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Jake Coyle
Tags: Billy Crystal, Barry Levinson, Mel Brooks, Norman Lear, Gene Wilder, Nick Kroll, Richard Pryor, entertainment, Wanda Sykes, Harold Lloyd, Anne Bancroft, Dave Chappelle, Carl Reiner, Sid Caesar, Janet Leigh, Jake Coyle, Arts, Conan O'Brien, Lifestyle
Q&A: Mel Brooks, 95, is still riffing
1991 AP
FILE - Actor-director-writer Mel Brooks poses next to a framed poster of his 1974 film "Blazing Saddles" in Los Angeles on July 23, 1991. Brooks released a memoir, "All About Me!: My Remarkable Life in Show Business." (AP Photo/Nick Ut, File)
NEW YORK – Leave it to Mel Brooks to blurb his own memoir.
There, along with laudatory quotes from Billy Crystal, Norman Lear, Conan O'Brien and others is one from "M. Brooks," who hails "All About Me!" as: "Not since the Bible have I read anything so powerful and poignant. And to boot — it's a lot funnier!"
"All About Me!," which landed on bookshelves Tuesday, is indeed chock full of stories, anecdotes and memories from a comedy master of biblical proportions. Brooks, 95, spent much of the pandemic working on the book — a year of remembering everything from getting hit by a Tin Lizzie as an 8-year-old in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to writing the musical version of "The Producers" with Tom Meehan at Madame Romaine de Lyon in Manhattan over omelets.
"Like everybody else, I've been mostly stuck at home and fed up with the same diet of information and food," Brooks says. "Thank God I could let my mind roam free to remember."
For the first time, Brooks has put down on paper all of his tales, from growing up in Depression-era Williamsburg ("I loved the Depression!" he says cheerfully), serving in the army during WWII, starting out in the Borscht Belt, writing on Sid Caesar's "Your Show of Shows," launching his 2000 Year Old Man schtick with Carl Reiner, coming up with possibly the greatest comic conceit of all time ("The Producers"), and crafting the films "Blazing Saddles," "Young Frankenstein," "High Anxiety," among others. There are tender chapters on his wife Anne Bancroft, who died in 2005, and Reiner, who passed away last year. There are jokes and omelets.
In a long and lively phone interview from his home in Los Angeles, Brooks reflected on his the book and his life in show business — "the grandest adventure any human being could ever take," he says. "Being in the theater and making movies is just a world of make believe. Fabulous."
AP: What prompted you to write a memoir?
BROOKS: My son Max said, "You know, Dad, you're going to be stuck in the house for who knows how long. Why don't you just write a memoir? Just tell them what you told me when I was growing up. You'll have a big fat book." He got me started. He got me a publisher. It was great. It saved me from going mad.
AP: The section on your childhood in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is especially vividly and fondly recalled. You write that while many think a life in comedy springs from pain and a difficult childhood, for you...
BROOKS: I wanted to keep the party going. I wanted to keep the happiness and joy and explosions of laughter going into a dour part of our lives, not our childhood anymore. I was once interviewed and the guy said, "What was the happiest part of your life? Was it winning the Academy Award? Was it marrying Anne Bancroft?" I said no, not at all. It was my childhood. From about 4 or 5 or 9, it was the most exciting, happiest, joyous life that anyone could experience. The guy said, "What happened at 9?' I said, "Homework." I realized the world wanted something back. To this day, it's still a bad thing. Homework is a bad thing. It takes away precious minutes from your childhood.
AP: Depending on laughs for happiness can lead to a lot of heartache. Was there any downside to needing that response?
BROOKS: Oh, yeah. When stuff didn't work. When you worked so hard on an idea or a project and the audience just said: No, thank you. There was plenty of heartbreak right there. When you had a show on television like "Get Smart," it was dropped after the first year. ABC just said no second year. There's ups and downs. I didn't write a lot of the downs in the book. Why bring the reader down when there's so many ups to talk about?
AP: You say that despite being a filmmaker and producer, you identify most as a writer. Was that always the case?
BROOKS: Yes, always. It always started with an idea, with a bunch of characters that interplayed. It was the most interesting thing I could do with my life. I was a good reader and a good reader is maybe the basis for becoming a good writer.
AP: What books were you reading?
BROOKS: When I was writing for "Your Show of Shows," I met Mel Tolkin. His name was actually Shmuel Tolchinsky, he was a Russian émigré who came to Canada when he was 14. He was kind of a sage. He introduced me to people like Nikolai Gogol. So when I started writing, already the stakes were high. I wanted to write like Gogol. I wanted to write like Tolstoy. I wanted to write like those guys. I fell in love with Dickens. I was very lucky to run into Mel Tolkin. I learned that writing was not just writing. It could be miraculous. It could be wonderful. It could be really funny. I didn't learn from a guy that just wrote jokes. I learned from a guy who learned from the masters.
AP: Years into the hallowed run with Sid Caesar, you implored him to join you in leaving television for the movies. You guys were then immensely popular. What drew you to film?
BROOKS: I knew. I was so ahead of my time. I said: Harold Lloyd is still hanging from the clock in "Safety Last! " from 50 years ago and you do an hour and a half of incredible comedy that is gone the minute they turn off the TV set. It's gone forever. He understood that, but he couldn't turn down the offer they gave him. I understood. I said, "Well, I'm going to continue but I'm going to go into movies. You can do a lot more, you have a lot more time and they last. They're around. Every movie I've ever made is still around, playing somewhere. Maybe TCM or some little art house in Des Moines, but it's somewhere. It plays. A movie is forever.
AP: A kind of running gag in the book is the litany of film executives who give you notes that you gladly accept only to completely ignore.
BROOKS: (Laughs) I always agreed to them, 100%, to their faces. When (producer) Joseph Levine said, "Get rid of this guy Gene Wilder in 'The Producers.' Get rid of him. He's funny looking. You can get a handsomer guy who has more star quality." I said, "Yes. He's out. You won't see him again." I never changed a thing. They forget. As soon as the money comes rolling in, they simply forget.
AP: Has what's funny to you changed at all with age?
BROOKS: You never know what's funny to you until it hits you, and then you say, "Gee, that's funny!" Things that are positive surprises have always thrilled me. Like Bialystock and Bloom planning on having a flop and instead have an incredible hit. There's a kind of crazy secret in my writing that I didn't realize until I read the book myself. It seems that I know that in this world, it's either love or money. They don't both happen at the same time. I don't know whether I learned it from Russian literature or Mel Tokin or life. But it's money or love, and I go for love.
AP: Do you still think up 2,000 Year Old Man jokes?
BROOKS: Well, without Carl, who I loved so much and who was such a great, deep important part of my life, I don't think very often of the 2,000 Year Old Man. Once in a while, I'll think of something and think, too bad Carl isn't alive and we could've nail that idea. But you meet people. You meet Carl Reiners and Tom Meehans and Anne Bancrofts. You meet people. And then you're lucky if you have children that you like and like you. I've been lucky in many departments.
AP: Do you remember your last conversation with Reiner before his death last year?
BROOKS: Yeah. The day he died, I said, "Carl, you're eating two hot dogs." He said, 'They ain't gonna bother me. I love hot dogs and hot dogs love me." But it wasn't true. By that night, the hot dogs had done him in. He lived a long, beautiful, loving, giving, happy life. I was so lucky he was my dearest friend.
AP: Do you wonder what he would have thought of the book?
BROOKS: I think he would have liked it. He probably would have said "Why did you stop there? There was a lot more you left out!" There was never enough for Carl. He just wanted more joy and more comedy.
AP: He had been your regular movie partner. Without Reiner, what are you watching?
BROOKS: I haven't been watching too many movies. I watch a little television. We used to watch the game shows. Now that he's gone, I don't watch them anymore. I like old movies. I like Turner Classic. Sometimes I see my old movies there, and I'll actually enjoy it. I'll say "That was a good joke." Like in "High Anxiety," I get very excited when Barry Levinson stabs me — I'm playing Janet Leigh — with the rolled-up newspaper after opening the curtain. We're of course mimicking "Psycho" at every shot. The one shot I couldn't mimic was the knife and the blood. It was too gruesome. Then I discovered the newsprint of the newspaper would trickle down and look like the blood. I got a poke in the ribs from Hitchcock when he saw it.
AP: A 19-year-old Dave Chapelle made his film debut in your "Robin Hood: Men in Tights." What did you see in him?
BROOKS: There were about six, seven kids who came to audition. The minute he began reading, I said, "That's the kid — the skinny little kid." His rhythm was so perfect.
AP: Some comedians — including Chapelle, whose jokes about transgender people in his last stand-up special prompted a backlash — have lamented that today's audiences are too sensitive. As someone who often pushed boundaries of what was acceptable, what do you make of these cultural battles in comedy?
BROOKS: You've got to be careful. When things stir up people to great emotion, I stay out of that. I'm very careful and stay out of those. I don't ever take sides because everybody's right. The people who make fun of something that should not be fun of are right. And the people who are hurt because they're trashing something that's so important to them, they're right. They're all right. Stay back. Stay away.
AP: But you also weren't timid about subjects some considered off limits like mocking Hitler and the Nazis in "The Producers" or the language of "Blazing Saddles."
BROOKS: I was lucky. I was politically incorrect and I didn't know it. I didn't know it, so I did a lot of great stuff. Then it became politically incorrect, like the N-word in "Blazing Saddles." Richard Pryor was writing it with me. He just loved using the N-word because it was all true — the bad guys used it against Blacks. We didn't think anything was wrong until later. You've got to say maybe it was used too much. Anyway, we were kids and it worked. It worked when it worked. I don't think I could do those scenes in "Blazing Saddles" today. I don't think I could get away with it. I think I'd offend too many people.
AP: Do you think about your legacy at all?
BROOKS: Oh, I don't think about that. I just think: Buy another book.
AP: Many might say you played a massive role in bringing Jewish culture and comedy into the mainstream.
BROOKS: A lot of what's described as Jewish comedy is really New York, the drumbeat of New York, the struggle of the immigrants who made New York one of the greatest cities in the world. It's New York comedy, it's street-corner comedy. Seeing the world from a street corner in Brooklyn and making pronuciamentos that are always correct — that are crazy but always right.
AP: What inspired you to help make a part two of "History of the World," as a Hulu series?
BROOKS: I'm working on that with Wanda Sykes and Nick Kroll and having a lot of fun. They came up with the idea and I said, "Fine, count me in." There's a lot of history we haven't covered. There's always history. You come up with ideas. The other day, I came up with the idea that you hear a lot of whistling wind and the screen gets darker and darker. And then a big announcement: "The Dust Bowl." And then: "Hey, where are you?" "I'm over by the fence!" "I can't see the fence!"
AP: In a great 1980s sketch, you created a coin-operated gravestone for yourself that played a videotaped message that began: "I was Mel Brooks, one of the funniest little Jews to walk the Earth." Do you think much about death?
BROOKS: No. I gave up after 60 thinking about it because if I did, I'd be thinking about it all the time. So I don't think about it much. When and if it happens it's going to be a sad day — for everybody but me. (Laughs) I enjoy living. I'd like to do it as long as I can.
Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP


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Rich Engler, Music Promoter and Entrepreneur
A life's recounting in the subject's own words
by Jeff Sewald
Photo by Renee Rosensteel
I was born in New Kensington, Pa., and grew up in Creighton, across the river. My father was a glass worker at the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company. My mother worked for the county. I studied art education at Youngstown State, then at Carnegie Mellon.
I was also playing in a band and began to see a possible future for myself in music. Somewhere along the line, I realized that a life in music could be tough and that I would be wise to prepare myself. It's called "show business" for a reason. There's the show, and then there's the business. So I decided that I had better learn both.
In 1969, when I first met Cindy, my wife, who was then my girlfriend, I felt that it was time to take a risk. So I opened a business on Walnut Street in Shadyside called Go Attractions. At the start, I couldn't afford an apartment and an office, so I built a partition inside the office and lived in the back. The good news for me was that rock music was really catching fire: bigger productions, more sound, more lights and larger crowds. Every club, frat party and church outing had to have a band. And someone had to provide them. I wanted to be that person.
Sure, I was nervous about it. But I had the Novocain of youth going for me and believed that I would be able to make just about anything work. Before long, I was making more money than I would have been had I graduated from college. I never thought I'd quit school, but I did. I started with nothing, so a living would have been acceptable at the time. But I knew what I didn't want. I didn't want to live across the tracks. I wanted something better. That's what I set out to achieve.
Three years later, when Cindy and I decided to get married, I had money in the bank. I bought a house way more expensive than I could ever have dreamed. The next thing I knew, instead of selling acts to clubs and colleges, I started promoting. Go Attractions, the booking agency, became Command Performance, the promoter, and I started buying acts from some talent agencies in New York. I also met up with a group called Sideshow Productions, out of Greensburg. They wanted to produce some shows, so I bought all the talent for them. As a result, I learned the promoting business the right way, from the ground up. I did the advertising, the production, and so on. Then I started to promote on my own in Youngstown, Johnstown and Erie, and booked my band, the Grains of Sand, as the opening act for all of my shows. That band did really well from '68 through '74, until one important New York agent got wind of what I was doing and said, "I'm never going to sell you another act unless you stop playing drums and focus on being the promoter." That's when I got really serious.
One day in 1974, another local promoter named Pat DiCesare called me and said, "Rich, why should we compete? Let's sit down and make a deal." Again, I was making real money on my own, so I thought long and hard. Most people said, "Are you crazy? Do it!" Pat had the Civic Arena locked up at the time and had a great deal with the Syria Mosque. I had the Stanley Theatre deal kind of put together, which is where I was doing most of my area shows. So Pat and I struck a deal. We called ourselves DiCesare-Engler Productions, and boom! Things started to happen.
For our first show, I stayed conservative. I picked Fleetwood Mac. We sold out. We followed up with Jackson Browne and sold out again. We sold out the next show, too. We were on a roll. I was buying and negotiating all the deals. Pat was occupied with real estate acquisitions. (As a result, we decided at the time to put some of the money we were making into real estate, which turned out to be a very good move.) Ours was a perfect relationship. A couple of years later, I was approached by the owner of the Stanley Theatre who said, "Why don't you buy this place?" I said, "I don't think so. You'd have to make us a super deal." He said, "Let's talk." So Pat and I met with him. This was in late '76 or so. The next thing I knew, we owned the Stanley.
In the years to come, we had all the great shows. We had Bruce Springsteen at the Syria Mosque when he was on the cover of Newsweek and Time. We had ZZ Top's "Texas Tour" at Three Rivers Stadium. We had Pink Floyd. You name it. Music was still a passion for a lot of people, and wonderful things kept happening all the way up to and including the mid-'80s. Then the business started to take a tumble. The absolute lowest point that I can remember was 1990. For whatever reason, people were not going to shows. Things started to pick up in '91, and '94 was the biggest year ever. We had four stadium shows that year and the business made a turn-around. But things started to change for the worse again with the Internet. To think that in the early '80s, everyone was afraid of MTV. The Internet is MTV magnified 1,000 percent! There was no mystique anymore. Everything was out there, available with a few clicks. And it's going to take a major movement to turn this around, a phenomenon like The Beatles. Short of that, I don't know.
In the late '90s, a huge entertainment company called SFX did a roll-up of all the regional mom-and-pop promotion companies across the United States. DiCesare-Engler was part of that roll-up. Around that time, the radio giant Clear Channel thought, "We're already the biggest in radio. Why don't we buy SFX, and become a promoter, too?" So they did that and were able to buy and get everything. It was great in theory but had unintended consequences. The acts and their agents were smart. They figured, "These guys have deep pockets. Let's raise our prices and see if they'll pay." They paid. Guess who paid later? The audience.
Ticket prices went up big-time. I don't believe that the acts wanted to do it. It just kind of evolved out of the new business environment.
If Pat and I hadn't sold DiCesare-Engler in '98, we would have been snuffed out, no question. But the sale was a happy day for two reasons: (1) We made some money; and (2), we took away the inevitable pain of battling to survive. Pat went on with real estate, and I joined the troops in the bigger army, becoming the regional head for Clear Channel for a while. It was a difficult adjustment in many ways, but I know it was the right thing to do. These days, I work with a company called Targe Energy, which deals in natural gas in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Colorado and Montana, and we're expanding. We also have a coal division which is not totally my thing, but I handle some of those projects, and a drill for oil operation in Wyoming. A friend of mine, Bill Spence, who is a mining engineer and an entrepreneur in the truest sense, had been in that business for a long time. Right after my departure from Clear Channel, he said, "Let's build my business. We could probably have some fun in the process, too." Another guy also came on board at Targe, an investment and financial wizard named Matt Miller, to put together additional important deals.
The energy business is a huge departure from music, but I really love it. The people are great. Inmusic, you find a few more eccentric individuals and probably bigger losers in some cases, where the energy business is more consistent. Energy is the place to be right now. The music business is the place not to be. It's not launching many great new talents. American Idol's a wonderful thing but, come on. Music talent today is breaking from TV. Back in the '70s, '80s and even some of the '90s, people's education in popular music came from radio. Radio was it. Today, radio is not taking many chances. And then there's the Internet. Instant access. It's an entirely different world. And building a promoting business is hard today because, when the new acts get bigger, they won't necessarily play for you again. There are no relationships like that anymore, no loyalty.
You know, for a while in my life, I felt a bit guilty for having more than some other people. Butit's all the direct result of hard work and risk. In order to make the big bucks, you have to accept risk. You have to be able to leave your comfort zone. And that's very difficult. You have to think positive thoughts. You have to be fearless in some ways, but also calculating. Even if you think you're doing the right thing and you're making money, there's probably a better way to do it. If you step up, you can make it.
As I've always told my kids, "I don't care what you do, just try to do it the best that anybody's ever done it." If you're
going to be a janitor, just be the best janitor you can be, and guess what? You'll probably end up owning a janitorial business and make a million dollars. This applies to everybody. And even if you can't afford it financially, if you're doing a great job and you're smart, you will find someone who has money and will invest in you. Just go out and do it.
Category : Profiles
What do I know
Jeff Sewald
Jeff is an award-winning independent filmmaker and writer who specializes in defining the cultural significance of American people, places, things and events. Among other projects, he is currently producing a television documentary about the history of jazz in Pittsburgh, and is co-authoring the memoirs of famed forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht.
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The Polish Orienteering Association (, PZOS) is the Polish national organisation of orienteering. It is a full Member of the International Orienteering Federation.

History
The Polish Orienteering Federation was founded in 1960, and joined the International Orienteering Federation in 1967. Poland participated in the World Orienteering Championships first time in 1970.

References

External links
Orienteering in Poland - Polish Orienteering Association

International Orienteering Federation members
Orienteering

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Identifying And Addressing IT Alert Overload
Five Tips To Protect Your Ad Revenue During A Recession
How Providing Staff Awareness Training Improves A Company's Security Posture
How To Navigate The IT Talent Acquisition Landscape In 2023
Businesses Need To Watch These Digital Transformation Trends In 2023
Why Your Board Of Directors Should Focus On Building Your CISO's Self-Resilience
Ensuring Governments Are Prepared For A Multicloud Future
Misconception 3 (of 5): Managing Models Is Like Managing Traditional Software
Stu Bailey
Forbes Councils Member
Forbes Technology Council
COUNCIL POST
Expertise from Forbes Councils members, operated under license. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
| Membership (fee-based)
Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, ModelOp. Founder and most recently Chief Scientist of Infoblox.
Apr 23, 2020, 07:10am EDT |
The first article in this series outlined key misconceptions in enterprise AI. In the post that followed, I discussed how the technical and organizational issues related to AI drive the need for ModelOps as a core enterprise capability. More recently, I covered the profound implications that AutoML will have on the enterprise and how ModelOps will be essential for managing shadow AI. This article deals with one of the most important topics in this series, which is the nature of the relationship between ModelOps and DevOps.
As Gartner, Inc. notes (paywall), there's wide agreement that more models are being developed than are being deployed — a phenomenon called "model debt" — and many of those that have been deployed require a complex retraining process within sensitive production environments that include extensive tests, approvals and other regulatory processes. There's also agreement that the ModelOps discipline is emerging to address the challenges that enterprises are facing in operationalizing their models.
However, when you look further, you'll see there are a number of different notions about what ModelOps does, or should do, and thus correspondingly different views about how ModelOps should be implemented, both technically and organizationally. I'll concentrate on the pitfalls related to viewing ModelOps as an extension of DevOps.
The motivation for ModelOps, as with most things, starts with pain — specifically, the challenges most enterprises are facing as they try to move models from data science workbenches into production. Technical issues, skills mismatches and organizational friction between the various stakeholders lead to inefficiencies and delays. Organizations are now scrambling to break the logjams and reduce their accumulating piles of model debt, and according to a growing list of analysts, ModelOps is increasingly viewed as a foundational component of the solution.
It's not surprising that DevOps is seen as a natural choice for taking on ModelOps, because DevOps arose from a related kind of pain that resulted from the emergence of cloud-delivered software. As a discipline, DevOps addressed the communications issues that were gumming up the handoff from Dev to IT Ops and also drove adoption of agile development methods that, combined with cloud infrastructure, greatly increased the velocity (and quality) of application software delivery.
So why isn't ModelOps just an extension of DevOps applied to analytic models? Fundamentally, it's because models are very different from traditional software, both in terms of the technologies they employ and their organizational impacts. Here are a few of the key ways in which models and software are different:
• Models are directly accountable to the business. Business managers have a continuous, real-time interest in how models are performing, and governance organizations are accountable for the unique risks and liabilities associated with models. However, business managers and compliance teams are rarely (if ever) direct stakeholders in an organization's DevOps processes and systems.
• Software is deterministic. Models are probabilistic.
• While software is highly dependent on data, the code is still separable from the data. Models are encoded or effectively "programmed" by data.
• Software functionality does not degrade over time. Models must be refreshed due to changing patterns in the data, especially those models involving human behavior or sociodemographic information.
• Models are created by people, processes and tools that are very different from those used to create conventional software.
As the name implies, DevOps is fundamentally geared to the cadences and processes that characterize the software life cycle, and model life cycles are quite different from those of software in many respects. Consider issues of scope and scale:
• A large enterprise may have thousands of applications, but a single application can use predictions from dozens or hundreds of models.
• The software life cycle (processes, handoffs, approvals, etc.) is largely independent of the application. However, each model can have a distinct life cycle based on the AI technologies it uses, the data sources it consumes, the application into which it's deployed and the compliance requirements related to the use case. The number of unique model life cycles, which are more complex than software life cycles, can actually exceed the number of models, which may be orders of magnitude greater than software applications.
Many enterprises have tried to simply use or extend DevOps tooling for their AI/ML workflows but are challenged. DevOps tools are designed to handle technical implementations, whereas with models:
• Many of the decisions related to model operationalization are not about technical matters, but business and ethical considerations. (How will the model be used? Is it a proper use? Is there partiality for protected entities?)
• Given the strategic nature of models and especially the implications with consumer decisioning, governance of these models is imperative — and required in regulated industries. DevOps tooling was aimed to provide automation and efficiency in technical implementations, not to be an enterprise's model governance repository.
Perhaps most importantly, the Dev and IT Ops teams are the core stakeholders in DevOps, and the associated processes and tooling are geared around their needs. To function properly, a ModelOps process needs to orchestrate and automate the entire model life cycle. To do so, it has to enfranchise all stakeholders, including data science, DataOps, Dev, IT Ops, governance and the lines of business.
The notion of extending DevOps to "ModelDevOps" may seem intuitive and appealing, but in my experience, tasking DevOps teams with the responsibility of implementing a ModelOps function that addresses the needs of three times the number of stakeholders and can scale to manage 10 to 100 times more life cycles for things that are quite different from software is more than a stretch. This would be on top of the software life cycles that the DevOps team and process are challenged to support every day.
Fortunately, as evidenced by a recent paper by Gartner, (paywall), a consensus is emerging that locates ModelOps as a peer discipline with DevOps and DataOps. This should help to focus energy on implementing ModelOps as a core discipline with the appropriate people, tools and, in particular, mindset that sees models as first-class business assets that can drive enormous value — if treated appropriately.
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text:
Böwing ist der Familienname folgender Personen:

 Walter Böwing (1906–1996), deutscher Leichtathlet
 Werner Böwing (1928–2016), deutscher Gewerkschafter, Sozialist und Pazifist


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Approaching a Perfect Storm in the Print Directory Space?
As the stock market keeps punishing directory publishers' stock worldwide, we're starting to see more articles about "how no one uses the print Yellow Pages" anymore (see Boston.com, CNBC, or WickedLocal.com). People in the industry know it's not true, the Yellow Pages Association (and individual publishers as well) have data to back it up but I fear we're letting public opinion run loose with that preconceived notion.
The good news is that people are reacting. Dave Swanson, CEO of R.H. Donnelley Corp. appeared on CNBC's Fast Money to counter the argument that "Yellow Pages are dead". He did a great job. We need more of that.


What happens when Pheonix and Mr. Hemmings - the most powerful man in New York - 'Get involved' with each other.
I LOVE THIS BOOK, PLEASE UODATE SOON!
What happens when Calum Daughter meets Michaels Son. Does it all go good or bad?
I already have a guess to what will happen next. If the opposite happens I will die.


The fundamental support system includes Administration, Maintenance, House Keeping, Information Technology, and Security. They are the supporting departments of our hospital and also they serve as backbone of St. Thomas Hospital.
The Admission and Discharge Department,the patients are admitted to the concerned ward on the advice of the treating doctor. The ward is designated by the inquiry staff at the admission desk and entered in the case sheet. The hospital also provide separate cell for reception to provide information and answer queries for the people coming to the hospital. Once your physician has ordered your discharge, your nurse will provide written instructions for your care at home. They will review these documents with you and your family before you leave the hospital. If you have received authorization for checkout, you may leave the hospital.
TheMedical Record Department,tensures all data's of patients are recorded properly, segmented accordingly and kept for future record to make a historical analysis incase of necessity.
The Maintenance department of the hospital takes care of complete on – site maintenance of the hospital's vital resources and infrastructure such as uninterrupted power, water, air conditioning, various treatment plants and many allied day to day functions including housekeeping. Maintenance department is responsible for scheduling routine maintenance of repairs and maintenance including monitoring maintenance contracts and follow up, The team also looks after and maintains segregation of Bio Medical waste & sewage systems.
Our Housekeeping department is responsible for training new employees and ensuring their work schedules are coordinated. The head oversee the work of the employees and order cleaning supplies as needed, assigns tasks to employees and make cleaning suggestions to help improve service, also resolve complaints from patients regarding the cleaning services. The department periodically organize staff meetings to inform employees.
The Information Technology department of St. Thomas Hospital manages all the hardware and software of the hospital. The department uses technical advancement of latest Hospital Management System (HMS) to record and facilitate the transaction of the hospital so as to save time and provide accuracy of transaction. The system administrator gathers information, analyze and summarize, and share with those who need. The IT department incorporates data from multiple sources, dynamic information repository, Shifts to real –time. They also help our medical team work better.
The Security department of our hospital ensures the safety of the hospital plant, personnel, patients and public as well as regulating the traffic within the hospital premises. The role of security in St. Thomas Hospital is to prevent and handle any disturbance, so that the hospital functioning can go on smoothly and without any disturbance.


A former Mexican television actor who went on to make a name for himself in U.S. film and television, Cristián de la Fuente served in the Chilean Air Force Reserve before he starting acted professionally; his military background may not have pointed to a cinematic career early on, but his speedy ascent to fame hinted at great things to come for the actor. Born to a chemist father and homemaker mother in Santiago, Chile, de la Fuente opted early on to study engineering while attending college in his native country. An only child, the licensed pilot was discovered by a talent scout and then made appearances in Chilean soap operas and variety shows before relocating to Mexico for a leading role in the popular television series Reyes y Rey (1998). Following a stateside television appearance in Family Law, the handsome Latino would subsequently turn up in the Sylvester Stallone racing drama Driven (2001). Claiming to be equally happy whether acting on stage, screen, or film, de la Fuente describes his acting method as loaning his body to the characters rather than portraying them, and he often becomes so entangled with his characters that he finds it difficult to wind down at the end of the day. Following his work with childhood idol Stallone, de la Fuente next took a role alongside another favorite from his youth, singer-turned-actor Jon Bon Jovi. As a man of the cloth dedicated to ridding the world of blood-sucking immortals, de la Fuente teamed with Bon Jovi to battle the legions of the undead in the vast deserts of Mexico in Vampires: Los Muertos (2002). Though that film ultimately proved to be a bit of a disappointment, de la Fuente's subsequent role in director John McTiernan's Basic (2003) seemed to ensure a healthy career for the promising young actor. The actor co-starred in the short lived television series In Plain Sight in 2008, and competed in the 6th season of Dancing with the Stars the same year.


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"Testing improves the design. It allows a designer to know how to solve a given problem or come up with a given solution."
In this new episode of projekt202's Thought Leadership video series, Director of Experience Strategy and Insight Joe Dyer discusses the uses and benefits of customer experience validation, including usability testing and iterative validation.
As Joe demonstrates, testing "gathers the voice of the customer," a valuable component in shaping a design and helping an organization improve its customers' experiences with their products, services and brands.
Watch Joe's video presentation for more insights now.
Keep an eye on projekt202 news by following us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook,YouTube and Instagram.


Which is the best method for a woman or a girl to get better? To remove the blues, to feel happy? One, two, three..shopping is the magic word! Especially if one has enough money on the credit card, than sky is the limit! New pair of shoes or new dress can do a magic to a lady. She feels alive again, happy again and ready to go on. But, very importantly, she needs someone to tell her that the new things she bought, look perfect on her. It is interesting that this doesn't work that way to men, or women think so.
Betty, Lisa and Dona are three best friends enjoying the moments spent together. One thing they love the most doing is when they are all free and go on a a shopping. That day is actually today. Their meeting point is the famous City mall. The common shopping starts.
Our player has the obligation to be their assistant and has to do the best to find all the needed objects that the three friends want to buy. This is not going to be a touch task for you, isn't it? Enjoy for a while and buy the more possible!
why so so long to load ????


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Damon Lindelof's 'The Leftovers' Scores Pilot Order at HBO
The adaptation of Tom Perrotta's novel becomes his first TV series project since "Lost."
The Leftovers Cover - P 2012
Damon Lindelof is setting his sights on TV again.
Six months after announcing that he was developing an adaptation of author Tom Perrotta's novel The Leftovers, HBO has ordered the drama to pilot, sources confirm to The Hollywood Reporter.
As first reported by Vulture, the former Lost co-creator will co-write the project with Perrotta under his three-year deal with Warner Bros. Television. HBO will produce alongside WBTV. Perrotta also will executive produce with Ron Yerxa and Albert Berger. Should the project move forward from its development status, Lindelof would serve as showrunner.
More TV Development News
Leftovers, which was published in May, revolves around the Rapture and follows a group of people who are left behind in the suburban community of Mapleton. They must begin to rebuild their lives after the sudden and mysterious disappearance of more than 100 people.
In addition to co-writing Prometheus, Lindelof has the upcoming sequel Star Trek Into Darkness as well as Disney's Tomorrowland (formerly known as 1952) set up on the big screen. Lindelof is repped by CAA and Myman Greenspan.
For HBO, The Leftovers joins its drama pilots including Criminal Justice, Ben Walker starrer The Missionary and Buda Bridge.
Sympathy and Advice: 'Lost''s Damon Lindelof Defends 'The Killing' Season Finale (Guest Column)
Damon Lindelof Nears Big Overall Deal With Warner Bros. TV (Exclusive)
'Prometheus' Writer Damon Lindelof on Why 'Vague' Is Good and the 'Sadistically Cool' Fallout From the 'Lost' Finale
Damon Lindelof to Rewrite 'World War Z' (Exclusive)
Damon Lindelof Developing Tom Perrotta's 'The Leftovers' at HBO
'Star Trek Into Darkness': 13 Photos to Get You in the Mood
Damon Lindelof


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text:
Subsidy cuts ruled out in state budget
Government subsidies benefiting low-income families will not undergo any reduction in the 2021-2022 state budget.
"Cash allowances will continue to be disbursed to eligible recipients," said Shura Council's financial and economic affairs committee chairman Khalid Al Maskati.
In an exclusive statement to our sister paper Akhbar Al Khaleej, he stressed co-operation between the executive and legislative branches to preserve citizens' gains, particularly of those low-income households.
"The amounts allocated in the 2021-2022 state budget for social allowances will remain intact," he said.
He said that imposing taxes was not the only option, adding that Bahrain was late to levy fees, compared with other countries.
He underlined Bahrain's success in mitigating the fallout of oil prices drop and the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19).
He said that the recovery plan which was announced recently would contribute to revitalising the national economy, support further diversification of revenues and woo more investments.
Source: https://www.gdnonline.com/Details/1003365


Paintings Of Syed Ali Arif And Sunil M Lohar is an event that took place between 20-Jun-2006 and 05-Jul-2006 in Hyderabad.
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text:
Sephardi Hebrew language
Title: Sephardi Hebrew language
Subject: Hebrew language, Modern Hebrew phonology, Amen, Hypercorrection, Canaanite languages, Biblical Hebrew, Mishnaic Hebrew, Ashkenazi Hebrew, Segol, Syrian Jews
Sephardi Hebrew (or Sepharadi Hebrew) is the pronunciation system for Biblical Hebrew favored for liturgical use by Sephardi Jewish practice. Its phonology was influenced by contact languages such as Spanish, Ladino, Arabic, Portuguese and Greek.
1 Phonology of Sephardi Hebrew
4 Influence on Israeli Hebrew
5 Endnotes
Phonology of Sephardi Hebrew
There is some variation between the various forms of Sephardi Hebrew, but the following generalisations may be made.
The stress tends to fall on the last syllable wherever this is the case in Biblical Hebrew
The letter ע (`ayin) is realized as a sound, though the specific sound varies between communities. One pronunciation associated with Sephardi Hebrew is a velar nasal ([ŋ]) sound, as in English singing, while others maintain the pharyngeal sound of Yemenite Hebrew or Arabic.
"Resh" is invariably trilled (like Spanish r) rather than uvular (like French r)
/t/ and /d/ are more often realized as dental plosives rather than alveolar.
There is always a phonetic distinction between ת (tav) and ס (samekh)
The Sephardi dialects observe the Kimhian five-vowel system (a e i o u), either with or without distinctions of vowel length: that is
Tsere is pronounced [e(ː)], not [ei]
Holam is pronounced [o(ː)], not [au] or [oi]
Kamats gadol is pronounced [a(ː)], not [o]
This last difference is the standard shibboleth for distinguishing Sephardi from Ashkenazi (and Yemenite) Hebrew. The differentiation between kamatz gadol and kamatz katan is made according to purely phonetic rules without regard to etymology, which occasionally leads to spelling pronunciations at variance with the rules laid down in Biblical Hebrew grammar books. For example, כָל (all), when unhyphenated, is pronounced "kal" rather than "kol" (in "kal 'atsmotai" and "Kal Nidre"), and צָהֳרַיִם (noon) is pronounced "tsahorayim" rather than "tsohorayim". This feature is also found in Mizrahi Hebrew, but is not found in Israeli Hebrew. It is represented in the transliteration of proper names in the Authorised Version, such as "Naomi", "Aholah" and "Aholibamah".
Sephardim differ on the pronunciation of bet raphe (ב, bet without dagesh). Persian, Moroccan, Greek, Turkish, Balkan and Jerusalem Sephardim usually pronounce it as [v], and this is reflected in modern Hebrew. Spanish and Portuguese Jews traditionally[1] pronounced it as [b ~ β] (as do most Mizrahi Jews), though this is declining under the influence of Israeli Hebrew.
This may reflect changes in the pronunciation of Spanish. In medieval Spanish (and in Ladino), b and v were separate, with the same sounds as in English. However, in Renaissance and modern Spanish, the sounds of the two letters have assimilated, and both are pronounced [β] (bilabial v) when following a vowel (or continuant) and as [b] otherwise (after a pause).
There is also a difference in the pronunciation of taw raphe (ת, taw without dagesh) .
The normal Sephardi pronunciation (reflected in modern Israeli Hebrew) is as an unvoiced dental plosive ([t]);
Greek Sephardim (like some Mizrahi Jews, e.g. Iraqis and Yemenites) pronounced it as a voiceless dental fricative ([θ]);
Some Spanish and Portuguese Jews and Sephardim from the Spanish-Moroccan tradition pronounce it as a voiced dental plosive [d] or fricative [ð] (see lenition).
Closely related to the Sephardi pronunciation is the Italian pronunciation of Hebrew, which may be regarded as a variant of it.
In communities from Italy, Greece and Turkey, he is not realized as [h], but as a silent letter. This is due to the influence of Italian, Ladino and (to a lesser extent) Greek, all of which lack the sound. This was also the case in early transliterations of Spanish-Portuguese manuscripts (e.g. Ashkibenu as opposed to Hashkibenu), but today he is consistently pronounced in these communities. (Basilectal Modern Hebrew shares this characteristic, but it is considered substandard.)
There have been several theories on the origins of the different Hebrew reading traditions. The basic cleavage is between those who believe that the differences arose in medieval Europe and those who believe that they reflect older differences between the pronunciations of Hebrew and Aramaic current in different parts of the Fertile Crescent, that is to say Judaea, Galilee, Syria, northern Mesopotamia and Babylonia proper.
Within the first group of theories, Zimmels believed that the Ashkenazi pronunciation arose in late medieval Europe and that the pronunciation prevailing in France and Germany in the time of the Tosafists was similar to the Sephardic. His evidence for this was the fact that Asher ben Jehiel, a German who became chief rabbi of Toledo, never refers to any difference of pronunciation, though he is normally very sensitive to differences between the two communities.
The difficulty with the second group of theories is that we do not know for certain what the pronunciations of these countries actually were and how far they differed. Since the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, if not before, the Sephardic pronunciation of the vowels became standard in all these countries, ironing out any differences that previously existed.[2] This makes it harder to adjudicate between the different theories on the relationship between today's pronunciation systems and those of ancient times.
Leopold Zunz believed that the Ashkenazi pronunciation was derived from that of Palestine in Geonic times (7th-11th centuries CE), while the Sephardi pronunciation was derived from that of Babylonia. This theory was supported by the fact that, in some respects, Ashkenazi Hebrew resembles the western dialect of Syriac while Sephardi Hebrew resembles the eastern, e.g. Eastern Syriac Peshitta as against Western Syriac Peshito. Ashkenazi Hebrew in its written form also resembles Palestinian Hebrew in its tendency to male spellings (see Mater lectionis).
Others, including Abraham Zevi Idelsohn, believed that the distinction is more ancient, and represents the distinction between the Judaean and Galilean dialects of Hebrew in Mishnaic times (1st-2nd centuries CE), with the Sephardi pronunciation being derived from Judaean and the Ashkenazi from Galilean. This theory is supported by the fact that Ashkenazi Hebrew, like Samaritan Hebrew, has lost the distinct sounds of many of the guttural letters, while there are references in the Talmud to this as a feature of Galilean speech. Idelsohn ascribes the Ashkenazi (and, on his theory, Galilean) pronunciation of qamats gadol as /o/ to the influence of Phoenician: see Canaanite shift.
In the time of the Masoretes (8th-10th centuries CE) there were three distinct notations for denoting vowels and other details of pronunciation in Biblical and liturgical texts. One was the Babylonian; another was the Palestinian; the third was the Tiberian, which eventually superseded the other two and is still in use today.
Of these, the Palestinian notation provides the best fit to the current Sephardi pronunciation: for example it does not distinguish between pataẖ and qamats, or between segol and tsere. (Similarly, the Babylonian notation appears to fit the Yemenite pronunciation.) The Tiberian notation does not quite fit any pronunciation in use today, though the underlying pronunciation has been reconstructed by modern scholars: see Tiberian vocalization. (A variant of the Tiberian notation was used by Ashkenazim, before being superseded by the standard version.)
The accepted rules of Hebrew grammar, including the current Sephardic pronunciation, were laid down in medieval Spain by grammarians such as Judah ben David Hayyuj and Jonah ibn Janah. By then the Tiberian notation was universally used, though it was not always reflected in pronunciation. The Spanish grammarians accepted the rules laid down by the Tiberian Masoretes, with the following variations.
The traditional Sephardic pronunciation of the vowels (inherited, as it seems, from the old Palestinian system) was perpetuated. Their failure to fit the Tiberian notation was rationalized by the theory that the distinctions between Tiberian symbols represented differences of length rather than quality: thus pataẖ was short a, qamats was long a, segol was short e and tsere was long e.
The theory of long and short vowels was also used to adapt Hebrew to the rules of Arabic poetic metre. For example, in Arabic (and Persian) poetry, when a long vowel occurs in a closed syllable an extra (short) syllable is treated as present for metrical purposes, though not represented in pronunciation. Similarly in Sephardic Hebrew a shewa following a syllable with a long vowel is invariably treated as vocal. (In Tiberian Hebrew this is only true when the long vowel is marked with meteg.)
Further differences from the Tiberian system are:
Sephardim now pronounce shewa na as /e/ in all positions, though the older rules (as in the Tiberian system) were more complicated.[3]
Resh is invariably pronounced by Sephardim as a "front" alveolar trill; in the Tiberian system the pronunciation appears to have varied with the context, so that it was treated as a letter with a double (sometimes triple) pronunciation.
In brief, Sephardi Hebrew appears to be a descendant of the Palestinian tradition, partially adapted to accommodate the Tiberian notation and further influenced by the pronunciation of Arabic, Spanish and Judaeo-Spanish (Ladino).
Influence on Israeli Hebrew
When Eliezer ben Yehuda drafted his Standard Hebrew language, he based it on Sephardi Hebrew, both because this was the de facto spoken form as a lingua franca in the land of Israel and because he believed it to be most beautiful of the Hebrew dialects. However, the phonology of Modern Hebrew is in some respects constrained to that of Ashkenazi Hebrew, including the elimination of pharyngeal articulation and the conversion of /r/ from an alveolar tap to a voiced uvular fricative.
^ Solomon Pereira, 'Hochmat Shelomo.
^ To a lesser extent the same is true for the consonants, though the Jews of Iraq retain /w/ for waw and /θ/ for taw raphe, and the Jews of Arabic countries generally retain emphatic and guttural consonant sounds: see Mizrahi Hebrew.
^ The older rules are still reflected in later Sephardic grammatical works such as Solomon Almoli's Halichot Sheva and in the pronunciation of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews of Amsterdam. In Oriental communities such as the Syrian Jews, these rules continued to be recorded by grammarians into the 1900s (e.g. Sethon, Menasheh, Kelale diqduq ha-qeriah, Aleppo 1914), though they were not normally reflected in actual pronunciation
Ashkenazi Hebrew
Yemenite Hebrew
Almoli, Solomon, Halichot Sheva: Constantinople 1519
Kahle, Paul, Masoreten des Ostens: Die Altesten Punktierten Handschriften des Alten Testaments und der Targume: 1913, repr. 1966
Kahle, Paul, Masoreten des Westens: 1927, repr. 1967 and 2005
S. Morag, 'Pronunciations of Hebrew', Encyclopaedia Judaica XIII, 1120–1145
Sáenz-Badillos, Angel (1996). A History of the Hebrew Language. trans. John Elwolde. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN .
Zimmels, Ashkenazim and Sephardim: their Relations, Differences, and Problems As Reflected in the Rabbinical Responsa : London 1958 (since reprinted). ISBN 0-88125-491-6
Hebrew language
Transliteration to English / from English
Mishnaic
Israelian
Reading traditions
Mizrahi (Syrian)
Tiberian (extinct)
Palestinian (extinct)
Babylonian (extinct)
Ashuri
Paleo-Hebrew
Dalet
Zayin
Lamed
Samech
Tsadi
Kuf
Reish
Niqqud
Tiberian
Shva
Hiriq
Tzere
Segol
Patach
Kamatz
Holam
Shuruk
Kubutz
Dagesh
Mappiq
Maqqef
Sin/Shin Dot
with Niqqud / missing / full
Mater lectionis
Meteg
Cantillation
Geresh
Gershayim
Inverted nun
Shekel sign
Philippi's law
Law of attenuation
Verbal morphology
Semitic roots
Segolate
Waw-consecutive
Ulpan
Hebrew / Israeli literature
Unicode and HTML
Jewish languages
Afro-Asiatic
Samaritan Hebrew
Judeo-Aramaic
Talmudic
Barzani
Hulaulá
Lishana Deni
Lishán Didán
Lishanid Noshan
Betanure Jewish Neo-Aramaic
Samaritan Aramaic
Judeo-Arabic
Judaeo-Iraqi
Judaeo-Morrocan
Judaeo-Tripolitanian
Judaeo-Tunisian
Judaeo-Yemeni
Kayla / Qwara (Cushitic)
Judaeo-Berber (Berber)
Dialects / Argots
Litvish
Poylish
Ukrainish
Galitzish
Yiddish Dutch
Scots Yiddish
Alsatian Yiddish
Klezmer-loshn
ganovim-loshn
balagole-loshn
katsoves-loshn
Sabesdiker losn
Judendeutsch
Yiddish sign language
Lachoudisch
Jewish English
Yeshivish
Heblish
Judaeo-Romance
Judaeo-Catalan (Catalanic)
Judaeo-Italian
Judaeo-Piedmontese
Judaeo-Spanish (Ladino)
Haketia
Tetuani
Judaeo-Latin (La'az)
Judaeo-Provençal (Shuadit)
Zarphatic
Judaeo-Portuguese (Lusitanic)
Judaeo-Aragonese
Judaeo-Iranian
Bukhori
Juhuri
Dzhidi
Judaeo-Hamedani
Judaeo-Shirazi
Judaeo-Esfahani
Judaeo-Kurdish
Judaeo-Yazdi
Judaeo-Kermani
Judaeo-Kashani
Judaeo-Borujerdi
Judaeo-Khunsari
Judaeo-Golpaygani
Judaeo-Nehevandi
Yevanic (Hellenic)
Knaanic (Slavic)
Judaeo-Marathi (Indo-Aryan)
Krymchak / Karaim (Turkic)
Judaeo-Malayalam (Dravidian)
Judaeo-Georgian (Kartvelian)
Articles with unsourced statements from October 2014
Sephardi Jews topics
Arabic language, Israel, Jerusalem, Hebrew alphabet, Ethnologue
Modern Hebrew phonology
Voiceless alveolar sibilant, Voiceless velar stop, Hebrew language, Voiceless bilabial stop, Voiced bilabial stop
Arabic language, Judaism, Islam, Hebrew language, Hebrew Bible
Hypercorrection
Linguistics, Language, Sociolinguistics, Spanish language, Jyutping
Canaanite languages
Punic language, Semitic languages, Hebrew language, Northwest Semitic languages, Phoenician language


Incommunities has scooped a prestigious national prize for its trades apprenticeship programme.
The West Yorkshire-based housing group was named 'Apprentice Large Employer of the Year' at the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) Apprenticeship Awards, held in London last week.
The award was made by BBC Breakfast presenter Steph McGovern to Incommunities' Director of HR, Susan Laycock and the housing group's Construction Skills Manager, Tony Thompson.
Incommunities currently trains 33 apprentices in a range of building trades. Over the last 14 years, 135 men and women have completed or are working towards their vocational qualification. Nearly 98% of those trained have become trade professionals within the housing group.
The programme draws people from across communities and under-represented groups. Thirty-three women and BME recruits have successfully completed the programme.
Geraldine Howley, Incommunities Group Chief Executive, said: "This award is a fantastic accolade for everyone involved in the delivery of our apprenticeship programme.
"As an organisation we are keen to invest in apprenticeships and we work closely with schools and training partners including the CITB to attract high calibre recruits and deliver the highest quality training.
"The development of each apprentice is a real team effort involving the professional commitment of mentors, trade teams, managers and our dedicated Construction Training Team.
Sarah Beale, Chief Executive of CITB said: "Huge congratulations to Incommunities, who I had the pleasure of meeting, on their win!
"They are a great example of an employer that's really developing their skills fit for a modern construction industry and we are proud to support them.


text:
Back to school for Shepherd and Wedderburn lawyer
Kirsty Headden, solicitor at leading UK law firm, Shepherd and Wedderburn went back to her roots when she returned to her old school for an informal Q&A session with teachers and students.
Her visit to North Berwick High School formed part of the State School Lawyers scheme, a diversity project run by teacher-led charity, Impressive People, of which Shepherd and Wedderburn is a founding partner.
Impressive People helps state schools build links with former pupils who then act as role models, encouraging young people who may be interested in following in their footsteps. Through the State School Lawyers initiative, the charity aims show young people that talented individuals from all types of schools can and do reach the highest levels of the legal profession. The scheme also hopes to raise confidence and aspirations in the schools.
On the day, Kirsty, who is a solicitor in Shepherd and Wedderburn's top-ranked pensions team, answered questions on her time at school and university, and about her working life as a solicitor. She also addressed the challenges of balancing a demanding job with parenthood and gave youngsters advice on the issues to consider when choosing a career.
Commenting on her visit to the school, Kirsty said: "It was a real privilege to spend time with such bright, talented young people and to give them some insight into my life as a lawyer. The State School Lawyers project is fantastic. Law can seem intimidating, especially in the absence of relatable role models, but there is no reason why state school pupils can't go on to have hugely rewarding and successful careers. Many of the leading Shepherd and Wedderburn partners, including our Chief Executive, Stephen Gibb, come from a state school background."
Speaking on behalf of Impressive People, the charity's Director, Patrick Gaffney, thanked Shepherd and Wedderburn for participating in the State School Lawyers initiative.
He said: "Shepherd and Wedderburn were among the first law firms to back our work in schools. The firm has a very strong commitment to education and diversity and we are extremely grateful for their generous support over many years.
"Kirsty would be the last to admit it, but she was an absolute star who charmed the staff and entertained youngsters with interesting and highly relevant answers to their probing questions."
The Q&A was filmed by Skills Development Scotland and is available to view here.
Members of the Shepherd and Wedderburn team appear in a new directory of state school lawyers on the Impressive People website at www.impressivepeople.org.


text:
Get a Yard Sign
Why I'm excited to raise my daughter in Carmel
Home Uncategorized Why I'm excited to raise my daughter in Carmel
10.01.2019 Adam Aasen 0
This is a very special column because I'm happy to announce that on Dec. 4, 2018, my wife Nicole and I welcomed our first child into this world. She gave birth to a beautiful little girl we've named Madeline Elizabeth Aasen.
Although it's still very new, becoming a father changes everything.
Immediately I bonded with her and felt an instant connection. I'm so excited to see her grow up and I'm trying my best to soak up every moment in the mean time.
Of course, this column isn't about me. It's about my thoughts and observations on the City of Carmel. So in order to tie this momentous occasion into the column's focus, I'll tell you a little about why I'm excited that we're raising our child in Carmel.
GREAT SCHOOLS
One of big reasons why people move to Hamilton County — and Carmel specifically — is because of the school system. My wife is a Carmel High School graduate (I graduated from North Central, just down the road) and my mother in law is a retired CHS teacher. I'm a board member for the Carmel Education Foundation and I currently participate in a program called Expedition, that informs members of the community about everything going on in the school system. So I've become familiar with how great Carmel Clay Schools are. The district is rated A by the Indiana Department of Education and has been awarded 10 National Blue Ribbon Awards. CHS was ranked as the fifth best high school in the state for 2018, according to U.S. News and World Report.
Almost every year, Carmel ranks among the state's safest cities. In November 2018, a Web site called Safewide analyzed crime data and ranked Carmel as the third safest city in the state, with Fishers ranking second and St. John taking first. In 2017, the same Web site listed Carmel as the fourth safest city in the entire United States for raising children. The Web site looked at graduation rates, violent crime reports, sex offender concentration and more when tallying up the score.
Not only does Carmel have low crime rates, but it's also a safe city for motorists. Because the city has 122 roundabouts, as of January 2019, there are fewer auto accidents with serious injuries. In the past two decades, Carmel's population has tripled but the number of serious injury accidents has remained the same, which means a dramatic drop when you crunch per capita numbers. Sure, there are side swipes that take out a side mirror but the design of roundabouts reduce the likelihood of a head-on collison which makes a father feel safe when he has his newborn daughter in the back carseat.
AMENITIES GALORE
For me personally, I couldn't live in a really small town. I'd be too bored. But a big city would be stressful for me. I hate sitting in traffic or dealing with large crowds. I think Carmel is the perfect size for my family. Busy enough that there's plenty to do but not as crowded as downtown Indianapolis. When my daughter gets older I look forward to taking her to watch plays at The Center for the Peforming Arts, eat breakfast at the Carmel Farmers Market, check out books at the Carmel Clay Library, ice skate at The Ice at Center Green, watch fireworks at CarmelFest and walk our two dogs along the soon-to-be widened Monon Greenway. Probably the thing I look forward to most is taking her to the parks. I'll sign her up for swim lessons at the Monon Communty Center when she's old enough and let her play at the playground at the Central Park West Commons, which is state of the art. It's amazing to think that when Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard took office in 1996 there were only 40 acres of park land in the city. Now there's nearly 1,000 acres.
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Hot on the heels of the Ontario report yesterday, the Federal Privacy Commissioner has released her annual report on PIPEDA. It really should be a must read for anyone interested in PIPEDA, as it discusses many of the notable cases of the last year and some of the issues in the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. For example, the average resolution time from initial complaint to final finding has moved to sixteen months, five more months than in 2005.
Here's the media release with links to the report.
Ottawa, May 31, 2007 — There has never been a greater need to take data protection seriously as new data breaches reinforce concerns about both security issues and trans-border data flows, according to the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Jennifer Stoddart. Her 2006 Annual Report on the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) was tabled today in Parliament.
High-profile data breaches among a few well-known banking and retail organizations during 2006 reinforce the very serious nature of privacy breaches and the need to better protect personal information held by private sector companies.
Despite these cases, complaints against some of the major sectors covered by PIPEDA since 2001 (financial institutions, insurance companies and the transportation sector) have declined slightly. This is in contrast, however, to those industries which have been subject to PIPEDA only since 2004, such as the retail and accommodation sectors. These sectors have been the subject of substantially more complaints than in previous years. Overall, there were 424 complaints in 2006, compared with 400 in 2005.
"We are pleased to see fewer complaints related to sectors more familiar with PIPEDA; I believe it stems from a stronger understanding of the Act. It would appear that compliance is improving with time and we look forward to seeing this trend continue," says Commissioner Stoddart.
"Sectors with less experience with PIPEDA have more work to do. As they gain a better understanding of what the law requires, we expect to see a decrease in complaints involving them," she says.
That research, a survey of Canadian businesses on a number of issues relating to privacy, was conducted by Ekos Research Associates earlier this year. The results raise important questions about whether some businesses are doing enough to fulfill their PIPEDA obligations.
While the majority of businesses that collect personal customer information have fully implemented PIPEDA provisions (67 per cent), there are a small but not insignificant number that are only in the process of implementing (16 per cent) and others that are not in the process of doing so (15 per cent).
Only a third of all businesses report having staff that has been trained about their responsibilities under Canada's privacy laws.
Less than one in five has sought clarification of their role, although this is also much higher among larger businesses.
"Almost half of the businesses studied tend to rate their company's awareness of its responsibilities under the privacy laws favourably. However, a similar number report either low or moderate awareness. PIPEDA and its provincial counterparts regulate commercial activity in Canada. All businesses that handle personal information need a good understanding of what the law requires," says Commissioner Stoddart. "Businesses must realize the importance of living up to the law's privacy protection principles and the consequences of failing to do so.
Going forward, these companies will need to take steps to ensure greater compliance with the Act. Canadians expect private sector organizations to safeguard their personal information, particularly given the proliferation of identity theft.
In the fall of 2007, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner will be hosting the who's who of the privacy world at the 29th International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners in Montreal. Details are available at http://www.privacyconference2007.gc.ca/.


text:
Krystal Boese
Office of Research Support Services
1000 North Oak Ave. 1R3 Marshfield, WI 54449
Administrative Secretary, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute, Marshfield, WI
Ms. Boese is responsible for administrative secretarial duties for three departments within Marshfield Clinic Research Institute (MCRI). She provides support and guidance to the Office of Research Support Services (ORSS), Office of Research Computing and Analytics (ORCA) and the Integrated Research & Development Laboratory (IRDL). Ms. Boese got into research support to assist those who are making a difference.


text:
package org.apache.spark.mllib.evaluation.binary

/**
 * Trait for a binary confusion matrix.
 */
private[evaluation] trait BinaryConfusionMatrix {
  /** weighted number of true positives */
  def weightedTruePositives: Double

  /** weighted number of false positives */
  def weightedFalsePositives: Double

  /** weighted number of false negatives */
  def weightedFalseNegatives: Double

  /** weighted number of true negatives */
  def weightedTrueNegatives: Double

  /** weighted number of positives */
  def weightedPositives: Double = weightedTruePositives + weightedFalseNegatives

  /** weighted number of negatives */
  def weightedNegatives: Double = weightedFalsePositives + weightedTrueNegatives
}

/**
 * Implementation of [[org.apache.spark.mllib.evaluation.binary.BinaryConfusionMatrix]].
 *
 * @param count label counter for labels with scores greater than or equal to the current score
 * @param totalCount label counter for all labels
 */
private[evaluation] case class BinaryConfusionMatrixImpl(
    count: BinaryLabelCounter,
    totalCount: BinaryLabelCounter) extends BinaryConfusionMatrix {

  /** number of true positives */
  override def weightedTruePositives: Double = count.weightedNumPositives

  /** number of false positives */
  override def weightedFalsePositives: Double = count.weightedNumNegatives

  /** number of false negatives */
  override def weightedFalseNegatives: Double =
    totalCount.weightedNumPositives - count.weightedNumPositives

  /** number of true negatives */
  override def weightedTrueNegatives: Double =
    totalCount.weightedNumNegatives - count.weightedNumNegatives

  /** number of positives */
  override def weightedPositives: Double = totalCount.weightedNumPositives

  /** number of negatives */
  override def weightedNegatives: Double = totalCount.weightedNumNegatives
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Sunspot Solr Not Working with a simple scope Unless I'm high, I'm following the docs exactly but the scoping is still not working.  I'm not getting any errors, just an empty array in the results when I do the following:
search = Product.search do
  with(:website_id, 2)
end

@results = search.results

The response I get from the console is this:
=> <Sunspot::Search:{:fq=>["type:Product", "website_id_i:2"], :start=>0, :rows=>30, :q=>"*:*"}>

Here's what the code on my Product model looks like:
searchable do
  text :name
  integer :website_id
end

when I do the same search using "without", I actually get the record with website_id of 2.  I just dont understand why the scoping isn't working on the 'with' method.
I have updated to the latest version of both the sunspot_rails & sunspot_solr gems.

A: Figured it out.  Had to reindex solr in order to reflect the changes made on my model.
bundle exec rake sunspot:solr:stop
bundle exec rake sunspot:solr:start
bundle exec rake sunspot:solr:reindex

Then, restart your rails server, restart your console, and all should be happy again in happy land.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: How to parse JSON dictionary I have the following JSON response containing a JSON dictionary:

What I need is to only extract the 3 categories names (only 1 shown in my screenshot, namely "Drinks", but you can see at the very top a count of 3).
I tried the following, but always get nil returned.
func getMenuCategories() {
    let headers = [
        "Api-key": apiKey
    ]

    let url = "https://xxxxxxxx/menu/categories"

    Alamofire.request(.GET, url, headers: headers, encoding: .JSON)
        .responseJSON { response in switch response.result {
                case .Success(let JSON):
                    print("Success with JSON: \(JSON)")

                    let response = JSON as! NSDictionary
                    let categories1 = response.objectForKey("_embedded")!  // always nil
                    let categories2 = response.objectForKey("categories")! // always nil

                case .Failure(let error):
                    print("Request failed with error: \(error)")
            }
    }
}

I know I get a valid response because variable JSON contains the whole response.
How can I search correctly?

A: For that particular JSON you could do the following
guard let jsonData = JSON as? [String: Any],
    let embedded = jsonData["_embedded"] as? [String: Any],
    let categories = embedded["categories"] as? [[String: Any]] else {
        return
}

Now categories should have the array of [String:Any] and in your case categories[0] is going to hold the information for the one with Drinks i.e.
guard let drinksCategory = categories.first,
    let name = drinksCategory["name"] as? String else {
        return
}

Now if all is good with the JSON the name variable should have the correct information you want

A: to answer my own question in case this helps anyone, I ended up using valueForKeyPath as follows:
func getMenuCategories() {
    let headers = [
        "Api-key": apiKey
    ]

    let url = "https://xxxxxxxx/menu/categories"

    Alamofire.request(.GET, url, headers: headers, encoding: .JSON)
        .responseJSON { response in switch response.result {
                case .Success(let JSON):
                    print("Success with JSON: \(JSON)")

                    let jsonData = JSON as? NSDictionary
                    let categories = jsonData?.valueForKeyPath("_embedded.categories._embedded.items._embedded.menu_categories.name")

                case .Failure(let error):
                    print("Request failed with error: \(error)")
            }
    }
}


text:
Tag Archives: bots
Book Review: Sting by Cindy R. Wilson @cindyrwilson @entangledteen @YABoundToursPR
March 6, 2020 by Lelia T
Title: Sting
Author: Cindy R. Wilson
Genres: Science Fiction, Dystopian, Young Adult
Cindy R. Wilson
Entangled Teen, March 2020
They call me the Scorpion because they don't know who I really am. All they know is that someone is stealing from people with excess to help people with nothing survive another day.
But then a trusted friend reveals who I am―"just" Tessa, "just" a girl―and sends me straight into the arms of the law. All those people I helped…couldn't help me when I needed it.
In prison, I find an unlikely ally in Pike, who would have been my enemy on the outside. He represents everything I'm against. Luxury. Excess. The world immediately falling for his gorgeous smile. How he ended up in the dirty cell next to mine is a mystery, but he wants out as much as I do. Together, we have a real chance at escape.
With the sting of betrayal still fresh, Pike and I will seek revenge on those who wronged us. But uncovering all their secrets might turn deadly…
Last fall, I was introduced to Ms. Wilson's work through her book, Rival, and I liked it very much. At the time, I hoped to see more from her but I didn't think that would happen so soon. I'm mighty glad I was wrong.
Once again, the author has crafted a story that tips the hat to both another fictional theme, The Count of Monte Cristo, and a legendary quasi-historical figure, Robin Hood. Tessa is a young girl who makes her way in a harsh world—one which we have brought upon ourselves through climate change—but always has an eye towards helping others who are less fortunate by appropriating supplies from those who live a life of privilege and plenty. Tessa has a somewhat surly attitude but she always wants to make life a little easier for those who barely survive day to day in the Dark District and she has formed a family of sorts among a little girl named Cass, a boy named River who is beginning to stir certain feelings in Tessa and Elle, a girl who resents her own origins in the Light District. Each night, they have to avoid the Enforcers who are directed to keep residents of the Dark District in their place.
Tessa has acquired a nickname, Scorpion, largely because of her quick, rapid forays into enemy territory and it's both a hindrance and a source of pride but betrayal of the deepest sort gets her thrown in the prison known as Decay. After that, escape and revenge are all she wants. A fellow prisoner, Pike, has his own reasons to seek retribution but, for both, the future is a nebulous thing.
Appealing characters and a strong plot, along with a vivid setting, kept me reading into the night and I especially appreciated that this is a self-contained story…although I wouldn't be averse to another adventure for Tessa and her family 😉
Reviewed by Lelia Taylor, March 2020.
An Excerpt from Sting
He empties another pot of water. "How did you learn how to do all this?"
"Unclog sinks?"
"Fix things. They said the Scorpion built robots the size of men and sent giant tanks into those warehouses to collect all the supplies."
"Giant tanks?"
"With electronic devices attached to the side. Weapons."
I stare at him.
"What?" he asks.
"Giant tanks and human-sized robots? Really? That's a lot of embellishment."
I wish I could have built an army of robots, though. Something to fight back against the Enforcers. But we still have a chance. Me and Pike. We're going to do this together.
"You made a big impact, Tessa."
I look over, my hands dripping with sink water. He's never called me Tessa before. I almost forgot he knows my real name.
His eyes are earnest, focused on mine. "Whether you were building robots or not, you made a difference. People talk when that happens."
Mongo snaps out an order for us to get to work. I drop my eyes and continue to gather pots of water.
"I made robots," I admit with a shrug.
Pike flashes a smile. "Yeah?"
"Robotic scorpions to help canvas the city and the areas we planned on…visiting."
"Ah. Scorpion. I see. I was wondering where that came from."
"It wasn't my idea to start calling myself that."
"Like I said, you made a difference." He shifts another pot of water to the bucket. "People need heroes and hope to hold onto. When they get it, they do a lot more than embellish. They start to believe."
I make myself continue working, though my heart is clutching at Pike's words. I know what he's talking about. I know about hope and believing. The first time we brought back supplies for the people in the Dark District and they thanked us, I believed we could do more. The first time a mother cried because we gave her food for her kids, I believed we could get into any warehouse anywhere and help more people. I had hope and I believed.
Cindy lives at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, and loves using Colorado towns and cities as inspiration for settings in her stories. She's the mother of three girls, who provide plenty of fodder for her YA novels. Cindy writes speculative fiction and YA fiction, filled with a healthy dose of romance. You'll often find her hiking or listening to any number of playlists while she comes up with her next story idea.
Website // Goodreads // Twitter // Facebook // Instagram
One prize pack that includes a
signed copy of STING and a $20
gift card (open to US only)
Posted in Blog Tour, Full Reviews, My Reviews.	Tagged bots, climate change, dystopian, Entangled Teen, revenge, science fiction, thriller, young adult
First Lines Friday (8) @08025writes @brwpublisher January 14, 2022


text:
Latest hack proves Facebook's a dangerous monopoly that a fine won't fix
By From elsewhere | February 15, 2019
Sarah Miller and David Segal write:
Facebook is too big to control. That simple reality becomes clearer with each passing day. The most recent example is the news this past Friday of a security breach that allowed hackers to access at least 50 million accounts; earlier that week, Facebook admitted to sharing phone numbers users provided to improve their account security with advertisers.
Over the past year, the social media giant has experienced scandals like these on a regular basis, often of massive scale and tremendous real-world consequence. Those facts — plus its ability to survive these scandals — is leading to a growing recognition that Facebook is one of the world's most dangerous monopolies.The range of extraordinary harms deriving from Facebook's monopoly power are why the company must be broken up — and competition restored — as a fundamental component of a solution.
This is certainly not hard to do, technically speaking. And the power to do so lies with the Federal Trade Commission, which upholds competition in the economy. In 2011, Facebook signed what's known as a consent decree with the FTC, pledging to protect user privacy. That decree has clearly been violated: In one incident alone, data from up to 87 million users was unknowingly shared with the Cambridge Analytica research firm attached to the Trump campaign — resulting in up to $2 trillion in fines.
That broken decree gives the FTC the power to fine Facebook, but more importantly, the leverage to impose other, far more effective remedies, such as spinning off WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger and interoperability standards to end Facebook's network dominance, allowing other companies a chance to compete for users. [Continue reading…]
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Accompanying this blog is a picture taken of all our children and some of our grandchildren when celebrating my 70th birthday on a beautiful resort on Vancouver Island. That was a memorable occasion for us!
After downloading anchor.fm and TapeWrite.com, I discovered that each time I attempted to begin recording a new episode on these apps, my computer's WIFI was mysteriously disconnected. I was able to solve this problem by downloading a Voice Recorder app available from the Microsoft Store. Fortunately, I didn't have connection problems with SoundCloud.com, but I did need the additional help of several U-Tube videos published by Ryan McLean of PodcastFast to learn how to upload an audiotape to SoundCloud in order to publish it on my website. Now that I understand how to do it, I'm delighted to say that this process no longer intimidates me. . .
I have found my experience in the Digital Literacy section of our course to be of great benefit to me as an online instructor. After using only words and occasional Skype conversations in my online courses since 2002 when I began teaching them, I much appreciate Colin's invitation to consider ways in which we can deepen our presence with students by sharing pictures and audiotapes, and by making our course more collaborative through the use of annotative tools. I certainly intend to continue experimenting, and hope to implement some of the improvements I have learned by the time my next course begins.


For those entrepreneurs new to raising a significant amount of financing from either angel investors, venture capital firms or growth equity firms, the prospect of being examined by an outside party may seem intimidating. You need to prepare your startup to pitch investors – but where do you start?
What I've found through raising bank financing, angel investment, and venture capital – including the most recent $18 million through Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital – is that the data requests are surprisingly similar.
In order to prepare, and reduce any potential stress by being proactive, you can assemble a collection of documents and data sets before you start the fundraising process.
I've found that putting together a data room is one of the best moves you can make as an entrepreneur. The "data room" is the formal term for a private and shared folders that you'll use to distribute confidential information about your company. There are commercial products on the market for this, however many entrepreneurs, myself included, use shared folders in Google Drive, DropBox or Box.com.
Include a PDF of your business plan, expansion plan or strategic plan. This is the expanded version of your pitch deck with full explanations on each facet of your business.
Every business has competitors. You're either competing directly with another business or you're competing with the status quo. Both types of competitors should be taken seriously and supported by a SWOT analysis, PEST analysis, and, if there's a competing product out there, a side-by-side comparison of the features and benefits.
Corporate structures vary from business to business. At a minimum, you'll have a Certificate of Incorporation and perhaps the Articles of Incorporation. If you have a more complicated structure, including holding companies and operating companies, with perhaps incorporated entities in different countries, you'll want to include the registration documents for each entity.
If you've been in business for at least 1 year, you'll have financial statements. While every accounting firm will uphold the same standards, there is a cache that comes with working with the Big 4 accounting firms. Audited statements will certainly provide more assurance to the investors conducting the due diligence. Include as many years of financial statements as you have.
For a capital raise of any significance, you'll be asked to provide a financial model. A financial model is your business boiled down to its components and presented in a series of spreadsheets. The spreadsheet will include a number of inputs that can be easily changed to model out different scenarios such as increasing the rate of hiring sales reps or decreasing the advertising spend in seasonally slow periods. Bottom line, the model is arguably the most important document after your pitch deck.
Employment agreements for key employees and the template for standard hires will be of interest the further you go down the due diligence list. You may even get asked about your hiring, training, and termination practices. Include your Human Resource handbook here or your employee handbook which will give the investor the opportunity to evaluate your policies and procedures as they relate to the human capital.
Property insurance and content insurance covering the loss of the physical assets in your company always are summarized with a Certificate of Insurance. The same goes for other common insurance programs such as errors and omissions insurance or cyber insurance, a popular protection mechanism against data breach and data loss.
Do you have a patent, or even a patent pending? Perhaps you've registered a trademark? However you've pursued protecting your intellectual property, include the PDFs of the certificates in this folder.
Many businesses have important legal documents such as partnership or distribution agreements, terms of service, and engagement letters that will be needed as investors dive into the due diligence phase. It's best to pull the mission-critical agreements now.
Validating the opportunity through third-party market research is a critical aspect to generating interest with investors. Supporting research from a reputable firm such as Gartner, eMarketer, or Forrester will go a long way in identifying and quantifying the opportunity.
What are the metrics that drive growth of your business? For web businesses, typically software-as-a-service and marketplace models, the metrics that matter start with traffic, user registrations, transactions, and repeat purchase behavior. These "unit economics" such as the cost per lead (CPL) and the cost per customer acquisition (CPA) will be of utmost interest to your investors. Take the time now to determine these metrics and plot them historically, as well as forecast them into the future.
Key business operating metrics should be included in the operating information. Such metrics such as usage behavior or the dynamics surrounding the buyers and sellers of your marketplace should be described here.
Regardless of the type of business, servicing your customers well will be critical to your long term success. Customer satisfaction scores and other forms of customer feedback will help tell the story of how well you treat your customers.
There are two pitch decks that you'll want to include, the 10-slide investor presentation which is the version you'll use to present in person, and the Confidential Information Memorandum, referred to as the CIM. This comprehensive document is the expanded version and is meant to tell the story of your company for those who don't have the benefit of watching you present. This deck will go into details on revenue streams, gross margins, customer acquisition costs, product portfolio, customer case studies and much more. This information would be overkill during a 30 minute pitch, but it's handy to have as a follow-up because it will answer 99 percent of the initial questions an investor may have.
Tech companies are product companies, and those product companies often position themselves as platform companies. However you choose to package your offering, you'll want to include screenshots of the key pages of your site. For mobile apps, you'll include screenshots of key screens showing how users will navigate your app. For each screenshot, consider listing the features and benefits of each page. Save that as a PDF, and this presentation will serve as a virtual tour of your product and will give a prospective investor a tour without having to create an account or understand exactly what to click on to move through the process.
Let's hope that your company is generating sales, and hopefully significant sales. Include a cohort analysis for each of your revenue streams. I can't begin to tell you how beneficial it is to have the cohort analysis done before you start pitching investors. Talking about the discoveries you made during the cohort analysis shows that you understand how to analyze customer behavior, drive more sales and ultimately speak the language of the investor.
All in all, preparing a data room is preparing for a successful fundraise – then you'll be ready to pitch investors. While not every investor will ask for all this information, having it at-the-ready will speak volumes about your preparedness and give subtle cues as to how well you run the company. Quick turnarounds on data requests can only mean one thing, you mean business and you're driven to success.
Read more advice on pitching investors at TechCo.
David Ciccarelli is an entrepreneur at heart. For the last decade, David, with the help of his team, has grown Voices.com from the ground up to become the leader in the voice-over industry. As Chief Executive Officer, David is responsible for setting the vision, executing the growth strategy, creating a vibrant culture, and managing the company on a day-to-day basis.