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Information and Communication Technology Council | Conseil des technologies de l'information et des communications
ICTC-CTIC
Learning to Learn Online
Briefing #11
Welcome to the eleventh issue of the Digital Policy Salon briefing.
We're excited to bring you our usual policy updates this week, as well as a detailed look at key topics in digital education, tech for good, and a lighter look at social media influencers' business models.
As Canadian provinces' reopening plans start up, new data is being released on case numbers, but also on related topics like this month's Consumer Price Index: read on to learn about the impact of oil price fluctuations, demand for toilet paper, and more. In addition, more and more students are learning that their classes may be held digitally in Fall 2020. The lasting impact of COVID-19 on education is yet to be seen, but this week's perspective piece and our weekly Tech and Human Rights interview both examine the intersections between education and technology from all angles, including international development, equity, and access to edtech.
Finally, in light of the numerous Canadians taking their work online, ICTC's Mairead Matthews interviewed a well-known social media influencer and strength trainer, Katie Crewe, to understand how she makes content-creation work as a career. We hope you're equally excited to hear about statistical modeling in this week's "what we're reading," but we'll understand if you skip to the featured research on AI in Canada.
- Tyler & Faun
COVID-19 Policy Updates 🇨🇦
The economic impacts of COVID-19 have rendered some consumer goods more expensive, but many others have become cheaper.
Statistics Canada released its Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for the month of April this week, highlighting several interesting changes to the cost of goods due to COVID-19. The CPI represents changes in consumer prices over time and also indicates the rate of inflation.
April 2020 marked the first year-over-year decline in consumer prices since 2009.
The decline was partly caused by a staggering drop in the cost of gasoline, which fell 39.3% since last April, representing the largest year-over-year decline in the cost of gasoline to date.
Though not as significantly, the cost of other consumer goods also fell, including transportation, clothing and footwear, and recreation, education, and reading.
As the cost of many retail products fell, household necessities like food and cleaning products increased in price.
Food was 3.4% more expensive as compared to last April, with the cost of some food items like rice, eggs, margarine, and beef rising 7.9% to 9.2%.
The cost of paper increased 6% since March 2020, likely due to higher demand for toilet paper.
COVID-19 yields stark reductions in CO2 emissions.
In April, the World Meteorological Organization indicated that the economic downturn induced by COVID-19 could curtail global CO2 emissions by as much as 6%. On Tuesday, scientists from Europe, the United States, and Australia published similar findings:
On average, global daily carbon emissions dropped 17% in April.
Countries that practiced confinement in response to COVID-19 saw carbon emissions fall as much as 26%.
If current economic restrictions were to stay in place until December, total emissions for 2020 could be 7% lower than 2019.
International travel restrictions continue.
The federal government extended non-essential travel restrictions between the United States and Canada for another 30 days until June 21st, and other international travel restrictions remain in place. Similarly, in-bound travellers are still required to isolate for 14 days upon arrival to Canada.
Interestingly, while the number of people travelling to Canada by land has fallen 88% since this time last year (and by air, 98%) travel to Canada has not disappeared entirely. - Mairead Matthews | email
Canada's Instructional Revolution: Technology and Policy in a Post-COVID-19 World
By Nathan Snider | email
Along with the proliferation of educational technologies, the themes associated with distance learning, e-learning, blended learning, and the digital classroom are dominating conversations. Canada is entering a unique period where the standard for academic delivery has significantly shifted. Where conversations were previously focused on issues of best practice for digital/online curriculum delivery, they're now debating software functionality, thorough cost/benefit analysis, connectivity limitations, and the availability of ongoing support for educators and parents. As provinces such as Ontario officially declare their academic year concluded, we've begun to see significant changes in the modes of content delivery and a re-imagining of our comfort levels, as a society, with tech in the classroom. As K-12 and post-secondary education in Canada look ahead to September 2020, we're forced to consider some sobering new realities. Will the ongoing debates over class size be framed differently? Will teachers unions advocate for safer working environments for educators and for technology? Will the relationship between education and technology fundamentally improve as a result?
For ICTC's Future of Canada Series, we recently connected with experts across Canada to gather some initial feedback on technological innovations or developments that can transform a post-COVID-19 Canadian society.
This week, educators Taylor Coumbs and Dr. Gary Hepburn investigate the potential implications of COVID-19 on Canada's academic space as they provide their observations on the potential re-invigoration of traditional classroom learning through the creative use of technology and the early warning signs of a potential impending revolution in education. Click through to the full article for their full insights.
Read the full article here 📝
Interviews in the Field
Gender, Inequality, and "Tech for Good"
By Kiera Schuller | email
On Friday March 6th 2020, Kiera Schuller, Research & Policy Analyst at ICTC, spoke with Tulsi Parida as part of our Tech & Human Rights Series. Tulsi is an internet and educational-technology (edtech) professional who focuses on reducing digital inequality and promoting responsible/inclusive technology. She has led teams at startups working to bridge digital divides in literacy education both in the US and in India. In this interview, Kiera and Tulsi discuss the role of technology in education, the concept of "Tech for Good," and the links between digital inequality, gender, and development.
Kiera:
You've spent a lot of time examining the inequalities that come with technology, whether in access, education, development or other spheres. What is 'digital inequality' and what are some major intersections between technology and inequality that you work on?
Tulsi:
There are multiple ways of looking at it. The simplest form of digital inequality is in access to technology. For example, the fact that more privileged members of society often have access to the most up-to-date forms of technology, while those in under resourced communities have little to no access to this tech, is one form of digital inequality. Beyond access, however, there is also inequality in understanding and ability to use technology. Specifically, oftentimes, technology isn't built or designed for marginalized communities. For example, a smartphone is designed as a one-device-per-person device in the Western world, but in India, a single device is shared among many people. If a device is not designed for you, how can you adapt it and use it properly for your needs? So after this baseline access (do you have access to the tech?), there is the question of, "Is the actual use of that tech as impactful for some people as it is in other parts of society?"
On the flip side, while digital inequality, of course, often reflects inequalities that exist in society, technology can also be a tool to address those inequalities. For example, if only certain schools have the money to buy up-to-date textbooks, then only privileged students can have access to content; but if technology can bring textbooks and content to students who otherwise can't afford it, technology here becomes an equalizer.
Tulsi Parida, AI & Data Policy Manager at Visa
Read the full interview here 🎙
The Unseen Side of an Increasingly Popular Digital Career: How social media influencers 'make it work' in the online world
By Mairead Matthew | email
Research and Policy Analyst Mairead Matthews sat down with Canadian blogger and certified strength trainer Katie Crewe to discuss how social media influencers "make it work" in the online world. Based in Toronto, Ontario, Katie's career has seen immense growth both online and offline through social media platforms like Instagram and YouTube.
Mairead:
How much does an influencer need to know about things like content creation (video editing, photography, blogging, etc.) or digital media best practices (various kinds of formats, social media algorithms, etc.)?
For myself, it's been a lot of trial and error, but I think it really depends on how much you want to optimize things. You can be very successful not knowing a lot about content creation or social media if you are just very consistent, clever and perceptive enough to pick up on what people are responding well to and use that to inform your future content decisions. I think that's really important. Obviously, stuff like production budget does make a difference, but consistency is extremely important. A lot of people have very, very successful channels, just by using their phone to make and upload content.
As you evolve, however, you generally want to improve on that, so it's helpful to know how to edit, especially in a way that makes your content look better. You can edit the same video to make it look a lot better or a lot worse, so it's helpful to be decent at that, and as you get more practice in, you get better.
That said, what I've found is that when people are very focused on their business or have a very successful business, they tend to outsource a lot of the content stuff. Even when they're decent at it, they just don't want to spend their time doing that. For example, I know these people that have a gym with full-time videographers and editors on site, so that they can focus on just the education component, and the things that specifically require their face and voice. They're there to film, and then bam–somebody else does all the edits, uploads it, and does all that other stuff for them. It saves them a ton of time. I'm not at that point, but it would save me a ton of time.
Katie Crewe, Canadian blogger and certified strength trainer
How One Modeler Is Trying To Forecast The Toll Of COVID-19
(FiveThirtyEight)
Governments across the United States and around the world have relied on forecast models in planning their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this special edition of "Model Talk" on the FiveThirtyEight Politics podcast, Dr. Chris Murray — who created the frequently cited Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation model — discusses how he went about building his model and the challenges he has encountered. Murray says honing the IHME model has been an ongoing process as new data about the virus has emerged as it spread.
More of a "what we're listening to" than a "what we're reading," this podcast features an interview with the researcher who created one of the most-cited models of the Coronavirus' progression. This talk shines an interesting light on the impact of Coronavirus modeling on public appreciation for, and understanding of, statistics: this moment in history has required all of us, regardless of our background, to understand how forecasting models relate to us and the behaviours we choose. As one unattributed meme aptly notes, we've all spent a lot more time looking at exponential graphs than anyone could have foreseen. - Faun Rice | email
Research Visualized
New reported cases by day in Canada — Source: The New York Times, May 21, 2020
As some Canadian provinces begin reopening their economies, many eyes are on the number of new COVID-19 cases. The hopeful visualization above, showing a decrease in the number of daily recorded cases, comes from The New York Times: the news outlet has developed several user-friendly dashboards with key metrics for countries outside of the U.S., including France, Germany, and Mexico, as well as Canada and others. Interested readers can check out their analysis of cases per capita by province as well as their detailed American overview.
On the Edge of Tomorrow: Canada's AI-Augmented Workforce
Published by ICTC, February 2020
Artificial Intelligence is frequently identified as one of the most promising areas of technological development. The ability to generate efficiencies, identify hidden patterns or insights, and automate tasks have combined to create a transformative technology that may fundamentally alter business operations. Although progress in the field of AI has fluctuated since its inception, we are increasingly witnessing its potential across the economy.
As AI continues to disrupt older processes, it is critical to develop strategies to ensure that its benefits are not divisive and that AI is deployed and used responsibly. Canada is currently demonstrating global leadership in the development of AI ethics, and maintaining this momentum is crucial as Canada increasingly embraces a future that incorporates artificial intelligence.
This study also contains the following:
International trends in AI
National AI initiatives and research collaborations
The role of venture capital and corporate investment in AI
Canada's strategic sectors for AI deployment
Click here for the full report 📖
Twitter Highlights
Talk to Us 💬
Send your comments, questions, and tech policy insights to:
Tyler Farmer 🚀 t.farmer@ictc-ctic.ca
Faun Rice 🦌 f.rice@ictc-ctic.ca
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I started my new Raspberry Pi build before - RPi2+HifiBerry DAC+Volumio (latest version), but I'm having problems enabling the DAC.
If I enable i2s, and select "HifiBerry DAC", I get no sound at all.
If I disable i2s, and set to "Audio Jack" I get sound form the 3.5mm socket.
If I enable i2s, and select "Allo BOSS", I get sound through the DAC RCA connectors. But, the sound seems very weighted towards the centre - almost as though it's Mono.
I've tried disabling i2s, rebooting, re-enabling i2s and rebooting but still didn't seem to give any output set to "HifiBerry DAC".
Any suggestions? How do I tell if my board is "HifiBerry DAC" or "HifiBerry DAC+"? I bought it a while ago.
For HiFiBerry, there's either a single crystal device or the dual crystal, the Pro. The board itself will have a name on it, but it's very likely that you have the DAC+. Anything else is likely to be Volumio not getting its naming correct.
Ok, this is really annoying now.
I don't know how, but it did finally start working, and has been for a while... until I changed something for testing. Now, I cannot get it to go back onto I2S.
So, I set I2S DAC "On", select DAC Model as "HifiBerry DAC Plus" (which I know it is now), press "Save", and as soon as I reboot, it's back to I2S disabled.
I've tried setting it so many different ways - starting from HDMI/Audio Jack, also tried setting to Allo Boss which gave me audio before somehow, but it just keeps defaulting back to I2S "Off". Help please!
Is there a way I can configure this through SSH, rather than the buggy UI?
I have the same problem with my dac plus pro (that version I can not choose) but after restart, i2s is off. It's happening after latest Volumio version.
SD card new and reimaged.
Besides is there a setting for the pro?
same issue here with Raspi PI2B and Hifiberry DAC+. I choose the DAC+, Alsa Error, I switch I2S off, restart, then choose Hifiberry DAC, restart, change to DAC+ (without restart) and it works. After a reboot in some cases I2S is again off, or the setup of the DAC is back to Hifiberry DAC.
So I took the setting wit Hifiberry DAC and the System runs stable, also after rebooting. But now I would be interested if there are any differences between the settings of DAC vor DAC+. Are there any effects in sound quality or compatibility?
Any idea of other users or Volumio?
Check the PSU voltage at the DAC. They can be fussy and like 5.2VDC.
Thank you for your reply. I tried another PSU (original Raspberry) output 5,1/2,5A and it is the same. Maybe I find a PSU with 5.2. Do you have a recommendation?
Does your Tinker board setup sound better than your RPI?
There's not a lot of difference I can hear between the OSA Dacberry One and the HifiBerry DAC; the OSA has a little more bass and sounds a little more focused. It depends on the track being played.
Re PSUs; I found the official Pi PSU (5V1) works well.
Also the NorthPada Raspberry Pi 3 Model B 3A Power Supply.
I'm using the MeanWell RPS-30-05 30W PSU (which has an adjustable 4.7 - 5.5VDC output) in my Volumio players and find them totally reliable at 5.25VDC.


An increase in tubular fluid flow rate (TFF) stimulates Na reabsorption and K secretion in the cortical collecting duct (CCD) and subjects cells therein to biomechanical forces including fluid shear stress (FSS) and circumferential stretch (CS). Intracellular MAPK and extracellular autocrine/paracrine PGE2 signaling regulate cation transport in the CCD and, at least in other systems, are affected by biomechanical forces. We hypothesized that FSS and CS differentially affect MAPK signaling and PGE2 release to modulate cation transport in the CCD. To validate that CS is a physiological force in vivo, we applied the intravital microscopic approach to rodent kidneys in vivo to show that saline or furosemide injection led to a 46.5 ± 2.0 or 170 ± 32% increase, respectively, in distal tubular diameter. Next, murine CCD (mpkCCD) cells were grown on glass or silicone coated with collagen type IV and subjected to 0 or 0.4 dyne/cm2 of FSS or 10% CS, respectively, forces chosen based on prior biomechanical modeling of ex vivo microperfused CCDs. Cells exposed to FSS expressed an approximately twofold greater abundance of phospho(p)-ERK and p-p38 vs. static cells, while CS did not alter p-p38 and p-ERK expression compared with unstretched controls. FSS induced whereas CS reduced PGE2 release by ∼40%. In conclusion, FSS and CS differentially affect ERK and p38 activation and PGE2 release in a cell culture model of the CD. We speculate that TFF differentially regulates biomechanical signaling and, in turn, cation transport in the CCD.


One of the ways we tell our client's stories and demonstrate their expertise is by mixing interviews and at-work footage. In this 0:46 piece Jon Schlichting, a top-producing Branch Manager at Platinum Home Mortgage in San Dimas, CA talks about how he makes it easy for clients to communicate with him.
Newer PostCompany Spotlight: "Meet the Professionals"


When your spouse is incarcerated, it creates a tremendous strain on your relationship. By reading this blog it indicates that you are already considering moving on with your life and seriously contemplating an uncontested divorce. You are not alone. It has been documented that within the first year of incarceration 80% of marriages end up in divorce, and for female inmates the divorce rate is almost 100%.
You experienced a huge feeling of loss when your spouse left your home. The additional financial squeeze of phone calls, giving your spouse packages, and visitation expenses have taken their toll. In addition, if you have children you will most likely see their behavior change. Some kids withdraw and become shy; others act out their anger and become aggressive.
Emotional destruction may not be the only factor wearing down your family. It's not unusual for children to start experiencing health problems like weight loss or gain, headaches and other stress related illnesses. If that wasn't enough, then there is the worrisome statistics that children of prisoners are likely to become incarcerated adults themselves.
The emotional erosion isn't exclusive to kids. You can start feeling a whole range of emotions. At times, you can even feel like you are on an emotional roller coaster. A range of feelings easily includes: loneliness, embarrassment, anxiety, anger and no longer wanting to socially engage.
There may also be feelings of guilt. The guilt of feeling a sense of relief – relief that a troublesome partner has been sent away, or even guilt for wanting to move on with your life without your spouse. Remember your emotional reactions to having someone incarcerated are normal.
In many ways, you have become the invisible prisoner yourself. Too often people just like you are treated like second-class citizens because your spoues is incarcerated. The shame, financial burden and even the sexual frustration can quickly demoralize even the strongest of wills.
If you feel that you have been living in crises and think it's time to start over fresh, call Attorney Jim Cairns at 888.863.9115. You can also get started with your divorce now by clicking on the words affordable divorce. Cairns Law Offices understands that this decision takes a lot of courage, and we are here to help ease some of that fear.


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FOX59 TV Schedule
'Solid sheet of ice': Hundreds stranded on I-75 in Kentucky overnight
Posted 11:18 AM, January 23, 2016, by CNN Wire
London City Police Department in Kentucky "We urge all citizens to stay off the roadways this evening, unless it's an emergency. I-75 northbound is currently at a standstill beginning at exit 38 due to immobile trucks at the 68 mile marker.
(January 23, 2015) — When a Kentucky state trooper checked April Gilliam-Montesinos' stranded car on Interstate 75 overnight, he gave up his snack so her diabetic father could maintain his blood-sugar level.
It was a small comfort in a miserable situation: She and her family were among hundreds of motorists stuck for as many as 19 hours — from Friday afternoon into Saturday morning — along a hilly 35-mile stretch of I-75 in central Kentucky because of a snowstorm hitting the eastern United States.
Similar situations played out overnight on highways in Pennsylvania and West Virginia as the huge winter storm left tens of thousands without power and snarled roads in 13 states.
In Kentucky, heavy snow and thick ice led to wrecks and otherwise impassable conditions in the Appalachian foothills from Berea south to London.
Gilliam-Montesinos said she braked her car to a halt at 1 p.m. Friday, with vehicles snaked ahead of and behind her. She, her father and her two daughters — ages 4 and 14 — huddled in the car overnight, with no food and water.
She used Twitter to ask state police for help.
"They sent an officer out here, but he didn't know what he was coming out here for, so he didn't bring anything with him," Gilliam-Montesinos said. "So he actually gave my dad his own snacks so my dad's blood sugar wouldn't drop."
The jam finally relented after 8 a.m. Saturday, she said, and the family drove off — 19 hours after they first stopped.
State and local police, firefighters, and Red Cross workers traversed the stretch, trying to deliver supplies, while National Guard troops helped remove crashed or abandoned vehicles to get traffic moving, state police Trooper Kendra Wilson said.
Road crews had tried to keep the highway clear, but poor conditions apparently accumulated too quickly, she said.
"The vehicles are sitting on a solid sheet of ice," Wilson said Saturday morning.
'We've got no food or water'
Police could not say how many people were stranded, but images on social media showed a highway resembling a long parking lot.
"It's truck after truck after truck and cars sliding off the roadway," state police Capt. David Jude said.
In the unrelenting snow, Dani Garner sat stuck in her minivan on the highway for at least eight hours. Her husband, their three children ages 2, 3 and 14, and her mother-in-law were in the car.
"We've got no food or water," she told CNN early Saturday. Luckily, Garner and her family had gas in their tank and could run the heater.
"Honestly, if my van wasn't heated up I'd probably be boxed in with ice right now," she said.
Among those trapped was Caitlin Centner, a reporter for CNN affiliate WKYT.
She'd been on the highway since 5:30 p.m. Friday and had "not moved a single inch since," she told CNN early Saturday morning.
Centner said she could see more than 100 cars for about a half-mile ahead of her. People nearby are running out of gas, and many have been without food and water for a long time.
But by about 7 a.m., Saturday — more than 13 hours after she became stuck — they were able to drive. She posted video of traffic moving on Twitter.
"Unfortunately many are still stranded heading SB. We're still praying that ends shortly," she wrote.
Roads off I-75 also were treacherous, so at least two churches — in the London and Berea areas — opened their doors to those who could make it off the highway. State police and emergency management officials spread the word about the shelters on social media.
Gilliam-Montesinos said heat wasn't too much of a problem for her stranded family, because her vehicle had nearly a full tank of gas. She kept the engine off for stretches to preserve fuel, only restarting it when they became cold.
More than 16 inches of snow fell in Jackson, a small city in the Appalachians about 40 miles east of Berea.
Conditions weren't going to be great Saturday: Sub-freezing temperatures and snow were expected in the area through Saturday afternoon.
Backups in Pennsylvania, West Virginia
Drivers also were stranded Friday into Saturday morning in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Motorists were trapped on some westbound portions of the Pennsylvania Turnpike between Breezewood and New Stanton, State Police Capt. Brian Milore told CNN.
Claire Jackson, 17, told CNN Saturday morning that her bus had been at an "absolute standstill" on the turnpike since 8 p.m. Friday.
"I just see cars," Jackson said, who was with about 50 students going from Washington back home to Kansas City, Missouri. "All the hazards are blinking."
Also stuck on the turnpike overnight: A bus carrying the Duquesne University men's basketball team, on the road after Friday afternoon's victory against George Mason in Virginia. Photos that the team posted to Twitter showed senior forward Nick Foschia making a snow angel in the road and a line of vehicles stranded on the highway
Head coach Jim Ferry told CNN some of the players went to another bus stuck beside them to talk to a group of 8th graders who were also stranded.
"They're almost using it as a team-building experience," he said, referring to being stuck.
And in West Virginia, National Guard members were dispatched to help move stuck tractor trailers that blocked a roughly 11-mile stretch of Interstate 77 north of Charleston. The state's emergency management agency said late Friday that the highway was "completely shut down" — a status that hadn't changed by mid-morning Saturday.
5 dead, 60 hospitalized in Pennsylvania Turnpike crash
Indiana woman rescued from sinking car by state trooper realizes she knows him from church
State trooper steps in to hold crying baby so mom can finish her meal
Police: Officer shot Wisconsin high school student who stabbed him
State police trooper saves 75-year-old choking victim
Ex-girlfriend of man killed in Gary Police shootout details 2019 abuse she didn't think she would survive
Pregnant woman loses unborn child in hit-and-run crash 30 minutes after her baby shower
Ohio woman killed by her own Great Danes, police say
Man in $400,000 GoFundMe scam case pleads guilty and agrees to 5-year sentence
When it comes to dangerous weather this weekend, Hoosiers aren't alone
McConnell blasts House impeachment, pledges Senate action
'Millions of sparks': Weather raises Australia's fire danger
4-year-old twin sisters unhook themselves from booster seats, climb to safety after crash kills father

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Centurion Card from American Express Review – Most Luxurious Rewards Card?
The Centurion Card from American Express is an attempt to take the finance firm back to its roots. When American Express started out, it was supposed to be the high-end card company; having an Amex card was supposed to mean you had made it. At the time, no American Express card had a predefined limit.
The first ones came out in the 1950s, but widespread acceptance began in the 1960s with a wider range of cards. And, with a wider range of cards, the 'elite' characteristic of having an Amex card took a hit. Amex came out with Gold and Platinum cards, each with a somewhat wider range of services, to try to compensate, but the need for marketshare kept overcoming the desire to remain an elite offering. In 2008, for example image came into direct conflict with the bottom line, and Amex imposed a spending limit on its high-end Platinum cards. Nonetheless, its solid customer service and broad line of cards has kept Amex in the black for many years.
The Black Card, or Centurion Card from American Express, is a move all the way up the high end – about as high as you can go. The card is only available by invitation, and when offered, costs $5,000 at the start, $2,500 per year, and requires a minimum annual spend of $250,000. There is clearly no danger of having a spending limit imposed on the Black card, which is itself made out of expensive titanium (this 'plastic' is no cheap plastic).
The Centurion Card from American Express is part of the Membership Rewards First Program. Rewards are large, for reasons which will become obvious. The people who have them use them to make very large purchases sometimes exceeding $1 million — Bentley automobiles, yachts, even, it is rumored, a private jet for $52 million.
The cards are linked to a significant number of services, and it is here that Amex really excels in comparison with the competition. Access is provided to three-star restaurants, hotels, a 24-hour concierge service, special viewings at art galleries, cultural events, wine-tastings, personal shoppers at major retailers, and, reportedly, much, much more. Amex won't provide details to the profane that have no access to the card, and the special magazine that cardholders receive isn't available to the rest of us, on- or off-line.
The challenge in deciding whether cards like these are worth the great expense is in evaluating whether the very real offer of services attached to the card are valuable enough to make it worthwhile. In comparison with the competition, the Centurion Card from American Express clearly offers much more value. Whether a person who already is at this level of income has need of such services remains difficult to evaluate. Then, there is the paradox we described at the beginning of our review: At this writing, it is estimated – the estimate is quite speculative — that about 100,000 people carry the Centurion Card from American Express. Will it become banalized like the previous high-end American Express cards?
In terms of services, some are just easily available to the wealthy anyway. Access to luxury airport lounges comes with the purchase of a first-class ticket regardless of what card you buy it on. Dallas Fort Worth and Las Vegas airports both boast special super-luxury Centurion Lounges, so if you use those airports frequently, it might make a difference. On the other hand, London's Heathrow Terminal 5, where one is nearly certain to wind up if flying commercial through that city, has only British Airways lounges, so the card won't help you there. American Airlines recently pulled out of offering its lounges to cardholders as well.
On the other hand, Amex recently revealed that Centurion Card from American Express holders can get special luxury car rentals that will give members preferred pricing on super-cars like a Ferrari, a Lamborghini, or just high-end models that normal people drive like Mercedes, BMW and Lexus. You can even try out an electronic Tesla. Even wealthy people might not get deal like that just right into their email box, and it is services like that which make the Centurion Card from American Express special – and which have made Amex cards special for many years.
Probably the most used perks are its elite frequent flyer status that is bestowed on the cardholder – including Delta SkyMiles Platinum Medallion, US Airways Platinum Preferred, Gold on Virgin Atlantic – plus a free night each year at Mandarin Oriental, and other privileges at Ritz Carlton, Amanresorts and more.
You may always fly first-class, but your companion gets a free ticket at least four times a year if you pay with the Centurion Card from American Express card. Now, this is not good on all flights to all destinations, and under all conditions – Amex won't give out any specifics unless you have the sacred titanium yourself.
You probably get quite a lot of perks, but, surely, if you qualify for the card, you don't really need much free airfare? Do you even fly commercial most of the time?
The extra offers at hotels and health spas are more interesting, as they are not available to the ordinary well-heeled customer. Chefs will cook to your specification; sessions of massage will be schedules at special times, etc. Worthy of consideration?
All of this goes well beyond what you could expect with the Visa Black Card, for example, or with the Coutts World Silk Card, two of the major competitors. These cards simply don't go nearly as high up the high end. The Coutts card is particularly limited: First of all, you have to bank with Coutts Bank in London, and you have to keep $1 million on deposit there. The bank is one of the world's great private banks, but that's a lot to ask just for a credit card. The Coutts card does offer a superb 24-hour concierge service – service as only the British can offer. But the airport lounge privileges associated with it are only those of a Priority Pass – this does not offer access to many lounges, again notably not to those in Heathrow Terminal 5.
Similarly, Visa Black only offers Priority Pass membership. And it doesn't have the wealth of special invitations to offer that Amex does. But it does have one special perk: You get 1 percent back on all your purchases. That's not an elite reward, but one people one notch down from the elite might appreciate just the same.
GE Capital Retail Bank Dillard's American Express Card | Like AmEx Benefits?
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Q: Where does Klein's j-invariant take the values 0 and 1, and with what multiplicities? I tried to solve the following problem from Ahlfors' text, please verify my solution:

Where does the function $$J(\tau)=\frac{4}{27} \frac{(1-\lambda+\lambda^2)^3}{\lambda^2(1-\lambda)^2} $$
  take the values $0$ and $1$, and with what multiplicities?

Here $\lambda$ is the modular $\lambda$ function, defined by $$\lambda(\tau)=\frac{e_3-e_2}{e_1-e_2} $$
where $e_1=\wp(\omega_1/2),e_2=\wp(\omega_2/2),e_3=\wp((\omega_1+\omega_2)/2).$
My attempt:

*

*First part - solving $J(\tau)=0$

Since $\lambda$ is holomorphic in the upper half plane, and never takes the values $0,1$ it follows that $J(\tau)=0 \Longleftrightarrow 1-\lambda+\lambda^2=0 \Longleftrightarrow \tau \in \lambda^{-1} \{\exp(\pm 2 \pi i/6) \}$.
After examining this picture from Wikipedia:

I've speculated that $\lambda(\exp(2\pi i/6))=\exp(2 \pi i/6),\lambda(\exp(2 \pi i/3))=\exp(- 2 \pi i/6)$. (However, I have no idea how to prove it)
Since the region bounded by the lines $\Re \tau= \pm 1$ and the upper semi circles $|\tau \mp 1/2|=1/2$ is a fundamental region for $\lambda$ ("half" of the boundary needs to be included) it follows that $\exp(2 \pi i/6)$ and $\exp(2 \pi i/3)$ are the only two zeros there, and due to the cube in the numerator of $J(\tau)$ it's clear that they are zeros of order $3$ each.
Using additional symmetries of the j-invariant, such as $1$-periodicity, and the Schwarz reflection principle about the upper semi-circles $|\tau-n-1/2|=1/2$ all other zeros are found and they are all of order $3$ as well.

*Second part - solving $J(\tau)=1$

Well, $J(\tau)=1 \Longleftrightarrow 4(1-\lambda+\lambda^2)^3-27 \lambda^2 (1-\lambda)^2=0 \Longleftrightarrow (2 \lambda-1)^2(\lambda-2)^2 (\lambda+1)^2$. This shows that $J(\tau)=1 \Longleftrightarrow \tau \in \lambda^{-1} \{1/2,2,-1\}$, and at each such $\tau$ the value $1$ is taken with multiplicity 2.
Now, in the fundamental region I suppose we have $\lambda(i)=\frac{1}{2},\lambda(1/2+1/2 i)=2,\lambda(1+i)=-1$, and all other solutions can be found by the symmetries of $J$.
My doubts:

*

*I am not entirely sure that my approach is correct.

*I don't know how to prove any of the equations of the form $\lambda(\tau_0)=w_0$ above.
Please tell me if the above is correct, and help me prove the equations $\lambda(\tau_0)=w_0$. Thanks!
EDIT:
The end of this file
might have some value. However, there are references in there that I don't follow.

A: I will use the shorthand $\zeta_n = \exp(2\pi\mathrm{i}/n)$.
Regarding correctness, you may need to explain why passing from $J^{-1}$
to $\lambda^{-1}$ does not change the number of preimages.
To that end, it should be mentioned explicitly that for a given
$w\in\mathbb{C}\setminus\{0,1\}$ the function $\tau\mapsto\lambda(\tau)-w$
has exactly one simple zero in the fundamental region you have described,
if appropriate care is taken with inclusion or exclusion of boundary points.
This is a specialty of $\lambda$, it is not implied by just mentioning the
fundamental region.
I do not know whether Ahlfors's text contains a proof of this, but
the evergreen reference

*

*Whittaker & Watson (1915), A Course of Modern Analysis, 2nd edition,
Merchant Books, ISBN 1-60386-121-1

has a nice proof of this at about page 474, based on a contour integral.
As for solving $\lambda(\tau)=w$, note that
$$\begin{align}
 \lambda(\tau+1) = \lambda(\tau-1) &=
 \frac{\lambda(\tau)}{\lambda(\tau)-1}
\\ \lambda\left(\frac{-1}{\tau}\right) &= 1-\lambda(\tau)
\end{align}$$
(I suppose that Ahlfors covers that.)
Now $\tau=\mathrm{i}$ is fixed by $\tau\mapsto\frac{-1}{\tau}$, therefore
$$\begin{align}
 \lambda(\mathrm{i}) &=
 \lambda\left(\frac{-1}{\mathrm{i}}\right) =
 1-\lambda(\mathrm{i})
\\\therefore\quad
 \lambda(\mathrm{i}) &= \frac{1}{2}
\\ \lambda(\mathrm{i}+1) &=
 \frac{\lambda(\mathrm{i})}{\lambda(\mathrm{i})-1} = -1
\\ \lambda\left(\frac{\mathrm{i}+1}{2}\right) &=
 \lambda\left(\frac{-1}{\mathrm{i}-1}\right) =
 1 - \lambda(\mathrm{i}-1) = 2
\end{align}$$
Similarly, $\tau=\zeta_3$ is fixed by $\tau\mapsto\frac{-1}{\tau+1}$, therefore
$$\begin{align}
 \lambda(\zeta_3) = \lambda\left(\frac{-1}{\zeta_3+1}\right) &=
 1 - \lambda(\zeta_3+1) =
 1 - \frac{\lambda(\zeta_3)}{\lambda(\zeta_3)-1} =
 \frac{-1}{\lambda(\zeta_3) - 1}
\\\therefore\quad
 \lambda(\zeta_3) \left(\lambda(\zeta_3)-1\right) + 1 &= 0
 \tag{*}
\\\therefore\quad
 \lambda(\zeta_3) \in\left\{\zeta_6, \zeta_{-6}\right\}
\end{align}$$
In a similar manner, we can find that $\lambda(\zeta_6)$
fulfills the same polynomial equation $(*)$. This is all we need.
However, in case you want to disambiguate $\lambda(\zeta_3)$
and $\lambda(\zeta_6)$, a useful approach is to work out that
$\Im\lambda(\tau)>0$ in the right half of $\lambda's$ fundamental domain
(where $\Re\tau>0$) and $\Im\lambda(\tau)<0$ in the left half.
I will omit that here and just remark that
$$\begin{align}
 \lambda(\zeta_3) &= \zeta_{-6}
\\ \lambda(\zeta_6) &= \lambda\left(\frac{-1}{\zeta_3}\right) =
 1 - \lambda(\zeta_3) = \zeta_6
\end{align}$$
as you have speculated.
It should be noted that the locations of the preimages are consistent
with the symmetries of $J(\tau)$ with respect to the full modular group:
$$J(\tau+1) = J(\tau) = J\left(\frac{-1}{\tau}\right)$$
The result is that $J(\tau)$ has a triple zero at every
$\tau=\frac{a\zeta_6+b}{c\zeta_6+d}$ with
$\begin{pmatrix}a&b\\c&d\end{pmatrix}\in\operatorname{SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$,
and that $J(\tau)=1$ has a double root at every
$\tau=\frac{a\mathrm{i}+b}{c\mathrm{i}+d}$ with
$\begin{pmatrix}a&b\\c&d\end{pmatrix}\in\operatorname{SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$.
Keeping in mind that $ad-bc=1$, you can rewrite those formulae for $\tau$ as
$$\begin{align}
 \frac{a\mathrm{i}+b}{c\mathrm{i}+d} &=
 \frac{ac+bd+\mathrm{i}}{c^2+d^2} =
 \frac{u + \mathrm{i}}{N}
\\ &\quad\text{where}\quad
 N,u\in\mathbb{Z};\quad N>0;\quad N\mid (u^2+1)
\\ \frac{a\zeta_6+b}{c\zeta_6+d} &=
 \frac{ac+bc+bd+\zeta_6}{c^2+cd+d^2} =
 \frac{u + \zeta_6}{N}
\\ &\quad\text{where}\quad
 N,u\in\mathbb{Z};\quad N>0;\quad N\mid (u^2+u+1)
\end{align}$$
Conversely, it can be shown, essentially by an induction that traces the
steps of the extended euclidean algorithm, that for every choice of
$N,u\in\mathbb{Z}$ fulfilling the stated conditions, a suitable
$\begin{pmatrix}a&b\\c&d\end{pmatrix}\in\operatorname{SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$
can be determined. I suspect that you are already satisfied with
the transform-based representation, so I just mention this as a sidenote.
Feel free to ask for additional details if you are interested and get stuck.
I cannot resist mentioning a couple of well-known connections.
Simple algebraic manipulations reveal that
the locations $\tau$ where $J(\tau)=0$ resp. $J(\tau)=1$
can as well be identified with the (simple) zeros of
the Eisenstein series
$$\begin{align}
 g_2 &= -4 (e_1 e_2 + e_1 e_3 + e_2 e_3)
\\\text{resp.}\quad
 g_3 &= 4 e_1 e_2 e_3
\end{align}$$
or of the corresponding normalized series
$\operatorname{E}_4$ resp. $\operatorname{E}_6$.
The zeros of $\operatorname{E}_6$ can also be recognized as the tangent points of the Ford circles, if you include the line $\Im\tau=1$ as an extra "circle".
To see that, note that both sets of points are invariant under
transformations of the full modular group, and coincede in the
full modular group's fundamental domain.

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The international crude oil price of Indian Basket as computed/published today by Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas was US$ 26.87 per barrel (bbl) on 22.01.2016. This was higher than the price of US$ 24.47 per bbl on previous publishing day of 21.01.2016.
Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas in Mumbai yesterday launched online payment facility of cylinder at the time of booking. Earlier this month, the Minister had dedicated the year 2016 as the"Year of the Consumers" and in keeping with this objective, the initiative will go a long way to provide comfort and convenience to the LPG consumers.
The PSU Oil Marketing Companies under the guidance of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG), have been constantly striving to bring convenience to the LPG consumers. As there has been increase in the number of people using the Internet and Mobile gadgets, the PSU Oil Marketing companies (OMCs), namely Indian Oil Corporation Ltd., Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd., have taken up a series of technology based consumer centric initiatives keeping pace with the changing time and preferences of consumers in line with Digital India Program of Government of India.
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Eddie Williams is the lead pastor of Bay City Church in San Francisco. Eddie is a former NFL player. He is married to Sarah, and they have three children. Eddie is a Bay Area native with a passion to better San Francisco. You can follow him on Twitter.
It sounds crazy that someone could get to the NFL and not be happy, but there I was.


text:
Catupiry () is one of the most popular brands of  cheese in Brazil. It was developed by Italian immigrant Mario Silvestrini in the state of Minas Gerais in 1911. The name derives from the Tupi word meaning "excellent".

Catupiry is a soft, mild-tasting cheese that can be spread over toasts, crackers and bread buns or used in cooking. Because of its low level of acidity, catupiry has become an ingredient in various dishes.

Catupiry, as well as imitation cheeses, is a very common ingredient in Brazilian dishes, specially as a filling for pizzas,  or .

Currently, catupiry has four factories, two in São Paulo in the municipalities of Bebedouro and Santa Fé do Sul and the others in Doverlândia, in Goiás, and Santa Vitória, in Minas Gerais. The company is currently managed by six families, all heirs of the Silvestrini family. The company has a turnover of around R$ 600 million per year and is present in five countries, including the United States, Canada and Japan.

See also
List of Brazilian dishes

References

External links
Official site

Brazilian cheeses
Cow's-milk cheeses
Brazilian cuisine
Products introduced in 1911

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On behalf of Girardi | Keese posted in Personal Injury on Monday, June 16, 2014.
Throughout the state of California, it is common for car accidents to occur both on the highways as well as city roads. Just the same as any other part of the country, these accidents are the result of many scenarios, such as one driver who is not paying attention to the road and what is going on around him or her.
A recent accident in Lincoln County shows that some collisions can have serious consequences. According to Merrill Police officials, two vehicles were involved in an accident at the intersection of Pier and 3rd street. As a result, a truck landed on its roof, on the sidewalk.
While there is no concrete information on which driver caused the accident or if any charges are going to be filed, the police department did say that one driver neglected to stop at a stop sign, which led to the vehicle hitting the other one.
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There may not be any information on how fast the drivers were going or if alcohol was a factor, but this does not change the fact the accident occurred and it landed three people in the hospital for treatment.
In the days to come, once police are finished with their investigation, more information will come to light, including who was at fault. From there, those involved in the accident can plan their course of action, both medically and financially.


text:
Territorians share stories of bullying, offer advice and hope for help
By Shahni Wellington and staff
Updated January 15, 2018 12:51:04
Photo: Angela Clucas is now the manager of Darwin's aviation museum, after first working as the cleaner. (ABC News: Shahni Wellington)
Related Story: Cyber-bullying campaign launched after suicide of 14yo face of Akubra
Map: Darwin 0800
A Darwin woman who suffered years of cruel taunts while growing up is on a personal mission to help young people deal with bullies.
Angie Clucas is among many Territorians sharing their experiences with bullying to expose its harm and give others the tools to deal with it, in the wake of 14-year-old Amy 'Dolly' Everett taking her own life after allegedly facing cyber bullying.
If you or anyone you know needs help:
Lifeline on 13 11 14
Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800
MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978
Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467
Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36
Headspace on 1800 650 890
ReachOut at au.reachout.com
Ms Clucas said she was first bullied in early primary school, with children targeting her because of her small stature.
"My mum had a lot of problems during her pregnancy because I wasn't getting food, so I was born early," Ms Clucas said.
"When I started going to school kids started treating me differently. [They] thought that I was a doll and they could put me in dolls' clothes and push me around in a pram."
She recalled missing the school bus on one day after being stuck in a toilet cubicle because the door was too heavy to open.
Ms Clucas said since then she had not let her size define her.
Photo: Angie Clucas had a very small stature as a child because she was born prematurely. (Supplied: Angie Clucas)
"My mum always said to me that [the word] 'can't' shouldn't be in your vocabulary," Ms Clucas said.
"So I've always gone along with that. If someone tells me I can't do it, it makes me more determined to find a different way to figure out how I can do it."
Starting as a cleaner at the Darwin Aviation Museum 13 years ago, Ms Clucas said she became determined to work her way up, and is now the manager.
She said sharing what she had learnt about resilience and empowering young people was now her focus.
She said she did not have any professional experience working in child support, but was providing advice based her on experiences.
"I don't have any professional certificates or anything like that, I'm just coming from somebody who's been bullied and is willing to try and help people from doing things like we've seen the last few days in Katherine … it's tragic," she said.
'You can get through it'
Ms Clucas said in the age of social media, it was more important than ever to learn how to deal with bullying.
"The message that I'm trying to get through is that if you are getting bullied... you can get through it," Ms Clucas said.
External Link: Angela Clucas video
"You just need to find the right tools or find the right person to talk to."
Since last year, Ms Clucas has invested her own time and money to become a published writer and produce a video about her experiences dealing with bullies.
"I've had over 5000 'likes' or views of it [the video] on my website, so that's kind of made me decide that 'maybe, well I do have something to offer'," she said.
Understanding the motives behind bullying and the impact of hurtful words were important for young people to learn, Ms Clucas said.
"If you just randomly say words to people without thinking about where those words go, they hit people's hearts, they're like arrows," she said.
"And if someone's not in the right space, at the right time, that can have a major effect on somebody."
Father exposes cyber-bullying of daughter
A Northern Territory father has also come forward following the Dolly's death, exposing online abuse his own daughter has suffered since the suicide.
Russell Simpson posted on Facebook that his daughter had been targeted by an anonymous person on social media platform Snapchat.
Mr Simpson posted a screenshot of the message that used explicit detail to tell his daughter to kill herself, and referenced Dolly's death.
The post had been shared more than 700 times with comments of support, words of warning to other parents and calls for the perpetrators to be held accountable.
Topics: bullying, education, community-and-society, darwin-0800, nt
First posted January 15, 2018 10:58:29
Contact Shahni Wellington
More stories from Northern Territory


text:
Border breakdown: How groups make money off Venezuela's migrant crisis
Illegal armed groups and criminals are profiting from the economic crisis in Venezuela by charging fleeing migrants for illegal access into Colombia, and in some cases Panama.
by Frank Cardona
For these groups, Venezuelans have become the latest commodity that is smuggled across the notoriously porous border.
"Because the river doesn't have a lot of water, any spot can turn into an illegal crossing," Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Dario Gonzalez told newspaper El Espectador.
Gonzalez commands some 600 border patrol officials along the Tachira River outside Cucuta, the border city that has been most affected by the mass migration.
A paper border
With the exception of Cucuta and its two border crossings, the Tachira River region has traditionally been all but abandoned by Colombian and Venezuelan authorities.
President Juan Manuel Santos vowed this week to increase the number of troops along the border, but "it's almost impossible to cover it all," the regional army commander admitted.
An estimated 35,000 Venezuelans cross the border illegally every day, many of them near cities like Cucuta or Maicao.
Providing safe passage has become big business for illegal armed groups that know the area and its many routes.
What migrants pay to cross the Tachira River
$7 (COP 20,000) by foot
$10 (COP 30,000) for a motorcycle
$35 (COP $100,000) for a car
The cross-border shadow state
Drug trafficking organization "Los Rastrojos" and the paramilitary AGC have members on both sides of the border and control coyotes on the borders of Ecuador and Panama respectively.
According to Javier Tarazona, leader of the Venezuelan NGO Fundacion Redes, the Venezuelan National Guard and a group within the Venezuelan military known as the "Cartel de los Soles" are accomplices of the criminal groups operating on the border.
The groups oversee the transport from Venezuela to Colombia, and provide shelter and bus tickets to destinations inside Colombia, including known trafficking hubs to neighboring countries.
Into the world
A Policeman from Uraba, the stomping ground of the AGC, was arrested in Cucuta on Saturday on charges he was a member of a human trafficking network that brought migrants as far as into Panama.
The 14 suspects from Cucuta and Uraba arranged shelter and bus tickets to Bogota and Medellin. Some were brought to Capurgana, the municipality on the Panamanian border that is en route to the United States.
Tensions boil
Increased stakes in the region for drug and human traffickers, coupled with new security measures, means tensions are boiling at the border.
A Colombian NGO that covers border conflict in Cucuta, "La Fundacion Progresso," says that six multiple homicides have already occurred this year—whose victims are mostly young Venezuelans.
Migrants have seen dead bodies floating down the Tachira River. Authorities have been unable to determine whether they are the remains of migrants or smugglers.
Fonte: Colombia Reports – 15/02/2018
By TBCO|2018-07-24T15:17:12-03:0015 de fevereiro de 2018|0 Comments


text:
Deduction and deductive databases for geographic data handling
A. I. Abdelmoty
M. H. Williams
N. W. Paton
The representation of complex spatial domains in conventional databases suffers from fragmented representation of object structure, lack of instance-level spatial relationships, and the generation of large combinatoric search spaces in query analysis. The deductive capabilities provided by a deductive database offer some assistance in solving these problems, in particular by enabling spatial reasoning to be performed by a Geographic Information System (GIS). Deduction in the database is used to support the natural representation of complex spatial object structures in single and multi-layered Geographic DataBases (GDB), inference of implicit spatial relationships, and the manipulation of multiple resolution spatial representations. In addition, deductive capabilities are shown to be essential for automatic data input and update in a GDB. Coupled with appropriate structural representation, spatial reasoning is an important tool for the realization of an effective GDB.
Spatial Relationship Object Class Geographic Space Object Level Spatial Reasoning
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1.Department of Computing and Electrical EngineeringHeriot-Watt UniversityRiccartonUK
Abdelmoty A.I., Williams M.H., Paton N.W. (1993) Deduction and deductive databases for geographic data handling. In: Abel D., Chin Ooi B. (eds) Advances in Spatial Databases. SSD 1993. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 692. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg


If you are using social media "as a doctor", as I do, then your opinions are given additional weight by virtue of the power and status associated with the profession.
Professional status also carries responsibilities because we're seen (like it or not) as representatives of our peers and it follows from this that we ought to behave in a way that is respectful. I do think that someone claiming to be a doctor who does puts the profession in disrepute by virtue of their behaviour, ought to be held responsible, but I do not think it follows from this that they need to use their real name.
The GMC guidance fails to recognise the wide range of reasons why doctors use social media - some will be raising very important issues, such as what it's like to be a sick, anxious or bullied doctor or a doctor who has made a mistake. They may be seeking support or hoping to raise awareness. It's important these people are not put off by the GMC.
For most of 2012 I tweeted life in NHS general practice to up to 2,000 followers. Twice I was asked to intervene in the lives of complete strangers who were apparently on the edge of suicide. I was telephoned late at night by an acquaintance who knew my real name, to warn me off upsetting someone powerful. A high-up person in medical politics contacted me in the middle of my holiday to give advice: well-meaning, but not very relaxing on a family break.
Draft [GMC] guidelines [are]… an attempt to extend their control of doctors' behaviour far beyond the consulting room… I wrote my own response to the GMC 'consultation' but received no reply, so cannot know whether it was read, considered or ignored… While it seems unlikely that the GMC would be able to win a court case on this as a human rights issue, do I wish to bet my whole career on that by becoming a test case? No.
Dr Trevor Stammers is the programme director in Bioethics and Medical Law at UCL. He is also a former GP.
Generally speaking, I do think that doctors should identify who they are when writing on social media but I don't think this applies just to doctors - to hide behind anonymity is usually indicative of something being ethically suspect.
However, I write this at the same time as headlines about GPs signing "gagging" clauses with their CCGs. This is a sure way to incite whistle-blowing and when doctors take on the role of whistle-blowing - as they must when patient safety or welfare is at stake - then anonymity may well be necessary and is certainly understandable given the fate of most whistle-blowers who in benefiting others often lose their own livelihood.
I think the GMC guidance here in general is sensible and indeed timely.
The GMC has kindly incorporated all of this evidence when shaping the policy. Doctors are professional pillars of society and should not be engaging in denigrating women, or humiliating or bullying female colleagues. 'Flaming' is not a euphemism for cyberbullying; it is cyberbullying, as is trolling, stalking and inciting cybermob lynching. I am pleased that the GMC are reminding our medical profession that we are doctors 24/7 and should behave accordingly with high morality, integrity, caring and professionalism at all times.
I agree with the new GMC guidance. It will not affect the doctor-patient relationship nor will it affect a doctor's right to a private life. Take responsibility for your posts and re-tweets, as words can hurt and inflict mental suffering to victims. A doctor's first duty is to do no harm.
Jobbing Doctor is a GP who writes anonymously for Pulse and also writes his own blog.
I have blogged for five years as the 'Jobbing Doctor'. It started out as an online reflective diary of an average GP. I never expected many people to read it, so I'm flattered that I have a regular audience for my ramblings. I wanted people to look at the message I was talking about, and not who I am (which is unimportant). In that time I have been threatened by people who do not like my opinions, and that threat is not naming me, but reporting me to the GMC on various spurious grounds.
It would appear that, by issuing guidance preventing me from blogging under a pseudonym, the GMC wish to extend their control. It can ruin me by withdrawing my license to practise. Appointed by the Department of Health, it seems to me to be an arm of the executive.
My reaction doesn't come from any brave beatnik notion of free expression, it's much simpler than that. It's about my right to hear you. If you're silenced then I'm deprived the right to hear your opinion. If you're too afraid to give voice to your ideas then no-one else will hear them either, there will be no thought and no liberty.
I am well aware that the unfettered tongue doesn't make our lives any easier. As a conscientious adult I know that opinion can often make us uncomfortable and can sometimes get us into trouble. But who wants to live in a society where the tongue is cut out for blasphemy or where the sky is stained with burning books?
It's true that tighter control of social media is a long way from out-and-out tyranny, but the first step has been taken and with enough backward shuffling the profession will lose all of its richness and diversity. If we allow ourselves to live in fear of reprisal, to be told by the GMC what we can read and what we can see, then in the fullness of time we will find ourselves cowering in the shadows, distilled down to a single mind and a single opinion.
Dr Martin Brunet is Pulse's Beyond the Headlines blogger and a GP in Guildford.
If you were an anonymous GP blogger when the guidance was first issued, I can see that it would have been alarming. It was easy to miss the importance of the word 'should' (reveal their identity) rather than 'must'. The subsequent clarity from the GMC has been helpful here, and it is clear now that an anonymous doctor who tweets responsibly will not get into trouble with the GMC.
It has, however, raised the issue of why a doctor would want to be anonymous. While I think they should have the right to do so, I am not personally convinced that it is beneficial or wise. For me, what makes Twitter very safe is the fact that it is completely open. I have no illusion of privacy and so I have to assume that every tweet I make can be read by the whole world, and would come back to haunt me if it was unprofessional. As one doctor wisely said to me – before sending a tweet, make sure that you would be happy if it was read by a) the last patient you saw; b) your grandmother c) the Daily Mail.
I worry that some doctors might make tweets anonymously that they would not make if they were identified, and that this might not be the best for them, their patients or the profession. Having said that, there are plenty of examples of tweets from identified doctors which, in my view, have been unprofessional. I also feel that identifying yourself brings greater authenticity and authority to your voice on social media.
Dr Ben Dean blogged anonymously as Ferret Fancier but 'came out' after the guidance was published. He works as an orthopaedic registrar in Oxford.
This piece of guidance is still inadvisable in my eyes. They say doctors 'should identify' themselves and say it is 'good practice' to do so. I fail to see how this is the case, many doctors have good reasons for remaining anonymous and surely it is irrelevant of anonymity, it is down to one's conduct on the social media whether 'good practice' is seen to be observed.
Overall I would say the GMC guidance is reasonable in most areas but this piece of guidance on anonymity is poorly thought out. Doctors have every right to remain anonymous and it is not 'good practice' to be named, any more than it is good practice to be anonymous.
Dr Phil Williams tweets @scottishphil83 and blogs under his own name. He is a GP in Lincoln and sits on local boards for the RCGP and BMA.
The GMC seems to miss the point of Twitter in that there really is no boundary between "social" and 'professional' accounts already. I feel they may be trying to close the gate after the horse has bolted. I would suggest that the GMC revises this document to have "musts" and "best practice" sections. The "musts" could lead to a doctor's registration being at risk, whereas the "best practice" clauses would recognise that it is very difficult to legislate in this area.
I think that if a GP is writing about clinical issues, for example expressing their opinion on a particular kind of treatment, it is reasonable for the GMC to want them to identify themselves so that patients know whether the advice is that of a genuine GP or not.
I don't agree with the GMC's guidance that doctors talking about anything in publicly accessible social media should identify themselves by name. I can't see why doctors should be fettered in their expression of non-clinical opinions, for example their political opinions or opinions on the current NHS transformation, yet many do feel constrained by the new guidance. If the GMC does try to pursue a fitness to practise case against any anonymously blogging or tweeting doctor, it will be interesting to see whether the Human Rights Act entitlement to freedom of expression is raised as part of that doctor's defence.
In practice, I think it is unlikely the GMC will be interested in policing this aspect of its new guidance robustly.
I sincerely hope the the threshold to trigger a GMC investigation is high enough, and peppered with enough common-sense, to allow them to filter out vexatious complaints from litigious trouble-makers.
Some people are all too quick to complain if they are asked a question they don't like, or are asked to clarify remarks that they have made publicly.
I do worry that people with an axe to grind, and too much time on their hands, will complain to the GMC each and every time they read something that they do not 100% agree with, and generate some trumped up charges of "bullying" or "unprofessionalism".
It is important to remember that the GMC are our professional regulator, they are NOT internet forum moderators there to settle on-line disagreements.
Does Pulse feel it should remove the ability to post anonymously until it is clearer the impact this guidance may have?
RE: Anonymous | 10 April 2013 8:40pm - Thanks for mentioning that. I'll link to the longer piece now.
I've been reported to the GMC a couple of times because of what I've written in Pulse, both times the GMC started formal investigations and then decided there was no case to answer.
However the investigations themselves take up time, you have to get statements from your employers to say if they have any concerns about you. This caused some confusion at Hartlepool United.
Not much fun on the whole, but I still prefer to write under my real name.
I agree with Jobbing Doctor - the GMC is appointed by government and has only a minority of practising doctors. This type of regulating body means that we are technically no longer a profession (the GMC would need a working majority of doctors to qualify). We are therefore reduced to the status of a technical trade, wholly government controlled.
All else unfortunately is a convenient illusion, left in place to comfort those poor trusting souls who still believe they are independent UK medical professionals.
/I do not do blogging except on Pulse. The GMC in my opinion should have no reason to interfere with the private comments of a doctor on these types of sites. If the comments are illegal in any way then the appropriate authorities can take action. It does not need the GMC to be involved. Will we be able to pick our noses in public!!!!
This GMC guidance is deeply innapropriate. They have simply gone too far but know no-one will want to take them to court. Freedom of speech is a long established democratic principle and trying to control it in such broad terms represents an abuse of power. Doctors absolutely must have the ability to speak freely without fear of reprisal.
Have to say, strongly disagree with Dr Coales!! I do not accept or believe that we are doctors 24/7, although some like to label themselves as such!
What I do for a living does NOT define who I am-evenings and weekends I am a father, husband, sports fan and many other things.
Monday to Friday I have a job which(hopefully) continues to pay the mortgage!


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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


For all the fuss about restaurants, everyone knows the best meal you can ever eat is at someone's home—especially if that someone is Leela. If you've ever checked out my blog before, or saw the Sri Lanka episode of No Reservations, you'll be familiar with this diminutive lady, who was my Aunty Dora's cook for 40-some years. Practically every middle class family in Sri Lanka has a "Leela," who cooks and cleans, and helps raise the children of the household on her way to becoming an actual member of the family.
When Leela retired after so many years of faithful service, my aunt and cousin Sam and his children (who are now grown up themselves), took it upon themselves to look after her. This usually involves frequent visits to Leela's village outside the town of Chilaw, bringing her provisions and money. In keeping with the unwritten rules of Sri Lankan hospitality, Leela and her nieces, who live with her on a small plot of land where they grow everything they need to survive, make lunch.
My favorite dish of Leela's is her crab curry, which also happens to be a regional specialty in Chilaw, known for its large lagoon crabs. Though I recreated the recipe in my book, Rice & Curry: Sri Lankan Home Cooking (Hippocrene Books, 2011), there's nothing like having Leela herself make it, and this is exactly what she did on a recent trip to visit her. Being a good Buddhist Leela will not kill live crabs, so we brought some sea crabs from the fish market in Colombo. Sea crabs are usually sold dead, but you have to eat them immediately, so we packed them on ice and drove up to Chilaw so Leela and her nieces could prepare them in the traditional manner. They also put up a whole spread of other tasty dishes—just like they did when I brought Tony Bourdain here, and he proclaimed it his best meal in Sri Lanka.
Thanks for sharing. I am huge fan of Leela courtesy your book.
Old post, but I just found it. This is really awesome, me being a local I have never heard of them at all… Now I'm prone to go visit this place :D. Good blog m8.


Kindu Klub, established in June 2011, is a youth group based in Gondar that is organised for our sponsored children and their siblings. The Klub gathers every weekday in morning and afternoon sessions, which enables us to offer the flexibility that suits the children's schooling hours. The Klub aims to support and help these children through their education at a time when it is vital that they do not fall behind. Higher grades in school increase the likelihood of employment in the future, which is not only essential in improving the lives of young people today but also the strength and viability of the community. As such, The Klub is overseen by a dedicated Youth Worker who provides the children with lessons to supplement the education they receive at school.
It is a place where the children can play and make friends in a safe environment. Through a programme of physical activity and supplementary education, we aim to lift the quality of life for all our beneficiaries, and we are proud to see that attendance for the youth group is increasing on a week-by-week basis.
There is a library at the Kindu Compound which provides resources to help children with their homework. Books in the library have been sent from overseas and we are particularly grateful for a large donation from Books Abroad!
At the end of each session, the children are given a snack of bread and ginger tea, providing some much needed energy after so much exertion during their activities! In addition, we are delighted to have recently been able to start providing each child with a hot nutritionally-balanced meal.
Recently, we have started to take the children on trips, to expand their experience, and enable them to access some of the wonders of their own country: so far, the Gondar castles, and to Gorgora, on the banks of Lake Tana.
Continue taking the children on outings to visit historical places in Gondar and beyond, perhaps conducting exchange visits with our beneficiaries in Lalibela and Debark. Buying a mini-bus would enable us to bring in the children who live on the outskirts on Gondar, for whom the journey is too far to undertake by themselves.
If you are interested in learning how you can help us expand this project, please feel free to Contact Us or visit our Donation Page.
This project is part funded by North South Travel – low cost flights, all profits to development.


text:
Biografia
Dapprima contrammiraglio, decollò verso il successo allo scoppio della Prima guerra sino-giapponese, quando fu inviato a presidiare il Pacifico con una grande squadra. Nominato nel 1897 viceammiraglio, fu spostato nel Mar Nero. Responsabile dello Shandong durante la Ribellione dei Boxer, divenne ammiraglio nel 1903. Promosso poi aiutante di campo zarista e luogotenente generale, fu comandante supremo durante la Guerra russo-giapponese.

Onorificenze

Onorificenze russe

Onorificenze straniere

Altri progetti

Collegamenti esterni

Evgenij Ivanovič
Evgenij Ivanovič
Evgenij Ivanovič
Evgenij Ivanovič
Evgenij Ivanovič
Evgenij Ivanovič


This chapter addresses the role of educational leaders in primary and upper secondary education. The purpose is to explore to what degree the principal's role in developing a learning climate and professional learning community within a school at these levels differs from that in lower secondary schools, and what factors may account for these differences. The first part of the chapter describes to what extent principals in primary and upper secondary education are involved in instructional and distributed leadership. In the second section, primary and upper secondary schools across countries and economies are characterised by means of the five aspects of professional learning communities. The third section characterises countries and economies using dimensions of a learning climate in both primary and upper secondary schools. The chapter concludes with an analysis of the effect of instructional and distributed leadership on the development of a learning climate and professional learning community in primary and upper secondary education.


text:
When the FBI Comes Calling…
Roger Clemens acquitted of all charges
The Washington Post on June 18, 2012 released the following:
"By Ann E. Marimow and Del Quentin Wilber
Legendary pitcher Roger Clemens was found not guilty Monday of all charges in the government's perjury case against him.
Over seven weeks of testimony in the case against Clemens, jurors heard from more than 40 witnesses, including former major league ballplayers, a housekeeper, the general manager of the New York Yankees and the wife of the star pitcher. The trial, initially anticipated to last four to six weeks, was at times slow going, with two jurors dismissed for sleeping on the job.
Deliberations began Tuesday, but jurors were off on Thursday and Friday.
The baseball legend was on trial for a second time, charged with six counts of perjury, making false statements and obstructing Congress for denying in 2008 that he had ever taken steroids or human growth hormone. A House panel was following up on a 2007 report by former senator George Mitchell that connected dozens of ballplayers, including Clemens, to performance-enhancing drugs.
Clemens told Congressional staffers and lawmakers in a nationally televised hearing that his former strength coach Brian McNamee had injected him with liquid vitamin B 12 and the painkiller lidocaine – not steroids or human growth hormone. But McNamee told the same House committee that he injected the seven-time Cy Young Award winner with the banned substances on several occasions in 1998, 2000 and 2001.
Defense attorneys portrayed Clemens as a man who was unfairly pursued by a huge team of investigators and prosecutors for four and a half years. Despite more than 200 interviews and the work of more than 90 federal agents, Clemens's attorney emphasized that McNamee, a man with a troubled past, was the only person to testify to firsthand knowledge of the ballplayer's alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs. Clemens's highly decorated 24-year career was the result of hard work and discipline, not drugs, his lawyers said.
Prosecutors responded that it was unremarkable to find just one witness to what they described as Clemens's "dirty little secret." Government's lawyers noted that not one of the defense's witnesses had testified to seeing McNamee inject Clemens with vitamin B-12 or lidocaine. And they put on the stand several athletic trainers and team doctors who testified that McNamee would not have had access or the authority to inject the star pitcher with such substances in their team clubhouses.
The defense team spent considerable time attacking McNamee's credibility, at one point putting his estranged wife on the witness stand to contradict the former strength coach's testimony about why he kept needles, cotton balls and other medical waste from the alleged injections. The former strength coach admitted to having exaggerated, changed his story and lied to authorities in a 2001 criminal investigation into an alleged sexual assault.
But prosecutors said McNamee had little incentive to turn on his former employer whose cachet helped McNamee's own business as a personal trainer. McNamee only decided to turn over the medical waste — stored in a MillerLite can and FedEx box, he said — after Clemens allowed a taped conversation that mentioned McNamee's sick child to be aired on national television.
Perhaps the most dramatic moment of the trial came when Clemens's former teammate and friend, Andy Pettitte, backed away from a critical element of the prosecution's case. Pettitte, a star pitcher in his own right, initially told jurors that Clemens confided in him in 1999 or 2000 about using HGH to help with recovery. Pettitte had earlier told Congressional investigators the same story. But on cross-examination, Pettitte agreed with one of Clemens's attorneys, Michael Attanasio, that there was a 50/50 chance he had misheard his friend.
Even before the trial began, many of the Washingtonians called to the Prettyman Courthouse for jury duty questioned the wisdom of the government investigating the use of performance-enhancing drugs in big league baseball. In interviews with the judge, many prospective jurors — including some selected for the panel — said that Congress should have been spending its time on weightier matters that affected more people.
In reaching a verdict, the panel of eight women and four men had to decide whether Clemens's answers to questions from Congressional investigators and lawmakers were "material" or relevant to the work of committee "as distinguished from unimportant or trivial facts," according to the lengthy jury instructions.
To find Clemens guilty of the obstruction charge, for instance, jurors had to unanimously agree that the all-star pitcher made at least one of 13 allegedly false or misleading statements on subjects including his use of vitamin B-12 and the circumstances of his wife's injection of human growth hormone.
In July, during the pitcher's first trial on the same charges, Walton declared a mistrial after just two days of testimony. But the judge subsequently decided not to dismiss the charges, allowing this year's trial to proceed."
Douglas McNabb – McNabb Associates, P.C.'s
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The author of this blog is Douglas C. McNabb. Please feel free to contact him directly at mcnabb@mcnabbassociates.com or at one of the offices listed above.
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(RTTNews) - The Japanese stock market is notably higher on Monday following the positive cues from Wall Street Friday amid optimism about U.S.-China trade talks and as data showed that China's factory activity in March unexpectedly rose for the first time in four months. In addition, a weaker yen boosted exporters' shares.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is gaining 400.85 points or 1.89 percent to 21,606.66, after touching a high of 21,611.58 earlier. Japanese stocks closed higher on Friday.
The major exporters are higher on a weaker yen. Mitsubishi Electric is gaining more than 3 percent, Panasonic is rising more than 2 percent, Sony is up more than 1 percent and Canon is higher by almost 1 percent.
In the tech sector, Advantest and Tokyo Electron are higher by more than 1 percent each. Among the major automakers, Honda is gaining almost 3 percent and Toyota is rising more than 2 percent.
In the banking space, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are higher by more than 2 percent each. In the oil sector, Inpex is adding more than 1 percent and Japan Petroleum is rising more than 2 percent.
Japan Display, which is making final arrangements to raise about 100 billion yen from a China-Taiwan consortium and Japanese public-private investment fund INCJ Ltd., hopes to reach a deal as early as this week, according to media reports. Shares of the Apple supplier are gaining more than 11 percent.
Shares of Nomura Holdings are gaining almost 3 percent after the company received approval from Chinese regulators to establish a majority-controlled brokerage in China.
Among the other major gainers, Daiichi Sankyo is gaining almost 10 percent, Yaskawa Electric is rising more than 6 percent and Unitika is higher by almost 6 percent.
On the flip side, Rakuten is losing more than 3 percent.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the 111 yen-range on Monday.
On Wall Street, stocks rose on Friday amid optimism about the ongoing trade talks between the U.S. and China. In a post on Twitter, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin described the latest round of high-level U.S. trade talks as "constructive" and also said he looks forward to welcoming China's Vice Premier Liu He to continue the important discussions in Washington next week.
The Dow advanced 211.22 points or 0.8 percent to 25,928.68, the Nasdaq climbed 60.16 points or 0.8 percent to 7,729.32 and the S&P 500 rose 18.96 points or 0.7 percent at 2,834.40.
The major European markets also moved to the upside on Friday. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.6 percent, the German DAX Index advanced by 0.9 percent and the French CAC 40 Index jumped by 1 percent.
Crude oil prices moved higher on Friday as a drop in crude supply due to U.S. sanctions on Iran and Venezuela and the OPEC-led output cuts outweighed concerns about a global economic showdown. WTI crude oil futures for May ended up $0.84 or 1.4 percent at $60.14 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.


For all brides and grooms to be, come along to our first independent wedding fair held on Sunday 10th March between 11am – 3pm.
We have a variety of local suppliers showcasing their products and services to make your day extra special.
If you have already booked your wedding locally, then come along and meet the suppliers.
Our bar will be open if you want to make the day extra special with a glass of fizz.


This park is small in size but big on wildlife in central Texas.
Isabella Eleanor Neff, the mother of then-governor Pat Neff, donated 6 acres for this park. Hence the lovingly awesome name: Mother Neff. This smallish park, at 269 acres, has a lot for you to do.
Civilian Conservation Corps members built a water tower out of bricks in 1935. Now, it's a lookout tower at the pinnacle of the park. It's a rugged hike to get there, so bring your walking sticks and some water. One part of the 3.5-mile walking trail goes by a rocky overhang. Stop here to catch your breath and some shade.
Trees are big here. The official tree guide identifies 26 different species on the first part of your hike from the parking lot. Large, leafy trees include oak and elm. Look for the tree that looks like a Christmas holly. The nearby Leon River offers a cool respite on a hot day.
Some of the 15 tent sites are near the river. Another 20 have full hook-ups for your RV. Glampers can take advantage of one cabin.


Crocodiles have never been, and never will be, allies of humankind. In innumerable songs, stories, legends and myths, the crocodile is a symbol of pitiless predation and insatiable appetite; the word most often used to describe crocodiles and their habitats is 'infested'. In Crocodile, Dan Wylie tracks the 23 recognized crocodilian species across every continent bar Antarctica. He explores the crocodile in myths, artworks and literatures around the world, from Egypt and India, through Africa and Australia, to the Mayans and the Malaysians. Wylie demonstrates that although crocodiles – more accurately, crocodilians, which include the alligators, caimans and gharials – are most commonly associated with ferocity, repugnance and deceit, they have surprisingly often been respected and revered in human history.
All but wiped out in the middle of the twentieth century by hunters and skin-traders, crocodilians are now making something of a comeback, though some species still verge on extinction. As apex predators, they are today an increasingly important indicator of ecosystem health: Crocodile suggests that this magnificent animal is more than due for positive reassessment. Not only did crocodilians survive the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago – they may yet outlive humanity. This book is a tribute of respect for the ultimate survivor.