Arist is proud to recognize these professors for their cutting-edge work changing education.
In late 2018, Arist asked students from colleges and universities around the world to nominate professors that have made a significant impact through innovative teaching methods. After combing through nearly 100 nominations, judges selected a small group of professors for interviews to further evaluate their impact both in the classroom and beyond, with factors such as research, professional experience, and influence in their respective field as additional criteria.
Eventually, judges were able to narrow down the incredibly accomplished pool to six extraordinarily innovative professors that are changing lives through their unique approaches to learning. Arist is proud to honor these professors as the recipients of the 2019 Most Innovative Professor Award.
"The way I think about teaching when I get into the classroom is that the learning will be a two-way process." Maria Luisa Parra earned her undergraduate degree from School of Psychology, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) which, along with her Ph.D. in Hispanic Linguistics, led her to Tufts University where she focused on helping Latino families and especially children to connect effectively to the public school system. Now a Spanish senior preceptor at Harvard, she attributes her successful teaching methodologies to her interests and willingness to connect with learners and desire to empower them. About her students, she says, "I believe in their capacities and what they already know, and when each one of them brings this into the classroom, we build knowledge together.
Shulman is a professor by blood: he grew up surrounded by a family of professors and doctors. His name, 'Shul', even derives from the German language, meaning school. Ironically, education wasn't his go-to path. Shulman started as an investor at age 8, and his career in finance and business has only grown since then. As a professor, Shulman ensures he "starts each class with the student's interest." He then guides class discussion around this point-of-interest to teach his intended lesson. As for the future of education, he is excited to see how technology is used to engage more students, especially those who aren't accustomed to much human interaction.
Shulman practices what he teaches in his career as a successful entrepreneur. He is the Founder and CIO of Entrepreneur Shares LLC, which now manages $500M+ including 3 mutual funds and 2 ETFs. They also have another mutual fund and hedge fund coming out later this year. Shulman runs a high-energy office with many recent graduates, and his company is growing in an industry that is in the midst of consolidation. On the 7th of November in 2017, his product ENTR IPO'd, and on the 27th of December in 2018, his other product ERSX IPO'd. At EntrepreneurShares, Shulman practices what they research and teach at Babson College.
Beginning with undergraduate and graduate degrees in Computer Science, Ajay Batra led a successful career in technology on Wall Street for many years. This all changed when his 'bug' for entrepreneurship led him to return to India to launch his startups in technology and education. After many years of running his ventures and doing consulting work around the world, Batra joined the Azim Premji Foundation (APF), the largest philanthropic organization for improving the quality of education in India. His work at APF taught him that good education is a social need and rare commodity. Now as an educator, he teaches his students that entrepreneurship is a mindset and set of skills that are useful for any career path or in personal life. Batra understands not every student or teacher's passion is to solve social issues, but believes ignorance has no excuse; "all people need to see is life as it is," he says. With new programs and a focus on innovation, he aims to take students beyond their textbook and into the world to sensitize them to emerging issues. He hopes education becomes more personalized and regionalized over the next generation through working with fellow teachers and students to bring rise to a change-of-ways in India's educational structure over the next decade.
"There is such joy in acquiring knowledge — but I have found passing on knowledge to be one of the most fulfilling experiences I have ever had." To keep up the motivation of his students, Piech tells stories of how computer science and society interact. He aims to keep teaching interactive and entertaining for his students by starting his class off with a 'hook' and employing minor pedagogical devices, such as giving students fruit when they ask questions. He sees education as a human endeavor for the foreseeable future, not an industry replaced solely with technology. He believes technology will play a role in an emerging world where anyone can become a teacher of something.
"Math isn't an innate ability, becoming good takes struggling through complications and working hard," says Akin, a Mathematics professor at Duke University. Rather than teaching math in a traditional 'lecture' format, she has students work through problems in class and utilize her help. Beyond teaching numbers, she has been running a socio-engineering course for middle school girls that discusses how gender stereotypes in the field can impact performance. She sees education becoming more accessible, inclusive and interactive by utilizing the latest pedagogical practices.
Arist works with professors, experts, and organizations to create text message courses, and subsequently delivers them to consumers and employees worldwide using their revolutionary text message learning platform.
Each course is anywhere from 10–60 days long, with each day containing a ~900 character explanation of a concept followed by an exercise of some sort. Case studies and links to additional reading can also be included. Users text back their responses, ensuring daily engagement.
Arist was created by Michael Ioffe, a sophomore at Babson College, after a series of conversations he had with students in Yemen led him to understand that digital learning was still extremely inaccessible to those that needed it the most. Specifically, limited access to high-speed internet prevented billions of students from accessing educational videos online.
With the help of Yemeni student Mohammed Al-Adlani, Ioffe realized that text messages — which are the most reliable and widespread digital communication medium on the planet — could be used to bridge that gap, making educational insight from leading professors and thought leaders accessible to any of the 5 billion people with a cell phone.
Arist subsequently worked with professors at Babson College and USC to design and launch the first text message course, Introduction to Entrepreneurship, in May 2018. Ioffe and the Arist team — made up of Ryan Laverty '20, Maxine Anderson '22, and Joe Passanante — quickly realized that along with being more accessible, text message courses were also extremely effective for learning, with research conducted by Stanford and Penn State confirming that text messages had tremendous educational potential.
Today, trusted by some of the world's most notable institutions and corporations, Arist is working to make digital learning significantly more seamless, effective, and accessible. Why? Because learning should be as simple as a text a day.
If you are interested in trying an Arist course or chatting to the Babson students behind it, head to arist.co or reach out michael@arist.co or ryan@arist.co. The team is also looking for amazing professors to teach an Arist course and companies who'd like to try engaging their employees via text.


text:
HomeGist
Lockdown: Police Arrest Funke Akindele Over Hosting A House Party
Jones Dozi April 06, 2020 0 Comments
In new confirmed reports, Nigerian actress, Funke Akindele Bello has been arrested by the Lagos State Police command over hosting a house party amid the Covid-19 lockdown order in the state.
Her arrest comes after a video of her and her husband throwing a birthday house party in their home made waves across the internet.
The video has since caused a serious stir on social media with a lot of people calling for the arrest of the actress, her husband and every other person who partook in the social gathering.
In a new report, the Lagos State Public Relations Officer, Bala Elkana, confirms that the actress has been taken to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba. "Yes, we have (arrested) Funke Akindele and we are looking for the others. She has been taken to SCID." were the words claimed to have been said by the PRO It's been revealed that authorities arrived in the estate where the actress lives —Amen Estate off Lekki-Epe Expressway— in about three patrol vehicles.
Though, Funke Akindele —who is an ambassador for the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC and Dettol— has since apologized on her social media platforms, a statement from the spokesperson of the police command affirms her arrest.
The statement reads,
Funke Akindele arrested for violating restriction orders in Lagos
The Attention of Lagos State Police Command was drawn to a viral video showing a large number of persons mainly in the entertainment industry in an Estate, along Ajah, Ibeju-Lekki axis, Lagos celebrating a birthday party organised by Funke Akindele Bello and her husband.
Police detectives from the State CID Yaba were promptly drafted to the location. Funke Akindele was arrested.
The statement also states that the police is in search for her hubby and Nigerian singer, Naira Marley.
Investigation is ongoing, efforts are intensified to arrest the remaining persons in the video, among whom are Azeez Fashola a.k.a Naira Marley and Abdul Rasheed Bello a.k.a. JJC Skillz
They are in their best interests urged to report at the State CID Yaba on Monday 6th April, 2020 or risk being declared wanted.
Tags Gist

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


ACET's vision is to promote health and informed choices in relation to Sexual Health, Drugs and Alcohol, Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing and Parent/Child Communication, by providing Community Education Programmes and accredited Training Courses.
ACET offers a range of interactive personal development programmes for young people on Relationship and Sexuality Education, Sexual Health, Mental Health, Drugs and Alcohol.
ACET offers a range of interactive personal development programmes for young people on Relationship & Sexuality Education, Sexual Health, Mental Health, Drugs & Alcohol.
ACET provides Community Education and Training Courses on Sexual Health, Mental Health, Drugs & Alcohol and Parent/Teen Communication Skills. Our service users include disadvantaged, unemployed and homeless young people and adults, caring professionals and community workers. We deliver services to more than 10,000 people per annum across Northern Ireland and also overseas.


Italian Courses are offered at all levels from complete beginners to Very Advanced (Levels A1 to C2) and are delivered by qualified and experienced Italian mother-tongue teachers.
Whether you want to acquire a general knowledge of Italian or learn for business purposes Ariane Languages will be able to offer you a selection of Italian courses in various formats.
You may have learnt Italian in the past but not practised for a number of years. These short courses (typically 10 weeks) will help you regain your true level, upon which you can start building, or then join a group at a suitable level.
They teach you to master oral and written Italian communication with clients or foreign partners and help you understand the socio-economic context of the country.
They give the learner confidence in using the language in business situations. They can include training in telephone skills, understanding Italian technical literature, in Italian business negotiations, in making presentations in Italian, and in mastering specialised terminology.
These courses will be most suitable for people who have reached an Upper Intermediate or Advanced level in Italian but need to increase practice and confidence prior to a presentation or a business trip. They are typically organized on the basis of three 3 hour sessions or four 2 hour sessions.
The Certification of Proficiency in Italian as a foreign language, offered by The Perugia University for Foreigners.
It is a certificate officially recognized by the Ministry of Education.
Complete the form below to send us an enquiry about learning Italian in London or contact us on 0207 352 8191.


text:
Das Englische Monument ist ein Trinkgefäß in Form einer antiken Säule. Es besteht aus vergoldetem Silber und wurde 1558/1559 in Antwerpen hergestellt. Die Säule steht auf einer rechteckigen Basis mit Verzierung. Auf der Stirnseite des Sockels ist das Wappen der Tudor abgebildet, seine Gesamthöhe beträgt 54 cm. Heute gehört es zu den herausragenden Objekten in Bestand des Historischen Museums Frankfurt (Inv.-Nr. X41).

In England bestieg im Jahre 1553 die katholische Königin Maria I. den Thron. Sie schickte sich an, das Land zu rekatholisieren und schreckte dabei vor grausamer Verfolgung der Protestanten nicht zurück. Viele der Protestanten flohen, unter anderem nach Frankfurt am Main. Dort fanden sie gastfreundliche Aufnahme. Es war ihnen erlaubt, Gottesdienst in ihrer Muttersprache in der Weißfrauenkirche abzuhalten. Nach der Thronbesteigung der Königin Elisabeth I. konnte die Gruppe wieder nach England zurückkehren. Für die erwiesene Gastfreundschaft schenkten sie dem Rat der Stadt Frankfurt einen vergoldeten Deckelpokal. Das nach den Spendern so genannte Englische Monument wurde der Frankfurter Stadtbibliothek übergeben. Es ist das erste museale Objekt, das als Solches in den Besitz der Stadt Frankfurt kam. Die Frankfurter Stadtbibliothek wurde in der Folge zum Mutterinstitut der frühesten Frankfurter Museen und wissenschaftlichen Einrichtungen.

Literatur
 Lothar Gall: FFM 1200. Traditionen und Perspektiven einer Stadt. Sigmaringen 1994, S. 121.
 Frank Berger: Glaube Macht Kunst. Antwerpen – Frankfurt um 1600. Historisches Museum Frankfurt, Schriften Band 25, Frankfurt 2005, S. 50–67.

Goldschmiedearbeit
Historisches Museum Frankfurt
Geschichte Englands in der Frühen Neuzeit
Werk (16. Jahrhundert)
Trinkgefäß

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Seems like a good jumping on point for the series. I like the art and the tone of the story holds up to good storytelling.
The thing with soule's DD, the arc seems promising but to me it didn't deliver.
that's why i dropped it.
Would really like to check this new run out more. Kind of like Blindspot.
Might have to splurge next time I find a shop.
@daredevil21134: You really dislike Blindspot.
I dislike Soule over pushing him.
@daredevil21134: I don't think he is. But we agree to disagree on that one.


Fiction just isn't what it used to be. It's difficult to make up stories like this one about President Trump's lawyers.
Hell hath no fury like a thin-skinned American president. Donald Trump has reportedly sent in the lawyers on a 17-year-old girl who made a fun web game about him. Kitten Feed was coded by a teenager from San Francisco called Lucy as a little side project just for fun.
Players use a cat's paws to bash Trump's head around the page as Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" plays in the background.
I gotta find that link.
The site was originally called Trump Scratch — until the president's lawyers sent Lucy a cease and desist letter trying to protect his brand because he's "a well-known businessman".
Now there are more, including Kitten Feed, Trump Simulator, Trumptendo, and Topple Trump, among others.


text:
Maternal Obesity and Risk of Stillbirth: A Population-Based Case Control Study and Investigation of Temporal Trends
Obesity rates are increasing in women of child bearing age but it is unclear if the recognised risk of stillbirth from obesity is increasing over time. This study aimed to describe the association between stillbirth and maternal obesity and explore temporal trends.
Singleton stillbirth cases (1995–2012) in Fife, Scotland were used in a case control study matching for maternal age, parity and prematurity. Maternal height, weight at booking and relevant maternal and infant confounders were obtained for 271 stillbirths and 976 controls. Analysis included conditional logistic regression analyses using WHO categories on body mass index (BMI). Data were subdivided into 3 epochs to investigate temporal trends. The main outcome measures were multivariate odds ratio (OR) and confidence interval (CI) for stillbirth associated with BMI categories and change between epochs in OR for a stillbirth associated with maternal obesity.
Risk of stillbirth was positively related to BMI category even after adjusting for known confounders. The relationship was particularly marked in nulliparous women where the adjusted OR of stillbirth was 4.1 (95% CI 1.9 – 9.0) when BMI was 35-<40 and 8.0 (95% CI 2.9 – 21.9) if BMI was > = 40. The proportion of stillbirth cases with a maternal BMI > = 35 increased from 5.6% in 1995 – 2000 to 18.9% in 2001–2006 and to 23.1% in 2007 – 2012 (P = 0.001, test for trend). There were no equivalent trends in the controls. The difference in mean BMI between cases and controls increased from 1 kg/m2 (SE 0.6) in 1995–2000 to 3 kg/m2 (SE 0.8) in 2007–2012. The OR of a stillbirth associated with a BMI above the 90th percentile of the population distribution increased between epochs from 1.21 (P = 0.60) in 1995–2000 to 3.30 (P<0.001) in 2007–2012.
Maternal obesity is associated with an increased risk of stillbirth, particularly marked in nulliparous women with a BMI >35. The relative importance of maternal obesity as a risk factor for stillbirth may be increasing with time which has implications for future clinical practice and when interpreting the impact of the various interventions being developed to reduce stillbirth rates.
Stillbirth, Maternal Obesity, Body Mass Index, Pregnancy, Temporal Trend.
The prevalence of obesity amongst women of child-bearing age in the UK has shown a rising trend over the past 3 decades, in keeping with trends in other developed countries [1]. Studies of pregnant women at booking in England [2] and Scotland [3,4] have reported a doubling in the prevalence of obesity (defined as a body mass index, BMI of > = 30 kg/m2) between 1990 and the mid-2000s. Maternal obesity is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes of which one is stillbirth [5–10]. Previous studies have suggested a strong link between pre-pregnancy obesity and the risk of stillbirth [11–13]. Furthermore, one study has suggested that stillbirths in obese women (compared with those in women of ideal body mass) more often occur at term or post-term, and are more likely to be classified as 'unexplained' [13]. It has been suggested that maternal obesity may be one of the most important modifiable risk factors associated with stillbirth [12] having a large population attributable risk relative to other features [8–10]. In Scotland the rate of stillbirths has remained stubbornly high [14] despite efforts to reduce it and the increasing prevalence of obesity in Scotland [15] and, in particular amongst pregnant women in the UK [2–4], may be a contributory factor. The purpose of the present study was to determine the magnitude of the association between maternal obesity and stillbirth in Scotland and to assess if its relative importance as a feature in stillbirths is increasing with time.
We used data from Fife (a county in east central Scotland with a stable population of about 360,000 and about 3,800 births per year) because BMI has been routinely measured at booking since the early 1990s. Stillbirths between 1995 and 2008 inclusive were identified from the Fife Birth Register. A stillbirth was defined as a baby delivered with no signs of life after 24 completed weeks of gestation [5]. An initial analysis of these data proved insufficient to meet the study's required statistical power so we identified further cases from 2009 to March 31st 2012 from a list of all Fife births from the Information Services Division (ISD) of the NHS National Services Scotland maternity inpatient and day case records (SMR02) [16]. The obstetric records of stillbirths were reviewed (TM, AL) to exclude multiple pregnancies, women from ethnic minorities (<1% of total births) and cases with a listed cause of the stillbirth (for example, fetal anomaly, maternal medical disorders, maternal infection). For the remaining cases we used the respective registers to identify two control pregnancies on either side of the date of birth (+/- 7 days) of the stillborn infant. Women with multiple pregnancies and those from ethnic minorities were excluded from the control group. Pregnancies were matched for:
Maternal age (+/- 5 years), [but for teenage mothers we sought controls aged as close as possible]
Prematurity (term or preterm) where term was defined as 37+ weeks gestation. For preterm infants matching was done +/- 28 days of the date of birth.
Parity (nulliparous or parous, where nulliparous was defined as a woman who had never given birth to an infant capable of survival).
Power calculations suggested we needed 260 cases, each matched to 4 controls to have an 80% chance of detecting an odds ratio of 1.5 (at 5% two-tailed significance) for a stillbirth associated with a BMI of > 30 kg/m2, assuming the prevalence of a BMI >30 in the control sample was 30% [17]. The number of stillbirths recorded on the two registers (1995–2012) was 335 cases, of which at least 300 (about 90%) were expected to be singletons. Data for the cases between 1995 and 2008 were collected from obstetric notes at booking and at delivery. Data for cases between 2009 and 2012 were taken from the SMR02 records that had been recorded from data submitted by the Fife Health Board from information held in the women's obstetric notes.
We recorded the following maternal factors: age, height, weight (at booking), smoking history, details of past obstetric history (including history of previous stillbirth) and postcode, from which we derived the Scottish Multiple Index of Deprivation quintile [18]. Height and weight were used to calculate Body Mass Index (BMI = weight / (height2), kg / m2) which was categorised according to the World Health Organisation's definitions (<18.5 underweight, 18.5–24.9 ideal range, 25–29.9 overweight or pre-obese, 30–34.9 obese class 1, 35–39.9 obese class 2, 40 or more obese class 3) [19].
The infant factors recorded were gestational age, mode of delivery, gender, birth weight and its percentile for gestational age based on population birth records from Scotland adjusted for infant gender and maternal parity [20]. Small for Gestational Age (SGA) was defined as a birth weight below the 10th percentile (<-1.282 Z-score) of the normal distribution and Large for Gestational Age (LGA) was defined as a birth weight above the 90th percentile (>1.282 Z-score).
Data were analysed with SPSS (version 20) using t-tests, comparison of proportions (Chi-square), analysis of variance and conditional logistic regression analyses. The 5% level was accepted as indicating statistical significance. The association between maternal BMI at booking and stillbirth was assessed in a univariate analysis and in multivariate analyses stratified by parity after adjusting for known confounders. Odds Ratios (OR) and their 95% Confidence Intervals (CI) were calculated for categorical variables, including BMI categorised into subgroups.
Three hundred and thirty five stillbirths were identified, of which 33 were excluded (23 multiple pregnancies or births to women of ethnic minority, 6 with missing case notes and 4 with case notes but a missing BMI). Of the 302 remaining cases a further 31 were excluded (30 where there was a fetal abnormality or maternal infection listed as the cause and 1 for which the stillbirth was a consequence of a road traffic accident). Hence there were 271 stillbirths. For each of these cases we obtained 4 controls for 199 cases, 3 controls for 37 cases, 2 controls for 34 cases and 1 control for 1 case (976 controls in total).
Characteristics of cases and controls are given in Table 1. Matching of cases and controls for maternal age, parity and prematurity was satisfactory. In univariate analyses significant terms associated with an increased risk of stillbirth were maternal weight, BMI, birth weight and Small for Gestational Age (SGA). For SGA the unadjusted Odds Ratio (OR) for a stillbirth was 3.8 (95% CI 2.7 to 5.3). For BMI categories the linear test for trend was significant at P < 0.001, (ANOVA, F = 15.57).
Table 1. Characteristics of stillbirth cases and controls. Values are numbers (percentages) unless otherwise specified. Matching variables are in bold.
Cases (n=271)
Controls (n=976)
P-value *
Age (y): mean (SD)
28.4 (6.4)
162.5 (6.7)
Body mass (kg)
Body Mass Index (kg/m2)
Body Mass Index:
BMI < 18.5: n (%)
BMI 18.5-<25: n (%)
BMI 25-<30: n (%)
BMI >=40: n (%)
Smoking status:
Non- or former smoker: n (%)
Current smoker: n (%)
Gestational age, booking (wks): mean (SD)
12.0 (3.8) **
Late Booking (> 20 weeks) (%)
4.4 **
Nulliparous: n (%)
Primigravida
History of previous stillbirth: n (%)
History of previous miscarriage(s)
History of previous termination(s)
Deprivation quintiles:
1 (most deprived)
5 (least deprived)
Male Gender: n (%)
Preterm birth n (%)
Birth weight (g): mean (SD)
Z-score birth weight: mean (SD)
-0.66 (1.33)
-0.003 (1.02)
Small for gestational age †: n (%)
Large for gestational age: ‡ n (%)
* Chi-square test (proportions) or unmatched t-test (continuous data).
** n=206 cases, 717 controls
† SGA below 10th percentile (< -1.282 Z-score birth weight)
‡ LGA above 90th percentile (> 1.282 Z-score birth weight)
A conditional logistic regression analysis including the maternal and fetal terms identified increased maternal BMI categories and an SGA infant as associated with stillbirth. The risk of stillbirth from a raised BMI was apparently greater in nulliparous than in parous women (Table 2, Figure 1) though the difference between them in odds ratios per BMI category was not statistically significant.
Figure 1. Adjusted odds ratio for stillbirth and BMI in Parous and Nulliparous women (adjusted, where relevant, for smoking status, primigravida, deprivation, fetal sex, SGA, LGA and history of previous stillbirth, previous spontaneous miscarriages and previous therapeutic terminations. For details see Table 2)
Table 2. Conditional logistic regression analysis of maternal and fetal factors and their association with stillbirth.
Reference category
Nulliparous Women
(n=646, 143 cases)
Parous Women
Body Mass Index (kg/m2):
BMI <18.5
18.5–<25
BMI 18.5–<25
BMI 25–<30
BMI >=40
Current smoker
Non– or former smoker
Not first pregnancy
History of previous stillbirth
No previous SB
No previous miscarriages
No previous terminations
Least deprived
Sex of baby: Male
SGA †
>=10th percentile
LGA ††
<=10th percentile
aOR adjusted odds ratio
† SGA below 10th percentile (< –1.282 Z–score birth weight)
†† LGA above 10th percentile (> +1.282 Z-score birth weight)
Data were split into three epochs (1995–2000, 2001–2006 and 2007–2012). The percentage of stillbirths with a maternal BMI of 30 or more did not differ significantly between periods but that where BMI was 35 or more, and where BMI was 40 or more did show a significant trend over time (P = 0.001 and P = 0.007, respectively). These patterns were not apparent in the controls (Table 3). The difference in mean BMI between stillbirth and controls also increased with time (Table 4). The Standard Deviation (SD) in BMI increased over time, particularly amongst the stillbirth cases (Table 4). To adjust for this change we pooled the cases and controls in each epoch and expressed each woman's BMI as a Z-score. We then used logistic regression to calculate the odds ratio per unit Z-score (i.e. per SD) in BMI for each epoch and calculated the OR of a stillbirth for a woman with a BMI above the 90th percentile of the distribution (+ 1.282 SD). The OR of a stillbirth for a woman in this category increased over time from 1.21 in 1995–2000 (P = 0.60) to 3.30 in 2007–2012 (P < 0.001, Table 5). These ORs were little affected by also allowing for parity and SGA in a logistic regression.
Table 3. Percentage of stillbirth and controls with an increased maternal BMI (kg/m2) by time periods (1995 – 2012)
N of cases
BMI >=30 (%)
Stillbirths
P-value x2
Test for trend (F),
Table 4. Difference in mean BMI (kg/m2) between stillbirth and controls by time period
Cases Mean BMI
(SD) (n)
Controls Mean BMI
Difference Mean (SE)
(t-test)
(5.31) (89)
(5.42) (298)
SD: standard deviation, SE: standard error
Table 5. Difference in odds ratio per standard deviation in BMI (kg/m2) by time period.
Mean BMI
OR / SD
OR of a stillbirth if BMI above 90th percentile*
Chi-square
* Chi-square test
We posed two questions. The first was to determine the magnitude of the association between maternal obesity and stillbirths. Our study confirmed the work of many others that maternal obesity is an important, independent risk factor associated with stillbirth [8–13]. The trend in increased risk of stillbirth was positively related to BMI category with an apparent stronger association in nulliparous than parous women, which also confirms the work of others [12]. The second question concerned the change in maternal BMI and apparent risk of stillbirth with time. The proportion of stillbirth cases with a maternal BMI > = 35 increased from 5.6% in 1995 – 2000 to 18.9% in 2001–2006 and to 23.1% in 2007 – 2012 (P = 0.001, test for trend). A similar, significant trend was noted for BMI > = 40 (P = 0.007). In comparison, there were no apparent equivalent trends in the controls. The mean and variance of maternal BMI of stillbirth cases also increased over time with the mean difference in BMI between stillbirth cases and their matched controls also increasing. An analysis adjusting for the increase in population variance revealed an apparent increase over time in the risk of a stillbirth from a raised BMI. The relative increase in maternal BMI may partly explain the apparent stubborn stability in the rate of stillbirths in Scotland over the past 2 decades which has remained at about 4–5 / 1000 total births [21].
This study used the WHO classification of obesity and benefited from a population-based source of BMI data that had been routinely collected from measured height and weight at booking since the early 1990s. This enabled us to look at trends over time using data of sufficient statistical power to detect change. Practice in recording BMI has varied in other health boards in Scotland and maternal BMI was not routinely available from the SMR02 records (ISD) before about 2003. We had sought 4 controls per case but were only able to achieve this with 73% (199/271) of stillbirths, though, despite this, our cases were appropriately matched. In addition, we excluded stillbirths with congenital abnormalities as these have been related to maternal obesity in a meta-analysis of 18 studies [22]. We did have history of diabetes and gestational diabetes for the 1995–2008 dataset but not for the SMR02 source (ISD data). However, a preliminary analysis of the 1995–2008 data did not reveal a trend in risk of stillbirth associated with diabetes though the overall prevalence was low (results not shown). Women with a raised BMI are at greater risk of gestational diabetes and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy [23] though, in a large, case-control study the association of maternal obesity and risk of stillbirth was not explained by diabetes or hypertension [9].
In estimating birth weight for gestational age we used population-based data from Scotland (1998–2003) that provided estimates adjusted for fetal sex and parity [20]. The mean Z-score and standard deviation of the 976 control pregnancies was -0.003 and 1.02, respectively, which were appropriate for a reference population where the expected mean and standard deviation would be 0 and 1, respectively. Our findings with respect to stillbirth risk, SGA and raised BMI may have differed had we used fully customised percentile charts for fetal size [24], particularly as 60% of pregnancies were preterm (<37 weeks) when the apparent differences between population based and customised percentiles in determining stillbirth risk in a fetus classified as SGA are larger [25].
Two studies in Scotland have reported an increase in mean maternal BMI of about 1–2 kg/m2 per decade [3,4]. The percentage of pregnant women in Glasgow with a BMI > = 30 at booking increased from 9.4% in 1990 to 18.9% in 2002/04 [3]. This reflects trends in other parts of the UK where the percentage of pregnant women with a BMI > = 30 was 7.6% in 1989 and 15.6% in 2007 [2]. A recent UK study of adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with obesity in nulliparous women reported an increased risk of stillbirth with raised maternal BMI whereby the occurrence of stillbirth in 3102 women with a BMI 20-<25 equated to 1 stillbirth in 443 pregnancies and in 105 women with a BMI >40 to 1 stillbirth in 26 pregnancies [26]. These findings, and our data, raise concerns over future stillbirth rates in the face of a growing epidemic in population obesity in Scotland [15] particularly amongst teenage girls.
Recommendations on the management of obese pregnant women have been made for the UK [27] and, more recently, by the European Board and College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (EBCOG) which has published standards of care for obstetric and neonatal services to be adopted across Europe [28]. It is recommended that women of child-bearing age with a BMI >30 should have access to services offering advice on weight management pre-conception and be warned of the obstetric risks associated with a raised BMI. Such advice should also be given during antenatal care. However, evidence suggests compliance with providing advice in both circumstances is poor [29]. The EBCOG report recommends all units use multidisciplinary input to develop clear policies and protocols for the care of women with a BMI>30 who should be risk assessed at each antenatal visit. The UK guidelines recommend additional scans in the third trimester for evidence of, amongst other conditions, growth restriction that is associated with about half of all stillbirths [30, 31]. However, sonographic visualisation can be compromised as a result of obesity [32], which in itself could reduce the potential for detection of growth restriction and congenital abnormalities [33]. Finally, it has been suggested that obese women may be less perceptive of reduced fetal movement than women of a healthy weight [12].
In Fife, pregnant women are offered advice and guidance on healthy lifestyle choices. Those overweight or obese are invited to join classes on weight management and offered one-to-one advice from a dietician though anecdotal evidence suggests uptake is inconsistent. Information is given regarding the maximum recommended weight gain throughout pregnancy depending on their BMI. However, the increased risk of stillbirth is apparently related to BMI during early pregnancy rather than to weight gain during it [11, 34] which reinforces the need for greater pre-conception weight management.
What of studies seeking the views of women? In a recent survey of 428 overweight and obese pregnant women in Fife 81% were concerned about their current weight but 39% were unconcerned about potential weight gain during their pregnancy [35]. Of 252 women who were in their second or subsequent pregnancy 47% had failed to return to the pre-pregnancy weight associated with their previous pregnancy. Inter-pregnancy weight gain can increase the risk of stillbirth in a subsequent pregnancy [36, 37]. In a recent qualitative study in the UK 40 women (32 currently pregnant) were asked about public health messages on the risks of stillbirth [38]. In general, they were resistant to the increased weight message, which they considered was not modifiable as 'all pregnant women are overweight'.
In conclusion, this study has confirmed the association between maternal obesity and an increased risk of stillbirth with a particularly high risk in nulliparous women with a BMI > = 35. The relationship follows a 'dose-response' that adds to the body of evidence suggesting a causal link between stillbirth and excess weight in pregnancy per se [39]. The relative importance of maternal obesity as a risk factor, and putative cause of stillbirth (and other adverse pregnancy outcomes) may be increasing with time. This needs to be acknowledged when designing interventions to reduce the incidence of stillbirths. Our findings may be relevant for other populations given the recently published global estimates of obesity in women of child-bearing age [1]. Concerted efforts raising public awareness of the pregnancy-related consequences of obesity are urgently needed though presenting the message represents a challenge.
Contribution to authorship
TM and lC conceived the study with advice from HC. IC obtained the funding. TM, AL reviewed the obstetric notes and contributed to the literature review. AL collected and prepared the data for analysis. DJC advised on the study design, analysed and interpreted the data, contributed to the literature review and wrote the initial draft of the manuscript. All authors contributed to the manuscript and approved the final draft.
This was a secondary analysis of data currently available to NHS Fife (SMR02 and obstetric case records). Caldicott approval was obtained to access the obstetric records.
The study was funded from an NHS Fife research fund.
We are grateful to Mr Bryan Archibald of the Public Health Department, NHS Fife for extracting the data for 2009–2012 from the SMR02 data provided routinely from the Information Services Division, NHS Scotland.
Ng M, Fleming T, Robinson M, Thomson B, Graetz N, et al. (2014) Global, regional, and national prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adults during 1980–2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. Lancet 384: 766–781
Heslehurst N, Rankin J, Wilkinson JR, Summerbell CD (2010) A nationally representative study of maternal obesity in England, UK: trends in incidence and demographic inequalities in 619 323 births, 1989–2007. Int J Obes 34: 420–428.
Kanagalingam MG, Forouhi NG, Greer JA, Sattar N (2005) Changes in booking body mass index over a decade: retrospective analysis from a Glasgow Maternity Hospital. BJOG: Int J Obstet Gynaecol 112: 1431–1433.
Bhattacharya S, Campbell DM, Liston WA, Bhattacharya S (2007) Effect of body mass index on pregnancy outcomes in nulliparous women delivering singleton babies. BMC Public Health 7: 168.
Confidential Enquiry into Maternal and Child Health (CEMACH) (2008) Perinatal Mortality 2006: England, Wales and Northern Ireland. CEMACH.
Fretts RC (2005) Etiology and prevention of stillbirth. Am J Obstet Gynecol 193: 1923–1935. [crossref]
Smith GC, Fretts RC (2007) Stillbirth. Lancet 370: 1715–1725. [crossref]
Flenady V, Koopmans L, Middleton P, Frøen JF, Smith GC, et al. (2011) Major risk factors for stillbirth in high-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet 377: 1331–1340. [crossref]
Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network Writing Group (2011) Association between stillbirth and risk factors known at pregnancy confirmation. JAMA 306: 2469–2479.
Gardosi J, Madurasinghe V, Williams M, Malik A, Francis A (2013) Maternal and fetal risk factors for stillbirth: population based study. BMJ 346: 108. [crossref]
Nohr EA, Bech BH, Davies MJ, Frydenberg M, Henriksen TB (2005) Prepregnancy obesity and fetal death: a study within the Danish National Birth Cohort. Obstet Gynecol 106: 250–259.
Cnattingius S, Bergström R, Lipworth L, Kramer MS (1998) Prepregnancy weight and the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. N Engl J Med 338: 147–152. [crossref]
Kristensen J, Vestergaard M, Wisborg K, Kesmodel U, Secher NJ (2005) Pre-pregnancy weight and the risk of stillbirth and neonatal death. BJOG 112: 403–408. [crossref]
Information Services Division, NHS Scotland (2009) Trends in perinatal mortality in Scotland: a review over 30 years. Edinburgh, 2009.
Obesity in Scotland. An epidemiological briefing. Public Health Observatory, Scotland. NHS National Health Services Scotland, 2007 (www.scotpho.org.uk)
Information Services Division of the NHS National Services Scotland maternity inpatient and day case records (SMR02).
Kirkwood BR (1988) Essentials of Medical Statistics. Blackwell Scientific Publications. London.
Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (2012) www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/SIMD/.
World Health Organisation (1997) Obesity: preventing and managing the global epidemic. Report of a WHO consultation on obesity, 1997. WHO, Geneva, 1998.
Bonellie S, Chalmers J, Gray R, Greer I, Jarvis S, Williams C (2008) Centile charts for birthweight for gestational age for Scottish singleton births. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 8: 5.
Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Scottish Perinatal and Infant Mortality and Morbidity Report 2012. Edinburgh, March 2014.
Stothard KJ, Tennant PW, Bell R, Rankin J (2009) Maternal overweight and obesity and the risk of congenital anomalies: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA 301: 636–650. [crossref]
Scott-Pillai R, Spence D, Cardwell CR, Hunter A, Holmes VA (2013) The impact of body mass index on maternal and neonatal outcomes: a retrospective study in a UK obstetric population, Ȁ4–2011. BJOG 120: 932–939.
Gardosi J, Clausson B, Francis A (2009) The value of customised centiles in assessing perinatal mortality risk associated with parity and maternal size. BJOG 116: 1356–1363. [crossref]
Hutcheon JA, Zhang X, Cnattingius S, Kramer MS, Platt RW (2008) Customised birth weight percentiles: does adjusting for maternal characteristics matter? BJOG 115: 1397–1404.
Mantakas A, Farrell T (2010) The influence of increasing BMI in nulliparous women on pregnancy outcome. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 153: 43–46. [crossref]
Centre for Maternal and Child Enquiries & Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. CMACE & RCOG Joint Guideline. Management of women with obesity in pregnancy. London, 2010.
European Board and College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (2014) Standards of Care for Women's Health in Europe: Obstetric and Neonatal Services 2014.
Centre for Maternal and Child Enquiries (2010) Maternal obesity in the UK: findings from a national project. London, 2010
Reddy UM1 (2007) Prediction and prevention of recurrent stillbirth. Obstet Gynecol 110: 1151–1164. [crossref]
Vais A, Kean L (2012) Stillbirth-is it a preventable public health problem in the 21st century? Obstet Gynaecol Reprod Med 22: 129–134
Hendler I, Blackwell SC, Bujold E, Treadwell MC, Wolfe HM, et al. (2004) The impact of maternal obesity on midtrimester sonographic visualisation of fetal cardia and craniospinal structures. Int J Obesity 28: 1607–1611
Best KE, Tennant PW, Bell R, Rankin J (2012) Impact of maternal body mass index on the antenatal detection of congenital anomalies. BJOG 119: 1503–1511. [crossref]
Stephansson O, Dickman PW, Johansson A, Cnattingius S (2001) Maternal weight, pregnancy weight gain, and risk of antepartum stillbirth. Am J Obstet Gynecol; 184: 463–469.
Leslie WS, Gibson A, Hankey CR (2013) Prevention and management of excessive gestational weight gain: a survey of overweight and obese pregnant women. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 13: 10. [crossref]
Villamor E, Gnattingius S (2006) Interpregnancy weight change and risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes: a population-based study. Lancet 368: 1164–1170.
Whiteman VE, Crisan L, McIntosh C, Alio AP, Duan J, et al. (2011) Interpregnancy body mass index changes and risk of stillbirth. Gynecol Obstet Invest 72: 192–195. [crossref]
Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Charity (SANDS). Research Report: Stillbirth Public Health Messages, November 2013.
Salihu HM (2011) Maternal obesity and stillbirth. Semin Perinatol 35: 340–344. [crossref]
Received: November 07, 2018
Accepted: November 25, 2018
Chinn DJ, Lowrie A, Mahmood TA, Colhoun HM, Campbell IW (2018) Maternal Obesity and Risk of Stillbirth: A Population-Based Case Control Study and Investigation of Temporal Trends. Endocrinol Diabetes Metab J Volume 2(4): 1–8
Professor Ian W Campbell
School of Medicine, University of St Andrews,
North Haugh, St Andrews,
Fife KY16 9TS,
Scotland, UK;
Email: catcamp@strathearn.eclipse.co.uk


text:
Ray's Hot Chicken set to bring 'hottest' flavors in the chicken sandwich scene
The hottest chicken is finally in town! Ray's Hot Chicken is targeting to conquer the emerging fried-chicken sandwich scene in the metro with its affordable, straightforward, crispy, hot, and juicy chicken sandwiches, with a sizeable serving.
Ray's Hot Chicken started as a food delivery service last September 2020. "We were supposed to open early 2020 but got delayed due to the pandemic," said founder Zark Varona.
Re-evaluating their strategy, Varona said they saw an opportunity to introduce a 24/7 delivery concept. This allowed the team to bring new food products in the middle of the pandemic that would address the cravings of Filipinos for tasty and surprisingly filling meals that are delivery friendly.
"At the height of the lockdowns, dine-in transactions almost became impossible, but food cravings remained, so delivery was the best option especially for work-from-home individuals," said Varona.
"This is the reason we launched Ray's at that time. This was a 24/7 food delivery concept that was open to franchises. And we were overwhelmed by the reception. Our customers loved our food and the concept behind our creations. Now, we are expanding our brand by opening physical stores across the metro," he added.
Ray's Hot Chicken specializes in Nashville-style Hot Chicken, which is dipped in chili oil and its very own Nashville hot seasoning. This signature crispy chicken sandwich features a massive slab of crispy boneless chicken coated in their original spicy seasoning. It's sandwiched in fluffy tasty buns and has a delicious sauce that beautifully complements the spice.
Today, Ray's Hot Chicken has finally opened its very first dine-in/take-out branch in SM City Fairview and its first franchised store located in Project 8, Quezon City. It has also grown to 12 delivery-only locations all over Metro Manila.
On top of these developments, every month, Ray's Hot Chicken strives to create a new chicken sandwich flavor. They also have the "Hottie of the Month," wherein they collaborate with local hot sauce suppliers to be featured on their menu. "This is also our way to support local Filipino products," said Varona.
For September, Ray's Hot Chicken is proud to introduce its Hottie of the Month: Carolina Reaper Hot Chicken Sandwich. This is specially made to bring forth an extreme fiery sensation from the world's hottest pepper the Carolina Reaper.
September promos
Ray's Hot Chicken will also hold two promos for the whole month of September. The first one is the P149 Hot Chicken Sandwich Promo. To avail this, customers may show proof of any of the following: Liked, followed, and shared Facebook or Instagram post of the P149 promo post; or a personal Facebook or Instagram post or story tagging the official Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok accounts of Ray's. This is strictly valid for dine-in transactions only, with no minimum order required.
The other promo gives customers free side of their choice (Corn, Mac n' Cheese, Fries, or Nachos) per burger purchased. This is valid for orders made via GrabFood or FoodPanda, with no minimum order required.
The menu of Ray's Hot Chicken features core products such as its wide array of chicken sandwiches, hot wings, and burrito.
For more information and for franchise opportunities, you may visit its official Facebook page, RaysHotChicken); Tiktok account, @rayshotchicken; and Instagram page, rayshotchicken.ph.


BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. -- Senior Brendan Nemes's (Kingston, Mass.) penalty kick conversion in the 80th minute proved to be the game-winner as WPI scored three goals in the final 10:20 of action to notch a 4-1 non-league college men's soccer victory over Massachusetts Maritime Saturday afternoon at Clean Harbors Stadium.
The visiting Engineers (3-1) overcame an early 1-0 deficit after junior Brendan Gawron's (Braintree, Mass.) successful penalty kick 10:36 into the contest had given the host Buccaneers (1-2) the lead, as senior Anthony Vigliotta (Beverly, Mass.) evened matters in the 38th minute on a feed from sophomore Jackson Conroy (Reading, Mass.). The match remained deadlock until Nemes netted the deciding tally after a foul on the left side of the penalty area, and WPI iced its triumph with two goals in a 95 second span late in the match from junior Jake Steinberg (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and sophomore Luke Reiniger (Rowley, Mass.), the latter coming on the third penalty kick conversion of the day with 1:26 remaining.
Reiniger assisted on Steinberg's marker to finish with three points for the Engineers, as senior Connor Hoeckele (Granby, Conn.) earned his third win of the young season with a four-save effort. Senior Mike Pruchnik (Rochester, Mass.) made 13 stops in goal in the setback for Massachusetts Maritime, as WPI outshot the Buccaneers by a 23-8 margin overall (17-5 on goal) and held a 3-2 edge in corner kicks.
Massachusetts Maritime hosts Nichols in a non-league outing on Wednesday evening at Clean Harbors Stadium beginning at 7:00 p.m., while WPI heads to Waltham, Mass. to take on fourth-ranked Brandeis in a non-league match on Wednesday evening that also begins at 7:00 p.m.


BeeyoutifulSkin Angled Sculptor brush is a full, softly angled brush that is ideally suited for applying eye colors to the crease or doing contouring work on the eyes.
First time user with loose shadows, so I ordered this brush to try them out. I'm impressed! SO much better than the foam ones I've used for years before I found out better! Nice control, firmness, and coverage with this one. Love the angle which allows for getting in creases, etc.
Honestly, I doubted how necessary this brush really was. I I thought for sure I could do the same contouring with my small brush. Wow, was I wrong! I'm so glad I finally decided to try it. It takes 2 seconds for me to easily get the look I want now. It's so quick and easy to use, and enables me to make a contour in my crease and corner that's perfect. Much better than my old way. Great tool! I love it!
I loved this brush. I've used lots of different types of brushes with loose eye powder and this one really was nice with the angle.


With realistic costumes and nostalgic backgrounds, our Back In Tyme Photos takes you back to a easyer time.
Great for college events, homecoming, grand opening wedding receptions all night grad parties you name it!
Your event will be a hit when you bring the same photo novelty program like you get at a major amusement parks.
company picnics, high school senior grad party, post proms, after proms, motorsports, racing, racing games, team building, drunk driving education, Bar Mitzvahs, trade fairs, trade shows, church carnivals, midways, youth group retreats all the way to parties for birthdays, Christmas and Holidays!
It was a pleasure to meet you on February 6th!
The HSC Event at the Horizon's Conference Center in Saginaw was again a huge success, due in part to the addition of Back In Tyme Photo's and the Goldfish Racing!
Both of these attractions were a big hit with the employees and it was fun to watch them as prepared for their photos.
Thanks to you and your staff for working to make this event fun for the attendees. I will pass along your information to others within our department and keep you in mind for future events.
Click above for the wild west quickdraw a great add on to the old tyme photos!


Only register for this event when you absolutely need it, as it will generate network traffic from all players for every button they press. This event fires when a player presses a command card button. Use "Button Pressed" to get the button that was pressed.
This page was last edited on 20 August 2017, at 13:59.


text:
Sort by: Most recent Most relevant
New Read & Publish agreement between The Company of Biologists and the Council of Australian University Librarians
The Company of Biologists is delighted to announce a new three-year Read & Publish Open Access agreement with the Council of Australian University Librarians (CAUL).
Postdoctoral fellowship on dissection of the cell shape acquisition mechanisms in plants at Umeå Plant Science Centre, Sweden
PhD Funded Position in Plant Genetics, Genomics and Bioinformatics at Zhao Lab. Fall 2022
PhD scholarship in Fish Ecophysiology
The Ever-increasing Role that Sunflowers Play in Society
Many cultures around the world equate sunflowers with happiness and harvest. They have been used as a crop for thousands of years, having first been domesticated in parts of Northern America by Native Americans. With growing concerns over the Climate Crisis and food security, much research has been undertaken on crops to increase their yield, reduce emissions, and protect the viability of fertile land. Research related to sunflowers is having real-world impacts, including the creation of biofuels and eco-products using previously discarded harvest waste, and uses in pharmaceutical development.
Free Webinar on the Publishing Process
Introducing Larry York as the new Editor-in-Chief for Plant Direct Journal
The American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB), Society for Experimental Biology (SEB) and Wiley are delighted to announce that we have appointed Dr Larry York as the new Editor-in-Chief for Plant Direct.
Autumn Magazine 2018
Resource (495)


For those worrying that Marvel Studios may well be content to rest on their considerable laurels, with the screen introduction of their latest hero they open up not only a whole other universe, but a whole other multiverse! Doctor Strange is your entry drug to the spiritual side of the Mighty World of Marvel, and whilst this may not always be as satisfying as some of their efforts (this is the year of Civil War after all) it's a whole new trip you'd be wise to take.
Sherlock Bandicoot is the brilliant neurosurgeon with a God-like arrogance issue who learns that playing with your phone and driving at great speed are not a good combo. Left with his once glorified hands in tatters, he turns to the East in search of some form of redemption – and finds it in the teachings of the Ancient One (an excellent baldy Swinton.) Here he learns there is more to this universe than he ever imagined – cue the psychedelia and the falling buildings. Although, in this case, the buildings are not just falling from standard issue superhero movie mass destruction – they're bending, twisting, contorting and rebuilding themselves in genuinely spectacular fashion.
This particular visual trope may well takes its FX-cue from Nolan's Inception, but what Derrickson does here goes far beyond that. As these supreme sorcerers reshape the world around them, you will be left slack jawed not just at the imagination of such building-reinvention, but by how beautiful it looks.
And if manipulation of our world wasn't enough, the movie takes us firmly into the multiverse (briefly visited in Ant Man) that bears just enough of a resemblance to artist Steve Ditko's panels from the original 1960s comics to keep even the die-hardest of the die hard happy. Dr Strange's first imposed visit to that vista – the Ancient One literally throws him into it – is a hugely inventive, visually stunning, brilliantly designed – well, there's no other word for it – trip.
It's one of the things that sets Doctor Strange apart in the MCU. It may well be an origin story, but it's visual sense is anything but familiar. References to the Avengers, Thor in particular (if you hang around long enough) establish Stephen Strange as part of that world, but this first movie also expands that ever-expanding world in very significant ways. And given that we now know Strange is due to pop up in at least two more Marvel movies in the near future (there's talk of infinity stones!), this move into the mystic is very likely to be shaping all our cinema visits for some time to come.
Overall, the movie is not up there with the best of Marvel's work to date (did we mention Civil War already?) and suffers from the exposition-heavy needs of any origin film. It is still as accomplished and entertaining as we now not just expect, but demand, from Marvel Studios. And manages to be original as well.
In a year chock-full o' superhero movies, Doctor Strange reminds us why we shouldn't accept dross like Suicide Squad.


text:
London Grammar are an English indie pop band from Nottingham, formed in 2009. The band consists of Hannah Reid, Dan Rothman and Dominic 'Dot' Major. Their debut extended play, Metal & Dust, was released in February 2013 by Metal & Dust Recordings, while their debut album, If You Wait, was released in September 2013
Ministry of Sound first opened its doors way back in September 1991. Inspired by New York's cavernous house…


Kenshoo, a global innovator in search engine marketing technology, just today announced a new feature - Seamless Site Tracking, a completely new functionality for SEM campaign management. Expanded tracking, reporting and path-to-conversion details can now be collected without the need for adding a tracking pixel to the website landing page. This is perfectly geared to agencies and affiliate marketers, who most often do not have access to the retailers landing page. With KENSHOO SEARCH, there are many tracking option available, and Seamless Site Tracking now enables all users of KENSHOO SEARCH to experience the benefits of the proprietary and unique tracking system.
Their new client, Wpromote, a premier SEM agency case in Los Angeles, is already experiencing the benefits – now able to build more sophisticated campaigns, better structures and more successful SEM programs for their clients.
San Francisco, CA (March 19, 2009) – Kenshoo Ltd. is excited to announce the release of a new feature for KENSHOO SEARCH™, the end-to-end Search Engine Marketing Platform. Seamless Site Tracking allows for unmatched expanded tracking, reporting and path-to-conversion details to be collected without the need of adding a tracking pixel to the website. This revolutionary capability has never existed before in search engine marketing, and it changes the rules of the game.
"We learned from our years of experience with advertisers and affiliates that it can be a pain point to implement a tracking pixel in their site and that pixel based tracking systems are not 100 percent accurate. Seamless Site Tracking, beyond being more accurate than any pixel base tracking, enables users to enjoy all of the information provided by KENSHOO SEARCH tracking and reporting without the need to place the KENSHOO SEARCH tracking pixel or any other pixel on the advertiser's web site. This is highly beneficial for our affiliate advertisers who work across different affiliate networks. It allows them to see all their tracking information easily and conveniently," says Alon Sheafer, VP Product and Co-Founder of Kenshoo.
This new ability enhances the flexibility and customizable aspects of KENSHOO SEARCH. Being able to specify what type of tracking and how to track gives advertisers and affiliates greater control over their SEM activities than ever before. Detailed tracking and reporting allows them to optimize their campaigns and therefore improve ROI.
A new client of Kenshoo's enjoying this functionality is Los Angeles based Wpromote. Wpromote is a premier SEM agency with unmatched experience in search marketing and an unrivaled dedication to their clients' results.
"Before we started to work with KENSHOO SEARCH it was difficult to get accurate conversion tracking data. The KENSHOO SEARCH Seamless Site Tracking technology enables us to collect rich tracking data related to our clients' conversions based on their website's database conversion report and accurately analyze the traffic we drive to their websites. As an agency, having this information enables us to build more sophisticated campaigns, better structures and more successful SEM programs for our clients" Says Mike Mothner, CEO Wpromote.
Kenshoo (http://www.kenshoo.com) is the provider of KENSHOO SEARCH, the only 3rd generation end-to-end search marketing platform. Built utilizing the Quality Management™ approach, KENSHOO SEARCH enables marketers to optimize every aspect of their campaigns to achieve maximum ROI. Kenshoo's automation and optimization technology is being used today by ad agencies and advertisers on five continents and in dozens of languages. Kenshoo is backed by venture capital firms Sequoia Capital and Arts Alliance.
Kenshoo provides its licensed SEM platform and services to agencies, advertisers, and affiliate marketers worldwide.


dana (or giving). Giving from the heart allows future practitioners to enjoy the same opportunities that past contributors made possible for you.
During the past nearly five decades, the Cleveland Zazen Group has sat at university buildings, in Unitarian and Catholic churches, and in private members' homes. Eight years ago, group members purchased a home and we now have a permanent location with a real zendo, space for both sitting and walking meditation, and a facility capable of housing extended meditation retreats. But we are also responsible for maintenance, repairs, and general upkeep and that takes a modest, but continuous source of income. Won't you consider making a donation to help sustain the continuation of Zen in Cleveland? Again, all contributions go directly to facility maintenance and meditation practice; none of our officers or members personally receive even a penny of your donations.


I've been asked to merge a large number of VCF file (one sample/vcf) but only if QUAL is lower than a given value. I would like to avoid to filter+copy each VCF and then merge with CombineVariants.
So my question is: is it possible to give a (JEXL?) expression to accept/reject a variant in one vcf ?
Ah, I see. No, there is no option in CombineVariants to filter each input vcf on the spot.
I think you are asking if you can merge all the vcfs, then choose only the variants that have a QUAL score lower than some threshold. Yes, this is certainly possible to do with JEXL expressions in Select Variants. You can input all the samples to include with -sf https://www.broadinstitute.org/gatk/gatkdocs/org_broadinstitute_gatk_tools_walkers_variantutils_SelectVariants.php#--sample_file and use JEXL to select the variants with QUAL < threshold.


Backed by the rich experience of the industry, we are engaged in providing Fabric Reactive Dyes. These dyes are available in red, green, yellow, blue and orange colors as per the choices of our valued end customers. Our provided dyes are suitable for all type of fabrics such as Tencel, rayon, cotton and bamboo. Also, these Fabric Reactive Dyes are tested on different parameters at the lab to ensure its eco-friendly nature.


If you're not from SoCal…or Orange County…Fullerton to be exact, then you may not know that the city of Fullerton is actually known for many things such as, night life, Fox Theater, Cal State Fullerton, Fullerton College and more. But the city is also known for its mountain biking.
The odd thing about the Fullerton Loop is that its literally in the middle of the city and its connected by a patch work of trails that the city maintains. RC or Richard Cunningham of Mountain Bike Action Magazine was coined to be the fella that discovered the Fullerton Loop back in the early 80's. Our friend and mountain bike hall of famer, Steve Boehmke along with RC reminisced during a conversation we had at the media center at Sea Otter 2008, about the summer days of 1982 when they and a group of other riders would find new ways to enjoy the trail that was originally designed for Equestrians (horse people).
I've been riding the Loop for many years now and it remains to be one of my favorite trails ever. It's fun and you can make it as technical as you want it to be. So wanting to find out more about the trail that I adore, I went to the city of Fullerton's website to see if where the other trails are located in the city. it's been rumored that you can actually ride an epic in Fullerton. I then found out that Fullerton has over 28 miles of trails…not bad!
Some of these trail lengths may seem low…0.88 mile…but that's because most of them eventually run into each other. But other trails like Valencia Mesa, Panorama and Rolling Hills are further from the other trails, but you could easily ride to it.
So here's what I'm thinking, I'm going to schedule a day where I can ride all of these trails…you know an epic. People do say that a ride over 25 miles counts as an epic. I'll keep everyone posted when this will happen. Most likely Priscilla will be with me since she's the Epic Queen.
We test rode the Spot Brand 29er SS, the Titus Racer X 29er, Pivot Mach 4 and a Pivot 429, stay tuned for those ride reports!


text:
stravalib.client.Client.get\_activity\_laps
===========================================

.. currentmodule:: stravalib.client

.. automethod:: Client.get_activity_laps

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
(-) Local service design
Can less be more? The new approach to social care in South Tyneside
Simon Bottery considers joined-up health and social care in South Tyneside, with social workers joining 'huddles' on wards and using a 'strength-based' approach in discharge planning
By Simon Bottery - 16 July 2019
The prevention Green Paper: the right time to put it in its place?
David Buck considers what is likely to be in the government's Green Paper on prevention – and what should be in it.
By David Buck - 24 May 2019
Harnessing the winds of change – early learning on integrated care systems
Local context is of the utmost importance in the development of integrated care systems, influencing the nature of collaborative working.
By Nicola Walsh - 25 September 2018
From lab to bedside: ensuring new medicines are available in a cost-effective and timely way
David Omojomolo explores the challenge of offering new medicines within current financial restraints.
By David Omojomolo - 31 July 2018
The NHS 10-year plan: how much will be spent on NHS deficits?
Richard Murray calls for the reform of the NHS's current Byzantine financial system.
By Richard Murray - 23 July 2018
The NHS 10-year plan: transformation holds the key to sustainability
Chris Ham calls for the NHS 10-year plan to outline realistic ambitions to transform health and care over the next decade, focused on improving population health and a new deal with the public.
By Professor Sir Chris Ham - 12 July 2018
The changing shape of NHS finances
As austerity and widespread staffing shortages began to bite over the past decade, the finances of NHS providers often took a familiar shape each year. But more recently this pattern of financial performance has been increasingly pulled out of shape and distorted.
By Siva Anandaciva - 10 July 2018
NHS funding: what we know, what we don't know and what comes next
As the dust settles on the new NHS funding announcement, Richard Murray explores what to expect over the next few months.
By Richard Murray - 27 June 2018


I talk a lot about labels on my blog, often with a negative connotation… but labels are not always bad. They are a good starting point to the journey in knowing your learner. As a parent and educator, I have learned that labels allow me to access the supports and resources that I need to learn about the child and how he or she learns best.
Bella is almost 9 years old, but cognitively she is at the level of a 12-month old. Through IBI therapy and school, she is currently learning crucial life skills, such as how to feed and dress herself, requesting to go to her washroom, and communicating with us through her iPad.
Bella likes to play by spinning, banging, and flipping hair brushes and shakers. She is fascinated by reflections and shadows with light, which give her a sense of calm. Walking on her tiptoes and licking a cold mirror fulfills her sensory diet.
Bella thrives on deep pressure. Her service dog and best friend, Kadence, lets Bella put her whole hand in her mouth as Kadence's teeth provide Bella with a sensation that she loves. My husband, Peter, often lies on top of Bella to give her the type of sensory hug that she most enjoys.
Bella is non-verbal. After many years of trial and error, we have learned that the best mode of communication for her is by using her finger to point and share her voice through her iPad.
Though we have celebrated many successes, the autism label has also brought me frustration, anxiety, anger and many tears behind closed doors. Our family faces a reality where every day life will always be a challenge - from fighting for funding for therapy, to ensuring that Bella can receive the quality of education that she deserves, to constantly walking away from stares and whispers in public, to responding to people who call my daughter the "autistic one" or the "child who can't".
April 2nd 2018 is world autism awareness day. It is a day to learn about the autism label, and a day to move beyond what you may see and assume of people who live with a disability.
Today I find myself asking, do labels able or disable us?
How do these labels connect to your visible and invisible differences?
What kind of emotions do these labels bring out in you?
Please share your stories, as I believe that an open dialogue is the first step to learning what is behind a label.


Since it was launched in 1953, the iF Design Award has become one of the world's most important prizes for excellence in design. The award has its origins in the 'Formgerechte Industrieerzeugnisse' (Good Industrial Design) product shows, initiated by the Hannover Messe, and is now one of the world's largest design competitions.
The official presentation ceremony for the 2017 iF Design Awards will take place on 10 March 2017 at BMW Welt in Munich. A selection of the winning products will also go on display at the iF design exhibition in Hamburg's HafenCity. Additionally, all winners can be seen on the iF website, http://www.ifdesign.dewww.ifdesign.de, and can also be viewed on the 'iF design' smartphone app.


The seller of this 1967 Catalina station wagon states right away the the car has its share of 'dings, scratches and other imperfections' and the honesty is appreciated but this appears to be a very nice survivor imperfections or not! The red paint which is believed to be mostly original is complemented by an interesting white two-tone that covers the roof and extends to the rear pillars and to the top of the tailgate. If the nearly all red exterior isn't enough, take a look inside and you'll see a beautiful red interior throughout. You can find this very nice survivor on Ebay in Bowling Green, Kentucky where bidding had hit $7,100 early in the auction.
Described as an unrestored time capsule this 30,679 mile Catalina wagon is certainly one of the more desirable wagons we've come across. Pontiac's crisp clean styling was in full force by 1964 and they didn't miss a beat in executing their wagon designs. The white/red color combination looks fantastic (don't all 60's cars look great in white/red!) and the 8 lug wheels and 389 V8 are pure Pontiac excitement. Listed on Ebay in Wentzville, Missouri this one owner masterpiece has a BIN of $32,000.
Acquired from a church estate and restored to perfection this rare Pontiac is one of the nicest 50's era wagons we've featured. Beginning with the rarity of the car and understanding how few likely remain it's hard to imagine that there are many 1957 Pontiac wagons as nice as this one. Officially called a Pontiac Star Chief Safari "Transcontinental," this was the top of the Pontiac wagon for 1957. Only 1,894 of these wagons were produced and the price tag of $3,636 was second in the Pontiac lineup only to the Bonneville convertible that was priced at a hefty $5,782! You can find this fine wagon on Hemmings with a $41,500 asking price.
This Superior body conversion 1958 Pontiac ambulance has just 23,000 original miles and is said to be 100% original. By their nature service vehicles are subject to wear and tear and even ones with low mileage will typically show use beyond there stated miles but the black paint and chrome gleam on this Pontiac like the day it rolled out of the factory nearly 60 years ago. One has to winder the history of such an exceptional vehicle but suffice it to say it likely had a couple of years of service before being retired. Not a practical car beyond it's use as an ambulance it likely ended up in storage before ending up in collectors hands years later. This unique and exceptional ambulance is listed on Craigslist in Langley, British Columbia with an asking price of $31,000.
A first look at this Pontiac Sedan Delivery and one would surely think this is one sweet custom, after all Pontiac wasn't making sedan deliveries in the late fifties right? Well, in Canada you could purchase one but even there they were a rare sight as General Motors of Canada only produced 857 sedan deliveries in 1957. With such a low number produced there can only be a handful left today making this one the rarest of the rare. The example here which can be found on Hemmings and located in Waterloo, Ontario is described as being 'sympathetically restored as new.' All the sheet metal is described as original with a high quality paint re-finish in 'Imperial Ivory.' The chrome and stainless are a combination of NOS parts and re-plating. The interior was restored in correct original Black/Charcoal cobblestone cloth and the rear cargo department is described as being well detailed. The power plant is the original 6 cylinder 261 cid with 3 speed standard shift on the column and equipped with overdrive. Mileage is showing just over 50,000 which the seller says lines up with the condition of the car. There is no price listed by the seller as the listing shows 'inquire.' Given the rarity and quality of the car this beauty won't come cheap.


text:
La democratización es un proceso de transición política de un tipo de régimen a otro, en este caso a una democracia.

Historia
Lo que si es un hecho es que una transición política se origina por medio de un conflicto, el cual puede ser de valores o de intereses. En el primer caso se va a ocupar un cierto grado de violencia para lograr el cambio, mientras que en el segundo se utilizan numerables normas o reglas. Una transición política de un gobierno autoritario a uno demócrata es llamada "democratización", la cual tienen como objetivo llegar de manera competitiva a un sistema de democracia.

Un ejemplo de origen de estos conflictos puede ser la incomprensión religiosa ya que se tiene un cierto nivel de intolerancia por parte del Estado. O'Donnell menciona tres características que se deben tomar en cuenta para entender el proceso de una transición política y su consolidación, aquellas características son las siguientes:

 Las transiciones de un régimen autoritario a uno demócrata pueden seguir diferentes caminos, depende de las situaciones de la nación en juego.
 La transición tomara un camino de los distintos que existen, y se debe tomar en cuenta que cada uno de ellos conducen a un tipo distinto de democracia, esto va a dar una variación de consolidación para cuando se alcance la meta.
 La consolidación que va a tomar el nuevo régimen siempre será incierta y nunca se debe descartar el regreso del autoritarismo, siempre va a depender de la consolidación que llegue a tener la democratización.

En el gobierno demócrata es fundamental la elección de los gobernantes, así como la destitución de los mismos por medio de las decisiones del electorado, dentro de este gobierno también existe la independencia de los tribunales, se da seguimiento al cumplimiento de los derechos humanos como es el derecho de expresión, opinión, asociación, etc., estas características son las mismas que se niegan desde un principio en un régimen totalitario y son limitadas en el autoritario.

La democratización es un proceso de desarrollo de las instituciones sociales que conducen al fortalecimiento de la sociedad civil, resguardo de los derechos humanos básicos y la disminución de las desigualdades socioeconómicas. No todos los procesos de apertura de países no democráticos o en conflicto interno conducen efectivamente a la democratización; en aquellos casos donde los cambios son limitados se hablará de liberalización política.

La democratización del trabajo está muy relacionada con conceptos como la adhocracia donde todos los miembros de una organización o grupo tienen autoridad para tomar decisiones.

Los procesos de "democratización" corresponden a la época histórica, a partir de los años 80 , en donde a lo largo del mundo y en especial en América Latina, se empiezan a llevar a cabo transiciones de regímenes autoritarios a regímenes democráticos. Para autores como O´Donnell , esta democratización se caracteriza por tener dos etapas; la primera, que es la de transición y corresponde al paso del régimen autoritario al democrático, y la segunda, que es la consolidación de este régimen, partiendo de que sus instituciones se vuelvan de carácter fuerte y que todas las luchas políticas sean llevadas a cabo por las vías que estas mismas dan.

Se ha dado en llamar Doctrina Google a la fe entusiasta en el poder liberador de la tecnología, acompañada por el irresistible impulso de alistas a las empresas de nuevas tecnologías en la lucha global por la libertad y de esta forma alcanzar la democratización de las sociedades. Este es un enfoque liberal del proceso de democratización.

Actualidad
En la actualidad la democratización es un proceso necesario por las circunstancias históricas que vivimos hoy en día, ya que como fue mencionado anteriormente, el sistema demócrata nos da un tipo de garantía del cumplimiento de nuestros derechos fundamentales, que estos sean respetados y mantenidos por el sistema de acuerdo con las necesidades de la sociedad. Esto nos acerca a la idea de que la democracia es el mejor sistema político ya que reúne las mejores condiciones de vida para los ciudadanos, un ejemplo de ello es dar el derecho a la participación en las elecciones para gobernantes. En torno a lo que fue mencionado en el párrafo anterior, el autor Aumente lo expone de la siguiente manera: "La democracia aspira a la participación, cada día más consciente y más activa, del pueblo en las tareas de gobierno", sin embargo, se sabe que un porcentaje de la masa de personas que forman el pueblo no ejercen la oportunidad de participación en la toma de decisiones políticas, y según Nohlen, los grupos que aprovechan su derecho a la participación a la toma de decisiones políticas son los que tienen una clase económica alta, esas son las personas que integran la minoría que ejerce su voto, mientras que el resto de la población, los que no emiten son voto son los de las clases inferiores. Es importante tener en mente que una democratización no nos asegura la participación de todos los ciudadanos.

Aun cuando la democracia pareciera ser el mejor régimen político para una nación, no debe ser considerado como un proceso evolutivo de la misma, esa idea era la que se tenía hasta los años 60's, en donde Schmitter nos explica que primero se tenía una oligarquía tradicional, pasa a una democracia censitaria para finalmente ser una democracia pluralista.

Una de las causas por las que se dé una transición política es la inestabilidad que tenga el régimen en el que se esté viviendo ya sea de distribución o de dominación, existe un modelo multidimensional sobre el cambio de régimen creado por Nohlen el cual se ve que un régimen autoritario puede pasar a una democracia y también puede suceder de manera viceversa.

En el caso de Villanueva, se destaca que la democratización puede ser reclamada a raíz de una serie injusticias y malas decisiones por parte del gobierno, decisiones equivocadas que pueden ser causa del mismo régimen político que se mantiene, como lo puede ser, un sistema autoritario.
El reclamo de la democratización trae consigo distintos aspectos benéficos tanto para el desarrollo del Estado como el bienestar de la sociedad. Según Villanueva, gracias a la pluralidad de ideas y propuestas que permite establecer una democracia, esta permite aumentar la posibilidad de obtener un mejor y buen gobierno. "La democratización ha sido determinante para reconstruir la naturaleza pública del gobierno, para liberarlo de los grupos de interés que lo han tenido en cautiverio y para disuadirlo de aventuras, fantasías e improvisaciones, ante la expectativa de sanciones electorales de desalojo y alternancia. La democratización ha sido también tirar lastre y crear las condiciones para atender con eficiencia los muchos males, necesidades y problemas públicos."

Véase también
 Democracia
 Liberalismo
 Ciencia política
 Derechos humanos
 Sociedad civil
 Participación ciudadana
 Erosión democrática

Referencias

Bibliografía
 Dahl, R., Los dilemas del pluralismo democrático: autonomía versus control, México, Alianza Editorial, 1991.
 Huntington, S.H., La tercera ola. La democratización a finales del siglo XX, Buenos Aires, Paidós, 1994.
 O'Donnell, G. y P. Schmitter, Transiciones desde un gobierno autoritario. Conclusiones tentativas sobre las democracias inciertas, vol. 4, Buenos Aires, Paidós, 1988
O'Donnell, Schmitter y Whitehead, Transiciones desde un gobierno autoritario, vol. 4.
O'Donnell, Schmitter y Whitehead, Transiciones desde un gobierno autoritario, vol. 3
Nohlen, Dieter. "El cambio de régimen político en América Latina: En torno a la democratización de los regímenes autoritarios". Revista Estudios Internacionales. Pp.548-575. http://www.revistaei.uchile.cl/index.php/REI/article/viewFile/15845/31711
Aumente, J. (1965). DEMOCRATIZACIÓN. El Ciervo, 14(133), 8-9.  http://www.jstor.org/stable/40792049
 Del Águila, R. (1997). Manual de Ciencia Política, Madrid, Trotta. Capítulo 17.

Democratizacion