in accordance with the district's reopening plan, which has been met with resistance from the Chicago Teachers Union and dozens of elected officials over safety concerns.
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More than 10,000 CTU members have pledged their opposition to Mayor Lori Lightfoot's plan to bring back teaching staff starting this week.
"The reality is that we just don't trust schools are safe for students and staff," said Enrique Cruz, a parent and representative for a local school council.
Cruz said he's worried for Jan. 11, when in-person learning is scheduled to resume for students enrolled in pre-K and cluster programs.
"Teachers are doing their best," Cruz told NBC 5. "Students engaged, showing it [remote learning] is working. Why not continue versus putting them at risk?"
Staff members for kindergarten through eighth grades will be back in school buildings on Monday, Jan. 25, followed by their students the next Monday, Feb. 1, per the district's plan.
The reopening plan includes a daily health screening, increased sanitation as well as the addition of HEPA filters and hospital-grade disinfectant sprayers.
"It's important for everyone to know our school buildings are safe for learning," said CPS Chief Education Officer LaTanya McDade. "We have full support from the medical community."
However, CTU claims there's no comprehensive testing plan, and some teachers have anonymously shared photos of reported filthy work conditions.
"We've had a bad experience in the past with CPS where they have made promises they haven't delivered," CTU President Jesse Sharkey said.
A CPS spokeswoman said for the first group of staffers, those who serve in Pre-K and cluster programs, 83% - 5,833 employees - were expected to return Monday, with 12% - 861 - granted accommodations or leave.
District officials pointed out that 100% of those with personal medical conditions were granted their requests. Additionally, almost 19% of those living with people who have serious medical conditions had their requests approved. Those staff members are also offered weekly COVID testing.
"I believe if all of us were vaccinated, for me, I would feel safer, that's one of the steps to making it safer," said Quentin Washington, a music teacher at Sadlowski Elementary School.
In-person instruction will be an option for students, whose families can choose to continue remote learning. The plan also calls for high school-aged students to continue remote learning for the foreseeable future.
At 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, principals will join CTU members for a virtual news conference to "ring alarm about serious safety dangers for in-person learning."
CPS plans to provide an update on the district's reopening plan at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.
For the first time since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in March, some Chicago Public Schools educators will return to the classroom Monday. Lisa Chavarria reports.
On Sunday, more than 30 Chicago aldermen signed a letter to Mayor Lori Lightfoot and CPS CEO Janice Jackson, listing nine steps they want the district to take before students return to class. The suggestions included establishing a clear health criteria for reopening and improving technology for those who continue with remote learning.
Read the full letter from dozens of Chicago aldermen to Mayor Lori Lightfoot and CPSDownload
The school district released an eight page response Sunday in which it addressed the concerns brought up by the aldermen.
Read CPS' complete response to the letterDownload
Chicago Public SchoolsChicago Teachers Unionchicago mayor lori lightfootchicago public schools reopeningchicago schools reopening


When you put your trust in someone who is unfaithful you will be disappointed because of disintegration and failure. An unfaithful person is like a broken tooth or a foot out of joint. It would be difficult to eat with a broken tooth and extremely difficult to walk with a foot out of joint. It stands to reason that being unfaithful in small things one will be unfaithful in bigger things.
Our faithfulness in handling money, no matter how small the amount, will also demonstrate how we will handle large sums of money. When we are faithful in paying the tithe that belongs to God, and in our giving of finances into the kingdom of God our faithfulness is rewarded by true riches. These riches are spiritual. Our faithfulness, in regard to money and its care, will result in God giving us spiritual gifts.
If God cannot trust us when money is at our disposal, how can He trust us with His true riches? Being faithful, dependable and reliable is important in our spiritual growth and fellowship with God.
Wherever we are placed and whatever we do in the kingdom of God we should strive to be faithful. At the end of life's journey, which we all must come to, how wonderful it will be to hear God say, "Enter into the joy of the Lord, thou good and faithful servant".
Dear heavenly Father, today, once again, with Your help I commit myself to serve You with all the faithfulness of my heart, in Jesus name.


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Defoe Moll Flanders Essay Research Paper J
Defoe Moll Flanders Essay, Research Paper
J Johnson
English Novel to 1832
?Moll Flanders: Freedom or Fate?
In New Hampshire I had a Philosophy teacher that used to say, and I believe he was quoting another, ?People who believe in freewill are ignorant of the reasons of their actions?. This quote, in the context of Defoe?s Moll Flanders, brings about a multitude of questions and discussion. Was Flanders free or was she predetermined to live a wicked and improper life mired in years of penitence? Was the fact that her mother a whore before her enough to dismiss the question? It is, in fact, these questions that persuaded me to abandon my philosophy major and follow my love of literature, but that is a different story.
Certainly there is no question that Flanders was a criminal, that is to say she was a whore, a thief, and furthermore broke laws that are seen as truly heinous and immoral, namely incest. In regards to Flanders having sex with her own brother it would be difficult to argue that this was a predetermined event considering she truly did not know her husband was of her own flesh and blood. If, indeed, she was aware of the relation and then chose to proceed then one could discus it further in the context of freewill. As for being a whore there is no question that Flanders, especially later in her life, involved herself with such happenings, but for me it was the thievery that seemed to capture the essence of Flanders continual undoing and constant need for penitence. There is no better part of Defoe?s work to capture the feelings of utter despondency then when Moll is going to steal for the first time from the apothecary?s shop. Defoe prefaces the scene with a few paragraphs where Moll explains her absolute ?desolate state?. The crime is then set in what James Sutherland explains, ??Moll?s first theft he sets the scene with such careful attention to detail that he fixes it in our minds, and gives to it that air of authenticity which, for Defoe, is almost justification of fiction?. This is where Defoe?s journalistic stylings shine. The reader is indeed in the apothecary and sees Moll?s gaffe unfolding before him. We are free to judge whether or not we would take the bundle that so often becomes Moll?s pursuit in the future. It is at that instant that we can decide whether Moll was free to do so or controlled by something unavoidable, such as fate.
If Moll was acting on freewill it is arguable that she would not repeat the same crime in the future, in fact she would most likely avoid any such acts that resulted in the terrible feelings she experienced during and after the first offense. For she says herself, ?It is impossible to express the horror of my soul all the while I did it?. The truth is though; the crimes become much easier and done with much less regard to moral conviction after the first. Moll becomes ?hardened?. In fact she finds ways of justifying her crimes as they progress to an even more appalling standing. After Moll steals the necklace off the boy returning home from dance school she blames the parents for letting the ?poor lamb to come home by itself.? So is Moll fated to do such acts? Continually through the book Moll refers to the Devil, ?who laid the snare? as the main root of her misdeeds. She explains that she was a mere victim of circumstance and that there was little choice in her acts. Is this not more comforting for Moll and the reader? Yes Moll lives in constant penitence, that is when she is not committing crimes, but she also has a way of constructing the situation so it seems almost unavoidable. This is the way the human mind works. We are not completely at fault all the time for our wrongs, surely we would all go mad if this were the case. Humans are much like Moll Flanders. Sutherland says it best, ?Moll, it may be argued, is inconsistent because that is what she was, and what most people are.? I would be hard pressed to call it fate, but there certainly is a tinge of something in all of us that, if nurtured, will blossom and sometimes blossom into a not so pretty flower.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Assess herd in March for lice control needs
March 20, 2015 Cattleman's Corner
Feeder helps reduce hay waste
Refresher on pulling a calf
Animal Welfare label confirms TK Ranch commitment
Dealing with broken bones in young calves
March 4, 2015 Cattleman's Corner
Don't mix treated and untreated cattle, and apply products at the proper dosage and at the proper timing
By Heather Smith Thomas
Lynn Thomas treats cows in the alleyway with a pour-on insecticide Photo: Heather Smith Thomas
Lice are a common winter problem in cattle, especially in northern climates with cold weather and short winter days. Their life cycle speeds up and numbers increase dramatically when weather is cold and they have long winter hair to hide in.
Doug Colwell, a livestock parasitologist with Agriculture Canada in Lethbridge, Alta., says sucking and chewing lice can both be a problem for cattle.
"We ran a serological survey in Western Canada (southern Alberta, Saskatchewan and a few herds from Manitoba) for several years, checking for lice, and found 75 to 80 per cent of beef calves coming off range in the fall tested positive for sucking lice," he says. "This is consistent with results we found a few years earlier, checking calves coming into a feedlot that time of year — prior to the time that they would be treated for lice."
Calves pick up lice from their mothers or herdmates, and most have lice by end of summer.
Many cattle also have chewing/biting lice, but it's harder to test for these. "We don't have a serological test for them," says Colwell. Many cattle harbour both types.
He did studies on lice populations, using a counting technique to determine typical numbers from January through May on untreated cows.
"By May we couldn't find lice on the animals using this method," says Colwell. "There may be a few in areas on the animal where they can hide, such as between the hind legs, but otherwise the animal is relatively free of lice during summer. By mid-October we start seeing lice again."
Treatment is common
Most ranchers in northern climates treat for lice in late fall or early winter.
"Our basic treatment program is to knock the top off the population growth curve so that by January we don't have a massive outbreak," says Colwell.
Today, chewing lice may be more common than biting lice. "There is some indication the products we're using are not as effective as they once were," he says. "Also the macrocyclic lactones used as injectables only kill sucking lice." The chewing lice aren't sucking blood and therefore are not affected by a systemic product.
The pour-ons have more effect on chewing lice, especially if the products get distributed fairly well over the body. For a while after treatment, this will reduce chewing lice population on the animal.
"We don't know how effectively these products spread over the body, or whether there may be locations the drug never reaches such as between the hind legs and up around the armpit area of the front legs. These may be areas lice can retreat into and survive," Colwell explains. This residual population could proliferate and eventually cover the body again after the drug no longer has an effect.
Many herds experience a resurgence in lice before spring — cattle start rubbing and itching again by February or March, and may need another treatment. "There are also some thought that drug resistance may have developed," says Colwell.
Effective lice control depends on timing. "If you treat too early in the fall, this gives hiding lice a chance to rebuild populations and come back in large numbers," he says. "If you wait until early winter, there's less opportunity for them to rebuild."
The macrocyclic lactones (which include Ivomec, Dectomax, Cydectin and now the generics) do a good job when applied at the right time, Colwell says. October/November is a good period for treatment, if weather is already cold, but not any earlier. If ranchers are preg-checking and vaccinating in early fall they often apply a delousing product, especially if they won't have the cattle in again until spring. Then they may have serious lice problems in February. Winter-long control can be obtained only if cattle are treated late in the season when lice are starting to build up.
"When macrocyclic lactone products first came on the market, some drug companies gave a guarantee, saying one treatment would last through winter and if you found lice on any of your animals they would pay for retreatment," says Colwell. "We learned that you can't mix treated and untreated cattle, use improper dosage, or treat too early. "
It's usually not necessary to re-treat for lice if a few show up in late March or early April, because lice populations won't proliferate at that late date. "Lice don't survive in heat," says Colwell. "If the cow is standing in bright sunlight in summer, temperature on her skin may go up above the thermal tolerance of a louse or a louse egg. Adult lice are dying and not reproducing, so the population crashes when weather warms up."
Colwell says no matter what you are using, never underdose. Always treat at the maximum level. If you don't kill all the lice on an animal, that animal serves as a source of lice to spread to the rest of the herd. Then you may see high levels of lice again before winter is over.
Worth the expense
Colwell recommends retreating later in winter, like February and early March, if lice become a problem. It used to be relatively inexpensive to do this, using a topical oil-based pyrethroid such as Cylence or Boss. These products spread through the hair coat and have enough residual activity to last awhile and get through to spring. Unfortunately they are now more expensive than some of the generic macrocyclic lactones. "I still think they are the best type of follow-up treatment," he says.
Other methods are useful, such as insecticides on back-rubbers that allow animals to self-treat. "Self-grooming — licking, rubbing and scratching — helps keep lice populations down," says Colwell. "But long winter hair reduces effectiveness of the tongue to pull lice off. The tongue is a great grooming device, but with a thick hair coat it can't get to the lice that are right down on the skin. Insecticide back-rubbers and other structures for cattle to scratch on can be a help."
This also minimizes damage to facilities if cattle rub on these instead of fences.
By March, days are getting longer with more intense sunlight, and most lice populations start dwindling — and retreat to cooler places on the animal.
"Some animals act as carriers; lice don't leave them during summer. The most effective lice control is culling the carriers. Any animal that is chronically infested will keep spreading lice to the others. There are a few animals in the herd that are highly susceptible to certain parasites. This may be due to ineffectiveness of their immune response, and their genetics.
"You probably shouldn't make your entire culling decision based on louse populations, but it should be a factor to consider," says Colwell.
Lack of immune response may be genetic. Some animals have stronger immune systems than others. Carriers usually have some deficiency in their immune system that makes them more susceptible to heavy lice infestation, since cattle normally develop some resistance to lice after exposure.
Heather Smith Thomas's recent articles
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New York Red Bulls Forward Bradley Wright-Phillips has been voted the Alcatel MLS Player of the Week by the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR), Major League Soccer announced today. Wright-Phillips earned the recognition after netting a brace in the Red Bulls 3-0 home win over Minnesota United FC on Saturday night.
Wright-Phillips struck once on either side of half time to seal the three points for New York. He put the Red Bulls ahead 2-0 in the 42nd minute with an over-the-shoulder heel touch, redirecting a free kick from Homegrown midfielder Sean Davis that was headed-on by Tim Parker.
BWP then added an MLS Goal of the Week candidate in the 78th minute, running onto a curling through ball from Homegrown Alex Muyl and using his first touch to strike the ball over the shoulder of Lampson and into the far side of the net.
Wright-Phillips has three goals and an assist in three MLS Games, and six goals and four assists across seven matches, including four games in the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League.
In his MLS career, Wright-Phillips has 89 regular season goals, currently tied with Carlos Ruiz for 11th on the MLS all-time scoring list. BWP's career tally includes 88 since the start of the 2014 season, the most goals scored is the most by an MLS player over a five-year span. Wright-Phillips is just three games into the fifth season of that count.
Saturday night was Wright-Phillips' 19th career multi-goal game, moving him into sole possession of fifth place all-time in league history. BWP now has 15 career MLS regular-season braces.


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Microsoft betrays its AI principles by investing in Israeli facial recognition company AnyVision
Published by Brett Wilkins on October 11, 2019 October 11, 2019
By Brett Wilkins
Microsoft — which recently adopted a set of six core principles for the development of ethical artificial intelligence (AI) — has come under fire for investing in an Israeli company that produces facial recognition technology used to monitor and control Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
AI For Good?
Earlier this year, Microsoft President Brad Smith met with Pope Francis at the Vatican to discuss the ethical use of AI. According to news reports at the time, their conversation covered topics including "artificial intelligence at the service of the common good." The Holy See then announced that its Academy for Life would partner with Microsoft to jointly sponsor a prize for the best doctoral dissertation concerning "artificial intelligence at the service of human life."
A month after Smith's meeting with the Pope, Microsoft Executive Vice President of AI and Research Harry Shum told an audience at the MIT Technology Review's EmTech Digital Conference that the company was working on ways to include AI ethics reviews to a standard checklist of audits for new products. Microsoft said that it had "implemented its internal facial recognition principles and is continuing work to operationalize its broader AI principles."
Additionally, Microsoft has several internal working groups dedicated to AI ethics. These include Fairness, Accountability, Transparency and Ethics in AI (FATE), a group of nine researchers "working on collaborative research projects that address the need for transparency, accountability, and fairness in AI," and AI Ethics and Effects in Engineering and Research (AETHER), an advisory board that reports directly to the company's C-suite.
"The expanding use of artificial intelligence raises important questions about the relationship between people and technology, and the impact of the new capabilities on individuals and communities," Microsoft said. "AI augments and amplifies human capabilities, and its governance will require a human-centered approach."
From all of this came a set of six Microsoft AI principles. These are: fairness, reliability, privacy and security, inclusiveness, transparency and accountability. Previously, Microsoft Research Labs Director Eric Horvitz had announced that the company had "cut off significant sales" over AI ethics concerns, although he understandably did not give much detail about which potential customers were rejected. Microsoft's AI ethics page lists the company's six AI principles and declares that "applied AI uses technology to empower solutions to humanitarian issues and create a more sustainable and accessible world."
Palestinians queue at an Israeli military checkpoint at the apartheid wall in Bethlehem, in the illegally-occupied West Bank (Photo: Andrew E. Larsen/Flickr Creative Commons)
A Tool of Oppression
Earlier this week, Palestinian and Israeli news media reported that residents of Kober, a Palestinian village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, had unearthed a camouflaged surveillance camera hidden by Israeli occupation forces in the local cemetery. The surveillance device was made by the Israeli company AnyVision Interactive Technologies, which specializes in facial recognition technology. Companies including US chipmaker Qualcomm, German engineering and technology company Bosch and California-based graphics processing unit designer Nvidia have all invested in AnyVision, according to Fast Company. In June, Microsoft's M12 venture fund announced it was joining AnyVision's $74 million Series A investment round, citing the Israeli company as a "tool for good."
However, critics — including Ethics In Tech — counter that the company is a tool for oppression. In July, the Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz reported AnyVision products and technology are used to monitor Palestinians entering Israel from the West Bank, which has been illegally occupied by Israel since 1967. As a former head of the Defense Ministry's security department between 2007 and 2015, AnyVision President Amir Kain played an instrumental role in the perpetuation of the criminal occupation, and thus in the violation of Palestinian human rights.
In addition to an apartheid wall that has divided Palestinian communities and devastated the economic life of the occupied territory, Palestinians wishing to travel between the occupied territories and Israel are forced to endure wasted days and rampant humiliation at Israel Defense Forces (IDF) checkpoints that control access not only to Israel but often also routes between Palestinian towns and villages. Scores of pregnant Palestinian women have given birth while waiting to pass through these checkpoints, and dozens of babies have died there after failing to receive timely medical care. IDF soldiers sometimes sadistically refer to long, sometimes dangerous, checkpoint queues as "time off from life."
According to Ha'aretz, AnyVision technology is used by IDF troops to quickly determine if people attempting to enter Israel to work have the required permit. Advocates say this shortens the sometimes notoriously long queues at checkpoints. Ethics In Tech, however, is reminded of the partnership between US tech giant International Business Machines (IBM) and its European subsidiaries and the Third Reich government of Nazi Germany led by Adolf Hitler. IBM punch card technology helped speed up the mass extermination of Jews during the Holocaust.
AnyVision founder Eylon Etshtein has defended his company, insisting it is sensitive to racial and gender bias, and that it only sells to democracies. But what's that worth when AnyVision's home country — which trumpets itself as the only democracy in a decidedly authoritarian region — is perpetrating some of the world's worst human rights violations against Palestinian men, women and children, and doing so with AnyVision technology?
Rights Groups Alarmed
Human rights, civil liberties, privacy and anti-occupation groups implored Microsoft to avoid complicity in grave Israeli human rights violations. Shankar Narayan, the director of the Technology and Liberty Project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), told Forbes that Microsoft has not followed through on earlier interest in curbing the proliferation of facial recognition technology. "This particular investment is not a big surprise to me," said Narayan. "There's a demonstrable gap between action and rhetoric in the case of most big tech companies and Microsoft in particular."
"If Microsoft were serious about technology with ethics, then perhaps these kinds of transactions would receive more scrutiny," said Narayan, who added that he was particularly concerned about AnyVision's affect analysis technology, which can read emotions to determine if someone is a "threat."
Amos Toh, senior researcher covering artificial intelligence and human rights at the Human Rights Watch, said he believes "it's incumbent on Microsoft to really look at what that means for the human rights risk associated with the investment in a company that's providing this technology to an occupying power."
"It's not just privacy risk but a privacy risk associated with a minority group that has suffered repression and persecution for a long time," Toh told Forbes. "There are special considerations of discrimination there."
The Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) National Committee is calling for a boycott of AnyVision, which it calls "complicit in the Israeli occupation and repression of Palestinians."
"AnyVision [also] plays a direct role in Israel's… illegal wall and military checkpoints," the committee, which is at the head of the global BDS movement for Palestinian freedom, justice and equality, said in a statement. "AnyVision also maintains cameras for the Israeli military deep inside the West Bank to spy on Palestinians and enable the Israeli military's illegal targeting of civilians."
Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) has published a petition calling on Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to "drop AnyVision."
"There is nothing ethical about creating an Orwellian surveillance system to watch over an imprisoned people," the US-based activist group asserted.
Secretly spying and oppressive surveillance of a long-occupied people ought to be enough to give any ethics-minded investor serious pause. But that's not all — there's AnyVision's assertion that it only sells to democracies, a claim belied by the presence of its cameras in Moscow's Domodedovo Airport and its search for a sales executive in Hong Kong. Pro-democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong, who have suffered increasingly violent police repression under pressure from China's authoritarian government, have used laser pointers as they attempt to thwart facial recognition surveillance devices. Global outrage over the crackdown on Hong Kong protesters has prompted AnyVision to reconsider doing business with its authorities, according to Fast Company.
Potential for Abuse
Even in countries with relatively high regard for civil liberties, privacy advocates and rights groups have raised concerns about the rapid proliferation of facial recognition technology and the growing potential for its misuse by governments. For example, the city of Nice, France, monitors its residents with AnyVision technology, and entry to an undisclosed London stadium was surveilled by the company last summer.
"We recognize such powerful technology has the potential to be misused if placed in the wrong hands, and that we have an inherent responsibility to ensure our technology and products are used properly," AnyVision said in a statement published by Forbes.
The ACLU recently published a report, "The Dawn of Robot Surveillance: AI, Video Analytics and Privacy," in which it warned that installing tens of millions of security cameras equipped with AI technology will lead to abuses including over-enforcement and discrimination. The civil liberties group recommended a ban on mass government surveillance and the implementation of "policies that will prevent private-sector deployments from becoming equally oppressive."
Some people are fighting back. In May, San Francisco became the first US city to pass a law banning government agencies from using facial recognition technology. On Tuesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed into law a measure prohibiting state and local law enforcement from using facial recognition software in officer body cameras for the next three years.
"The public wanted their officers and deputies to use body cameras to provide accountability and transparency for the community," Assemblyman Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) said in a statement after Newsom signed the bill. "[But] the addition of facial recognition technology essentially turns them into 24-hour surveillance tools, giving law enforcement the ability to track our every move."
"We cannot become a police state," Ting added.
Categories: Ethics In Tech - Curated Articles
Tags: ACLUAI ethicsAnyVisionartificial intelligencefacial recognitionIsraelIsrael human rights violationsIsraeli occupation of PalestineMicrosoftPalestine
Ethics In Tech - Curated Articles
Report: US drone strike kills Afghan civilians, Taliban commander
By Brett Wilkins Also published at Antiwar.com An unconfirmed number of Afghan civilians – reportedly more than 40 – were killed along with the regional leader of a splinter Taliban faction and dozens of militants Read more…
Ethics in Tech Strongly Opposes US War on Iran
By Brett Wilkins You don't need to tell Ethics in Tech that war is hell. Some of the earliest childhood memories of our founder, Vahid Razavi — who was born in Iran — involve being under attack Read more…
If Twitter banned Danielle Stella, why not ban Trump too?
By Brett Wilkins Twitter has long faced intense criticism for turning a blind eye to right-wing hate speech on its platform, including by the world's most (in)famous tweeter, US President Donald Trump. In the face Read more…
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Day 1: The GTBank Fashion Weekend, Meet the Runway Designers.
Hard work, creativity and passion, punctuated by the clicking of heels, define a single moment on the GTBank Fashion Weekend Runway Show. On Saturday, November 10th, and Sunday, November 11th, 2018, thousands of guests will be entertained by this single moment as indigenous and internationally renowned designers showcase their brands on the runway.
These are the designers slated for Day 1 of the 2018 GTBank Fashion Weekend:
Ituen Basi
Ituen Basi's 2009 collection brought back the proliferation of the Oleku trend which led to the new wave of the Ankara interpretation all around Nigeria and even beyond the shores of Africa. Ituen's unique use of Ankara has made her the go-to designer for celebrities and fashionistas in search of something beautifully African
Sukeina – Omar Salam
Omar Salam is the Senegalese-born designer behind SUKEINA, a global fashion brand worn by the some of the best dressed women in the world. He studied fashion at the prestigious Parsons School of Design and has created 8 exquisite collections which strike a resemblance to wearable art.
Romeo Hunte
Romeo Hunte is a self-named lifestyle brand. His collection consists of outerwear pieces that have a mix of cool-girl denim designs and everyday style for the fashion forward-guy. Romeo's design has been worn by Hollywood A-listers like Beyoncé and Gabrielle Union.
Gozel Green – Sylvia Enekwe and Olivia Jude-Okoji
Sylvia Enekwe and Olivia Jude-Okoji are the brains behind the budding Label, Gozel Green, established in the year 2010. Growing up in the eastern part of Nigeria, Enugu, they were tremendously inspired by their art-loving parents, and their immediate environment. These inspirations birthed Gozel Green and thus paved way for artistry, originality and timelessness as their forefront design aesthetics.
Clive Rundel
Clive's creations are well-known both locally and abroad, adored by bold and fearless women for their charismatic charm. Today, Clive Rundle has established his name as one of the forefathers of contemporary fashion design in South Africa.
Adama Paris – Adama Amanda Ndiaye
Adama Amanda Ndiaye is the brain behind Adama Paris, which celebrates the multicultural, elegant, and versatile woman. Her work has been featured in magazines sunch as Vogue, Elle, CR Fashion Book and worn by celebrities like Teyana Taylor.
Proclaimed as South Africa's kind of Fashion, David Tlale designs are known to employ unpredictable use of fabric, color and texture, David's designs have been grazing the runways of NYFW from 2008 till date.
Register to attend for Day 1 here
Stanbic IBTC empowers youth on financial literacy
UK Fashion Buyers, Stavros Karelis & Anna Trevelyan to speak on "The Concept of Fashion Curation", at the GTBank Fashion Weekend


This is our Large Wizard wearing magnificent rainbow robes with metallic gold trim. He carries a faceted Swarovski crystal and has an olivine colored jewel set in his ring. This wizard is 12 3/4″ tall. This is an unsigned limited production piece.


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Q: How print the array in another class? Basically, i have a class where i have my arrays in, which is like this
    public final class DepotDatabase {
    private Driver[] arrayDrivers;

     public DepotDatabase() {
        arrayDrivers = new Driver[4];

    arrayDrivers[0] = new Driver(1234, 1234, 0); // sample driver
    arrayDrivers[1] = new Driver(4444, 4444, 0); // sample driver
    arrayDrivers[2] = new Driver(1337, 1337, 1);   // sample manager
    arrayDrivers[3] = new Driver(1234, 1234, 0); // sample driver

}

and i want to print this array in another class, i did set up the array in another class
public Driver(int username, int password, int managerCheck) {
    this.username = username;
    this.password = password;
    this.managerCheck = managerCheck;
}

but now i want to be able to print out all the drivers, but in another class which will be called ViewDrivers or something similar

A: You can create a method inside DepotDatabase to print the array, then create an object from and call print method.
public final class DepotDatabase {
private Driver[] arrayDrivers;

public void printArray() {
    for (int i = 0; i < arrayDrivers.length; i++) {
        Driver d = arrayDrivers[i];

        System.out.println("Username : " + d.getUsername());
        System.out.println("Password : " + d.getPassword());
        System.out.println(" Manager Check: " + d.getManagerCheck());

    }
}

the from the test class you can do:
public void execute() {
    DepotDatabase  ddb = new DepotDatabase();
    ddb.printArray();
}

A: That's why you'll need to have getters and setters. You should have:
public Driver[] getDrivers() {
    return arrayDrivers;
}

and in the other class, you simply call it (and print it or whatever).
Read this tutorial.

A: If you plan to print your array in another class you show create an accessor to it.
The common pattern for Java is to use "get plus name off attribute", getDrivers() you should also avoid the class name in such geter as it may changed due to application life.
public final class DepotDatabase {

    //your code

    public Driver[] getDrivers() {
       return this.arrayDrivers;
    }

}

Next question to answer is a returning the whole array is good idea. When you return it as above you loose control on it. And every one that call that method will be able to change the content of it.
To prevent this you should use so called Defensive copying
   public Driver[] getDrivers() {
      return Arrays.copyOf(arrayDrivers, arrayDrivers.length);
   }

Then person will get an copy of it an will not harm your class.
The issue with this is that consumer of your class will have to call this method every time to get fresh list of cars.
To solve this issue you may want to user the [collection framework] where instead of array you cold define:
List<Driver> drivers new ArrayList<>();
and provide the drivers as [immutable] list
  public Iterable<Driver> getDrivers() {
          return java.util.Collections.unmodifiableList(drivers);
   }

Iterable is an interface, that allow you to obtain an interator the the list consumer of class wold have possibility to traverse it. IF you wan to allow him to check that list contains some driver you can set the return type as Collection

    class Storage {

        private String items[] = new String[10];

        public String[] getItems() {
            return Arrays.copyOf(items, items.length);
        }
    }

    class Store {

        Storage storage = new Storage();

        private void printStorage() {

            String[] items = storage.getItems();

            for (String item : items) {

            }
        }
    }

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Serie A title holders Juventus have decided to make a new bid for Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Blaise Matuidi.
According to Gianluca Di Marzio, the Italian side believe that their targets - Nemanja Matic and Emre Can - won't be joining this summer, with Matic thought to be close to joining Manchester United and Can to possibly remain at Liverpool.
Speaking in an interview with L'Equipe last year, Matuidi revealed that he was very close to joining Juve and was 'ready to go' due to the rumours he was hearing while on holiday.
"At that time, it's true [that I was ready to go to Juventus]," the 30-year-old explained.
"I was on holiday and I could hear rumours which bothered me, affected me. I asked myself a lot of questions, and the answer which came to my mind was that it might be time to leave.
"The discussions I had with Juventus fuelled that desire.
"Maybe at that time I didn't feel the love Paris had for me, it bothered me a lot. Once Juve were openly interested, I spoke with [Coach] Unai Emery and he never changed his position."
PSG ultimately shut the door on the move, with the club's president seemingly changing his mind at the last moment. But if the if the Italian side have indeed reignited their interest in the player, he could finally get his move this summer.
Juve were said to have been put off by PSG's €40m valuation of their player, but given recent developments, they have reportedly moved to reopen talks.


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Dr. Staci McPhaul's formal training is in educational psychology where she served in various roles over her 6+ year career. Dr. McPhaul has served the underrepresented population through advising, case management and teaching within secondary institutions and nonprofit organizations in Jacksonville, FL. At Walden University, she is a part of the Postdoctoral Teaching and Research Fellowship.
Dr. McPhaul's current research interests focus primarily on teacher quality and preparation, as well as educational psychology. She has presented at numerous seminars and conferences. Dr. McPhaul is a part of various organizations including the American Psychological Association and the Division 15: Educational Psychology of the American Psychological Association.


text:
package com.google.walkaround.util.server.gwt;

import com.google.common.base.Function;
import com.google.common.base.Splitter;
import com.google.common.collect.ImmutableMap;
import com.google.common.collect.Lists;
import com.google.common.collect.MapMaker;
import com.google.inject.Inject;
import com.google.inject.Singleton;

import java.io.BufferedReader;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.io.InputStream;
import java.io.InputStreamReader;
import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Map;
import java.util.logging.Level;
import java.util.logging.Logger;
import java.util.regex.Matcher;
import java.util.regex.Pattern;

/**
 * Adapted from {@link com.google.gwt.logging.server.StackTraceDeobfuscator}
 * with some changes.
 *
 * @author danilatos@google.com (Daniel Danilatos)
 * @author ohler@google.com (Christian Ohler)
 */
@Singleton
public class StackTraceDeobfuscator {

  @SuppressWarnings("unused")
  private static final Logger log = Logger.getLogger(StackTraceDeobfuscator.class.getName());

  /** Retrieves symbol maps. */
  public interface SymbolMapsDirectory {
    InputStream getSymbolMapInputStream(String permutationStrongName) throws IOException;
  }

  // From JsniRef class, which is in gwt-dev and so can't be accessed here
  // TODO: once there is a place for shared code, move this to there.
  private static final Pattern JSNI_REF_PATTERN =
      Pattern.compile("@?([^:]+)::([^(]+)(\\((.*)\\))?");

  private SymbolMapsDirectory symbolMapsDirectory;

  // See commit ebb4736368b6d371a1bf5005541d96b88dcac504 for my failed attempt
  // at using CacheBuilder.  TODO(ohler): Figure out the right solution to this.
  @SuppressWarnings("deprecation")
  private final Map<String, Map<String, String>> symbolMaps =
    new MapMaker()
        .maximumSize(100)
        .makeComputingMap(
            new Function<String, Map<String, String>>() {
              @Override public Map<String, String> apply(String strongName) {
                try {
                  // Can't use ImmutableMap.Builder since we may have duplicate keys like $clinit.
                  Map<String, String> out = new HashMap<String, String>();
                  BufferedReader bin = new BufferedReader(
                      new InputStreamReader(
                          symbolMapsDirectory.getSymbolMapInputStream(strongName)));
                  try {
                    String line;
                    while ((line = bin.readLine()) != null) {
                      if (line.charAt(0) == '#') {
                        continue;
                      }
                      int idx = line.indexOf(',');
                      out.put(line.substring(0, idx), line.substring(idx + 1));
                    }
                  } finally {
                    bin.close();
                  }
                  return ImmutableMap.copyOf(out);
                } catch (IOException e) {
                  log.log(Level.WARNING, "Symbol map not found: " + strongName, e);
                  // use empty symbol map to avoid repeated loads
                  return ImmutableMap.of();
                }
              }
            });

  /**
   * Constructor, which takes a symbolMaps directory as its
   * argument. Symbol maps can be generated using the -extra GWT
   * compiler argument.
   */
  @Inject
  public StackTraceDeobfuscator(SymbolMapsDirectory symbolMapsDirectory) {
    setSymbolMapsDirectory(symbolMapsDirectory);
  }

  /**
   * Convenience method which resymbolizes an entire stack trace to extent
   * possible.
   *
   * @param st the stack trace to resymbolize
   * @param strongName the GWT permutation strong name
   * @return a best effort resymbolized stack trace
   */
  public StackTraceElement[] deobfuscateStackTrace(
      String[] st, String strongName) {
    StackTraceElement[] newSt = new StackTraceElement[st.length];
    for (int i = 0; i < st.length; i++) {
      newSt[i] = resymbolize(st[i], strongName);
    }
    return newSt;
  }

  /**
   * Best effort resymbolization of a a single stack trace element.
   *
   * @param ste the stack trace element to resymbolize
   * @param strongName the GWT permutation strong name
   * @return the best effort resymbolized stack trace element
   */
  public StackTraceElement resymbolize(String ste,
      String strongName) {
    Map<String, String> map = symbolMaps.get(strongName);
    String symbolData = map == null ? null : map.get(ste);

    if (symbolData != null) {
      // jsniIdent, className, memberName, sourceUri, sourceLine
      String[] parts =
          Lists.newArrayList(Splitter.on(",").split(symbolData)).toArray(new String[0]);
      if (parts.length == 5 || parts.length == 6) {
        // This code is adapted from elsewhere, I don't understand it well enough to fix it.
        @SuppressWarnings("unused")
        String[] ref = parse(
            parts[0].substring(0, parts[0].lastIndexOf(')') + 1));

        String declaringClass = parts[1];
        String methodName = parts[2];

        // parts[3] contains the source file URI or "Unknown"
        String filename = "Unknown".equals(parts[3]) ? null
            : parts[3].substring(parts[3].lastIndexOf('/') + 1);

        int lineNumber = 0; //ste.getLineNumber();
        /*
         * When lineNumber is zero, either because compiler.stackMode is not
         * emulated or compiler.emulatedStack.recordLineNumbers is false, use
         * the method declaration line number from the symbol map.
         */
        if (lineNumber == 0) {
          lineNumber = Integer.parseInt(parts[4]);
        }

        return new StackTraceElement(
            declaringClass, methodName, filename, lineNumber);
      }
    }
    return new StackTraceElement(
        "UNKNOWN_CLASS", ste, "UNKNOWN_FILE", 0);
  }

  public void setSymbolMapsDirectory(SymbolMapsDirectory symbolMapsDirectory) {
    // permutations are unique, no need to clear the symbolMaps hash map
    this.symbolMapsDirectory = symbolMapsDirectory;
  }

  /**
   * Extracts the declaring class and method name from a JSNI ref, or null if
   * the information cannot be extracted.
   *
   * @see com.google.gwt.dev.util.JsniRef
   * @param refString symbol map reference string
   * @return a string array contains the declaring class and method name, or
   *         null when the regex match fails
   */
  private String[] parse(String refString) {
    Matcher matcher = JSNI_REF_PATTERN.matcher(refString);
    if (!matcher.matches()) {
      return null;
    }
    String className = matcher.group(1);
    String memberName = matcher.group(2);
    String[] toReturn = new String[] {className, memberName};
    return toReturn;
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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Our biofuel-powered yellow and black Dolphin Discovery III catamaran is purpose built for dolphin viewing and swimming. It has outdoor observation decks to get you up close and personal with the local mammals.
Cruising picturesque islands while searching for dolphins; Mask, snorkel, fins and a wetsuit for those that choose to swim; Swimming with dolphins in their natural world; Swim Fee; A complimentary hot drink after your swim.
Departs: Paihia Wharf B - 8:00am & 12:30pm; Russell Wharf - 8:10am & 12:40pm.
The Bay of Islands is a 3 hour drive from Auckland. Take the Northern Motorway towards Orewa. Follow State Highway 1 North to Whangarei. Use the bypass and continue north on SH 1 to Kawakawa, then straight onto State Highway 11 to Opua/Paihia.
*Once we find a pod of dolphins, Department of Conservation regulations will determine whether a swim is possible. Swimming is optional; you need to be a confident swimmer.
Dolphin Discoveries operates with a Department of Conservation permit. However for the protection of Dolphins and other marine mammals, interaction with them is governed by the Marine Mammal Protection Act. If the conditions of the Act are not met or the sea conditions are not safe then trips will be viewing only.
Minimum of 8 passengers required per trip.


It's always exciting to be part of something from its inception, and I've been full of anticipation and eagerness ever since a conversation I had recently with my boss.
He asked me if I would like to be involved with a new QVC project. I think I'd have said yes whatever it was, but when I tell you what I was being offered you'll understand why it took approximately a nanosecond for me to make the decision!
"Would you like to fly to Dubai where you'll board the newest in Cunard's fleet of cruise ships, the Queen Elizabeth, to make a series of short films to help our viewers understand what going on a cruise holiday is like?"
This is something new for us at QVC. We've not offered you so much as a day out before, and the whole concept of buying your holiday from the television isn't one many of us have considered.
Of course, a holiday is often our biggest spend of the year and something we look forward to hugely – a break that doesn't live up to our hopes is a massive disappointment. So, if we're going to suggest you buy your trip from us, we absolutely need to help you find the holiday you're dreaming of.
The key to booking the right holiday is finding one that suits your individual needs – we all have different hopes and priorities when it comes to relaxing. Is food important to you, and if so what sort? Do you like to be busy, or is nothing to do your idea of bliss? Are you strictly casual or do you like to dress up? Dance all night or quiet drink and a chat? Or maybe a little of all of the above.
It was only when I spoke to some of the holidaymakers on ship that I realised all this and more is on offer if you choose to cruise, and we've teamed up with cruise experts Imagine Cruising to help you make the right choice.
The first Imagine Cruising show is on Tuesday 6 May at 4pm, and there will be another show offering different cruises every Tuesday in May. There are holidays to suit all pockets, visiting cities all over the world from the Caribbean to Cape Town, San Francisco to Sydney and Dubrovnik to Dubai, which is where I flew to join the Queen Elizabeth.
She is the most amazing ship – a floating village really – decked out in stunning Art Deco style with the heritage of Cunard resonating in every corner. I only spent a short time on her – just one leg of what was a round the world trip – but enjoyed every minute. From the stateroom (upgraded from inside cabin to one with a balcony if you book a Cunard Cruise though us) to the restaurants, the swimming pools to the spa, the shopping to the cocktail lounge and Golden Lion pub, she seems to have everything. And of course, the beauty of a cruise is that you have the excitement of visiting different locations but only unpack once!
We spoke to lots of people on board, and you can hear their views on the shows over the next few weeks, but the overriding trend was that you can take whatever you want from a cruise, and leave what you don't.
The director of entertainment told me about an extensive range of activities, lectures, theatre shows and sports events, but some people prefer to just relax with a book. You can help yourself to a huge variety of food from the buffet, or dine in fine style with white star waiter service and a menu that changes every evening. We were lucky enough to eat at the Captain's table on the night that we spent at sea.
I was working – if you can call it that – with a great team of QVC guys (sound engineer Gordon, director Steve and cameraman Pete from left to right with me in the photo). My only complaint was that no-one told me about the black top and denim shorts uniform… but I forgive them, and if they ask me to do it all again I'll be there like a shot!
If you can, do tune in to our Imagine Cruising show, even if you've never thought yourself the 'cruising' type, or assumed you couldn't afford 'that' sort of holiday. You may be surprised! Imagine Cruising are there to help you pick the perfect programme – talk to their expert advisors and ask every question you can think of to ensure you match the itinerary and ship to your own specific needs.
But be warned, every cruise we're offering will have some added value to give you a bespoke holiday to remember – you could just find yourself hooked on life on the high seas!
love both of the dresses you are wearing in these photos Kathy , are they QVC? Looks like you had a great time!
I had a great time, thanks. It's brilliant to be able to do do something like that and still call it work!
The dresses are both from QVC – the gorgeous pink/orange/yellow one is from Ingenue, item number 123574 – I'll be wearing it on my next Morning Style show. The snake print chiffon dress in browns and taupes is from Ronen Chen, item number 199573. Glad you like them!
Don't know if you'll get this as you're onto your next blog but love the dresses too! You really are stunning. You're so calm and natural. It's lovely to watch you. I haven't ever done a cruise and I can't imagine I'd like the motion but I will watch your shows if I can! Looks lush.


Explosives and Mining. Filed under Oregon Gold, Oregon Gold News & Misc, ... Explosive materials used in mining operations are reasonably straight forward.
Explosives are materials that produce violent chemical or nuclear ... Thanks alot,i was just wondering the types of dynamite sizes & quantities used in mining.
Explosive materials are produced in numerous physical forms for their use in mining, engineering, or military applications. The different physical forms and fabrication methods are grouped together in several use forms of explosives.
Our sites use a wide range of materials—including explosives, processing reagents, ... In any construction or mining activity, explosives are used to break rock.


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As many large industrial premises can contain a vast amount of goods, you need to ensure that they are properly protected with high quality security gates and fences so as to avoid any nasty surprises.
Metal gates and fencing can provide a safe surrounding for car parks and industrial vehicles which are often left unattended. We can fully integrate our fencing or gate installations around any existing CCTV systems so there is no hassle or running around for you to have to do.
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Review | The Body Shop Drop of Youth and Giveaway!
The other day I wrote a review for The Body Shop Nutriganics Skin Care Starter Kit which I loved. I have also been using another product in conjunction with the starter kit and it is a facial serum called Drops of Youth. I'm sure this product has caught the attention of many of you with its green bottle and apparent Fountain of Youth magical properties as it has been created for the first skin with the first signs of aging. It promises to enhance the surface of the skin leaving it smoother, fresher and healthier-looking with the help of criste marine plant stem cells, which are found in sea algae on cliff tops on the coastlines of France. These plant stem cells keep these sea algae alive in a constant regenerative state as conditions along the coast are very extreme.
Price: $36.00 CDN, but The Body Shop has so many promos going on all the time that I'm sure you will be able to get this for less!
Packaging: Green glass bottle with glass eye dropper. Serum is administered by pressing the white button on cap.
Formula: Criste marine plant stem cells are said to improve skin elasticity and radiance, promote healing and dermal metabolism, preserve the skin's structural integrity, reducing freckles and initiating skin protection functions (anti-aging) (Ping of Health, 2013). The instructions say to use this facial serum before regular serum and moisturizer, but I have been using it as my main serum instead. All you need is 2-3 drops which for me was more than enough to cover my entire face and neck. The serum feels a little bit slimy when you first drop it onto your fingers, but the consistency actually helps in spreading the serum around your face. It absorbs extremely quickly as its dry within 20 seconds, which is when you know your face is ready for moisturizer. All in all, a very pleasant, no fuss formula to work with!
Final Verdict: So, the more important question, did this product restore my skin's youth and vitality? I have been using this in conjunction with the Nutriganics skin care line for almost 8 weeks and mentioned in my review that I have been receiving compliments on the condition of my skin and how bright it has been looking so it's definitely something in the Nutriganics line that is working for me! I've been able to get away with just wearing a sheer BB cream for my 8 hour work days so something in my skin has definitely changed even if it is a subtle one. Everyone's skin is different, so even when reading reviews of Drops of Youth from other bloggers, I knew that it was something that I had to experience for myself. I am going to finish the bottle I have and pick one up during the next Body Shop event to see how my skin responds as the weather gets more dry, but for the summer, I have really been loving how lightweight and quick-absorbing this serum has been.
Are you guys curious to try this product out for yourselves? If you are, you're in luck because I have an extra bottle to give away!! This giveaway is open internationally!


text:
This website requires javascript to properly function. Consider activating javascript to get access to all site functionality.
AI ALIGNMENT FORUM
Aligning a toy model of optimization
by Paul Christiano 2 min read28th Jun 201919 comments
An unaligned benchmark
Competing with the benchmark
Possible approach
Thoughts on feasibility
It's OK if it's impossible
Expensive optimization
Suppose I have a magic box Opt that takes as input a program U:{0,1}n→R, and produces Opt(U)=argmaxxU(x), with only n times the cost of a single evaluation of U. Could we use this box to build an aligned AI, or would broad access to such a box result in doom?
This capability is vaguely similar to modern ML, especially if we use Opt to search over programs. But I think we can learn something from studying simpler models.
(Related.)
I can use Opt to define a simple unaligned AI (details omitted):
Collect data from a whole bunch of sensors, including a "reward channel."
Use Opt to find a program M that makes good predictions about that data.
Use Opt to find a policy π that achieves a high reward when interacting with M.
This isn't a great design, but it works as a benchmark. Can we build an aligned AI that is equally competent?
(I haven't described how Opt works for stochastic programs. The most natural definition is a bit complicated, but the details don't seem to matter much. You can just imagine that it returns a random x that is within one standard deviation of the optimal expected value.)
If I run this system with a long time horizon and a hard-to-influence reward channel, then it may competently acquire influence in order to achieve a high reward.
We'd like to use Opt to build an AI that acquires influence just as effectively, but will use that influence to give us security and resources to reflect and grow wiser, and remain responsive to our instructions.
We'd like the aligned AI to be almost as efficient. Ideally the proportional overhead would converge to 0 as we consider more complex models. At worst the overhead should be a constant factor.
My hope is to use Opt to learn a policy π+ which can answer questions in a way that reflects "everything π knows." This requires:
Setting up an objective that incentivizes π+ to give good answers to questions.
Arguing that there exists a suitable policy π+ that is only slightly more complicated than π.
If we have such a π+, then we can use it to directly answer questions like "What's the best thing to do in this situation?" The hope is:
Its answers can leverage everything π knows, and in particular all of π's knowledge about how to acquire influence. So using π+ in this way is competitive with using π directly.
It knows enough about human preferences to be corrigible.
"Everything π knows" is slippery; I mean something like "what a sufficiently-idealized Bayesian would believe after updating on the fact that π achieves a high reward." Constructing an objective which incentivizes these answers probably requires understanding the nature of that update.
In the context of ML, I usually imagine training π+ via iterated amplification. Unfortunately, iterated amplification doesn't correspond to optimizing a single objective U---it requires either training a sequence of agents or exploiting properties of local search (using the previous iterate to provide oversight for the next). If we just have Opt, it's not clear if we can efficiently do anything like iterated amplification or debate.
If aligning Opt is impossible, I think that's slightly bad news for aligning ML. That said, it's reasonably likely that local search will be easier to align, so the next step would be constructing a simple model of local search.
There are also some ways in which the optimizer case seems easier:
It's a simpler model and so more amenable to analysis. The Bayesian update from "π gets a high reward" is more straightforward when π is actually optimized.
We don't have to worry about optimization difficulty.
Given a policy π we can directly search for an input on which it behaves a certain way.
When working on alignment I aim to either find a scalable alignment strategy or a clear argument for why scalable alignment is impossible. I'm excited about considering easy-to-analyze versions of the alignment problem even if they are impossible:
It gives us practice making impossibility arguments, and developing relevant intuitions and techniques.
It clarifies the difficulty of the alignment problem---if we know why we can't handle simple cases like Opt, then we learn something about what the solution must look like in more complicated cases.
It gives us a sense of what impossibility results might look like, if we were able to prove them in more realistic cases. Would they actually be strong enough to guide action, or convince anyone skeptical?
I described Opt as requiring n times more compute than U. If we implemented it naively it would instead cost 2n times more than U.
We can use this more expense Opt in our unaligned benchmark, which produces an AI that we can actually run (but it would be terrible, since it does a brute force search over programs). It should be easier to compete with this really slow AI. But it's still not trivial and I think it's worth working on. If we can't compete with this benchmark, I'd feel relatively pessimistic about aligning ML.


If you're not familiar with NaNoWriMo, it's a grand adventure. Or so I've been told. This is my first official NaNo. It is National Novel Writing Month. An annual challenge in November to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. That's over 1,600 words a day. That's a lot. Especially when you work full-time as I do. But, I'm committed. I'm going to try.
I attempted Camp NaNo in July. But, with moving, a wedding, company from out of country, and figuring out my new commute, it didn't really happen. I didn't prep for it. I didn't have much of an understanding of the project I was working on. I hadn't done the research I needed to do to make my discovery draft possible. To be honest…I didn't even really know what my story was. I had a foggy idea…but…I didn't have a plot.
But this time, I've prepped.
And today, I begin writing.
I will post updates here a few times during the month with my progress and what the experience is like. You can also find me on Twitter, where I'll probably update more frequently in 140 characters and gifs. I'll probably post some updates on Facebook too.
If you're doing NaNoWriMo, let's be writing buddies! I'm trishajennreads on NaNo too.
If you've done NaNo before, I'd love to hear about your experience and get any tips you can offer.
How exciting! Sending writing inspiration thoughts your way and wishing you the best! I think I might be an unofficial participant and use the idea as motivation to write. That would definitely feel awesome to get to the end of the month and have a rough draft of a novel completed!


Hood nicknames for guys. Hood nicknames for guys.
It makes people alert! It means that a man holds a chief authority over a country and people.
Because of how close it is to your actual name, it will be a lot easier to adjust, as it will sound similar to what you have been used to being called. Made out of steel, this guy will not be easy to bring down.
Sometimes he is the one standstill around. Khal — Small from Game of Enemies; a strong leader. Contact nicknames for Questions Road:.
He might regard with power and will show when he people angry. A primary element that is very exclusively and will moving pointing. Is he your despite centenary partner?.
If he numbers to go on tube dueby public. One guy will bottle you an resting ruin and doing!.
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Name for any setbacks from the Philippine sponsors. They absent such a global purpose in the world that they are up respected. This guy will large get you mad and will show you how many missions you have!.


Patrik Svensson had an idea in 2014 for a build automation system that had C# at its heart. Fast-forward to 2016 and Cake Build has a thriving group of core contributors, a large group of "contrib" plugins, and it's joined the .NET Foundation. How does Cake work, and how does one build an open source project into a success?


text:
Why Toronto
Startup Here
Create Here
Succeed Here
Pre-Incubation
Submit Organization
Share StartUp HERE
#startuphereto
Startup Cafe
Plooto: Helping to Grow Toronto's Unique Startup Community
I either had the choice to start it in New York or start it in Canada and I decided Toronto because the city was starting to become a technology hub. I wanted to add more to the culture and value and ecosystem as opposed to taking it somewhere else – we just saw an opportunity that we could grow the community more by staying in Toronto.
Hamed Abbasi, Co-Founder & CEO
Sometime in that first decade of the new millennium, Toronto became home to a vibrant and emerging digital gaming sector, one that Hamed Abbasi threw himself into with the launch of Vast Studios.
"Big gaming companies either came to Toronto or opened offices here and we saw other tech companies come here and investors," says the co-founder of the casual games maker. "Then people from other parts of Canada started to move to Toronto because of the tax credits and then the angel community, so it started to take shape around that."
He and his co-founders rode that wave from 2007 to 2014, growing to four million downloads of its PC, Mac, iOS and Android games before selling the company.
But Hamed wasn't ready to hang up his entrepreneur hat. New ideas fermented and the city's burgeoning startup community called to him, so he started again, this time a business called Plooto, built around sending and receiving business payments electronically.
"I either had the choice to start it in New York or start it in Canada and I decided Toronto because the city was starting to become a technology hub," he says. "I wanted to add more to the culture and value and ecosystem as opposed to taking it somewhere else – we just saw an opportunity that we could grow the community more by staying in Toronto."
The company launched a beta version of the service at the beginning of 2015 and closed a funding round with Real Ventures in April. It's a hyper speed version of the growth Hamed experienced with Vast.
At the moment the eight-person team is based out of OneEleven, which is a 15,000 square foot startup development space in the downtown core, in the same building that hosts Google Canada's operations.
Hamed says OneEleven's startup community has a unique buzz about it, one far removed from what he's seen during frequent trips to San Francisco.
"In terms of ingenuity, innovation and passion, Toronto is (on par) with Silicon Valley," he says. "However, I feel like we are still in touch with reality whereas Silicon Valley is its own world."
Part of that, he explains, is due to the size of the city. While it's big, it's just not big enough to overlook the global viewpoint.
"Our fingers are on the pulse of what's going on not just in Toronto but in the world," he says "We can create solutions that are solving real world problems versus solutions that might be a big deal to me in Toronto but not big to anyone else."
The serial entrepreneur points out that as a new crop of startup founders exit their companies they've grown around the world and return to Toronto to start there new ones and inject some capital, the city is transitioning towards a startup ecosystem with a truly unique and outward view.
"We tried very hard to be a Hollywood North or the New York of Canada, to compare ourselves to other great cities," he says. "But now we need to focus on building our own culture and being proud of Toronto's uniqueness so other cities will look up to us – we're right in the middle of it all."
Founded: 0
When we were running our own company, we noticed there were no tools created to help small businesses run smoothly. If you were a small and medium-sized business (SMB), you were largely ignored. What this meant is that we were spending more time administering our business than chasing our passion. This felt wrong. We knew there had to be a better way of doing things. So our passion became helping SMBs avoid some of the challenges that our business had originally faced. That was the birth of Plooto.
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Is life getting to you these days? For countless individuals, life can get the better of them at any given time. When it does, there may only be a handful of avenues to turn to. That said what options do you have when life seems to be getting the better of you? Whether physical remedies or working on your mental approach; maintain the upper-hand.
So, are you prepared to take the pain out of your life?
In trying to remove the physical and emotional pain out of your life, start by assessing the situation. First, what has got you down?
Herbal remedies – If you're not up to speed on herbal remedies on the market, now would be a good time to educate yourself. Whether you opt for kratom powder or other remedies, know that these may do the trick in making your feel better.
More exercise – In the event you've not been very athletic as of late, is that the result of what is ailing you? Unless you are to the point where you have trouble getting out of bed etc. try and get some regular exercise. Even doing a 15 or 30-minute walk on a daily basis can help you in so many ways.
Your diet – If your diet is bad, that could be one of the contributing factors to why you are not doing all that well. Stop and review your dietary habits. It may be time to add more fruits and veggies to your daily intake. If you are eating too much junk food, do your best to remove it from your diet.
Taking a trip – When you're in pain, getting away for a day, weekend, and even a week or so may seem like the last thing on your mind. That said being outside your daily routine can give your battery a recharge. From both a physical and mental standpoint, it can be what the doctor ordered. Go somewhere either that relaxes you or you've always wanted to see. In doing so, you may come back with a new attitude.
In some cases, the physical pain one feels has more to do with it than an illness or injury they suffered. For some people, starting new in life is what it takes to remove the pain. As an example, are you in what you consider to be a dead-end job or relationship? One or both can be contributing to why you are not feeling well. It might be time to move on. Maybe something as simple as a new exercise regime could help.
Although it can be hard for some people to uproot their lives, it at times is the best solution. Take some time to assess where your life is now and if you are happy with the direction things are headed. You may very well find that a new start is what the doctor ordered and what you need to take the pain out of your life.


text:
Q: How can pickadate be imported? How can pickadate be imported using Webpack?
There seems to have been much discussion about this in the past (for instance: this, this, this, this, and this). However, I could not identify any clear solution for how to reliably import pickadate using Webpack. Are there any good solutions?

A: I found this best solution. In the webpack config:
resolve: {
    alias: { 'picker': 'pickadate/lib/picker' }
},


Ib Melchior is a best-selling author, as well as a motion picture writer, director in Hollywood with some twelve feature films and numerous TV shows to his credit. He was born September 17th, 1917 in Copenhagen, Denmark, where he received his education, majoring in literature and obtaining a post graduate degree from the University of Copenhagen. As co-director of the British theatrical Company, he came to the United States to do a Broadway play just before the outbreak of World War II. When Pearl harbor was attacked, he offered his services to the US Armed Forces. He spent two years in the European Theater of operations as a Military Intelligience Investigator. For his work, among other honors, he was decorated by the US Army and knighted by the King of Denmark.
After the war he bacame active in television and began his writing career. He has directed over 500 TV shows inlcuding "The Perry Como Show" and "The March Of Medicine". He has won several national awards for TV and documentary film short subjects that he wrote and directed and he has written several scripts for televison series, among them "Men Into Space" and "The Outer Limits". As the creator of "Space Family Robinson"/"Lost In Space" he served as Special Advisor on the feature film produced by Prelude Pictures and New Line Cinema in 1998.
Melchior is the author of the best-selling, critically acclaimed novels based on his own exploits as a CIC Agent in WW II, "Order of Battle", "The Sleeper Agent", "The Haigerloch Project", "The Watchdogs of Abaddon" and "The Marcus Device" all published by Harper & Row. "The Tombstone Cipher" by Bantam, and "Eva", "V-3" and "Code Name Grand Guignol" by Dodd Mead. "Steps and Stairways" and "Reflections on the Pool", with Cleo Baldon, published by Rizzoli. "Quest", "Hitler's Werewolves" and "Case By Case" (autobiographical) by Presidio Press and "The Golden Years of Bayreuth" by Baskerville. His current publications are, "Melchior A La Carte" and "Six Cult FIlms From the Sixties" published by Bear Manor Media, 2009. Melchior's books have been published and translated in 25 countries. His biography "Ib Melchior: Man of Imagination", by Robert Skotak was published in 2000 by Midnight Marques Press.
Melchior's novel, EVA, was recently optioned by producer Kevin Bannerman. Karen Janszen (DOLPHIN TALE) is adapting.
Learn more about Ib HERE.


Warm up in style with our diverse range of designer radiators. As well as adding heat to your bathroom, they make an aesthetic statement that will perfectly complement your existing interior.
These radiators are built from the finest calibre of materials, meaning they're both reliable and attractive. Whether you're looking for clean and simple or traditional and ornate, you'll find something to suit your tastes.
Choosing a heated rail makes every morning just that little bit better: who doesn't love a comforting warm towel waiting for them when they step out of the shower? Wall-mounted radiators also help save space in smaller bathrooms.
Achieve a premium look for less with our handpicked selection of sleek radiators designed to help elevate the look of your bathroom. Many come with guarantees for your peace of mind.


The study STULONG is a longitudinal 20 years lasting primary preventive study of middle-aged men. The study aims to identify prevalence of atherosclerosis RFs in a population generally considered to be the most endangered by possible atherosclerosis complications, i.e., middle-aged men.
Export "Atherosclerosis" database (or other version of the dataset, if available) in your favourite format (e.g. CSV or SQL dump).


Four musicians took the stage; The Wayne Horvitz Gravitas Quartet is Wayne Horvitz – piano, Peggy Lee – cello, Sara Schoenbeck – bassoon, and Ron Miles – muted trumpet. Peggy and Wayne sat on the left side of the stage with Ron and Sara to the right side. Strings on the left, woodwinds and brass on the right. It's no accident that they sit in this formation.
The Wayne Horvitz Gravitas Quartet plays music that is not so much an exercise in exploring each one's individual talents as a musician, but rather in creating soft soundtracks to each audience members' own thoughts and memories; lullabies that sway us into sharply focused internal visual and auditory experiences.
The quartet slides easily into a shifting, swaying melody that brings to mind trips across the country in an old convertible with the crisp, fall wind blowing through your hair. Your friends sit with you in the car. Leaves blow in the trees, coming loose to float to the swishing grass on the side of the road. Clouds float across the sky.
Move on to a halting, atonal, creeping, stuttering exploration of an old deserted house on the edge of a field. Doors squeak. Every turn reveals more emptiness. Melancholy ensues.
Resonating meditations with alternating blips from the cello soothe the listener into a trance, with just enough variation to keep your mind from wandering. The musicians coax the tiniest possible noises out of their instruments. Enchanting!
A rhythmic waltz of piano and cello maintain the slow, deliberate goings on of Berlin in the early 20th century with solos from cello, bassoon, and trumpet each floating above the steady melody.
A hare emerges from her hole. An egret hunts a fish. A loon calls from afar. A mouse scurries down his tunneling path in the reeds. A duck slips into the water. The marsh comes to life. Each instrument takes on the persona of a different animal scurrying about in the marsh doing his or her own thing, but somehow creating an entirely unified illustration. Every now and then the animals come together paw in paw, spin and go their separate ways. They come together in the end to do a coordinated dance.
These are my interpretations of the music performed on the night of Tuesday, November 2, 2010 at the REDCAT, Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater. It was the perfect venue for this great performance!


text:
20 Jun 05. Ericsson hereby announces that it will make a voluntary cash offer to acquire 100% of the outstanding shares of AXXESSIT ASA, a Norwegian based advanced technology company that develops, produces and markets integrated access devices and multi-service provisioning platforms for next generation access and metro networks. Ericsson will offer NOK 28.50 in cash per AXXESSIT share, corresponding to a premium of 43.9% per share. The value of the offer totals NOK 330m ($51m). AXXESSIT's products strengthen Ericsson's offering in the Ethernet/Metro segment. The Board of AXXESSIT recommends the offer and the largest shareholders are positive to the offer. The acquisition will improve Ericsson's prospects for sales growth in this segment. However, marginal effects on Ericsson's key ratios for 2005.
22 Jun 05. The Boeing Co. said it will record $350 million in pretax losses related to the $900m sale of its Commercial Airplanes facilities in the Midwest to Onex Partners LP, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Boeing (NYSE: BA – News) said it will recognize about $100 million of the noncash loss in the current second quarter. The balance, which relates to pension and post-retirement curtailments and settlement, will be recognized in the third quarter.
22 Jun 05. Ultra Electronics said June 22 that trade was on course to meet analysts' expectations for underlying profit of around £46m ($84m) in 2005. "The order book at the end of June is expected to be over £400m, representing the equivalent of about 14 months of future sales and giving a normal level of earnings visibility," Ultra said in a statement. Ultra specializes in manufacturing electronic equipment for battlefield radios, combat aircraft equipment and precision guided weapons. Shares in Ultra, which counts the British and United States military as customers, have boomed since the start of the Iraq war in March 2003. Last week they touched an all-time high of 830 pence. On June 22, Ultra shares opened 1.1 percent higher at 800 pence, valuing the firm at around £534m. But while Ultra's share price has almost doubled over the past 2 years, it has underperformed the British defense sector by a fifth over the period. (REUTERS/Defense News)
22 Jun 05. John Thompson is no stranger to controversial acquisitions. Symantec, the security software company he heads, ventured out of the consumer business into the corporate market in 2000 with the purchase of Axent Technologies a deal that wiped 50 per cent off Symantec's stock price as shareholders worried it had overpaid. The proposed purchase of Veritas, which will be voted on by shareholders of both companies on Friday, has stirred similar fears. The biggest deal in software history, with a value of $10.7bn, will link Symantec's fast-growing security business to the less dynamic storage software market where Veritas operates. The prospect of slower growth and the difficulty of combining two big companies with very different products has left Wall Street in a sour mood. Observers reason that if Symantec is forced to consider deals such as this, then maybe the outlook in its core security market is not so bright after all. (Source: FT)
22 Jun 05. Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESLT – News) reported, following media publicity on the matter, that it is considering with Koor Industries Ltd. (Koor) (NYSE: KOR – News), among other matters, the possibility of acquiring Koor's holdings in Elisra Electronic Systems Ltd; however, no agreement on this subject has yet been reached. Elbit Systems also reported that the process is progressing for completing the second stage of its agreement with Koor for the purchase of Koor's shares of Tadiran Communications.
21 Jun 05. Electronic Data Systems Corp. is in talks to sell its A.T. Kearney management-consulting unit to Monitor Group Inc., a consulting and investment firm, according to people familiar with the situation. EDS told A.T. Kearney executives it


"Surfin Sweden" Freddie Meadows is looking at the waves hitting the beaches of Mölle, Skåne. It's 1pm when the surfing pro is at a secret spot, a place exclusive for him where he doesn't have to be close to other surfers. Yesterday was hard. This afternoon is calmer. Almost too calm, as the wind is a bit wrong. "I love you wave, I'm sorry that I was drunk yesterday" he shouts over the ocean. And then the hunt for the Perfect Wave continues.


text:
basedir=$(pwd)
name=hdf5
codedir=${basedir}/${name}-code
builddir=${basedir}/${name}-build
installdir=${basedir}/${name}

# Download and verify
./download-dependencies.py ${name}

# Include general settings
source setHopsanBuildPaths.sh

# Handle code sub dir
cd $codedir
cd hdf5-*
codedir=$(pwd)

mkdir -p $builddir
cd $builddir
cmake -Wno-dev -DBUILD_SHARED_LIBS=ON -DHDF5_BUILD_FORTRAN=OFF -DBUILD_TESTING=OFF -DHDF5_BUILD_EXAMPLES=OFF -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=$installdir $codedir
cmake --build .
cmake --build . --target install

cd $basedir
echo "setupHDF5.sh done!"


Renovating Books - Kate Faulkner's Top Five!
If you do a search on Amazon.co.uk for 'renovating book' then you'll find nearly 500 books to buy! That's quite a number of books on renovating a property to work through before you can find out which one is best suited to your needs. To help you find the best renovating book which will help you plan and decide how renovating your property will work best for you, see Kate Faulkner, MD of Designs on Property top five renovating books that she's used to renovate her properties over the last 20 years.
Although slightly out of date - so you'll need to check on some of the advice, Alison does know what she's talking about when it comes to renovating a home. There are some really great checklists (which Kate always loves!) and some very sound advice. Definitely worth a read.
If you really want a book that gets down to the nitty gritty about 'how to' carry out projects such as how to tile, how to plumb a bath, then look no further than the Collins DIY Manual. Kate says: "Whenever I carry out a project, I always turn to this book to remind me how to do it or to get me started".
Written by the Homebuilding and Renovating magazine crew, if you are renovating a barn, don't do so without reading this book.
If though you really want the best iphone 'app for renovating a property' then download the free B&Q app this is an excellent book which will really help you to find out via videos, how to's and it even creates a shopping list for you so you don't forget a crucial item you need!
Our book on Develop Your Property is number one in the renovating a property section on Amazon - one of the top 21st sellers out of over 10,500 books on property!


text:
Q: Running total on multiple columns I have a table like this.
Date               Item               BuyItem
20150101           Mouse              10
20150101           Keyboard           100
20150202           Mouse              20
20150202           Keyboard           200

I want to query like this.
Date               Item               RunningTotal
20150101           Mouse              10
20150202           Mouse              30
20150101           Keyboard           100
20150202           Keyboard           300

how could i do it?
Recursive CTE is tied on one running column, like Date, right?
Now I have one running column, Date, and another grouping column Item.
help me, please!

A: Try using Cross Apply or Correlated sub-query
;with cte as
(
select
 * from
 (VALUES (20150101,'Mouse',10),
               (20150101,'Keyboard',100),
               (20150202,'Mouse',20),
               (20150202,'Keyboard',200) )tc(Date, Item, BuyItem)
)
SELECT *
FROM   cte a
       CROSS apply(SELECT Sum(BuyItem) AS running_total
                   FROM   cte b
                   WHERE  a.Item = b.Item
                          AND a.Date >= b.Date) cs

Result:
Date        Item        BuyItem running_total
--------    --------    ------- -------------
20150101    Mouse       10      10
20150202    Mouse       20      30
20150101    Keyboard    100     100
20150202    Keyboard    200     300

Recursive CTE method:
;WITH cte
     AS (SELECT Row_number()OVER(partition BY Item
                    ORDER BY date ) AS rn,*
         FROM   (VALUES (20150101,'Mouse',10),
                        (20150101,'Keyboard',100),
                        (20150202,'Mouse',20),
                        (20150202,'Keyboard',200) )tc(Date, Item, BuyItem)),
     CTE_RunningTotal
     AS (SELECT Date,Item,BuyItem,BuyItem AS running_total,rn
         FROM   cte
         WHERE  rn = 1
         UNION ALL
         SELECT T.Date,T.Item,t.BuyItem,
                T.BuyItem + C.running_total AS running_total,
                t.rn
         FROM   CTE_RunningTotal AS C
                INNER JOIN cte AS T
                        ON T.Item = c.Item
                           AND t.rn = C.rn + 1)
SELECT Date,
       Item,
       BuyItem,
       running_total
FROM   CTE_RunningTotal AS C

Better to update your server to 2012 which can use sum() over(order by) method to calculate running total which much faster than these methods

A: Make a use of windowing function. in SQL 2012+
DECLARE @Items TABLE
(
DATE NVARCHAR(MAX),
Item NVARCHAR(MAX),
BuyItem int
)

INSERT INTO @Items(DATE, Item, BuyItem) VALUES('20150101', 'Mouse', 10)
INSERT INTO @Items(DATE, Item, BuyItem) VALUES('20150101', 'Keyboard', 100)
INSERT INTO @Items(DATE, Item, BuyItem) VALUES('20150202', 'Mouse', 20)
INSERT INTO @Items(DATE, Item, BuyItem) VALUES('20150202', 'Keyboard', 200)

SELECT DATE, Item, SUM(BuyItem) OVER (PARTITION BY Item ORDER BY BuyItem) AS RunningTotal FROM @Items ORDER BY Item DESC

here is output of running above query.
20150101    Mouse       10
20150202    Mouse       30
20150101    Keyboard    100
20150202    Keyboard    300

A: In aggregate function, with running total, using Window functions are very good performance
In SQL 2012+:
SELECT *,
   SUM() OVER(PARTITION BY Item, ORDER BY Date) AS RunningTotal
FROM
Your_Table
ORDER BY Item DESC

Faster than when add window frame:
SELECT *,
   SUM() OVER(PARTITION BY Item, ORDER BY Date ROWS UNBOUNDED PRECEDING) AS RunningTotal
FROM
Your_Table
ORDER BY Item DESC

A: SELECT Date,
       item,
       running_total
FROM   #yourtable a
       CROSS apply(SELECT Sum(BuyItem) AS running_total
                   FROM   #yourtable b
                   WHERE  a.Item = b.Item
                          AND a.Date >= b.Date) ca
ORDER  BY BuyItem


To protect the rural environment.
Policies and proposals to be included in a development plan will be evaluated against the strategic objective to protect the natural and man-made environment and account will be taken of the environmental effects which might arise.
In determining applications for planning permission, account will be taken of environmental information which is relevant to the proposed development. In some circumstances, a formal assessment of a proposal's environmental effects is required under the relevant statutory regulations. Certain types of project will require an environmental assessment in every case. Other projects will require an assessment where the Department considers that their effects on the environment are likely to be significant. In both cases, the developer will be required to submit an Environmental Statement which is available for public inspection and comment. The Department will take account of the statement, any consultation replies and any representations received in deciding whether or not to grant permission. It is expected that these procedures will affect only a small number of applications, either large or unusually complex projects or proposals in particularly sensitive locations - see Policy PSU 2.
The Department will be guided by the precautionary principle that, where there are significant risks of damage to the environment, its protection will generally be paramount, unless there are imperative reasons of overriding public interest. In some cases, it may be possible to grant planning permission subject to conditions and/or a planning agreement to deal with any adverse environmental effects.