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The genie I dreamt of: A very good year for public health
On Dec. 31, 2008, imagine that a genie told you that in a year's time, it would be more likely than not that people seeking health insurance would soon receive insurance even if they had a serious pre-existing condition. And that 31,000,000 more Americans would soon have health insurance. And that in the meantime, if someone was laid off and at risk of losing the insurance they had through their employer, they would be able to keep that COBRA coverage for a much longer period. And that this would be produced via the leadership of an African-American president, without Teddy Kennedy playing a major role.
You would have thought, I'm dreaming of that genie.
Voila! As the Zionists said, If you will it, it is no dream.
Labels: 2009, COBRA coverage, Obama, pre-existing condition
Don't ever come back: Barriers to palliative care
Dr. Bruce Ferrell, who helps lead the palliative care program at UCLA Medical Center, recalls a patient two years ago who got a liver transplant but developed serious complications afterward and remained in the hospital for a year. "He had never ever been told that he would have to live with a ventilator and dialysis," Dr. Ferrell said. "He was never told that this was as good as it's going to get."
Dr. Ferrell talked with the patient about whether he might want to leave the intensive care unit (ICU) to go home and receive hospice care. But when the surgeon overseeing the case found out, he was furious.
"We do not use the h-word [hospice] on my patients," the surgeon told Dr. Ferrell. "Don't ever come back."
The patient chose to leave.
The UCLA Medical Center consistently ranks as one of the most expensive places in the U.S. to get end-of-life care, though its patients' outcomes are similar to hospitals that spend much less.
Advice to patients near the end of life: Even when in the hospital, you can insist on considering hospice care.
Read a story about hospice care. Thanks to Reed Abelson for the source story in today's New York Times.
Labels: Abelson, complications, dialysis, end of life treatment, Ferrell, hospice, liver transplant, palliative care, UCLA Medical Center, ventilator
She'll pull a Sori on him: Accompaniment by community health workers
Dr. Heidi Behforouz's story on Sori and Maria:
Sori is one of my PACT [Prevention and Access to Care and Treatment] community health workers. Sori told the story of Maria. A young woman with significant mental illness, and a cocaine user, Maria was referred to PACT with her immune system ravaged by uncontrolled HIV. For four years, Sori rode life's ups and downs with Maria, always encouraging, never forcing. Yet she was never able to help Maria consistently take her medications. Then one day, something clicked. Maria began taking her pills. She's now getting stronger and has voluntarily taken on the role of accompanying her boyfriend, showing up in his room with a cup of coffee in one hand and his psych pills in another, telling him that if he doesn't get up and take his meds, she is going to "pull a Sori on him."
With the power of such accompaniment, we have documented significant clinical improvement in the majority of our patients, and reduced preventable hospitalizations by 40%. We have been creating – to borrow a phrase – patient-centered medical homes.
Much of the care is being delivered by paraprofessionals who have not been extensively schooled in the biomedical model and don't practice office-based care. Their schooling and expertise is in the art and science of "accompaniment" – you walk with the patient, not behind or in front of her, lending solidarity, a shoulder, a sounding board, a word of counsel or caution. Empowering, not enabling. Together facing and managing challenges that neither you nor they can fix – poverty, racism, illiteracy, social isolation – so that you can help them swallow their pills every day, get to their appointments on time, and renew their Medicaid applications.
Advice to people with chronic illness: Find a Sori.
Read another story about patient partnership. Thanks to Dr. Heidi Behforouz for her source story in today's Boston Globe.
Labels: accompaniment, Behforouz, cocaine use, HIV, medical home, mental illness, PACT, patient partnership, preventable hospitalization, Prevention and Access to Care and Treatment
The Senate's Christmas gift for families like the Mains: Pre-existing conditions
The Yes from Senator Ben Nelson is the crucial 60th vote in favor of the health reform bill. That's a major milestone toward the bill's passage.
On this morning's Meet the Press TV show, Sen. Nelson said that the early benefits of the bill, if it passes, will prevent insurance companies from denying coverage to children for their pre-existing conditions.
Who'll benefit? Hesper Main offers her example:
I too am a victim of Mega Life. Months before my son was diagnosed with leukemia we decided that we had let the children go without insurance for too long. I found an inexpensive insurance for the self-employed and called. The woman who set up our policy was a quick speaking, spastic, all over the place mess. She explained to us how wonderful a hospital-based plan was and my husband and I were not well educated in health insurance to doubt what she was saying. Now, the bills are so high that we are going to have to file bankruptcy. The woman at Mega Life completely misrepresented her company and duped us into purchasing our policy. My son is healthy and in remission, even though we are struggling with getting these bills paid. The doctors and hospital have never denied my son care. Thank God! I shudder to think of how many people out there are going through the same thing that we are.
Read another story about an insurer's denial of a pre-existing condition. Thanks to the bloggers at Health Care for All for posting her comment, reprinted here.
Labels: bankruptcy, health reform, Hesper Main, insurance denial, leukemia, Mega Life, pre-existing condition, Senator Ben Nelson
I'm an artichoke: Empowering people with serious disabilities
Dr. David Spiegel's story on Ed Roberts:
Ed Roberts, was transformed in 48 hours from star high school baseball player to permanent quadriplegic on a respirator by the polio virus. He has come to lead a remarkably independent and full life despite this, rising to become the head of the World Institute of Disability in Berkeley, California. After several years of deep despair, with his mother's help, he applied to the Department of Rehabilitation of the State of California for entrance into its training program. He was rejected, with the comment hat he was "unrehabilitatable." He went to school anyway, gained considerable experience, and 2 years later became the commissioner of the same department! He is an energetic, outgoing man, who seems to project himself beyond his wheelchair, attendant, and breathing apparatus. He took steps to see that the disabled had control over those who helped them – making them, rather than the state, the primary employers. And he rails against the exclusion the disabled feel. (He hates the term "handicapped" – it comes from being "cap in hand.") Looking up at a roomful of bright young Stanford medical students, he said: "I think of you as temporarily able bodied." By mobilizing the disabled to share and work together, he was able to redefine the world of the able-bodied, and change it. "The doctors told my mother that I would be a vegetable," Ed commented. This was quite a mistake – the poliomyelitis virus attacks motor neurons, not the part of the brain that thinks. "But it turns out they were right – I am. I'm an artichoke: prickly on the outside, with a big heart in the middle."
Ed's transformation from a socially isolated, depressed, despairing young man who had lost "everything" into an effective, vital man who boasts about the quality of his life despite his serious disability, came in part through his contact with other people with disabilities. Through them he learned that he did not deserve what had happened to him, that he was not less of a person for it, that he could find other ways to rebuild his life. This resulted not from denying nor hiding from his disability, but rather from making it the starting point of new relationships and a new perspective on life. People with life-threatening illness do the same thing every day, and many more could, if they stopped suffering in silence.
Advice: Live like Ed.
Read another story about a disabled athlete.
Thanks to Dr. David Spiegel for the source – the book "Living Beyond Limits."
Labels: California Department of Rehabilitation, polio, quadriplegic, respirator, Roberts, Spiegel
They couldn't offer a life-saving donation: Polycystic kidney disease as a pre-existing condition
David Waddington is a 58-year-old wine retailer in Dallas. He has polycystic kidney disease, a genetic disorder that leads to kidney failure. First he lost one kidney, then the other. A year ago he was on dialysis and desperately needed a new kidney. Doctors explained that the best match – the one least likely to be rejected – would perhaps come from his two sons, aged 27 and 29.
The two sons each had a 50% chance of inheriting PKD. If pre-donation testing revealed that either one had PKD, he might never be able to get health insurance: the pre-existing condition could make him uninsurable. As a result, their doctors had advised against their getting tested.
So "at the time David needed a transplant, the people closest to him couldn't even offer a lifesaving donation – for insurance reasons," David's wife Susan said.
Read another story about a pre-existing condition. Thanks to Nicholas Kristof for his source column the New York Times in October.
Advice: Tell your senator just how important it is that health reform include coverage of pre-existing conditions.
In my son's best interest: Over-prescribing of anti-psychotic drugs
Suzanne Joblonski's story:
Re "Poor Children Likelier to Get Antipsychotics," published in the New York Times on Dec. 12:
I am the mother of a teenage boy who received a diagnosis of attention deficit disorder and oppositional defiant disorder eight years ago and was prescribed antipsychotic medication. Throughout the years, we have visited no fewer than five psychiatrists and countless other therapists.
I would often question why my son was prescribed medications (at one point three at a time) that failed to do as they promised. For example, the ones that were designed to help him sleep at night did the reverse, and the ones to keep him awake made him lethargic.
I decided that it was in my son's best interest to take a break from the weekly therapy and daily medication. Surprisingly, he functioned much better: His sleeping patterns and appetite improved. He is now back on medication, but with new therapists and with the parents' considerations in mind.
Families like ours are often duped into believing that there aren't options other than medication, or should we refuse to comply, charges of neglect could be brought.
Advice to parents: If your child's medications don't have the desired effects, talk to the doctor about your alternatives.
Read another story on use of anti-psychotic drugs.
Thanks to Suzanne for her source letter to the editor, reprinted from yesterday's New York Times.
Labels: ADD, ADHD, antipsychotic drugs, Attention Deficit Disorder, Joblonski, oppositional defiant disorder, overmedication
By necessity, great communicators: How doctors address their patients
Dr. Anne Marie Valinoti's story:
A physician friend of mine made the mistake of calling a woman of a certain age by her first name during a visit. "That's Mrs. White, thank you," she told him, icily.
"I never forgot that one," he said, remembering how he had sheepishly finished her exam.
But most patients, especially those under age 65, prefer doctors to use their first name, according to a study in the British Medical Journal. Since patients' preferences vary greatly, doctors should ask; they shouldn't assume.
Great primary care doctors are, by necessity, great communicators. All communication starts with what we call each other.
Advice: If you don't want your doctor to call you by your first name, tell them, or their office manager.
Read a story about excellent physician-patient communication. Thanks to Dr. Valinoti for the source story in today's New York Times.
Labels: British Medical Journal, first name, physician-patient communication, Valinoti
I have no options: The public option for chronic pancreatitis
Robin's story:
To claim that the passage of a comprehensive health care bill will result in rationing is just plain ignorant. You ignore that many of us are uninsurable; I struggle with health issues post TP/IAT (pancreatic surgery with islet cell transfer like I had), yet must work, as my health insurance is supplied through my self-employment...and I pay $22,000.00 per year for health care coverage, with a deductible.
I have no options, I cannot change or reduce my plan without fear of being reviewed again by underwriters and rejected. Don't you understand that without protection from a government plan, many of us would be blacklisted from group or individual health insurance because of our disease? Don't you understand that the insurance companies have the right (NOW) to deny you coverage because of "pre-existing conditions" clauses? Go to a website and at least read the health plan that was approved by the House...it is sensible, and it may provide affordable coverage to persons afflicted with chronic illness who otherwise would be uninsurable.
It is frustrating that there are those out there who really believe the NEGATIVE press that has been surreptitiously funded by health insurance companies and big PHARMA, why...because the government plan will cost them $!!
We with Chronic Pancreatitis are the outcasts of the medical profession, we are constant and expensive consumers of the system, a system that is designed to deny us benefits. We should all be writing letters to our respective congressional representatives to support national health care. The people on this listserv should be jumping up and down and trying to educate others who don't suffer from the stigma of a chronic illness about how necessary the regulation of our insurance and health industries is...to give those of us who fall into an "unacceptable risk pool" an opportunity to obtain health insurance without prejudice and the almost certain risk of denial once you carry a CP diagnosis.
-
Robin H. (CA)
Advice: Read another story about the difficulty of getting health insurance with a major pre-existing condition. Thanks to Robin, and Carolyn Bloom, for the source posting to pancreatitis@YahooGroups.
Labels: chronic pancreatitis, listserv, pancreatic surgery, pre-existing condition, public option, unacceptable risk pool, uninsurable, Yahoo group
There can be a big payback: Testimony on Massachusetts state funding for patient safety
This was my testimony today on state funding:
Secretary Bigby, Commissioner Auerbach, and other executives,
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
I'm Ken Farbstein, President of the Consumer Health Quality Council of Health Care for All. We'll submit more formal written testimony to add to this personal oral testimony.
Our Council is mostly people who had a serious medical error in their own family. At our last meeting, my friend Kim came and told us about his mother's death from a hospital acquired infection. (I'm glad the DPH is reporting those, as that can persuade hospitals to become safer.) And we heard from another man, Lee, whose girlfriend died needlessly in a hospital. If the Rapid Response Methods section of the law had been in place then, and if he knew about it, she might well be alive today. (I'm glad that DPH can collect information about hospitals' use of Rapid Response Methods.) One of our long-time members didn't come to our last meeting, because her new leg prosthesis was still uncomfortable. She needed one after more than 20 operations following a very serious hospital-acquired infection.
Yesterday a work group of our Council reviewed the hospitals' plans for their Patient and Family Advisory Councils, required by Chapter 305. We were happy to learn that consumers on one hospital's advisory council got the hospital to extend visiting hours to 7x24, so family members can be with their loved ones when they're most vulnerable and afraid. If all hospitals plan and conduct these advisory councils, a lot more good ideas like that will become reality. If DPH can help make those ideas known – IF they have money for someone to look, and discover them, so much the better.
I firmly believe that reporting errors keeps providers more mindful of the need to make their systems safer. It doesn't take much of DPH's time to gather and report that, and there can be a big payback. Of course, DPH needs the funding to keep doing that. I hope you give them, and the Betsy Lehman Center, what they need.
Advice: It's a citizen's job to keep his mouth open.
Read another story about Chapter 305 testimony.
Labels: Auerbach, Betsy Lehman Center, Bigby, Chapter 305, Consumer Health Quality Council, hospital-acquired infections, patient/family advisory councils, Rapid Response methods, testimony
Before he had health insurance: The public option in health insurance reform
On this scary Halloween, it's comforting to see that the U.S. House of Representatives is including a public option in its healthcare reform bill.
The House bill, if it passes, could save the lives of many very ill people – like Fred Holliday. With insurance coverage for a physical exam, Fred might have received prompt detection and treatment.
Dr. Rahul Parikh describes what had happened instead, as told to him by Fred's widow, Regina Holliday:
Fred Holliday developed the early symptoms of his disease-fatigue, weight loss and occasional blood in his urine - before he had health insurance. In late 2008, his insurance kicked in after he got a job at American University teaching film studies. Last January, he developed low back pain. He went to see his doctor multiple times. Each time, she prescribed pain medication, but his pain worsened. Regina wondered: if Fred just had muscle pain, then why the night sweats? Why the blood tinged urine? Why didn't his clothes fit him anymore? Still, Fred's doctor didn't reconsider her diagnosis and treatment.
His pain worsened. In March, Regina demanded more. Fred's doctor ordered an MRI of his back. Three days later, they got a call telling them that he had "shadowing over his kidneys." What that meant wasn't entirely clear, but the next thing Fred and Regina knew, they were in the office of a Maryland oncologist, who admitted them to a hospital in Silver Spring for further tests.
On Friday, March 27 around 11 am, Regina was at work when Fred called. He was crying. "I think the doctor just told me I have cancer," he managed to tell her.
What exactly did the doctor say? Fred remembered being told that he had a growth on his kidneys. Regina rushed into see the doctor, but he had left town for the weekend. They had to wait until the next day before another doctor (not an oncologist) tried to clarify his diagnosis: it looked like he had stage IV metastatic renal cell carcinoma. That jumble of words didn't make any sense. Regina went onto the Internet. Wikipedia turned out to be more helpful than Fred's doctors.
When their oncologist returned, he was curt and often distracted by his cell phone. He didn't like Regina's detailed questions, telling Fred that, "If Miss type-A personality wants me to answer her questions, she can come to my office hours."
In retrospect, Regina believes that if Fred's doctor had been clear about his prognosis from the beginning, he may have made the decision to stop fighting sooner. Instead, he informed him of how he could fight: surgeries, radiation, and chemotherapy. So he decided he needed more advanced care than what Holy Cross could provide.
Patient transfers between hospitals are normally the responsibility of doctors who work there. The hospital's doctors, however, told her they had not been able to find another center willing to accept him. So Regina contacted her own internist, who sat on the board of directors at a hospital in Bethesda. After hearing Fred's story, he pulled strings and arranged a transfer.
The Hollidays arrived at there four weeks after Fred's diagnosis. The first thing they learned was that he needed surgery to repair a broken hip - which happened after an orderly at the first hospital bumped him into a wall while he was moving Fred on a gurney. Fred had been complaining of severe hip pain for two weeks, but nobody there had followed up on it. All it would have taken was an x-ray.
After surgery, his new oncologist ordered a chemotherapy drug called Sutent. While his health insurer approved the drug, Fred's doctor told Regina that the pharmacy refused to order it. At $40,000 for a 28-day supply, it was too expensive. "Sometimes this happens," Fred's doctor told her. So Regina had the drug mailed home, picked it up, tucked it safely into a fanny pack, and dispensed a dose to her husband each day.
Fred's cancer advanced. He still couldn't walk. He had become incontinent. The doctors decided to transfer him to a rehabilitation center with the goal of getting him to walk again. Once he was there, Regina's duties as his caregiver intensified. She learned where the center's storage closets were so she could collect fresh sheets and change them herself. She emptied his trash, and changed and disposed of his bedpans.
While he was in the hospital, Fred required blood transfusions every 10-14 days. Regina knew when he needed them because he would begin to get very tired, eat, move, and talk less. One afternoon, this is just what happened. At the hospital, it was easy to ask the nurse to get a blood test to know just how low his counts were. In the rehab center, they only did blood tests once every morning, no exceptions. So Fred suffered until morning came and his test confirmed what he and Regina knew the day before.
Fred would had to be re-hospitalized. Fred continued to deteriorate. It quickly became a question of how much longer to fight. On May 19th, he was moved to hospice care to get his pain under control and on June 11th, he went home. On June 17th, less than three months after he was diagnosed with cancer, Fred Holliday died at home. Ironically, this was the same day that the United States Senate began debating health care reform.
Advice: Call your congressman and ask them to support health insurance reform with a strong public option. Commercial insurers might prefer not to insure someone like Fred - or like you.
Read another story about the lack of health insurance. Thanks to Dr. Rahul Parikh for the source blogpost, and e-patient Dave Bronkart.
Labels: access to care, Holliday, insurance, mural, Parikh, public option, stage IV metastatic renal cell carcinoma, Sutent
Magnificent at times: Jeremiah Mead & advances in respiratory research
In the famous joke by Woody Allen, two Jewish women are commenting on the food at a resort in the Catskill Mountains. One says, "The food is terrible here." The other responds sadly, "And the portions are so small!"
I often feel that my comments on healthcare are similar: It's so bad. And there's way too little of it! Yet sometimes I realize that our healthcare is also magnificent at times, and life-saving – as in the healthy birth of my son, 19 years ago.
My wife started labor nine weeks prematurely. Doctors were able to stop the labor from progressing, and gave my son the drug beta dimethasone to speed the maturation of his lungs. In a fetus' development in the third trimester, the walls of the lungs initially stick together, and can't inflate with air, until a chemical surfactant is released. At that point, the lungs can inflate and deflate appropriately, readying the baby to breathe upon birth.
If a baby is born prematurely, before the surfactant changes the lungs in this way, respiratory distress syndrome can result, often fatally. In the past, this caused the deaths of 50,000 premature babies each year.
My wife got the drug in time, and it somehow made its way to Neil's lungs, triggering the release of the surfactant, before he was born a few days later. He didn't get RDS, and he didn't need a ventilator. He has long been in excellent health, and he's bigger and more muscular than me now.
Dr. Jeremiah Mead was the scientist who discovered the role of the surfactant, and opened the way for a series of discoveries that now make RDS much less frequent. I learned this only in reading his obituary; he died at age 88 in mid-August.
In a colleague's words, "his major contribution is that he set the agenda in respiratory mechanics, and posed the questions that everyone else picked up."
Read another NICU story.
Thanks to Emma Stickgold for the source article in the Boston Globe of August 18.
Labels: beta dimethasone, Jeremiah Mead, Mead, obituary, RDS, respiratory distress syndrome, scientist, Stickgold, surfactant
I freak out when he has a runny nose: PTSD in NICU preemies' parents
Kim Roscoe's son Jaxon was born three months early, weighing only two and a half pounds. For nine days he did exceedingly well in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). Then, on Day 10 he went into respiratory and kidney failure, and his body had swollen beyond recognition. "He was hooked up to ventilators, his skin was turning black, the alarms kept dinging over and over," Kim recalls.
Jaxon is 16 months old now, home with his family. In the NICU for 186 days, he survived several near-death episodes.
During the six-month ordeal, his mother had constant nightmares. She became angry at the world, and so jumpy that she once thought that a supermarket scanner was one of Jaxon's monitors going off.
About three months after Jaxon's birth, she asked to see a psychiatrist. She received a diagnosis of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). Doctors are increasingly recognizing PTSD among parents of premature infants in prolonged intensive care, according to a recent study in the journal Psychosomatics.
"The NICU was very much like a war zone, with the alarms, the noises, and death and sickness," Kim said. "You don't know who's going to die and who will go home healthy."
Experts say parents of NICU infants experience multiple traumas: the shockingly early birth itself, traumatic medical procedures and life-threatening events, and hearing very bad news that can keep coming.
Kim says that now she's coping with great anxiety about Jaxon, even now: "I still freak out if he has a runny nose. And when he gets a fever, I'm back in the NICU."
Advice to stressed parents of a NICU preemie: Keep in mind that there are very happy endings. My very healthy son just entered college, 19 years after his three-week stay in a NICU. Contact the March of Dimes NICU Family Support program, which offers psychological support to parents in 74 hospitals nationwide.
Thanks to Laurie Tarkan for the source article in the New York Times of August 25.
Labels: March of Dimes NICU Family Support program, NICU, premature birth, Psychosomatics, PTSD, Roscoe, Tarkan
Turning patients into scientists: Open source research like the LAM Treatment Alliance
After Amy Farber learned she had the rare and fatal disease called LAM ("lymphangioleiomyomatosis") in 2005, she became determined to increase and speed up research into her illness, with the hope of finding a cure in her lifetime.
Now 39, she was a law student with a doctorate in anthropology, about to start a family. She quit law school and founded the LAM Treatment Alliance to raise money and connect a network of scientists around the world to research this mysterious disease, which destroys young women's lungs.
With the help of Frank Moss' Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), she created LAMsight, a Website that allows patients to report information about their health, then turns those reports into databases that can be mined for observations about the disease.
Amy Farber says this will empower patients to contribute, ask questions, and help lead the way to discoveries. Frank Moss agrees, adding that patients' everyday experiences in living with the disease can generate new hypotheses and avenues for research. "We're really turning patients into scientists and changing the balance of power between clinicians and scientists and patients," he says. Supporters of this model call it "crowd sourcing" or "open source research," and praise its democratization of research.
She hopes her website will become the largest database of active LAM patients. More than 100 registered users on five continents are already using it.
Advice to patients with rare diseases: Search the Web to see if a similar website is speeding research into your disease.
Read another story about PatientsLikeMe, a similar website for other rare diseases.
Thanks to Sarah Arnquist for the source article in the New York Times of August 26.
Labels: Arnquist, crowd sourcing, Farber, LAM, LAM Treatment Alliance, LAMsight, lymphangioleiomyomatosis, MIT Media Lab, open source research, rare disease
I was lucky: Lance Armstrong's pre-existing condition
Lance Armstrong's letter of October 2, 2009:
Today is LIVESTRONG Day. Thirteen years ago today, my doctor told me I had advanced testicular cancer. What most people don't know is that at the time, I didn't have health insurance. In the following weeks, I received letter after letter from the insurance company refusing to pay for my treatment. I was fighting for my life—but also for the coverage that I desperately needed.
The legislation currently being debated in Congress is not just words on a page—for many cancer survivors, it's a matter of life and death. Now, as this debate enters crunch time, I need your help to ensure that what happened to me doesn't happen to any other American.
No matter what side of the healthcare debate you're on, I believe we can all agree on two things:
No American should be denied health insurance coverage because of pre-existing conditions.
No American should lose their insurance due to changes in health or employment.
Will you sign the LIVESTRONG Action petition to make sure any legislation includes these two critically important reforms? We'll deliver these to Capitol Hill this month as the debate reaches its climax and make sure our voices are heard in the debate.
When I received my diagnosis, I was between cycling contracts. My new insurer used the diagnosis as a reason to deny coverage after the new contract was signed. Fortunately, one of my sponsors intervened. At their insistence, I was added to their insurance company and was able to continue my life-saving treatment. If my sponsor, a powerful company, had not gone to bat for me, I may not have made it.
I was lucky. We can't rely on luck to ensure coverage and treatment for the millions of Americans affected by cancer. Some cannot get coverage because they've already been diagnosed. Others get calls from their insurance companies saying they have been dropped. It happens all the time—and it's unacceptable.
Every year on LIVESTRONG Day, we come together to take action for a world without cancer. In the U.S., a critical step is to make sure cancer survivors can get and keep their health insurance.
It has been 13 years since my diagnosis, but in some ways, not much has changed. No person should have to worry about health insurance while battling cancer. That so many do is an outrage, and we must speak out.
-Lance and the LIVESTRONG Action Team
Advice: Please sign the petition and forward it along to your friends and family.
Read another Lance Armstrong story. Thanks to Hari Khalsa for forwarding the email.
Labels: Armstrong, cancer survivor, LiveStrong, pre-existing condition, testicular cancer
We have become the ones: The passing of Sen. Edward Kennedy
Poverty is the biggest risk factor for poor health: poor people live shorter lives, with more disease and disabilities, than the rest of us. So for those who are passionate about improving public health, the loss of Teddy Kennedy is a particularly great setback.
He was influential in passing the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and the Americans with Disabilities Act, and raising the minimum wage, to name only three examples of laws that brought about big public health gains.
His compassion, tenacity, and joy, and his record of achievement, make him my hero.
With his passing, as Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg said in her eulogy, "we have become the ones who have to do all the things he would have done -- for us, for each other and for our country."
Read a blog post from last year aboutTeddy Kennedy's final year.
Labels: American with Disabilities Act, Caroline Kennedy, obituary, poverty, SCHIP, Teddy Kennedy
Using himself as an example: Plaintiff Howard Engle's Progeny
Dr. Howard Engle passed away on July 22 at age 89, from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He had smoked multiple packs of cigarettes a day since college. Though he tried many times to quit, he never succeeded, and continued to smoke until his death.
His medical specialty had been pediatric neurology, and he frequently worked with cerebral palsy patients. He preached to his patients about the dangers of smoking, using himself as an example. "He wanted to teach people, especially kids, that smoking is not a good habit," said his son David.
Among his patients in the 1980s were the children of two medical malpractice lawyers, Stanley and Susan Rosenblatt. In 1991, the Rosenblatts brought a class-action suit against tobacco companies on behalf of flight attendants who had inhaled secondhand smoke, winning a settlement that cost the companies $300 million. Dr. Engle took a keen interest in the case.
Because he was a smoker with emphysema who wished to publicize the addictive nature of smoking, he agreed to become the lead plaintiff in a second class action suit, filed by the Rosenblatts in 1994. In 2000, the plaintiffs received the largest punitive award ever decided by a jury, for $145 billion. An appeals court voided the award as excessive and said the class of plaintiffs was too disparate. Later, the Florida Supreme Court let that ruling stand, though it allowed individuals to bring suit. Thousands of individuals have done so, and courts are now beginning to decide their cases – which are known as the Engle Progeny.
Advice: Use your standing and your personal network to fight for public health. Sometimes you have to sue the B*ST*RDS.
Read a very different ">class action lawsuit story.
Thanks to Bruce Weber for the source obituary in the Boston Globe of July 25.
Labels: addiction, Bruce Weber, class action suit, emphysema, Engle, Engle Progeny, obituary, plaintiff, Rosenblatt, tobacco settlement
Intervening before there's drama: Rapid Response Teams
"A trigger [for a rapid response team] is not about excitement and drama; it's about intervening before there's drama," said Jeanne Quinn, a senior nurse on a unit for post-surgery and trauma patients. Minutes earlier, Judy Wagoner, a 29-year-old nurse with 2.5 years experience, had activated a trigger when her patient's blood pressure plunged to 56.
As the senior nurse on the floor, Jeanne responded and helped Judy gradually raise Carol Emerson's pressure back into the 100s. The team ordered an electrocardiogram to rule out underlying heart problems and a blood transfusion, and kept the patient an extra night. About 80% of the nurses on the floor have less than two years of experience, while Jeanne has 15.
No one knows for sure if early intervention helped Carol, who was in the hospital so surgeons could repair broken bones in her left arm, avoid cardiac arrest. And Judy said she would have asked for Jeanne's help even before the new rules.
But doctors believe the key to reducing patient mortality is to intervene at the first sign of trouble, before the patient "[cardiac] arrests," an emergency where the heart or lungs — or both— shut down.
Dr. Michael Howell, an intensive care specialist, hopes the Rapid Response team will prevent delays like one he described a few years ago to the Beth Israel Deaconess board of directors: Doctors admitted an elderly man to the hospital for gastric bleeding. When his systolic blood pressure dipped into the 80s, his nurse and an intern gave him intravenous fluids to push it back up to normal range. His pressure climbed back into normal range. Over the next eight hours, his blood pressure kept falling, and they kept pumping in fluids. Low blood pressure is generally not life threatening until it dips into the 70s or 60s. But they failed to recognize that the subtler decline masked a more serious underlying problem: massive stomach bleeding. The next morning, a senior doctor did, and transferred the patient to the ICU, which has the staffing expertise and equipment to intervene more rapidly. But it was too late.
"I don't know that we would have saved him," Dr. Howell said. "But it's absolutely possible."
Advice to family members of hospitalized patients: Find out how the hospital activates a rapid response team.
Read about Massachusetts legislation enabling family members to activate rapid response methods in hospitals.
Thanks to Liz Kowalczyk for the source story in the Boston Globe of Nov. 27, 2005.
Labels: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, cardiac arrest, Emerson, Howell, Kowalczyk, Quinn, rapid response method, Rapid Response Team, trigger, Wagoner
What it could and could not do: Universal health care through the British National Health Service
Sarah Lyall's story:
As an American who lives in Britain, occasionally writes about the health service, and uses public and private medicine here (as well as back home, occasionally), I have seen firsthand the arguments from all sides.
For me, the Health Service was a godsend when my husband suffered a severe stroke in the 1990s. He got exemplary critical care; I did not get a bill.
It was only in the aftermath – when I learned that, unusually in Britain, my husband's job came with private insurance – that I came to realize what it could and could not do. A little over one in ten Britons have some sort of private supplemental insurance; others pick and choose when to use the National Health Service and when to pay out of pocket for the top specialists or speedier care.
Told my husband needed a sophisticated blood test from a particular doctor, I telephoned the office, only to be told there was a four-month wait. "But I'm a private patient," I said. "Then we can see you tomorrow," the secretary said.
We should create a system in the U.S. that covers everyone, and gives everyone a choice or public or private insurance. That would be a huge improvement for many millions, though still far from perfect, like in Britain.
Thanks to Sarah Lyall for the source article in the Sunday New York Times.
Labels: British National Health Service, Lyall, National Health Service, NHS, supplemental insurance, universal healthcare
I've got the upper hand: The Cure and treatment for cancer
Michelle Grant-Epstein is a 52-year-old mother of three in Framingham, Massachusetts. Advanced colon cancer, diagnosed in 2005, had spread to an ovary, requiring extensive surgery and chemotherapy. Here's her story:
When I was first diagnosed, the doctors said my disease was treatable, but we just don't have a cure now. It was hard to hear.
I'm co-habiting with my cancer, and as long as I've got the upper hand, that's OK. I'm a fully functional adult [exercising at home, spending time with family and friends, and working part-time at a local library].
Do I wish for a cure? Absolutely! But I know that it's complicated and each cancer is different. For now, I'm grateful for the drugs that are controlling my cancer, and I hope they're still working.
Advice: Live as fully as you can every day.
Read a thoughtful journalist's story about his life after prostate cancer.
Thanks to Michelle, whose story appeared in the Fall/Winter 2008 issue of Dana-Farber's newsletter, Paths of Progress. This is an excerpt from the article about Michelle and two other cancer survivors who are patients of Dr. Robert Mayer.
Labels: cancer cure, cancer survivor, colon cancer, cure, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Grant-Epstein
I reject that categorization: Life during dialysis
Frank Sietzen, Jr.'s story:
Daniel Asa Rose says dialysis leaves patients "with an enervated excuse for a life." As one of the hundreds of thousands of Americans undergoing hemodialysis, I reject that categorization.
Dialysis isn't easy – there is pain each session when a pair of 15-gauge needles are inserted in my arm and removed three hours later, but if a patient follows the appropriate diet and fluid restrictions, the remaining part of life is no different from anyone else's.
I have energy and a zest for life, swim and exercise every day, and am on the transplant list (which involves a five- to seven-year wait in my region). I am often told how "well" I look.
My life – which I call my 65% life since dialysis and related care consume about a third of my time – is a life well worth living, especially considering the alternative.
Advice: Live a life well worth living, like Frank.
Read a story about a kidney transplant patient's choices after a transplant.
Thanks to the New York Times for printing Frank's letter to the editor on July 17.
Labels: dialysis, kidney transplant, quality of life, Rose, Sietzen, transplant waiting list
Mr. and Mrs. Republican: A lawmaker's response to their hospital acquired infection
Leo and Rita Pepino were married for almost 60 years. "She was my life," Leo says.
Rita died from bone cancer in 2005, after battling two other cancers. She was affectionately known in New Hampshire as "Mrs. Republican" for her political activism. Her husband Leo was the former Speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives.
Rita had acquired several painful infections while in the hospital, getting sicker from the place that was supposed to make her well, Leo said.
"Every time she went to the hospital, she always got an infection," he said. He got one, too, years ago from a different hospital when he had back surgery.
Also a Republican, he kept his word after Rita died, helping to marshal through a new law requiring New Hampshire hospitals to report to the state for public release their rates for the three most serious hospital-acquired infections.
New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch signed the bill into law in 2006, "in memory of Rita." However, public reporting has lagged: the state still does not publish the rates of individual hospitals' infections.
A year ago, Leo vowed at age 81 to run again for the seat he lost last time around to make sure consumers get information to compare hospital infection rates. It's for Rita, he said.
Advice to political activists: Be vigilant to ensure your new patient safety laws are implemented faithfully after they become law.
Read another story about Massachusetts'new law on reporting hospital acquired infections.
Thanks to Helen Haskell, and Nancy West for the source article in the New Hampshire Sunday News of August 10, 2008.
Labels: bone cancer, hospital acquired infection, hospital infection, husband patient advocate, legislation, Lynch, mandatory reporting, Nancy West, Pepino
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Mr. and Mrs. Republican: A lawmaker's response to...


A few more comments here. I hope I have gotten all the wines that I have tasted here, but I almost posted this a few times, and then only at the end did I remember I forgot a few. Also, this year's list is far longer, for a few reasons. One, I was far more careful and I tried to include all wines I tasted that were A- or maybe a drop below, AKA 90 point wines. Also, I have gotten to taste more wines as every year passes. Still, I am sure I missed a few. When I taste them – I will post them! Finally, there are more better wines this year. Many from Israel but France has finally stepped up with new vintages, along with Spain killing it as always, whites from Israel, and Cali really showing strong this year as well. I want to stress those lines again – this year is one of the best years for kosher wine – maybe the best. Why? Because more kosher wine is being made than ever before, and the wines are improving. Thankfully, new wineries like Kishor, Shiran, and others are popping up in Israel and are finally toeing the line! Recanati is fully inline now, and Dalton is also toeing the line with their higher end wines and their new lower end wines. What can I say, Israel has always been the white and sparkling wine mecca, but now some smaller and more concerned wineries are moving the needle on reds as well. Enough said on this – just keep looking for good news as I get to actually blog about this good news – notes and story wise. Till then, just follow the list!
Lastly – there are four new section, to highlight the largest positive move I have seen so far in the mevushal and low-cost wines. Those are the Below 10 dollars and the below 15 dollars sections. Sure, they are owned by two folks, Terrenal and Herzog, but this highlights a very important fact – WE CAN make good low-priced and mevushal kosher wines in California – WE CAN! I have been told for the longest time that we cannot do it. Well kudos to Joes of Herzog (Joseph Herzog and Joe Hurliman)! The two people have proven the industry wrong and I hope they keep doing so for a long time! The 2013 Herzog high-end wines are the best in a very long time, and the 2014/2015 lower end Baron wines prove that affordable good kosher wines exist and can be produced – now we need to see that from Israel. Terrenal has proven it can be done in Spain and Chile, now it needs to happen the world over! BRAVO to Terrenal and Herzog!
The other two lists are Israel only wines and Europe only wines that I have had the enjoyment to taste.
Porto Quevedo, Ruby Port, n.v.
2014 Tura Gewurztraminer – Lovely!
2013/14 Recanati Syrah/Viognier – lovely!
2013/14 Recanati Wild Carignan – LOVELY!
2013/14 Recanati Marselan – LOVELY!
Posted on April 5, 2016, in Israeli Wine, Kosher Dessert Wine, Kosher French Wine, Kosher Red Wine, Kosher Rose Wine, Kosher Sparkling Wine, Kosher White Wine, Kosher Wine, Wine, Wine Industry and tagged best kosher wines, top kosher wines. Bookmark the permalink.	27 Comments.
Nice reading this David….and great seeing you at the winery today! Sorry I missed saying goodbye. Always a pleasure to share a bottle of wine and a meal w/you!
Thanks again for your ever so helpful list.
David Thanks for all the Great Posts, your blog is definitely Awesome QPR 😉 , Have you tasted the 2013 Dalton 20th Anniversary Red, wondering how it might compare to the 2006 Dalton Matatia ?
In comparison to the red 20th and Matatia, I would go with the Matatia over the 20th.
We enjoyed a delicious bottle of the 2006 Matatia a few weeks ago, planning to open my last bottle on Pesach Be"h. I was wondering if I should purchase a few bottles of the 2013 Dalton 20th Anniversary Red to replace those, wondering if the Red is made in a similar style to the Matatia ?
I like that Mat Jr 🙂 , wonder what Alex would say 😉 ?
I'm thinking it's a bit pricey for what it is or am I off base ?
60 dollars for that wine is a stretch – not a QPR clearly. But a better deal may be at the Duty Free if/when u come back from Israel trip.
Any idea if the 2010 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon One Plus XII is still available ?
I see that you mentioned these wines in your list, were these the wines included in the August shipment?
If not when were they sent?
I just recently became a member of the Eagles landing cellar club (per your recommendation) and they told me they were sending me a Zinfandel, Pinot noir, Syrah, fledgling, and a Sauvignon blanc. What were your thoughts/wine notes on these wines (part of the August shipment)?
I was able to find some tasting notes for these wines. I believe the eagles landing Syrah I will be receiving is the 2014. Have you tried this vintage? How did it compare with the 2012 you reviewed and put on this list?
Also what did you think of the Eagles landing fledgling?
I'll have to get back to you on what the fledgling is once I receive my shipment (Tuesday or Wednesday), when I signed up for be cellar club I was told it is a red blend and "Joe's baby".
Being that u am getting only kne bottle of each of these, would you suggest to cellar them until they peak or drink on release? If cellar, for how long?
Did you prefer the more austere or the more fruit forward Syrah vintage? By austere would you say it's more old world/French style?
Btw they told me that this was part of the August cellar club shipment, I was under the impression that you were part of that club, it's strange that you haven't gotten the SB and the fledgling.
I am not part of the wine club, so I did not get to taste the wines, other than at the winery or when my friend who is a member brings them over to taste. I would let the Syrah ride a year or so. The PN is ready to drink (last year it was closed). Enjoy and tell me about the baby fledgling please.


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Park Notices
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There is an $8 non-refundable transaction fee for any change made to a reservation in advance of the arrival date.
Changes can be made online or by calling the Oregon State Parks reservation center at 800-452-5687 during normal business hours (Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Pacific Time).
Campsites, rustic or deluxe yurts, rustic or deluxe cabins, tepees, horse camps or boat moorages must be changed 3 or more days in advance.
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Date changes to any reservation cannot be made until 5 months in advance of the arrival date.
Please be aware that only the person whose name is on the reservation has access to change the reservation.
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Changes in departure date: You will be issued a refund for the nightly rate of each night dropped. There is an $8 transaction fee when you make a change. Example: You have a reservation for 8 nights, but decide to drop 3 nights from the end of the reservation. The nightly rate is $25. You will be refunded $75 (3 nights times $25 per night).
Changes in arrival date: No refunds will be issued for changes in arrival date. Example: You have a reservation for 8 nights, but decide to drop 3 nights from the beginning of the reservation. The nightly rate is $25. You will not be refunded the $75 (3 nights times $25 per night), and you will be charged an $8 transaction fee.
This rule is in place to deter people from reserving more nights than they are planning to stay, which limits the available inventory for others.
Each of our state parks is an individual place where people play, picnic, camp, explore, hike, rest, and renew. They are an everyday reminder of the things that make Oregon great. We recognize that Oregon's resilience and beauty are strengthened by its diverse communities. Our commitment is to serve everyone by striving to provide safe and equitable access to state parks and agency programs.

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text:
Q: How to set the no cursor on a mouse move for a buttons? How to set the no cursor on a mouse move for a buttons in vb.net?
I have try to google it but, I did not find any example. Well what I try to do is wen the mouse is over a button change the mouse cursor to cursor.no or other like cursor.default
Well after try multiple different ways i have try like the example you show bellow but my buttons are disable by default wen the application load
So the example bellow its not work with the disable buttons
Private Sub Button21_MouseEnter(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Button21.MouseEnter
    If TextBox6.Text = Nothing Then
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.No
    End If
    If TextBox6.Text <> "1a3390pohv-1974-pod-2017" Then
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.No
    End If
    If TextBox6.Text = "1a3390pohv-1974-pod-2017" Then
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.Hand
    End If
End Sub

A: You can add a handler to the Form's MouseMove event. Since it's not in the Button's handler, instead of letting the Button handler figure out the in / out logic automatically (MouseEnter event), you need to check this logic yourself.
Private Sub Form1_MouseMove(sender As Object, e As MouseEventArgs) Handles MyBase.MouseMove
    Dim buttons = Me.Controls.OfType(Of Button)()
    Dim insideButton = True
    If sender Is Me AndAlso buttons.Count > 0 Then
        insideButton = False
        For Each button In buttons
            If e.X > button.Left _
                AndAlso e.X < button.Left + button.Width _
                AndAlso e.Y > button.Top _
                AndAlso e.Y < button.Top + button.Height Then
                insideButton = True
                Exit For
            End If
        Next
    End If
    If insideButton Then
        Me.Cursor = getCursorState()
    Else
        ' not sure what the cursor should be when not on a button. set it here
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.Default
    End If
End Sub

' the logic has been simplified
Private Function getCursorState() As Cursor
    If TextBox6.Text = "1a3390pohv-1974-pod-2017" Then
        Return Cursors.Hand
    Else
        Return Cursors.No
    End If
End Function

And we're going to use the same handler for mouse movement as well, to reuse code. There is some additional logic in the handler to accommodate the Form and Buttons. Add the handler to each Button at startup.
Private Sub Form1_Load(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Load
    For Each button In Me.Controls.OfType(Of Button)()
        AddHandler button.MouseMove, AddressOf Form1_MouseMove
    Next
End Sub

Now, when a Button is disabled, the Form's mouse move handler is used. When a Button is enabled, its own mouse move handler is used.

A: If you want to hide the mouse cursor when it's inside a Button, you can use the MouseEnter and MouseLeave events of the button, and use the Cursor.Show and Cursor.Hide methods:
Private Sub Button1_MouseEnter(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Button1.MouseEnter
    Cursor.Hide()
End Sub

Private Sub Button1_MouseLeave(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Button1.MouseLeave
    Cursor.Show()
End Sub

After your last edit, your problem seem to be that the button is disabled, and a disabled control does not throw events. An easy solution to that could be the following:

*

*Add a Panel to your form, and put your button inside it (with Dock.Fill)

*Instead of using the button MouseEnter and MouseLeave, use the same events but of the container panel:
Private Sub Panel1_MouseEnter(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Panel1.MouseEnter
    If TextBox6.Text = Nothing Then
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.No
    End If
    If TextBox6.Text <> "1a3390pohv-1974-pod-2017" Then
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.No
    End If
    If TextBox6.Text = "1a3390pohv-1974-pod-2017" Then
        Me.Cursor = Cursors.Hand
    End If
End Sub

And the same in the Panel1.MouseLeave

A: If all you need is the cursor to change when your mouse is over that button, you can simply use
 myBtn.Cursor = Cursor.No when loading the form or in the designer.

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text:
Current Medicinal Chemistry, Volume 21 - Number 30
Targeting the Mannose Receptor with Mannosylated Subunit Vaccines
, 21(30): 3405 - 3418
B. Sedaghat, R. Stephenson and I. Toth
View Abstract 中文摘要 Permissions View on PubMed Order Reprints Order Eprints
View Abstract中文摘要
Effect of DNA Repair Deficiencies on the Cytotoxicity of Drugs Used in Cancer Therapy - A Review
Jose Manuel Calderon-Montano, Estefania Burgos-Moron, Manuel Luis Orta and Miguel Lopez-Lazaro
Body Mass Index, Lipid Metabolism and Estrogens: Their Impact on Coronary Heart Disease
G.D. Kolovou, V. Kolovou, P.M. Kostakou and S. Mavrogeni
Perspectives on Tuberculosis Pathogenesis and Discovery of Anti- Tubercular Drugs
Fidele Ntie-Kang, Joseph N. Yong, Luc C. Owono Owono, Wolfgang Sippl and Eugene Megnassan
Novel In Situ Activity Assays for the Quantitative Molecular Analysis of Neurodegenerative Processes in the Retina
P.A.R. Ekstrom, M. Ueffing, E. Zrenner and F. Paquet-Durand
Effects of Tetrahydrohyperforin in Mouse Hippocampal Slices: Neuroprotection, Long-term Potentiation and TRPC Channels
C. Montecinos-Oliva, A. Schuller, J. Parodi, F. Melo and N.C. Inestrosa
Atta-ur-Rahman, FRS
(32052 citations)
Honorary Life Fellow
Biography of Atta-ur-Rahman
Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman, Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Kings College, University of Cambridge (1968), has 1235 international publications in several fields of organic chemistry including, 349 books published largely by major U.S. and European presses. He was elected as Fellow of Royal Society (London) (2006) and won the prestigious UNESCO Science Prize (1999). Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman was conferred honorary D.Sc. degrees by many leading world universities including the University of Cambridge and appointed an Honorary Life Fellow of Kings College, University of Cambridge. The Austrian government honoured him with its high civil award ("Grosse Goldene Ehrenzeischen am Bande") (2007). He is Professor Emeritus at the University of Karachi, Pakistan. Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman was appointed Academician (Foreign Member) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (2015). He won the "Friendship Award of China" (2014) and was conferred the highest scientific award of China, the International Science & Technology Cooperation Award, by President Xi Jinping (2020). He was bestowed with the International Scientific Corporation Award (2014) and the "Einstein Professorship" by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) (2013). He was also elected as Foreign Member of the Korean Academy of Science and Technology. Research Institutes have been established in his name in China, Malaysia and Pakistan.
Prof. John Gurdon
Prof. Jean-Marie Lehn
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Current Medicinal Chemistry was introduced in 1994 with the assistance of Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman, who is the current Editor-in-Chief serving since 1994.


text:
CinemaScopeTOP STORIES
Bollywood and its divisions
Legends like Nasiruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi find no supporters when they voice concern against the ruling party's atrocities. Even bigwigs like Amitabh Bachhan always maintain diplomatic silence. Once a compact unit- Bollywood, its divisions are now visible. Does the lack of unity among industry people also have a role in the flopping of movies?
By Ranjan Das Gupta
Actors of Indian film industry
Gender Violence Watch: Contribute towards the fights against the biggest challenge of India
Meet a medical background IPS, leading the fight against Covid-19 in Jharkhand's most industrialised belt
How safe are you when you have a health emergency at Kolkata's top shopping malls?
Swami Agnivesh assaulted by BJP Youth wing in Jharkhand
Ranjan Das Gupta
is a Kolkata-based independent journalist. He has been doing freelance work for more than 3 decades and writes on arts & culture, cinema, politics, healthcare and education
Recently in an interview for a television channel, actor and director Parambrata Chatterjee lamented, "We now have a mutual admiration society which meets at premiers of Bengali films. Each pat the others' backs and shower words of praise. But films are released and vanish without a trace. This was certainly not the scene during the 50s, 60s and 70s the golden era of Bengali cinema."
The situation is the same in Bollywood. Though the cruel pangs of the Covid pandemic have lessened, a lot of films are flopping on their faces. Memorable films are created. But no one can predict the future of a new release at the box office.
When it comes to speaking truth to power, Bollywood actors seem most spineless and they are a divided lot too. But does their division also impact the movies?
Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Madhu Bhandarkar, Neeraj Pandey and Rohit Shetty show a picture of union in front of the media. In reality, they are all divided with personal interests gaining prime focus. No one joins hands with the other regarding social, political or issues concerning the film industry.
Voicing concern against the ruling party's atrocities, legends like Nasiruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi find no supporters. Even the king of Hindi cinema, Amitabh Bachhan always maintains diplomatic silence.
Madhu Bhandarkar opines, he respects seniors, contemporaries as well as juniors. He feels the film fraternity consists of brothers sailing in the same ship with silent regard for each other. Bhandarkar sounds ornamental and avoids controversies. So does Karan Johar and many others.
Veteran Dharmendra says, "I will remember that day in the late 50s when Shashi Kapoor, Manoj Kumar and I were sitting on the same bench of Filmistan Studio eagerly waiting for breaks. We were denied any opportunities that day. With sheer merit and hard work, we achieved our positions. During any hour of need, we were at each other's sides. Manoj was the most cooperative and encouraging among us. Shashi was a thorough gentleman."
This quote by the grand old He-Man of the film industry may sound like unreality to the present generation. Dadasaheb Phalke award-winning actress, danseuse, Asha Parekh recalls, "Saira Banu, Sadhana, Helen and myself have been true friends ever since we started our careers. In present times we got together often, shared our feelings and even helped each other secretly without taking any credit. Where are those feelings of togetherness now?"
Not to forget Shammi Kapoor's noble act of persuading director, Lekh Tandon to give all the existing raw stack of their film, Professor to Satyajit Ray. The icon ran short of material filming Kanchenjungha at Darjeeling. Shammi Kapoor shooting at the same location affirmed Professor could wait, not Manikda.
No doubt Dimple Kapadia and Tabu maintain a safe distance from the film fraternity. A real union of souls like Meena Kumari, Nargis, Geeta Bali and Madhubala along with that of other artists, technicians, lyricists, composers and crooners of yore is what the need of today is.
Many gifted filmmakers, artists and technicians now rule the roost in the Hindi film industry.
But after a long era of friendship and compatibility, the first division among top film personalities was witnessed during the Emergency in 1975. Supporting Indira Gandhi and her stance, Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Sunil Dutt and Manoj Kumar were on one side.
Those who strongly opposed the Emergency were the Anand brothers, Pran, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Kishore Kumar, Shatrughan Sinha, Danny Dengzongpa and Sadhana. Dev Anand was courageous enough to float the National Party which he later abandoned due to a lack of integrity and cooperation.
A nostalgic Manoj Kumar remembers, "We had different political ideologies. Yet in 1978, when I threw a grand party in honor of the Pakistani cricket team, Dilip Kumarsaab and Devsaab were together, playing ideal hosts to our guests. Both affectionately called me, Manoj Aja and we formed a trio of admiration and respect." He laments those days don't exist anymore."
Down South in Kollywood, situations are better. Chiranjeevi shares the best of vibes with Kamal Hassan, Rajnikant, Prakash Raj, Mohanlal and Mammotty. Once Kamal Hassan commented, "We are brethren working in motion pictures in different regional languages. We have transcended barriers of vested interests." No wonder Kamal Hasan and Prakash Raj have openly criticized many activities of the current central government.
A thinking soul laughs at the unity projected by the three Khans– Aamir, Salman and Shahrukh. Akshay Kumar is known as the one who is very close to the present Modi regime. The Canadian citizen's interview of Prime Minister Narendra Modi reminds people that in real life, he is not a Khiladi, who is fearless but the one who is spineless and bows before power. Has anyone ever seen Madhuri Dixit, Vidya Balan, Deepika Padukone and Karishma Kapoor strongly voice any contemporary issue?
Hindi Film Industry
Indian Film Industry
BBC Documentary: India's Secular Image Dented Due To Islamophobia Practiced By Modi Govt
What is Modi government hiding and why at all?
Inspiring tales of a bus driver's daughter, panwala's son and gatekeeper's grandson becoming doctors
Songs for Mahatma's Ears


text:
John Leonard MacKean (June 15, 1949 – August 14, 2014) was a Canadian man convicted of sexually assaulting a kidnapped 16-year-old boy.

Crime

MacKean's crime occurred in September 2012 in Nova Scotia, Canada. A 16-year-old boy was kidnapped by two men after being offered a "painting job". The teenager was then taken to a remote cabin and was blindfolded and chained. MacKean communicated with the two men holding the boy captive and arranged a meeting to use the boy for sexual services.

The boy testified that he was blindfolded and crying while MacKean entered the cabin and performed oral sex on him.

Conviction

MacKean pleaded not guilty to the charges of sexual assault and communicating for the purpose of obtaining sexual services from a person under 18.

In March 2014, MacKean was found guilty of all charges and sentenced to two years imprisonment followed by three years probation.

Controversy

The short sentence of MacKean sparked controversy among Canadians. The sentence triggered an uproar of disbelief from Twitter users.

Crown attorney Lloyd Tancock defended the sentence of MacKean. Tancock said that the penalty for those convicted of "communicating for the purpose of obtaining sexual services from a person under 18" ranges from no jail time to significant prison terms. Because of the wide range, other factors must be considered in the sentencing. saying that it was relatively shorter because MacKean does not have a previous record and he was also only involved in the incident for a brief period of time.

References

1949 births
2014 deaths
Canadian people convicted of child sexual abuse
Canadian prisoners and detainees
Prisoners and detainees of Canada
21st-century Canadian criminals
Canadian male criminals
Violence against men in North America

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Our mission is to support and empower people experiencing an emotional or mental health condition by building on their personal hopes and aspirations. This is achieved by identifying and responding to community needs in order to deliver an effective and efficient system of community based services.
Our staff have worked together on a set of values that are most important to us and our service users. These values underpin the way we do everything at Mid and North East Essex Mind and we are really proud of that.
Our values are:
Supportive: here when people need us
Non-judgemental: treating all as equals
Respectful: showing admiration for others
Empowering: giving others strength
Honest: trust in our honesty
Download the full version of our organisational values


text:
Me and My Money
Me and My Money: Geoff Simmons
Priscilla Dickinson
Leader of The Opportunities Party Geoff Simmons says he shops at small local businesses rather than supermarkets. Photo credit: Supplied.
My father always said, 'If you earn $1 and spend 99c, you'll always be rich'.
'If you earn $1 and spend $1.01, you'll always be poor'.
Geoff Simmons, Leader, The Opportunities Party.
Money. It's the driving factor behind many life choices, but is it the be-all and end-all?
'Me and My Money' is a regular feature that investigates Kiwi attitudes towards money and what drives the choices they make. We also explore if COVID-19 has changed peoples' money habits and how.
Newshub spoke to Leader of The Opportunities Party Geoff Simmons, about supporting small local businesses instead of supermarkets, not buying into the latest hype and the importance of living within our means.
'I started saving $5 a week': Bobux CEO shares humble beginnings as a university graduate
TOP keen to work with Māori Party after unexpected endorsement from Tamihere
1. Are you a saver or a spender?
A saver…[but] with current rock bottom interest rates, I'm wondering why. That's why I became an economist too. I'm fascinated by getting the best value.
2. Has COVID-19 influenced your attitude towards money?
The uncertainty has made me more cautious about big purchases.
3. Post lockdown, have your spending habits changed and if so, how?
I've become more focused on spending money supporting small local businesses.
For example, when doing my grocery shop, I've moved away from supermarket spending. I feel really good about that transition.
4. Your mobile phone dies: what do you think is a reasonable amount to spend on a new one?
About $800. I'm a mid-range kind of guy and I don't pay for brands. Last year's model tends to have plenty of functionality without the hype.
I'm due a new phone but haven't done my research yet because of the election.
5. Give an example of a recent purchase that you consider great value for money
Fixing my Miele vacuum cleaner instead of getting a new one. It is a great machine, built to last.
6. What was your last impulse or 'fritter' purchase and how did you feel about it afterwards?
My vice is costumes. But in the past couple of years, I've bought from op shops. I never regret them.
7. If you have spare cash to invest, what's your preferred form of investment and why?
Since COVID came along, term deposits are a waste of time.
My KiwiSaver is a managed fund, so my personal focus is property and shares: mainly property because of the tax advantages.
8. Do you use a credit card and if so, do you pay off the entire balance by the due date?
9. Does having more money increase happiness?
Up to a point.
Money is really important if you don't have any. Past that point, if you're busy, more money just makes life easier.
I wouldn't say it makes me happier. That's what friends and nature are for.
10. The best money advice someone's ever given you?
My father always said, 'If you earn $1 and spend 99c, you'll always be rich'; 'If you earn $1 and spend $1.01, you'll always be poor'.
Living within my means is something I've always stuck to - except when I go travelling, I consider that an investment.


text:
<!DOCTYPE html>

  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="generator" content="pandoc">
  <meta name="author" content="Karl Benedict">
  <title>Geography 485L/585L - Internet Mapping</title>

  <link rel="stylesheet" href="slides.css">
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="slide_specific.css">

Geography 485L/585L - Internet Mapping

    Karl Benedict · Spring 2018

Week 2 - Module 2a - Web-based Mapping Clients. HTML, CSS & Javascript

Overview

Web Development

Parts of a web page

Web Site Components

Structure (X/HTML)

Presentation (CSS)

Behavior (Javascript)

Simple Web Pages

More Complete Web Page Example

Web Development

Requirements

Web Server

File location that the web server accesses for requested content

Files must be readable by all users

General Process

Create basic content in HTML or XHTML (structure)

Change appearance of content through the definitions of styles using CSS (presentation)

Add dynamic capabilities to content through Javascript (behavior)

REPEAT over and over and over and over again

Parts of a Web Page

<html>
    <!-- The HTML block is the container for all of your page content -->
    <head>
        <!-- The head is where you include pointers to external resources
        (i.e. style sheets and javascript files), blocks of Javascript code
        , styles, etc.  -->
        <title>The page title also goes in here</title>
    </head>
    <body>
        <!-- The body is where you put all of the content for the page
        (i.e. the material that will be displayed in the web browser)  -->
        <h1>Headers</h1>
        <div>Generic blocks of content</div>
        <p>Paragraphs</p>
        <table>Tables</table>
        <img ...>Images</img>
        <form ...>Forms</form>
        <ul>Unordered Lists</ul>
        <ol>Ordered Lists</ol>
        <li>List Items</li>

        <!-- Javascript can go here as well -->
    </body>
</html>

Link to example

Web Site Components - Structure

Content is defined in terms of the structural elements available in HTML/XHTML

Sample HTML/XHTML Tags

Paragraphs (i.e. blocks of text) are contained within <p>...</p> tags

Headings (i.e. section headings, sub-headings) are contained within numerically defined header tags: <h1>...</h1>, <h2>...</h2>, <h3>...</h3>, etc.

Tabular data are within <table>...</table> tags

List are specified within <ol>...</ol> or <ul>...</ul> tags, depending upon whether the list is ordered (numbered) or unordered (e.g. bulleted)

User input elements are put within <form>...</form> tags

Blocks of content (i.e. sections or divisions) are defined within <div>...</div> tags

Structure is translated into the Document Object Model (DOM) for later use by CSS and Javascript

Web Site Components - Presentation

Modifications to default rendering of HTML/XHTML elements are made through styles defined in CSS

Styles may be

defined in an external file that is referenced within the <head> block (the preferred method when doing "real" web development)

directly defined within the <head> block of a web page

directly embedded in the elements to which they apply (generally not a "Good Thing")

When not embedded within an element, a style definition consists of

A selector

The style definition, enclosed in "curly-brackets", separated by "semi-colons"

For example: h1 {color:red; font-size:18px;}

CSS Selectors

Selectors may be based on several criteria

Element name: h1, p, table, ul, etc.

Element: <h1>A top level heading</h1>

Selector: h1 {color:red; font-size:18px}

Element ID: a unique name assigned to HTML/XHTML elements within the structure of the document

Element: <p id="para01">Some text goes here</p>

Selector: #para01 {color:blue; font-size:12px}

Class ID: a name assigned to multiple elements which may be modified through reference to their class

Element: <p class="instructions">Here are some instructions</p>

Another Element: <p class="instructions">Here are some more instructions</p>

Selector: .instructions {color:red; font-size:12px; text-decoration:blink}

Selectors may be combined in a variety of ways

Web Site Components - Behavior

The most interoperable language for adding dynamic behavior to web sites is Javascript - supported by most browsers on most operating systems

A full-fledged programming language

A non-trivial undertaking to become proficient in

Experience in other programming languages can contribute to learning Javascript

Defines actions that may be taken on/by DOM elements

Allows for modification of existing DOM elements, creation of new DOM elements after the page has finished loading from the server, retrieval of new content after page loads

An interactive web page that may behave like a local desktop application

Reference Links

w3schools.com

HTML 5.0 Introduction

HTML 4.0 / XHTML 1.0 Tag Reference

Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) selectors and elements

Javascript reference

World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)

HTML and CSS Background

HTML and CSS Tutorial Links Page

Validators Page

Webmonkey.com

HTML Cheat Sheet

CSS Guide

Simple Web Page

<html>
    <head>
        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" />
        <title>This is a simple web page</title>
    </head>
    <body>
        <h1>They don't get any simpler than this!</h1>
        <p>OK, not much simpler than this.</p>
        <p>Hello World?</p>
    </body>
</html>

link to example

Simple Web Page with CSS

<html>
    <head>
        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" />
        <title>This is a simple web page - with styling</title>
        <style type="text/css">
            h1 {color:blue; font-size:large}
            p.para {color:#777777; font-size:small}
            #annoying {color:red; text-decoration:line-through}
        </style>
    </head>
    <body>
        <h1>They don't get any simpler than this!</h1>
        <p class="para">OK, not much simpler than this.</p>
        <p id="annoying" class="para">Hello World?</p>
    </body>
</html>

link to example

Simple Web Page with Javascript

<html>
    <head>
        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" />
        <title>This is a simple web page with Javascript</title>
        <script type="text/javascript">
            function genericAlert() {
                alert("You just did something ...")
                document.getElementById("clickMe").style.color = "red"
            }
        </script>
    </head>
    <body>
        <h1>They don't get any simpler than this!</h1>
        <p>OK, not much simpler than this.</p>
        <p>Hello World?</p>
        <p id="clickMe" onclick="genericAlert();">What happens when you click me?</p>
    </body>
</html>

link to example

This work by Karl Benedict is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Books tend to be an essential ingredient in many rooms. Writers and readers turn to books to escape and decompress, which is why you'll often find books in bedrooms. I have a bookshelf packed with a variety of reads in my bedroom –– you'd find everything from cookbook anthologies to travel books, to textbooks and bestsellers.
Let's take a look at how books can mingle in bedrooms, and create a library within each of these five spaces.
This ultra-chic bedroom on the Upper West Side of Manhattan is far from the dark, stereotypical library. The faux fur adds a touch of glam while the shelves are strategically accessorized in this comfy, inviting apartment.
Glossy magazines, popular titles, and a selection of classics line the shelves of the bed wall in this modern oasis. The "Womb" chair and ottoman by Saarinen is the perfect scale for the corner. What a great spot to get lost in a suspenseful or humorous novel.
This Sydney, Australia bedroom comes saturated with titles and bold colors. The cut-out niches are a clever idea to break up the wall of books. The low platform bed is a good choice, allowing the library wall to be the focal point.
Brimming with natural light and boasting a pool view, this compact bedroom makes for an ideal guest nook. I'm sure the designer had bookworms in mind.
Sumptuous fabrics and contemporary art decorate this Palo Alto bedroom, which wouldn't be complete without a custom built-in filled with great books.


Ms. Alease Allen Green, 92, of Clayton, NC, departed this life on Sunday, April 14 2019.
Funeral, 12 Noon, Thursday, April 18, 2019, Good Samaritan Baptist Church, 9433 White Oak Road, Garner, NC 27529. Visitation, 11:30 AM to 12 Noon, prior to the service. Interment, Good Samaritan Church Cemetery, Garner, NC.
Survivors: daughters, Louise Green of Garner, NC and Teresa Green of Clayton, NC; sister, Evendell Allen of Raleigh, NC; 1 grandchild; 2 great grandchildren ; and a host of other relatives and friends.
Public viewing, 1PM - 8 PM, Wednesday, April 17, 2019 at the funeral home.
The family will receive friends at 90 Fallen Creek Court, Clayton, NC.


FORMBY boss Gary Martindale is working frantically to add players to his squad.
The Squirrels have lost their first three competitive games with Martindale at the helm, the latest of which arrived in Saturday's FA Cup tie at Rossendale United.
The Altcar Road boss has been left bitterly disappointed with the side's start to the new campaign but admits the speed at which he had to assemble a squad is a major factor in the plight.
Chasing new signings as we speak, Martindale is determined to find the calibre of player who can provide Formby with the ammunition to fire them up the Vodkat Premier Division.
Martindale hopes to have finalised deals for two players ahead of this weekend's visit of Ramsbottom United.
"The hardest part of our job has been getting a squad together in such a short space of time", said Martindale.
"We only had three-and-a-half weeks to do it and we lost a week with the bad weather which meant we couldn't train.
"We've now got to start making decisions on whether we've got enough quality and if these players will carry us through the season.
"I've been on the phone to another 10 players this week and am hoping to bring in quality in time for Saturday.
"We're really hopeful two more lads will have signed up in time; one centre half who has been playing in the Welsh League and is 95% certain and another central midfield player who has promised me a decision by today.
"I don't think we can be working any harder, it is very testing for me and Burnsy (Paul Burns, assistant manager).
"We had a good pre-season where we beat some really good teams but now we do not want to get into the habit of losing.
"I'm going to watch Ramsbottom tonight and it feels like there are not enough hours in the day and days in the week.


text:
#include <stdio.h>

#include <thrift/protocol/TBinaryProtocol.h>
#include <thrift/protocol/TCompactProtocol.h>
#include <thrift/transport/TBufferTransports.h>

#define BOOST_TEST_MODULE AllProtocolTests
#include <boost/test/unit_test.hpp>

#include "AllProtocolTests.tcc"

using namespace apache::thrift;
using namespace apache::thrift::protocol;
using namespace apache::thrift::transport;

char errorMessage[ERR_LEN];

BOOST_AUTO_TEST_CASE(test_binary_protocol) {
  testProtocol<TBinaryProtocol>("TBinaryProtocol");
}

BOOST_AUTO_TEST_CASE(test_little_binary_protocol) {
  testProtocol<TLEBinaryProtocol>("TLEBinaryProtocol");
}

BOOST_AUTO_TEST_CASE(test_compact_protocol) {
  testProtocol<TCompactProtocol>("TCompactProtocol");
}


text:
By Sounds Nerdy 1 hour ago
Apple's Employee Rules Violate Worker Rights, US Officials Say
Why should every small business be using Apple devices?
Rumors: Foldable iPad in 2024 dismissed, Apple developing 21-inch 'foldable notebook'
By 9to5Google 1 hour ago
ChromeOS is getting Microsoft 365 and OneDrive integration 'later this year'
Walmart's ultra-cheap Android TV streaming box is getting a sequel that should arrive soon
Metaverse minus the headset: A deeper look at Lenovo's Project Chronos
From www.zdnet.com
Check out our complete coverage of CES 2023
Lenovo's Project Chronos in action.
As expected, there was plenty of metaverse-related activity at CES 2023, with the highest-profile launch being HTC's new flagship VIVE XR Elite VR/AR headset. There was also an intriguing announcement from Lenovo — Project Chronos, a camera-based full body motion-capture system that allows you to animate an avatar in the metaverse without the need for a headset or other wearable sensors.
Also: Apple's VR/AR headset is coming. Here's everything we know so far
Details on Project Chronos, which is still very much a work in progress, were limited, so ZDNET caught up with Sanjeev Menon, vice president and general manager of the Desktop Business Segment at Lenovo, via email after the show to find out more.
Why do you think similar motion-control technologies have failed to gain widespread traction?
Sanjeev Menon, vice president and general manager of the Desktop Business Segment at Lenovo
Natural motion-capture technologies are either marker-based using body-tracking sensors or markerless-based using cameras. Deployments of the latter have typically been limited either by complex setup requirements or poor user experience due to low accuracy and high latency.
With the rapid evolution of hardware technology and AI, Project Chronos can push the boundaries to enable near real-time motion capture, allowing new levels of freedom for people to interact and engage within virtual spaces. To that end, we also didn't want to confine its use to only one scenario, but rather power multiple use cases across different aspects of consumers' lives.
Whether used for content creation, social gaming, live broadcasting, fitness workouts or something else entirely, the Project Chronos concept is purpose-built to empower a new level of freedom for those who frequent virtual spaces or those who are looking to new technologies to engage with others.
What was the impetus for Lenovo to move wearable-free motion control beyond gaming and into the metaverse with Project Chronos?
With Project Chronos, we are creating a new gateway to the metaverse for people to experience all types of 3D digital spaces in a new way. Since it is a wearable-free experience that mimics one's natural movements with lifelike avatars, it provides users with an unconventional, immersive experience.
Whether used for virtual fitness, vlogging, gaming, virtual walkthrough, etcetera, our concept will enable people to seamlessly switch between digital worlds, and a rich catalog of options opens the possibilities to faster user adoption.
Is the form factor and specification of the Chronos unit finalized, or are further refinements likely?
We will continue to refine the form factor and specifications based on user experience studies. We will also work with content creators and developers to drive the best fit to power the new scenario experiences.
Why are there only DisplayPort and Mini-DisplayPort connections on the current Chronos unit? Why not HDMI, too?
As the Project Chronos base unit is designed to be paired with an external display, like a large-format monitor or TV, we plan to provide multiple video connectivity options including DisplayPort, Mini-DP and HDMI. Ultimately, we'll optimize the I/O ports and specifications for the best user experience based on user insights and market realities.
The Project Chronos hardware is a specialised Windows 10 PC powered by a 13th-gen Intel Core processor, with an integrated depth-sensing RGB camera.
Also, why is a handheld remote control required? Surely any user interaction with the Chronos unit could be via gestures…
By incorporating a handheld remote control with the system, we are giving users the option to switch between body-driven control and a more stationary interaction within virtual environments when preferred.
We want Project Chronos to be as flexible as possible, so that it can meet a multitude of needs and use cases. A remote control provides the agility, and often convenience, needed to accommodate that. As we build out our content partner ecosystem, the remote will also give us more options to allow for compatibility across a greater number of apps where full-body movement may only be recognized in aspects of the application.
How good is the tracking of facial expression and eye movement in Project Chronos? Is more development needed here?
Project Chronos can track facial expressions including the user's micro facial expression, eye movement, and mouth movement. We've achieved this through the adoption of 3D Point Cloud technology that captures more than 50+ active units around a person's face. It's an impressive technology that we're excited to continue exploring in this proof-of-concept stage.
Which Project Chronos use cases are likely to have most appeal?
We are not positioning Project Chronos as a gaming solution currently, but see a lot of potential in all its intended use cases. However, I really think people who currently use motion-capture suits or other wearable devices to control their virtual avatars in the VTuber space will gravitate to this technology because of the freedom it provides. Project Chronos will enable these performers and broadcasters to express themselves through body movement and facial expression that hasn't been possible without wearable motion sensors of some sort.
Fitness is another area that I think people will see its appeal. The ability for a person in Spain, for example, to take a yoga class with an instructor in Thailand, receive their immediate feedback on form and posture, and be able to emulate what the instructor is doing as if they're standing right in front of them is powerful, especially when you consider that both individuals can enjoy that experience in a beautiful virtual environment without any additional AR/VR equipment weighing them down.
Also: Meetings in the metaverse: Our experience with HTC Vive Sync
We also see other scenarios like social chatting or meetings being popular, where people can leverage Project Chronos to interact not only with each other 'in person' in the virtual world, but with 3D objects, as well. So, two architects or product designers could meet up and present their creation as a 3D hologram that they can both see in a more immersive way, removing the barriers of time and space.
What will the Project Chronos software ecosystem look like? Will I be able to take my Lenovo avatar into a virtual world created by Meta, Microsoft, Google, HTC, or whoever? Where is Lenovo on the walled garden/open system continuum?
The metaverse is evolving at an incredible pace as more users and experiences come online every day. By merging gaming, media, live events and social media into a new form of interactivity that blends digital and physical, the metaverse is rewriting the rules of the consumer economy.
As such, so too must our technology evolve to adequately solve the needs of its users. To offer our customers the best user experience, cross-device and platform collaboration is needed in the AR/VR space, just as it is in other tech areas, and that's what we're working toward achieving as we continue to meet with content creators, developers and service providers to expand on this ecosystem and launch a solution that offers that virtual freedom.
The vision we're creating through Project Chronos is an open 3D ecosystem where users can take their full-body avatar to any virtual world in the metaverse and be able to control it via natural interaction and body movement without the need for glasses or mocap wearables. That's why we're positioning Project Chronos as a gateway to 3D virtual worlds, not only from the hardware capability perspective, but also from the open ecosystem perspective.
When will the next iteration of Project Chronos be demonstrated after CES 2023?
We are finalizing future demonstrations of Project Chronos and will announce the next iteration once it is available.
When will we get an indication of the final product name, release date, and pricing?
The ecosystem is still under development, and we will announce its final name, release date, and pricing when it is further along in its launch preparation.
Lenovo Project Chronos specifications
Processor 13th-generation Intel Core
RAM up to 32GB
Storage up to 512GB
Audio 2 x 6W speakers
Camera RGB camera with ToF
Dimensions 284mm x 275mm x 60.6mm
Color Cloud Grey
Ports 2x USB 3.2, 2x RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet, DC jack, 3x DisplayPort, 4x Mini-DP
Wireless Bluetooth 5, Wi-Fi 6E
Software Chronos (developed by Lenovo)
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The post Metaverse minus the headset: A deeper look at Lenovo's Project Chronos first appeared on www.zdnet.com
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Sunghyun Jason Tjen is an Acupuncturist and Registered Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner (R. Ac, R. TCM P.) who provides care to enhance the quality of your day at Holy Family Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine in Central Lonsdale, North Vancouver. Since 2009, many have benefited from our multi-disciplinary holistic TCM care including acupuncture, personalized herbal medicine, cupping therapy, tui-na massage, ear acupuncture, moxibustion and more.
For three years in a row (2016, 2017, 2018), Sunghyun and Holy Family Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine was rewarded by threebestrated.ca as one of the three best acupuncture clinics in North Vancouver for his earnest work serving hundreds of clients in North Shore.
(Bluecross, Sunlife, Manulife, Great-West Life, Chamber of Commerce, GSC and others).
Also, we accept CF, RCMP, VAC claims.
Read Testimonials and see how we can help your conditions, too.
And contact us by phone or e-mail if you have any questions or concerns.
Acupuncture is a therapeutic stimulation of the channels and collaterals (Jing Luo) on the surface of the body with extremely fine needles to regulate and balance the energy(qi) and blood circulation. When you are looking for a relief from pain or chronic aliments, acupuncture is a safe and non-aggressive choice.
A traditional Chinese herbal medicine formula is a complex combination of 2000 years of knowledge. To increase the therapeutic effectiveness while minimizing toxicity and side-effects, number of herbs are carefully selected to suit your personal needs. Now, herbal medicine is available in modern concentrated granule form: pollutant-and-heavy-metal-free, highly potent and easy-to-take.
We understand your fear of needles. That is why we provide treatments without the use of needles, too. Shonishin for babies and childrens, and Cupping therapy, Moxibustion, Tui-na massage, Ear acupuncture and Frequency acupressure stimulation for adults will serve as good as acupuncture to help with your daily ailments.
or book your appointment on-line today!


text:
Abbott Gets OK to Test Deep-Brain Depression Treatment Device
Abbott is working with the FDA to develop a plan for evaluating the device's safety and effectiveness for this purpose.
Abbott said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Device Designation to investigate the use of its deep brain stimulation (DBS) system in treatment-resistant depression (TRD), a form of major depressive disorder (MDD).
Abbott's DBS system is a personalized, adjustable therapy that involves implanting thin wires – or leads – into targeted areas of the brain. A pulse generator implanted under the skin in the chest is connected to the leads and produces electrical impulses that can modulate abnormal brain activity. While Abbott's DBS system has traditionally been used to help control symptoms for people with movement disorders, such as Parkinson's disease and essential tremor, evidence suggests that implanting electrodes in the part of the brain that regulates mood could help reduce symptoms of TRD.
Abbott is working with the FDA to develop a plan for evaluating the device's safety and effectiveness for this purpose. One of the added benefits of certain Abbott DBS systems is that they can be used with NeuroSphere Virtual Clinic, a first-of-its-kind connected care technology that allows people to communicate with and receive care and therapy adjustments from their doctors remotely and from the comfort of their own home.
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