Baby & Child motor development Primitive ReflexesFrom birth, your baby already has a set of “primitive reflexes”. It means they perform movement automatically without thinking about it (an example for adults: we remove automatically our hand when we burn ourselves). These reflexes can be triggered by different stimuli:
- Grasping reflex: as you put a finger inside your baby’s hand he should hold firmly into it
- Moro reflex: if you baby has the impression to fall, it head is unsupported when you lift him (obviously don’t try it!) or if he’s startled by a sudden noise this reflex can be triggered. In this case, your infant will perform 3 consecutive actions: 1° spreads his arms 2° pulls his arms in 3° cries
- Suction reflex: when you touch your baby cheek, your infant should automatically turn his head on the same side and his lips be looking for something to suck. Similarly, inserting a finger or a dummy in your baby mouth should trigger a suction reflex, lips closing strongly. Obviously, this reflex is very important for feeding.
- Automatic walk reflex: It is one of the funniest! Yes, a new-born tries to walk! If you hold firmly your baby under his armpit to stabilise his spine, he should stand straight and push with his legs. By tilting him forward, he may even do some steps on his tip toes (more difficult)
These are the main primitive reflexes we look at when we evaluate the correct motor development of a new-born. There are more of them but the presence of a couple of them is already a sign of a good development.
Primitive reflexes remain for the first few months of your baby life but slowly disappear from the second month.
If you have any doubt concerning your infant motor development, report it to your GP or ask your paediatric physiotherapist to perform a full motor development check-up.


You're never too old to complete a coloring book. In fact, many psychologists recommend this creative activity to adults as a way to practice mindfulness and relieve stress. If that sounds appealing, then you're in luck. Artists and museums across the globe have released thousands of adult coloring books of various themes, styles, and genres. Plus, many of these resources are available to download for free online. So, literature buffs and fans of William Shakespeare can now celebrate the English playwright's legacy at home when they print out this enchanting coloring book.
Aptly titled the Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Coloring Book, this resource features a collection of 35 ornate illustrations by artist H.C. Selous from the nineteenth edition of The Plays of William Shakespeare (1864-68). Among the assortment are covers of Shakespeare's most famous works, such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Hamlet, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Each one offers hours of coloring fun in its elaborate linework and emotional scenes.
Michael John Goodman, the coloring book's creator, is a post doctoral researcher at the University of Cardiff and the owner of the Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive website. Goodman says, “It's obviously free to use and I hope in these days of homeschooling, parents might find it a simple way to engage their kids with Shakespeare.”
You can find the free coloring book available for download here.


The USF digital signage system is a campus-funded system maintained by ITS and Web and Digital Communications. Web and Digital Communications is charged with overseeing and managing appropriate content on the screens. We are always looking for new content to feature. Our team can assist with templates, design or communication concepts. We can also help you if you are interested in requesting installation of a new digital sign in your area and expectations for maintaining its content.
What is Digital Signage?
Digital signage is the display of multimedia content on electronically controlled displays that are installed in public places. Content and messages can be changed dynamically, without modification to the physical sign, typically with the goal of delivering targeted messages to specific locations at specific times.
If you have any questions please contact us at firstname.lastname@example.org.


Don’t let the findings of the investigation gather dust on the shelf of power
Matthew Whiting, who has spastic quadriplegia with a speech impediment, is Canterbury’s Regional Disability Leadership Coordinator and Services Manager for CCS Disability Action. He testified last month at the public hearing of the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care focused on institutional care for the disabled, deaf and mentally ill.
OPINION: I was institutionalized for long periods throughout my childhood and early adulthood.
Professionals informed my family that I could not live at home due to family stress caused by my disability. A medical model of disability dominated our society and still dominates today. At that time, professionals and doctors were treated like “gods” and most people followed their recommendations. My parents were no different.
My parents thought they were doing what was best for me, but instead I was physically, sexually, and emotionally abused in these places.
Last month, I gave evidence at a public hearing of the Royal Commission into Child Care Abuse about my experience.
* ‘National disgrace’: Care survivor abuse failed by state, probe finds
* Abuse in care: Disabled survivors placed in care as ‘containment of society’, survey finds
* Survivors Call for New Government Entity to Hear Allegations of Institutional Child Abuse
* The unnoticed epidemic of violence and abuse against people with disabilities
* People with Disabilities Report Higher Rates of Sexual and Physical Violence, New Study Finds
* ‘A lot of abuse took place there’: state care institutions disappeared from records
I told the commissioners that being taken care of was like a prison without bars. That I was constantly terrified. That being “cared for” in these places was about power and control; institutions had all the power and controlled everything we did, not that we could do much.
I remember when I had a short stay at Pukeora Hospital in Hawke’s Bay. It was like sending someone to prison at 11 years old.
Then I was institutionalized long-term at Burwood Hospital in Christchurch. I didn’t have a choice about anything in my day-to-day life – what time I went to bed, what I ate, when I washed.
I finally made it out of Burwood Hospital at 21. I had to fight to leave.
However, that was not the end of my struggles.
When I came out of care, I promised myself that no one would ever control me again.
But it’s hard work to constantly fight. It weighs heavily on you emotionally.
It is essential that we learn from history. But it’s not just historical; people with disabilities continue to experience higher rates of violence than people without disabilities, both in care settings and in society.
It took me a long time to realize that what had happened to me during the treatment was wrong. The abuse continues to affect me, including my relationships today.
The abuse and neglect experienced by people with disabilities, myself included, is the result of systemic issues.
A hierarchical system leads to the abuse of power. There must be a way to provide support without disempowering people with disabilities. People with disabilities need to be able to make decisions, have a say and fully understand all support options.
Often my impairment is undermined by others, and often I struggle with ableist systems. I get tricked – by systems, by individuals. I am treated like a second class citizen almost every day. On buses, in shops and occasionally at work. As a society, we devalue people like me and set up ableist systems.
I have to tap into my strengths and cling to my sense of myself.
We need to change the way we think about support and the way we provide support as a country, otherwise nothing will change.
Yes, I wanted to share my experience with the royal commissionbut I fear that their conclusions and recommendations will remain in another abandoned report, becoming dusty on the shelf of power.
If you have watched the testimonies of us, the survivors, testifying before the commission, then you can see how much this is costing people.
Do not leave this in vain.
I urge the government not to let the experiences of thousands of survivors of abuse in care settings sit on the shelf.
Let us not cast ourselves off to be forgotten, neglected and abused again.
Address the systems we have now that devalue and disadvantage people with disabilities. Be courageous in designing systems that prevent hierarchy, disempowerment and dehumanizing practices in the system that put people with disabilities at risk.


As the Russo-Ukrainian War grinds on, both Russia and Ukraine have adjusted their strategic objectives. Russia abandoned its initial goal of seizing Kyiv and installing a pro-Russian government after facing fierce Ukrainian resistance, and is now focusing on conquering Eastern Ukraine and annexing significant portions of Ukraine’s southern territory. Ukraine’s minimum objectives include reestablishing its prewar borders, with political leaders occasionally suggesting that Ukraine should expand its ambitions to reclaiming territory lost to Russia in Crimea and the Donbas region since 2014.
U.S. strategic objectives in Ukraine are also a moving target. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin stated that the United States not only wants Ukraine to remain a sovereign and democratic country, but also “to see Russia weakened to the degree that it can’t do the kinds of things that it has done in invading Ukraine.” Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi promised that the United States would support Ukraine “until the fight is done.” President Joe Biden reiterated this point, stating that the United States would support Ukraine for “as long as it takes so Russia cannot, in fact, defeat Ukraine and move beyond Ukraine.”
Analysts and commentators debate how ambitious U.S. support for Ukraine should be. Some scholars have emphasized differences in U.S. and Ukrainian interests and encouraged more limited objectives. Calls for continued and expanded military support have come to dominate the defense policy discourse.
A core point of disagreement between these two camps is the perceived likelihood of nuclear escalation. Whereas those arguing for limited objectives tend to worry about the potential for escalation across the nuclear threshold, analysts in favor of increased support for Ukraine view the costs of concessions as more dangerous than confrontation and tend to view the likelihood of escalation as minimal.
The likelihood of nuclear use in Ukraine may be low, but it is not zero. Analysts who quickly dismiss the potential for nuclear escalation—and even most of those who express worries about nuclear conflict—largely oversimplify the many pathways that can lead to nuclear use, whether purposeful or inadvertent. Providing a clearer delineation of those pathways will help policymakers better understand which policy options can more safely advance U.S. objectives, and which policies should inspire greater caution and restraint.
Choosing to Go Nuclear
On the day that Russia invaded Ukraine, Russian president Vladimir Putin warned that any opposition to Russian efforts would result in consequences “such as you have never seen in your entire history.” Several days later, Putin placed Russian nuclear forces on high alert. Nuclear threats have continued to emanate from Russia throughout the conflict, with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov recently warning Western leaders that the risks of nuclear war are now “considerable.”
Despite such overt nuclear threats, U.S. and European leaders have expressed skepticism about the likelihood of a nuclear exchange. For example, shortly after Russia’s decision to place its nuclear forces on high alert, U.S. president Joe Biden received a question regarding whether U.S. citizens should fear nuclear war in Europe. Biden’s response was simple: “no.” Five months of unfulfilled nuclear threats have ultimately led analysts to argue that Russia’s threats are “not credible.”
Furthermore, given the massively destructive effects of nuclear weapons and apparent taboo against their use, others decisively assert that Russia will not use nuclear weapons in Ukraine because “extraordinary retaliation and universal opprobrium would follow.” Even those observers most concerned about the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons generally view such an outcome as unlikely.
Such assertions that Russia would not use nuclear weapons rely on an important assumption: the decision to use nuclear weapons will be politically calculated and purposefully directed by Putin. This assumption, however, overlooks a separate challenge to crisis stability. Specifically, crises entail risks of unintended nuclear escalation that occurs without explicit political intent. These concerns merit greater attention when debating U.S. foreign policy with respect to Ukraine, as the likelihood of unintended escalation may be higher than purposeful escalation under certain circumstances, such as if Russia begins mobilizing its nuclear forces to signal resolve.
Pathways to Unintended Escalation
Putin is most likely to consider nuclear weapons use if facing a devastating strategic defeat or existential threat to his regime. Two core interests might fall into this category: first, threats to the physical security of Russia, potentially including challenges to territorial gains made by Russia since 2014; and second, threats to the survival of Putin’s political regime.
Skeptics of escalation concerns argue that nuclear weapons will not come into play as long as the United States and NATO avoid Russia’s red lines, including direct attacks on Russian forces and the deployment of NATO forces into Ukrainian territory. The dangers associated with crossing these red lines explain why U.S. policymakers rejected proposals for a no-fly zone over Ukraine, which would have required Western forces to directly target the Russian military to enforce the policy.
Avoiding direct engagement with Russian forces, however, is insufficient to guarantee that nuclear weapons will not be used. Nuclear use is not a simple on-off switch, and the process of preparing nuclear weapons for potential use entails risks of unintended nuclear use. Simply approaching Russia’s red lines—even without crossing them—increases the likelihood of nuclear use.
The primary node of concern for unintended nuclear escalation during militarized crises is a state’s nuclear command and control systems. Command and control systems are the operational means by which a state conducts the management, deployment, and potential release of nuclear weapons. More simply, command and control procedures determine how centralized a country’s political oversight of nuclear forces is. These systems dictate how a state operates during peacetime and crises, directly shaping the likelihood of nuclear use.
If Putin feels that Russia’s physical security or his political regime are in danger, he is more likely to increase the readiness of his nuclear arsenal. Operationally, this means that lower-level military commanders will be more capable of using nuclear weapons as military operators gain possession of fully prepared and deliverable nuclear weapons, likely without technical controls to inhibit their use. This delegation of nuclear use capability to lower-level commanders creates two risks that have largely been overlooked in the debate about nuclear use in Ukraine.
First, accidental use—referring to the unintentional use of nuclear weapons due to mishandling or poor design—becomes more likely as military operators gain control of fully ready nuclear weapons. Without peacetime barriers to using nuclear weapons—such as the separation of nuclear warheads from ballistic missiles—military operators in possession of nuclear weapons have fewer constraints on their ability to use nuclear weapons. History is replete with examples of nuclear near-misses, instances in which accidents almost resulted in nuclear use, and these events remain entirely plausible in Russia. Moreover, if a nuclear weapon were to detonate accidentally in Ukraine, outside actors likely would not recognize the detonation as accidental and might authorize nuclear retaliation.
Second, the delegation of nuclear use capability would increase the likelihood of unauthorized use, which occurs when the custodians of nuclear weapons use those nuclear weapons without authorization from political leadership. Unauthorized use could occur because a lower-level commander decides to circumvent the chain of command and use a nuclear weapon without political authorization, or that commander may elect to use nuclear weapons to stave off defeat if being conventionally overrun by the adversary. These pressures would be especially pronounced for commanders of Russia’s tactical nuclear weapons, as they are most likely to be placed in a battlefield setting and face “use them or lose them” pressures.
Nuclear Command and Control and Crisis Escalation
During peacetime, Russia appears to manage its nuclear forces in a way that mitigates the risk of accidental and unauthorized use. The Russian president has the centralized ability to authorize the use of nuclear weapons and nuclear warheads are kept de-mated from ballistic missiles, which physically prevents lower-level commanders from possessing nuclear weapons, much less using them.
If an adversary such as NATO approaches Russia’s red lines and threatens the state’s security or Putin’s regime, however, it is possible that Putin would authorize the transfer of nuclear warheads to military operators to increase arsenal readiness in an effort to deter NATO from crossing the red line at all. Placing fully assembled tactical nuclear weapons in the hands of Russian military forces would immediately increase the likelihood of nuclear use by opening doors to accidental or unauthorized use.
Beyond accidental and unauthorized use, this process of increasing arsenal readiness entails another significant threat to strategic stability. The unusual release of sensitive information by the Biden administration shows that the United States is actively monitoring every available aspect of the conflict in Ukraine. If U.S. intelligence were to discover that Russia was removing nuclear warheads from storage and increasing operational readiness, U.S. policymakers will be forced to make decisions about supporting military efforts that are apparently approaching the nuclear brink without knowing whether Russia was simply increasing arsenal readiness or actually preparing to conduct a nuclear strike. In this case, Western officials could view Russian mobilization as a cause for preemptive strikes against Russia’s tactical nuclear weapons. Whether NATO conducts the attack or passes intelligence to Ukraine in support of an attack, this direct targeting of Russian nuclear forces would clearly cross a red line that encourages nuclear use, thereby guaranteeing the nuclear exchange that attacking forces hoped to avoid in the first place.


Early in December two snowmobilers were sledding in the Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area on Monte Cristo mountain in Utah. They chanced across an unlikely surprise—a Great Pyrenees adult female and three of her pups. The woman, Kat Perry, tried to save the dogs herself but she had no way to lure them over to her. She contacted the Weber County Sheriff's Office who sent out a search and rescue team to help save the dogs.
The team showed up with a rescue sled and was able to save the three puppies, who were about seven weeks old. It is likely there were more pups who perished, as Great Pyrenees are known to have large litters, frequently eight or more. The rescue team was unable to capture the mother of the pup but no one wanted to give up on her. The rescued pups went to the Great Pyrenees Rescue, Montana, to find homes and happily, all have been adopted.
The Great Pyrenees Rescue, Montana, is all too familiar with this type of situation. Finding abandoned pups and rehoming them can happen more than once during the Fall. They recently rescued a litter of puppies abandoned in November, victims of the same situation in the mountains of Colorado. Unfortunately this keeps happening over and over again, when ranchers move their flocks off the mountains in the Fall and the dogs, who are not spayed and frequently pregnant, get abandoned and are left to fend for themselves and their puppies.
Ranchers in the area are members of the Utah Wool Growers Association which is aware of the sensitivity of the situation. They have issued the following statement: "Unfortunately (as all pet owners know), sometimes pets/livestock run off, get lost, get stolen, etc. Hence, the need for a lost and found pets page. Sheep dogs aren’t the only dogs who get lost. Producers do their absolute best to keep all the animals together and make sure they all come home, but sometimes accidents happen (and sadly sometimes guard dogs get killed in the line of duty by bears and cougars). Guard dogs are very expensive and very valuable team members who protect the livestock 24/7. If this mama had her pups seven weeks ago, she might have snuck off to have them and that’s how she got lost.”
Great Pyrenees Rescue, Montana's local representative, Shauna Thompson (far left) says abandonment is a problem that’s been going on for years. According to Thompson, "Every year at the end of grazing season, we do see several litters abandoned. Some of them are injured and caught in traps. Some are left up on the mountain and they don’t survive. Too often when the snow hits, we don’t get to the animals in time and we find them deceased.”
Guardian dogs are not protected under animal cruelty laws because they are considered livestock. According to Thompson, “We have tried for a long time to work with the Utah Wool Growers Association and ranchers to get protections put into place so that these kinds of situations, like the one yesterday, can be avoided. These are amazing dogs. They’re not just used for the mountain. They make great domestic family pets too. They are wonderful service and therapy dogs.”
Thompson says some ranchers don’t register, vaccinate, spay/neuter, or retrieve their dogs once the cold winter season hits. “There are good ranchers that will vet and care for their dogs. But there are some who don’t and only consider these dogs disposable tools of the trade. Not all Great Pyrenees are good at their jobs. If they fail or don’t want to watch the sheep, then they are no longer valuable, so they get left behind.”
No one has come forward yet to claim the Momma dog. She was sighted mid-December with two male dogs and a Facebook page was established to track the progress of Grace as she is now called. Traps with food have been set, vehicles are dispatched to search her for almost daily and a helicopter was donated to fly over the search area. The state's wildlife management officers have been supportive. The media are on alert and a growing number of volunteers and a fundraiser help maintain the momentum. No one is giving up. The search for Grace goes on.


A Magnificently Modern Design Background With Floral A Floral Design Antique American Hooked Rug, Country Of Origin / Rug Type: Antique American Rugs, Circa Date: Early 20th Century – Antique American Hooked rugs were popular in the USA as part of the Arts and Crafts movement from the late 19th century until about the mid-1920’s. This beautiful example of an antique American hooked rug dates to the early 20th century and demonstrates individuality through artistic expression. The first thing that stands out about this floral design antique Hooked tug from America is the brilliant red flowers set against a colorful background. It has a contemporary, yet remotely rustic feel.
The earthy colors include neutral browns, greens, taupe, and muted colors. This highlights the brilliance of the bold red flowers. The roughly oval arrangement of the floral motifs helps to define the space of the rug, but their haphazard arrangement reflects the ideals of the Arts and Crafts movement. The arts and crafts movement was meant as an answer to the mass-produced, industrialized products that were making their way into society in the early 20th century.
The floral rug designs uses dark and light reds to reflect the way the light hits the pedals. However, you might notice that this floral antique American Hooked rug has an outsider art quality because the light source is not coming from the same direction but appears to be coming from several different sources. The rendition of the flowers, and the randomness of the color of the background give this antique American rug a beautiful look into the aesthetics of the Arts and Crafts movement and the individual artists of the time. This antique rug is not only a beautiful work of art, it is an important collector’s piece that represents a desire to return to simpler times in American history.


Teleportation machines are thought to work much like a fax machine — only instead of paper it’s humans, and the original copies are destroyed once the travelers make it to their final destination. Human teleportation, of course, is still a hypothetical — we’ve managed to send out single photons and trapped ions, but so far no mad scientists.
But this mere inconvenience wasn’t enough to stop researchers from wondering, what if? In research published Thursday in the journal Neuron, neuroscientists from the University of California, Davis studied how the brain might react if it were to experience teleportation. Lucky for us it doesn’t seem like teleportation would throw our psyche into cosmic dread — it appears our brains would keep chugging along, fully aware that they had been transported.
Prior to this experiment, the scientists knew that when rats navigate a maze, the mammal brain experiences a rhythmic oscillation — but they weren’t sure if oscillation happens because it’s a helpful tool for navigation or if it’s just a related function of movement. They also knew that rhythmic oscillation happens when humans travel around a virtual landscape. Based on these principles, the researchers used electrodes to measure the intracranial hippocampal activity with an electroencephalogram test (EEG) while three patients explored a virtual maze via a computer screen.
Within the maze, patients were instructed to choose a path and go into a virtual store. Inside the store they came across a teleporter that would take them a “short” distance and another that would go “long” — back to the center of the maze.
“Critically, teleportation allowed patients to experience movement to a known location in space in the absence of any sensory feedback because they remained seated on a hospital bed and viewed a black screen during this time,” writes the research team.
During the teleportation the brain continued to oscillate, but the rhythm reflected a perception of distance traveled. This led the researchers to conclude that the memory and learning process controls neural oscillations — your brain understands it’s experiencing some form of speed and distance, even if you’re only moving through a pretend teleporter.
As a control, they had the participants look at a black screen, but did not have them experience virtual movement. No strong oscillation happened — the patients’ brains knew they weren’t experiencing simulated movement.
The study comes with a few caveats. Namely, this was only a study of three people — but each person did demonstrate the same result. They were part of a different study of patients who experience a severe form of epilepsy, who had electrodes implanted into their skull to figure out when seizure activity begins in the brain. From this group of patients, three decided they’d be down for the teleportation experiment as well.
Technology may not be ready to teleport our bodies — but our brains are ready.


Nebraska Revised Statute 46-302
Electric light and power system; construction or acquisition by resolution; procedure.
Whenever the board of directors of any irrigation district shall, by resolution, determine that it is to the interest, convenience, and welfare of the district that the district, under sections 46-301 to 46-315, purchase, construct, or otherwise acquire, operate, and maintain any electric light and power plant, lines, or systems, whether as an addition, extension, enlargement, alteration, or reconstruction of any site, irrigation works, or other property owned or controlled by the district, or as a plant, lines, or system independent of works or property already owned or controlled by the district, the board of directors shall thereupon prepare comprehensive written plans, statements, and reports setting out the nature, location, and description of the proposed plant, lines, and system, including method or methods of generation or acquisition, the location of transmission lines, the use of other sites, properties, and works already owned or controlled by the district, estimated costs of acquisition and construction, the method or means of financing the proposed plan and project, the amount of bonds, if any, proposed to be issued in connection therewith, and such other data as the Department of Natural Resources shall prescribe. The expense thereof may be authorized by any special meeting or at the annual meeting of such district. Such plans, statements, and reports, including a copy of such resolution, shall be duly certified by the board of directors and shall be thereupon submitted to the department for its examination as set forth in section 46-304.
- Laws 1931, c. 91, § 2, p. 253;
- C.S.Supp.,1941, § 46-702;
- R.S.1943, § 46-302;
- Laws 2000, LB 900, § 160.


In “Approaching Genre” John Frow begins by conveying the implicit rules of understanding a rhetorical text: “the knowledge the reader is expected to have is intertextual: knowledge of earlier reports and earlier controversies” (7). The readers, through their common understanding of prior events, form a discourse community that both creates and decodes meaning, thereby continuously redefining the different forms that constitute the genre. The form of the text, its type font, verb choice or play on words, for example, and the way it is framed or structured, together determine the rhetorical function and meaning of the text (8-9).
In addition to the group within which the text is communicated, the situational context plays a significant role in its interpretation: “The work of genre, then, is to mediate between a social situation and the text which realizes certain features of this situation, or which responds strategically to its demands” (14). Our knowing of a text’s genre often predetermines our reaction to it by providing constraining instructions regarding the expected appropriate behaviour to it. By suggesting a certain attitude, the objectivity of the work is diminished.
One of the greatest challenges of the above presets then is attempting to limit the classification of any given text into one genre. Here, Derrida adds that “[e]very text participates in one or several genres,” but this is not equivalent to its belonging within that genre (25). In a subsequent chapter, “Literary Genre Theory”, Frow mentions how this blurs the lines of classification of texts, which are cultural constructs, more than that of the taxonomy found in nature.
He analyzes early forms of literary classification from Plato and Aristotle, who wrote that all forms of poetry differ either in their means, objects or manner of imitations (56). Western tradition has further followed this breakdown of literary genre as a triad of the epic, dramatic or lyric, although the debate of overlapping components among the three still exists. Some scholars distinguish these as “modes”, or “qualifications”, of a genre, which entail specific emotions or affects (65).
He concludes by describing genre then as an evolving social construct dependent upon recurring characteristics and norms within a society or time period. The hierarchy of genres is always fluctuating: “Just as genres form a horizon of expectations against which any text is read, so are they themselves subsumed within a broader horizon formed by a period’s system of genres” (70).
Frow, John. Genre. The Critical Idiom, Series ed. John Drakakis. London: Routledge, 2006.


Cancer patients are around five times more likely to have surgery to remove their tumour, and less likely to have chemotherapy, if they are diagnosed at the earliest stage compared to the latest stage, according to new figures.
This is the first time researchers have been able to show whether NHS patients received surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, alone or in combination, linked with their cancer stage. And it shows that generally patients diagnosed an earlier stage are more likely to receive surgery, and can avoid chemotherapy.
Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are the most appropriate first line treatments for some cancers, but for most types of the disease surgery to remove a tumour is the most likely way to cure it. Treating a tumour with surgery alone often minimises longer term side effects which can affect a patient’s quality of life.
Cancer Research UK and Public Health England (link is external) examined data from about half a million patients with 22 different cancer types in England between 2013-2014. It shows that 7 in 10 (70%) diagnosed at the earliest stage (stage 1) had surgery to remove their tumour. This falls to around 1 in 10 (13%) of those diagnosed at the latest stage (stage 4).
Around 1 in 10 (12%) patients diagnosed at the earliest stage have chemotherapy. This rises to around 4 in 10 (39%) of those diagnosed at the latest stage.
Prof Mick Peake, a lead clinician in the study and based at Public Health England, said: “Doctors want to offer patients the best possible treatment. For some cancers, like leukaemia and lymphoma, that’s chemotherapy. But in most cases the earlier cancer is diagnosed the more likely it is to be effectively treated by surgery, and that means chemotherapy isn’t always necessary.
“In general, the treatment of cancers at an early stage also reduces the risk of long term side effects which can affect patients’ quality of life.”
For the most common type of bowel cancer, colon cancer, more than 9 in 10 patients (94%) have surgery to remove their tumour when diagnosed at the earliest stage, when radiotherapy and chemotherapy are not usually necessary.
For patients diagnosed with stage 4 disease around 3 in 10 (32%) have surgery and those who do will often have chemotherapy as well.
Less than 1 in 20 colon cancer patients with the earliest stage disease have chemotherapy compared to nearly 5 in 10 (47%) diagnosed at the latest stage.
In breast cancer, almost 95% of patients diagnosed at the earliest stage and 25% of those diagnosed at the latest stage have surgery. Those diagnosed at the latest stage are more than twice as likely to have chemotherapy as stage 1 patients.
For patients with the earliest stage non-small cell lung cancer (the most common type of the disease) 6% have chemotherapy. This compares to 30% when diagnosis is made at the latest stage.
Sara Hiom, Cancer Research UK’s director of early diagnosis, said: “Understandably, people sometimes fear cancer treatments as well as the disease itself. This research shows how important an early diagnosis is for simplifying the treatment options as much as possible. Until now, we’ve not been able to look at such rich data for the whole of England and analyse who’s been treated how. Now, thanks to recent improvements, it’s possible to show how stage affects the treatments patients need, giving us a more complete picture.
“We all have our part to play to increase the number of patients diagnosed earlier. People should consult their GP if they are worried about symptoms, GPs should follow clinical guidelines to refer patients, and the right diagnostic tests need to be performed and reported promptly so that patients can benefit more from treatments. This all needs greater attention and our national cancer strategy helps give this focus.”
Dr Jem Rashbass, cancer lead at Public Health England said: “This data is the most comprehensive of its kind in the world, linking stage of diagnosis and treatment for individual patients. Its wealth of knowledge will help us to better understand treatment and survival patterns and underpins the importance of early diagnosis and screening”.
The importance of early diagnosis
This shows that patients diagnosed at the earliest stage are more likely to receive treatment that has a better chance of curing them and fewer long term side effects. The challenge is boosting the number of cases diagnosed at an earlier stage.
“Surgery remains the most important treatment for cancer,” says Nordin.
“As a general rule for most cancers, the earlier the cancer is diagnosed, the more likely that it can be effectively treated by surgery alone, without the need for additional types of treatment.”
“This often provides the best chance of disease cure whilst minimising the risk of long term side effects of treatment which can impact on patients’ quality of life.”
This pattern for cancers diagnosed at the earliest and latest stage looks the same across the majority featured in the report. But the scale of the differences highlight some big opportunities for progress.
This research also reinforces that the health service needs the right staff and equipment to diagnose more cancer patients earlier.
“During the coming years we will analyse the effectiveness of different treatments, and differences in treatments between different groups in the population and different regions of the country, in order to make changes to improve outcomes in the future,” says Nordin.
“Without the knowledge of what is happening now, it is impossible to monitor the impact of any changes in the quality of care, in terms of improvements in the outcomes for patients in the future.”
Sarah Testori is an early diagnosis manager at Cancer Research UK
You can read the new data from Cancer Research here
You can read the Cancer Research Press release in full here


It’s a tradition: every fall, the SAP developer community comes together at SAP TechEd to find out what’s new and what developments there are in the SAP portfolio. On Tuesday morning, Dr. Vishal Sikka, a member of the Executive Board of SAP AG leading products and innovation, welcomed the 6,500 delegates and introduced not one but two Turing award winners to show just how fundamentally the IT world is changing.
ABC Model and the SAP HANA Effect
Pioneer of object-oriented programming Alan Kay spoke to Sikka and the delegates about the ABC model devised by Douglas Engelbart, one of the fathers of the study of human-computer interaction and the inventor of the computer mouse. Put simply, if A processes are the tasks and goals of an organization, it needs B processes to achieve them. The B processes have to be continuously improved by other processes, the C processes. This continuous search for improvement impacts day-to-day business and ultimately affects the A processes, leading to the definition of new tasks and goals and the advancement of the organization as a whole.
According to Sikka, every industry, not just IT, is being fundamentally transformed by technology. Cloud computing, Big Data and mobile are transforming the world. Referring to SAP, Sikka called this the SAP HANA effect: “Great technology always serves to amplify us – just like SAP HANA.” The SAP HANA platform (A) and new, simpler applications (B), and a new concept of how we use data and for what (C) makes all this possible. This means that, without disruption and risk, SAP has to make SAP HANA the platform for all applications and apply the new SAP Fiori user experience to their design.
To learn more, read the full article on SAP.info.


Previously, I wrote about my transformative experience in building up the global data business for SAP, sharing my personal views on how to bring a startup to laser-focused execution and relentlessly drive customer success.
Data and technology have helped businesses evolve so rapidly that in just the past year, innovative technologies and capabilities such as data science, artificial intelligence, data analytics, and Big Data processing have allowed businesses to benefit from data in ways unimaginable before.
New, innovative technologies have allowed businesses to benefit from data in ways unimaginable before
“Go break through with your data” is my advice to every business. Why? Because data powers competitiveness and growth across industries and business processes. Transactional data augmented with additional data sources generate what I call “new intelligence.”
Take the retail industry for example. Retailers today can connect customers’ e-commerce records with social media activities and hyperlocal data to get the pulse of the neighborhood. Couple this with in-store, point-of-sale data as well as behavioral data from loyalty programs, we end up with an unbeatable, personalized consumer experience.
Now, if you infused the newly gained consumer insights into intelligent assortment and supply chain processes, you would have a smart supply chain that constantly ensures the proper merchandise is in stock. Such a closed-loop value chain, which is driven by edge intelligence on consumer behavior and trend patterns, redefines the rulebook.
The Why: Love the Problem, Not the Technology
The possibilities of technology are incredibly exciting; however, technology is always a means, never an end destination. Lead with strategic direction and be clear on what you are targeting with data-driven innovations.
Ask the following questions: What is the purpose of your digital transformation? Which growth opportunities can be captured through data and will lead your business into the future? Are you looking to gain competitive differentiation or pioneer digital data-driven services to establish a new source of revenue? From supply chain to manufacturing to serving your customer, how much friction is due to dispersed systems that aren’t harmonized and semantically integrated?
The How: Team and Customer Focus
The main challenge for data monetization is building a solid foundation for running a new, scalable and profitable data business. You overcome it by focusing on creating horizontally connected teams and putting customers first. Install small teams at the edge of the organization with a clear vision and strategy that aim to drive rapid business outcomes. Ensure that they’re horizontally connected to include a mix of talented outsiders and forward-thinking corporate veterans, who help keep the bonds with the core business and break down silos between core and edge teams.
In addition, ensure that customer experience is at the forefront of your business. The customer experience must be simple and frictionless despite the underlying complexity, where technology is invisible. We have developed a customer-centric approach using design thinking, a practice that focuses on feedback loops and iterative prototypes.
The What: Execution Strategy
Data-driven innovation does not happen by accident, it requires strategic focus and operational perseverance. Developing data applications is about building smart applications that focus on solving specific business problems, using new data insights to make predictions and prescribe and execute actions. Here are my four suggestions for building data-driven products.
- Working with data – fairness matters: Reliable and high-quality data is a must-have. When enriched with other data sources and processed using with machine learning algorithms, the value of data increases immensely. Go for the infinite possibilities but temper with a dose of reality. Why? Not all data is created equal and being aware of bias in the data is crucial for understanding the extent of a model’s accuracy and avoiding shortcomings on algorithms and biased models.
- Think transparency, no black box: Ensure model transparency and that algorithms remain accurate over time, meaning the reasoning behind a decision or recommendation can be explained at any time.
- Build in circular learning loops: Data-driven applications operate on diverse data sources, combining analytical and operational data to predict and prescribe what to do next by providing transparency and relevant insights in the form of industry benchmarks and peer-to-peer comparisons. Simulation capabilities and recommended actions based on algorithms guide the user in the decision-making process. Incorporate user-generated behavioral data and improve recommendations by correlating interactions back to the source of data to close the loop.
- Combine data and domain expertise: This is crucial because data-driven applications solve new problems in new ways by connecting the right data in a meaningful and contextualized way. The creation of value becomes much more problem-solving focused, providing solution for industries and for horizontal business functions like human resources, sales or finance. Use your domain expertise to find what problem to solve and let the data lead to new insights and signals. The best algorithms are the ones based on contextualized domain knowledge on processes in combination with data and behavior.
Get your data to drive breakthrough business outcomes. Stay tuned for my next piece on discovering how data transforms the bimodal world of IT.
Helen Arnold is president of the SAP Data Network.
Follow Helen on Twitter: @arnold_ih, #SAPDataNetwork.


North St. Louis County partnership wins national health prize
A community development effort spearheaded by the local nonprofit Beyond Housing is being recognized as a national leader for supporting better health outcomes.
The 24:1 initiative, a collaboration between the 24 north St. Louis County municipalities within the footprint of Normandy Schools, has been awarded the Culture of Health Prize by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
The idea behind the Culture of Health Prize is to highlight communities that are having an impact so that their ideas can be replicated across the country. This year the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awarded the prize to seven communities across the country, including 24:1.
Julie Willems Van Dijk, the director of the Culture of Health Prize program, said 24:1 stood out because it crosses city boundaries to pool resources and invest in the wider region’s needs, and because it takes a comprehensive approach to health.
“We’re always looking for communities that are truly looking at those who are at the greatest risk for poor health,” said Willems Van Dijk, who works at the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
“So the resilience and focus of this community on how important it was to secure the accreditation of their school district after they had lost it to make sure that their children were going to get a good education so that they would be able to get good employment and be successful in the future was very, very inspiring to us.”
Willems Van Dijk highlighted the community health workers and family liaison workers in the schools, and the grocery store 24:1 put in an area that used to be a food desert.
Normandy Superintendent Charles Pearson said the initiative is making a difference in the district by helping children come to school ready to learn.
“We know that if children and families are healthier, that our children are going to attend school more frequently. We know that if our children are healthier we’re going to have better behavior in classrooms,” Pearson said. “We know that our attendance has improved, we know that instruction has been able to be improved. There are far, far fewer disruptions in classrooms. And I attribute all of that directly to the support that families are getting in the district as a result of this initiative.”
Willems Van Dijk said winning the prize isn’t a sign that the work is done, but a recognition of the prize winner’s ongoing impact.
“24:1 being selected as a prize winner is just a beginning on their journey towards a culture of health, not an end, because of the opportunity to continue to learn together,” Willems Van Dijk said. “For example, 24:1 has done this great job of formulating the North County Police (Cooperative) with shared resources. So if we came upon another community that was looking at consolidating police services, we might very well connect those communities one on one so they can dig in deeper and learn from each other.”
Pearson also acknowledged that there’s a lot that needs to be done at Normandy to improve educational outcomes.
“We have a great deal of work we’re still doing, but we are excited about the progress. And a lot of that progress is owed to the support that partnerships like Beyond Housing offer us,” Pearson said.
The Culture of Health Prize comes with a small monetary reward: $25,000. But the bigger reward comes in the form of recognition, connection to resources, and the opportunity to swap ideas with other prize winners.
“Our work and what we do is added to this great portfolio of ‘here’s how we can help make community stronger, here’s how we can look at the challenges that so many families and children are facing and provide an array of programmatic services and supports,” said Chris Krehmeyer, executive director of Beyond Housing.
“We’re now part of this family of communities that is doing innovative things in many different ways all across the country,” Krehmeyer said. “It’s really wide and varied, so we’re trying to learn from each other and, again, trying to let others learn from us.”
Both Pearson and Krehmeyer said it was an affirmation to receive the Culture of Health Prize, a sentiment Willems Van Dijk said was common among prizewinners.
One of the things we’ve seen from a number of prizewinners is this acknowledgement, this pat on the back, being raised up as an example, can be very motivating to a community,” Willems Van Dijk said. “So much of the time communities are doing this hard work, and they are plodding along day by day and they don’t ever get a chance to stop and reflect both on how far they’ve come, or to realize that they are really doing incredible work.”
Follow Camille on Twitter: @cmpcamille.


Ira Berlin, an American historian and author of The
Making of African America: The Four Great Migrations
spoke at Vanderbilt University on April 16, 2010.
Tune in to VUCast,
for audio and video of events happening around campus. You can
also find VU podcasts on iTunes and
VU videos on YouTube.
The lure of Hollywood is just as strong today as it was a
century ago when motion picture production companies from New
York and New Jersey moved west to take advantage of the warm,
sunny weather. Vanderbilt alumni have always had a presence in
Hollywood, from actress/singer Dinah Shore, BA’38, to
Oscar-winning director Delbert Mann, BA’41 (Marty),
to Oscar-winning screenwriter Tom Schulman, BA’72 (Dead
Poets Society), to Fred Thompson, JD’67, who played the
folksy district attorney on television’s Law and
Order before making a run for the presidency in 2008.
In the early days movie-making was much simpler: Actors,
writers, producers, directors, cameramen, editors, and muscle
to move the equipment were just about all that was necessary
to take a production from the back lot to the big screen.
Today, with the advent of special effects, international
distribution, and as many cable channels as there are stars on
the Hollywood Walk of Fame, opportunities abound. Finding
them, however, can be tricky, and in Hollywood it’s not always
what you know, but rather who you know.
That’s where Vandy-in-Hollywood—and Chad Gervich—come
Gervich knew from an early age that he wanted to work in
television and film and was surprised that Vanderbilt had few
affiliations with the local entertainment business.
Read more here.


Former ISRO scientist S Nambi Narayanan, who has a spying case against him, is still struggling to get justice. He was active in designing the structure used in Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan and PSLV that launched 104 satellites in one go last week and made headlines.
Narayanan was in the Supreme Court to attend the hearing of his petition that sought action against those who allegedly imposed a false case against him. “There, they are using the same system that I worked upon and developed. But here, I am still fighting to get justice. I have wasted my 25 years,” Narayanan said just after the hearing in his case concluded.
The court has fixed February 23 to hear his petition.
Actually, Narayanan’s career was ruined following the 1994 ISRO spying case made headlines. However, he was given a clean chit after a CBI investigation held that the Kerala police had contrived the case against him.
The 75-year-old was detained after the Kerala police caught Mariam Rasheeda, a Maldivian woman on October 20, 1994. Initially, she was detained for overstaying in India; but police later accused her of being involved in a sex-spy scandal. It was alleged that Rasheeda was the midway between the ISRO and two other women.
She was accused of passing on ISRO’s secrets to the women, who sequentially delivered the same to Russia and Pakistan’s ISI. However, two years later, the CBI cleared all the accused and filed a closure report before the court.
But the case was re-opened for the probe after a change in the government. This time, the Kerala police was asked to hold a fresh investigation. But then, the Supreme Court suppressed the state government’s decision in 1998.
The Kerala high court in September 2012, ordered the state govt to pay Rs 10 lakh as temporary relief to the scientist. In October 2014, action was ordered against the misbehaving police officials.
However, a division bench upturned the order in March 2015, after which Narayanan approached the Supreme Court. His complaint is that regardless of the CBI investigation indicting the police officers, the state has not taken any action against them.


Seoul: South Korea has shipped 539,000 doses of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine to the Philippines to help the Southeast Asian nation address its vaccine shortage, Seoul’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
An airplane carrying the jabs departed from Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, earlier in the day and will arrive in the Philippines on the same day, the ministry said.
South Korea has already shared coronavirus vaccine shots with three other countries — Vietnam, Thailand and Iran — as it has enough vaccines to inoculate its people and help other countries, Yonhap news agency reported.
So far, 80 per cent of South Korea’s population has been fully vaccinated.
The ministry said it hopes to contribute to the global fight against the pandemic via the programme and further bolster ties with the Philippines.


How much homeowners insurance do I need?
When it comes to your home, making sure you’re adequately insured is of the utmost importance. Despite this, many homeowners are unaware of the 80% rule for home insurance and, as a result, find themselves underinsured when trying to replace their personal property after a loss. Understanding the 80% rule—and following it—can help you protect yourself and your home.
Home Valuation Basics: Introducing the 80% Rule.
There are two valuation options available when purchasing insurance on your home. Typically, homeowners can elect to insure their home and personal property on an Actual Cash Value basis or at replacement cost. Actual Cash Value refers to the amount needed to repair or replace an item, minus depreciation (the decrease in the value of your home or personal property due to normal wear and tear). Replacement cost refers to the amount needed to repair or replace your damaged property with materials of similar kind and quality without deducting for depreciation.
Most insurance companies require homeowners to purchase replacement cost coverage worth at least 80% of their home’s replacement cost in order to receive full coverage. For example, if you bought your home for $275,000, you would need to have insurance for at least $220,000 for the insurance company to fully cover any potential claims.
Many homeowners follow the 80% rule when first purchasing their home but are unaware of the importance of adjusting their coverage to keep up with the changes inflation and home improvements can make to their home’s overall replacement cost. As a result, these homeowners are surprised after a disaster or loss when an insurance company doesn’t cover the total cost of replacing their home. Without having at least 80% of the replacement cost of your home insured, your insurance company may only pay the difference between 80% of the replacement cost of your home and the amount of coverage you purchased.
80% Rule for Homeowners Insurance in Action.
Illustrating the importance of updating your coverage.
Using the same example as above…
Let’s say you purchased a house with a replacement cost valuation of $275,000 and then secured insurance for $220,000—or 80% of the replacement cost of your home. Then, you renovated your home, and these improvements significantly raised the replacement cost of your home to $350,000. For your insurance company to fully cover claims, you’d need to increase your insurance coverage to reflect 80% of the new replacement cost of your home, which would be $280,000 in this case. A storm causes $100,000 of damage to your home, but because you increased the amount of insurance on your home to $280,000, the insurance company covers the total cost of the repairs, minus your deductible.
Let’s say you didn’t adjust your insurance coverage, so you only had $220,000 in coverage for your home that is now worth $350,000 to replace. Instead of having at least 80% of the new replacement cost of your home insured, which would be $280,000, you only have 62.86% of the total cost insured. In the event of a claim, the insurance company would divide the amount of coverage you purchased ($220,000) by 80% of the replacement cost of your home ($280,000) and only cover the difference between those two amounts. So, in the same scenario from above, instead of the insurance company paying the full $100,000 (minus your deductible) to repair the damage caused by the storm, they would only pay roughly $78,570, as the difference between the amount of insurance you purchased and the 80% replacement cost was 78.57%. You would then be responsible for paying the remaining $21,430 in repair costs, plus your deductible.
As you can see, failing to adjust the amount of insurance you have on your home to ensure you’re following the 80% rule can be extremely costly. Regularly reviewing your coverage amounts, especially after you’ve done home renovations, can help you make sure you’re properly covered, even if your home’s replacement cost increases.
Now you know the importance of updating your coverage when your replacement cost changes. So now you need to know…
What affects the replacement cost of my home?
Because the 80% rule for homeowners insurance is directly affected by any changes to your home’s replacement cost, it’s important to understand what can affect the replacement cost value of your home.
While every policy varies, some of the most common things that affect your home’s replacement cost value are:
- Square footage of your home
- Home renovations and improvements (e.g., changing flooring, appliances and fixtures; updating a roof; or installing new windows)
- Cost of replacing materials
- Labor costs in the event repairs are needed
- Value of interior and exterior components
It’s important to note that the market value of your home does not necessarily affect your home’s replacement cost. As such, things like curb appeal, the condition of your home and the value of comparable homes in your area may not affect your replacement cost value.
KEY TAKEAWAYS: What Does 80 % Replacement Cost Mean When Insuring Your Home?
- Under the 80% rule, an insurer will only fully cover the cost of damage to a house if the owner has purchased insurance coverage equal to at least 80% of the house’s replacement cost value.
- The amount paid by the insurer will be proportional to the amount of coverage purchased, if that amount covers less than 80% of the replacement value.
- A property’s value is affected by capital improvements, inflation, which then impacts the 80% rule and coverage requirement.
Be sure to talk to a Noyes Insurance agent so you can understand what may affect the replacement cost value of your home under your policy.
Investopedia Answers : What Is the 80% Rule for Home Insurance?
Related Content : How Much Home Insurance Do I Need?
Review Your Coverage and Compare Home Insurance Pricing: Get A Free New Hampshire Home Insurance Quote


Recent advances in neuroscience suggest that a utility-like calculation is involved in how the brain makes choices, and that this calculation may use a computation known as divisive normalization. While this tells us how the brain makes choices, it is not immediately evident why the brain uses this computation or exactly what behavior is consistent with it. In this paper, we address both of these questions by proving a three-way equivalence theorem between the normalization model, an information-processing model, and an axiomatic characterization. The information-processing model views behavior as optimally balancing the expected value of the chosen object against the entropic cost of reducing stochasticity in choice. This provides an optimality rationale for why the brain may have evolved to use normalization-type models. The axiomatic characterization gives a set of testable behavioral statements equivalent to the normalization model. This answers what behavior arises from normalization. Our equivalence result unifies these three models into a single theory that answers the “how”, “why”, and “what” of choice behavior.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Economics and Econometrics
- Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management


A sketch of the creatures
The Medford Shmoo sighting, also known as the Medford Smoo sighting, is a bizarre extraterrestrial sighting that took place during the summer of 1953 in Medford, Oregon.
It is known for appearing in the April-May 1984 issue of the CUFOS Associate Newsletter (Center for UFO Studies). There were three witnesses to the case: a mother, a father, and a 12-year-old girl.
"They were white with 'very smooth satiny fur' and were shaped somewhat like peanuts. They lacked any features like arms, legs, wings, or beaks. They glided, in a sideways motion at first, then straight away from them till they disappeared into a wooded area. The last of the three was slightly smaller than the other two." (reall.com)
- The creatures were shaped like Smoos in the old Lil’ Abner comic strip, but bigger.


In the early decades of the 1900s when racial segregation was the norm, almost 400 schools were built in rural Alabama to serve as educational facilities for African American children.
These were known as the Rosenwald Schools and, between 1912-32, they made it possible for African American children to obtain a formal education in a time when doing so would otherwise be nearly an impossibility.
Today, these schools are quickly fading, and a team of researchers from Auburn University’s College of Architecture, Design and Construction is working to digitally preserve and bring attention to the disappearing Rosenwald Schools. Funded by grants from their college, the university’s inaugural Creative Work and Social Impact Scholarship Funding Program and the McWhorter Fund for Excellence, Junshan Liu, Bob Aderholdt Endowed associate professor in the McWhorter School of Building Science, and Gorham Bird, visiting assistant professor in the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture, have begun their initial work to digitally document and re-construct four of these schools.
Using the latest digital documentation technology, their end product includes digital Building Information Models, or BIMs, 3D-printed physical models, as-built drawings and online virtual tours of these historic buildings. Their work will be presented through exhibitions to engage the public in civil rights history, teach emerging technologies and promote historical preservation.
“We started last summer,” Bird said. “It is now approaching 100 years since many of these schools were built. It is estimated that 10-12 percent of the original schools remain. Most are falling apart, and there is a pressing need to document and preserve them before they are gone.”
According to the research team, the first six schools in Alabama were built in Lee, Macon and Montgomery counties. The first Rosenwald School was built in Loachapoka in 1914.
In 1917, Julius Rosenwald expanded the project and established the Rosenwald Fund to oversee the establishment of new rural schools. Until 1920, the projects were managed by Tuskegee Institute and designed by Tuskegee architecture faculty Robert R. Taylor and W.A. Hazel. Starting in 1920, management of new schools was taken on by an independent Rosenwald Fund office located in Nashville, Tennessee, and the design of the schools became the responsibility of Samuel L. Smith, a white architect.
“Historic preservation has always been a part of my academic interest,” Bird said. “These schools advanced rural African American education beyond any other system, and they have maintained an impressive community impact. In fact, some alumni still hold reunions to this day.
“Economists have attributed the Rosenwald Schools for creating the African American middle class. Despite the inequities that existed in the Jim Crow South, the remaining Rosenwald Schools serve as a testament to the self-determination and resilience of the communities that worked to build them. This legacy cannot be lost to time.”
Liu leads the digital effort of the project using drones, LiDAR scanners—a system that uses laser to capture dimensional data of an object—360-degree photography, photogrammetry and other digital-based technologies to document and develop intelligent BIM models of these structures.
“We will ultimately create a digital and physical archive of these schools as historic sites that can be shared through exhibits to teach students and others,” Liu said.
Working with partners at the Alabama Historical Commission, or AHC, the project team has identified four Rosenwald Schools in Alabama for this initial work.
The four Alabama schools are geographically diverse, include different models of building type, and condition. The team plans to use this sample of schools to test and perfect the approach for documentation and presentation, in anticipation of seeking more external funds to map, document and preserve the remaining schools in the state and the South.
“The AHC has long wanted to document the remaining Rosenwald Schools,” Bird said. “This project is very much in line with their goals.”
The team has identified sites that are on the National Register of Historic Places that include:
- New Hope School, Chambers County, 1915. One-teacher school type;
- Mount Sinai School, Autauga County, 1919. Two-teacher school type;
- Oak Grove School, Hale County, 1921. Two-teacher school type;
- Tankersley School, Montgomery County, 1922. Three-teacher school type.
“The benefits of this workflow include the expedience of documentation and level of detail and accuracy,” Liu adds. “These benefits allow for a greater number of Rosenwald Schools to be digitally recorded in a shorter period of time with a very high degree of quality.”
The research team has completed a pilot test of documentation through a field survey of one of the Rosenwald Schools, the New Hope School in Chambers County. Three-dimensional LiDAR scanning and aerial photogrammetry was used to develop a digital 3D BIM.
The team also has uncovered archival materials, including the original design documents, through interviews with the president of the New Hope Foundation. An example virtual tour of the Tankersley Rosenwald School in Montgomery County illustrates the pressing need for intervention and preservation of these schools.
The project’s first phase including all four schools is expected to be completed in spring 2023, Bird said.
The New Hope School in Chambers County is one of 400 Rosenwald Schools built between 1912-32 to serve as educational facilities for African American children. A team of Auburn University professors from the College of Architecture, Design and Construction is working to digitally preserve and bring attention to the disappearing schools.
Using the latest digital documentation technology, a team of Auburn University researchers is digitally documenting Rosenwald Schools throughout Alabama using Building Information Models, or BIMs, 3D-printed physical models, as-built drawings and online virtual tours of these historic buildings.
The Tankersley School in Montgomery County was constructed as a Rosenwald Schools project in 1922 and is one of the structures Auburn University researchers are working to preserve.
An Auburn University research team that includes faculty and students from the College of Architecture, Design and Construction, shown here at the Tankersley School in Montgomery County, is dedicated to preserving several of the 400 Rosenwald Schools that were constructed for African American schoolchildren between 1912-32.
The Loachapoka School was the first Rosenwald School constructed and was dedicated in 1914. In 1917, Julius Rosenwald expanded the project and established the Rosenwald Fund to oversee the establishment of new rural schools.
By using LiDAR scanners—a system that uses laser to capture dimensional data of an object—360-degree photography, photogrammetry, drones and other digital-based technologies, researchers are documenting and developing intelligent Building Information Models, or BIMs, of the Rosenwald School structures, including here in New Hope, Alabama.


If you've got kids (or take care of kids), you know it can be a challenge to keep them entertained when out at places like a restaurant. If you're trying to avoid giving kids an iPad to keep them occupied while waiting for a meal, we're fans of making and bringing a busy bag for them. So today, we're showing you how to make a busy bags for kids! They're filled with a few favorite things to keep little hands and minds busy while you're out and about. Here are two options that we love for a both baby and a toddler. We even have a simple DIY to make the bag extra colorful and fun. Check it out…
1. Cut uneven strips of the vinyl.
2. Peel and stick the vinyl to the front of the pouch.
For a Baby (3 months to 1 year) — We filled this busy bag with a few toys and a book to keep little ones busy while out and about. At this age, they stick anything and everything in their mouths, so we added a variety of teething toys with different shapes and textures to keep them occupied. We also included some rings because they're a great way to attach toys to a highchair or stroller so things don't fall on the floor, get filthy, or get lost under another table. The book we have here is a favorite because it's INDESTRUCTIBLE. Seriously. You can even wash it, and it won't rip!
For A Toddler (ages 2-5) — If your child is a little older, here's a busy bag for toddlers! Because they're learning more and more each day, we like to include a wider variety of things for them to play with. These little animals are puzzle erasers and can keep kiddos busy for HOURS. You can take them apart, put them back together, even mix-and-match. If your kid loves crafting, these child-friendly scissors are great to have on hand so kids can make their own creations anywhere, anytime. These scissors ONLY cut paper, so you don't have to worry about any boo-boos (they won't even cut hair!). Dimensional puzzle pieces make building fun and great for siblings to play with together. We also threw in some stamps with black and white ink so kids can create their own pictures and then color them in. Lastly, we love including an educational piece, so we added these fun flash cards that have different numbers, shapes, and colors on them.
As your kids get older, you can change and evolve your busy bag for them based on their age and interests. Do YOU have a busy bag that you keep for your kid to take with you on-the-go? Comment below and tell me what you include in yours!


The next day we checked the places to be visited in Badami. There were few locations that were near and far by - Banashankari Temple, Mahakuta, Pattadakal, Aihole. The Banashankari and Mahakuta temple were offway to Pattadakal, which was our priority. Pattadakal houses several temples in a single location whereas Aihole was the school of architecture where the prototypes of temples (that were built later time & several locations) were made. Since I always prefer the local public transport for commuting, we enquired about the bus service in the Badami bus stand. A conductor suggested to take the bus 738 for reaching Pattadakal. With my basic alphabet knowledge I read the bus board written in Kannada as "Koodala Sangama".
We got into the bus and the conductor said that this bus doesn't go to Pattadakal, but he suggested that he'll drop us in the near by stop called as "Sai Baba Mandir" and we can walk from there. The bus took almost an 45 minutes and visited all the villages that fall in the way. Atlast when the bus was nearing the Sai Baba temple, we could see the temples of Pattadakal complex in the distance. A fellow passenger suggested to continue travelling in the bus to Aihole, see those temples first and visit the Pattadakal temples while returning. But the bus we went was not going via Aihole, so that suggestion was scrapped.
We got down at the Sai Baba Mandi stop and from that location, the temple complex was about 1 km away. Aihole complex was 12 kms away. We started walking towards the Pattadakal complex.
Pattadakal Complex is a place for celebrating the victories and coronation for Chalukyas. There are many temples built to commensurate the victories and the occassions. Totally there are 10 temples and various small shrines in the same complex. Here I learnt about the styles of the "Gopuram". They are "Dravidan Style" which is typically South Indian consisting of multiple descending levels towards the height with a huge stone at the top, the next one being "Nagara Style" which is typically north Indian which consists of curvilinear structure and there is Rekhaprasada style which is a mix of these. So in this complex 4 temples are in Dravida style, 4 in Nagara style, 1 in Rekhaprasada style and one in Jain style.
The following are the temples in Pattadakal complex and I had taken the text from Wikipedia.
Virupaksha temple is the largest and grandest of all temples in Pattadakal built in 8th Century, built by Queen Lokamahadevi (Trilokyamahadevi)in 745 to commemorate her husband's victory (Vikramaditya II) over the Pallavas of Kanchi. The Virupaksha temple is rich in sculptures like those of Lingodbhava, Nataraja, Ravananugraha and Ugranarasimha. Virupaksha is the earliest dated temple with the sukanasika, being closely followed by the Mallikarjuna temple. The biggest temple in Pattadakal is Virupaksha, enclosed by a large prakara. According to an inscription, the temple was built by Lokamahadevi, the consort of Vikramaditya to commemorate his three victories over the Pallavas and occupation of Kanchi. Its original name was Lokeshvara or Lokapaleshvara. This was perhaps built in about first half of the 8th century. This temple has a sanctum, an inner passage, pillared navaranga and triple entrances from the north, east and the south porches. It has a massive gateway in front from the east and a small gate behind. There are inscriptions and imposing stone carved figures inside the stone mantapa. A little inside is the four-pillared Nandimantapa, which has a fine large stone bull. The sanctum has a circuit path and installed on the square pedestal, a black Shivalinga. The famous Kailasa temple at Ellora was built on the model of the Virupaksha temple here. The Kailasantha temple at Ellora was built based on the model of Virupaksha temple. The architect of the temple was given the title as Tribhuvanacharya.
Sangameshwara Temple (was called Vijayewara) is oldest temple in Pattadakal, built by Chalukya King Vijayaditya Satyashraya ( 696-733), it has no sukanasika. The temple is in Dravidian style perhaps the oldest among the temples and it consists of a Sanctum, Inner passage and navaranga. The sanctum and inner passage are enclosed by a path way for pradakshina, which has several lattices of different design, sculptured on the outer walls various figures like Ugranarasimha and Nataraja. Both the Sangamesvara temple and the Virupaksha temple are similar to each other in being square on plan from the base to sikhara. The main vimana is of three storeys. The lowermost storey is surrounded by two walls. The second storey being an upward projection of the inner wall. While the outer wall encloses the covered circumambulatory round the sanctum. The navaranga has 20 pillars in four rows. Its exterior walls have stone carved figures. The sanctum has a Dravidian tower. According to an inscription in Kannada dated 1162, it was built by the Early Chalukya king Vijayaditya and was named Vijayeshvara.
To the left of the Sangameshvara is the small Chandrashekhara temple. Its architectural style is very simple, without any idols or fragile carvings. This small shrine consists of sanctum with a Shivalinga and a small hall. Only one idol of doorkeeper remains now.
Mallikarjuna Temple is a smaller version of the Virupaksha temple and was built by Vikramadiyta's second queen Trilokyamahadevi in 745. This temple is also was constructed by Rani Trilokyamahadevi to celebrate the victory (by Vikramaditya II) over the Pallavas. The Mallikarjuna temple was built immediately after and close to the Virupaksha temple (It has a similar plan), with a 4 storeyed vimana with a circular griva and sikhara. Mallikarjuna temple in Dravidian style. To the north of the Virupaksha temple lies the Mallikarjuna which was formerly known as Trailokeshvara. It is in close proximity with the Sanghameshvara temple in design, construction and sculpture, but smaller in size. The porch has a beautiful image of Narasimha killing Hiranyakashipu and two female idols. Here are two grand images on both the sides of the entrance to the navaranga. The eighteen pillars of the navaranga have figures pertaining to Ramayana, Mahabharatha and those representing social conditions of those days. On the ceiling are beautiful figures of Gajalakshmi and Shiva-Parvathi with Nandi. On the external walls are sculptures like Shiva, Nandi, Lakulisha, Nataraja, etc. This temple was built by Trailokya Mahadevi, the queen of Vikramaditya II.'
Kasivisvesvara temple was the last to be built in early Chalukya style. This temple was built by the Rashtrakutas in the 8th century. Kashi Vishwanatha temple in Nagara style To the north of the Mallikarjuna temple is the temple of Kashivishveshvara of which only the sanctum and a passage is left. On the pillars of the inner passage, female figures are engraved in high relief. On the ceiling, Somaskanda is represented. Its sanctum has a rekhanagara tower. The structure is presumably of the 8th century.
Galaganatha temple was built a century later in the architecture style of Rekha Nagara Prasada. Temple contains a sculpture of Lord Shiva killing the demon Andhakasura. Galaganatha Temple lies to the north of the Virupaksha and faces the west. It has a navaranga, shukanasa and the sanctum with a linga. Around the sanctum is the circuit path way. In several niches are small figures of Kubera, Gajalakshmi and others. On the external wall niche of the circuit path way is a fine figure of Shiva. The rekhanagara style tower over the temple is very fine. It seems to have been constructed during the first half of the 8th century.
Kadasiddhesvara and Jambulingeswara temples
Kadasiddhesvara and Jambulingeswara temples both attributed to 7th century. Kadasiddeshvara temple which has a sculpture of Shiva holding a Trident or Trishul in his hands and its twin temple, the Jambulinga Temple are all built in Nagara style and resemble the Hucchimalli' Guddi at Aihole.
Behind the Galaganatha temple is the shrine of Jambulinga. It has a sanctum with a shukanasa and a navaranga. At the doorway of the shukanasa are idols of Shiva’s guards Nandi and Virabhadra. In the shrine is the linga. The outer wall niches of the sancyum have idols of Shiva (Lakulisha) and Vishnu. It has a small rekhanagara tower.
To the north, Very close to the jambulinga shrine, is the shrine of Kadasiddheshvara. In size and architecture it is similar to that of Jambulinga. There are several well executed idols of Shiva, Parvathi and Vishnu and other divinities on the outer wall.
Jain Narayana temple built by the Rashtrakuta dynasty at Pattadakal
Jain Temple located on the Pattadakal-Badami Road, is built in the Dravidian style by the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta. It has some very beautiful sculptures & probably dates from the 9th century and was built by either King Amoghavarsha I or his son Krishna II. It consists of a mukhamantapa, a navaranga, shukanasa and garbhagriha. Its construction may be of the 9th century.
Papanatha temple at Pattadakal
Papanatha temple is built in the vesara style dated to 680. The temple was started in nagara style but later changed to a more balanced Dravidian style. Sculptures here speak of scenes from Ramayana and Mahabharatha. This temple has many similarities with the Navabrahma temples in Alampur, Andhra Pradesh, which were also built by Badami Chalukyas. Papanatha Temple is located to the south of the Virupaksha has a portico, main hall, big antechamber and the sanctum with encircled path way. At the doorway of the inner hall are idols of door-keepers, Nandi and Virabhadra. There are 16 pillars in the main hall, which have fine figures of couples and carved figures of females. The ceiling has impressive figures of Shiva-Parvathi with Vishnu and the gandharvas. To the north-west, on the wall is a notable figure of a royal court. Amorous couples and decorative carvings are found in several parts of the temple. On the external walls are figures of lion and elephant riders and Ramayana scenes. The temple appears to have built in stages. The sanctum has a rekhanagara tower. The temple appears to have built in 680.
In the photo album attached with this article, I would like to specially mention few sculptures. In the Sangameswara temple, there was this Bheeshma being laid on bed of arrows sculpture. Since Sangameshwara temple is about war and victory, this temple has lot of sculptures about war. In the ceiling panel we have a beautiful sculpture of Lord Sun with his 2 wives and other Gods. In one of the temple we had this Ravana trying to lift Mount Kailasa and in the other panel we had this Jatayu fighting with Ravana to stop kidnapping of Sita.
Once we are done with the temples, we wanted to return to room and take rest. We were waiting for bus near the temple itself. One of the shopkeeper advised us to walk towards the Pattadakal village bus stand where we can get bus / share vans for Badami. We walked to the Pattadakal bus stand and got into a share van. It was a typical village journey and had we waited for a couple of minutes more, we could have got into the bus itself which was literally vacant. After an hour of tortuous journey, we returned to room and slept for the remaining half of the day.
We started by 6:30 p.m from Badami in a share auto and reached the railway station by 6:45 p.m and got into the train by 7:45 p.m after a couple of delay announcements. Next morning we landed in Bangalore after experiencing the Chalukyan trails. Ofcourse we missed the Mahakuta, Banashankari temple and Aihole this time, but better luck next time.
This time it was hot even though we went in the right season. A photo of Bhoothanath temple with Agasthya lake filled and water levels upto the shrine was just haunting. So I am planning to visit Badami during rainy season to see its other facet. Let me see how it turns out...!!!


Non-invasive saliva tests will also be provided as an alternative to nasal swabs at three Ontario hospitals
The Ontario government will expand COVID-19 testing to pharmacies starting Friday, Premier Doug Ford said at a press conference today. These tests will hopefully relieve some of the pressure from testing sites across the province, Ford said.
Up to 60 pharmacies across the province will be providing testing to asymptomatic people as well, Minister of Health Christine Elliott said during the conference. These tests will be available for free but by appointment only.
Pharmacies will pre-screen people before they enter to make sure they don’t have any symptoms.
“If you’re showing severe symptoms, do not come (to a pharmacy). I repeat, do not come to a pharmacist, go to a local testing area,” Ford said.
Ford also announced that three hospitals in Ontario will be providing saliva tests as non-invasive testing options. They are Mount Sinai Hospital, Women’s College Hospital and the University Health Network. The government will also work to expand non-invasive options for COVID-19 tests to more hospitals, pharmacies and test sites, Ford said.
Current COVID-19 testing involves inserting a long swab, called a nasopharyngeal swab, into the nostril and towards the back of the throat. Ford urged Health Canada to approve saliva tests so they can be provided to more hospitals in the province.
“Health Canada, we need your help. I just can’t stress this enough. All I’m hearing is crickets from Health Canada right now on the saliva tests. These types of tests make it easier to test people, especially kids,” Ford said.
Today’s announcement is the second of six pillars in the province’s Keeping Ontarians Safe fall preparedness plan. It comes after reports of long wait times at COVID-19 testing sites across the province. The rest of the province’s fall preparedness plan is expected to be unveiled in the next few days.


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Synaptic is a graphical package management program for apt. It provides the same features as the apt-get command line utility with a GUI front-end based on Gtk+.
* Install, remove, upgrade and downgrade single and multiple packages.
* Upgrade your whole system.
* Manage package
... [More] repositories (sources.list).
* Find packages by name, description and several other attributes.
* Select packages by status, section, name or a custom filter.
* Sort packages by name, status, size or version.
* Browse all available online documentation related to a package.
* Download the latest changelog of a package.
* Lock packages to the current version.
* Force the installation of a specifc package version.
* Undo/Redo of selections. [Less]
Chocolatey is software management automation for Windows.
Choco is the CLI for Chocolatey
Chocolatey works with 20+ native install types, but it can manage things you would normally xcopy deploy. You can work w/registry settings, managing files & configurations, or any combination. Since it
... [More] uses PowerShell, if you can dream it, you can do it w/Chocolatey.
Builds on familiar technologies:
* Unattended installs
We didn't try to reinvent the wheel. We are building on technologies you know, technologies you may have been using for years. With those familiar technologies Chocolatey brings the concepts of package management to allow you to version things, manage dependencies and installation order, better inventory management, and other features. [Less]
An (Arch Linux) pacman-like package manager for some Linux distributions.
Actually this Bash script provides a wrapper for system's package manager.
Instead of remembering various options/tools on different OSs, you only need a common way to manipulate packages. Not all options of the native
... [More] package manager are ported; the tool only provides a very basic interface to search, install, remove packages, and/or update the system. [Less]
mrepo builds a local APT/Yum RPM repository from local ISO files, downloaded updates, and extra packages from 3rd party repositories. It takes care of setting up the ISO files, downloading the RPMs, configuring HTTP access and providing PXE/TFTP resources for remote network installations.
Skinny Update Manager is a lightweight update manager for Debian and Debian-based distributions. It does not create new daemons nor does it have any GNOME, KDE, or Xfce dependencies apart from gnome-icon-theme.
LiquidStart aims to allow Linux users (currently, Debian/Ubuntu) to create entries for each of the host computers they maintain, where they can add general components (i.e. MySQL Database, PHP Development Tools etc.) to each hosts profile. The engine can then generate a correct "apt-get" or
... [More] "aptitude" style command line for quick and simple "copy-and-paste" action, to install all required packages on the host after a fresh install.
The ability to upload a system generated package list and have the engine analyse and produce a component profile is also envisaged once the initial application requirements have been achieved. [Less]


View in Perth Park, Perth, Western Australia
|Collections||Intercolonial Investment, Land & Building Company Limited|
A picture of four people in a park with in the background a view of Perth and the Swan River. A woman and two girls sit on the bench surround of a small building while a boy stands in the entrance. The pavilion is an unglazed octagonal timber structure with openings on either side. It has a tiled roof and decorative wood trim around the eaves. The surrounding trees include gum trees and casuarinas, and there has been a recent planting of a large leafed plant in the triangular plot near the pavilion. The pavilion may be the structure described as a tea house on an early twentieth century map. Perth Park was re-named Kings Park in 1901 in honour of the accession of King Edward VII.
|Location:||Perth Park (Kings Park), Perth, Western Australia|
Perth, Western Australia.
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Commercial doors are generally expensive. The best someone may need to get value from it when it serves for long periods. However, this quest depends on many factors, such as the door’s material and maintenance plans.
Regardless of the size and type of a business entity, a regular maintenance plan for the doors is essential. This is true and highly necessary for cases where the door is ever in constant use, for example, a garage door for a car service company. Maintenance for a commercial door spans an array of plans and techniques, some of which someone can do by themself, and others are reserved for experts. Either way, an excellent maintenance program comes with plenty of benefits.
Saving on Costs on Repair
Emergency repair services and any other damage repairs can be expensive. This is truer in cases of constant repair needs that never seem to end. Even the richest business person on earth will never throw money on endless repairs now and then. That is why maintenance is a secure way to avoid this draining experience. A routine maintenance plan will surely detect and solve any issue before it gets out of hand that could otherwise attract high repair costs. The basic point is that maintenance is way cheaper than repairs and, arguably, is life and money-saving plan.
Peace of Mind
Any business owner will avoid one issue at all costs is spending on emergency repair services. These instances’ urgency can drain someone off the little saving they had and end up being stressed. With a maintenance plan, life gets easy with stress-free operations knowing that someone takes care of the door. Abrupt and untimely door collapse can drain someone off the time, money, and energy to handle it, and these are what maintenance works to solve.
Value for Money
Undoubtedly, maintenance plans work to solve many issues. One of them is the assurance of getting a valuable return on the investment. Yes, commercial doors are lifetime investments because they are very expensive and can take up all the savings. Constant check-ups on the door will ensure it serves you longer, even beyond the expectation of the set timeline. When the owner finally decides to buy on plans, the buyer will find the door in good condition and likely to pay the amount without debates.
Ultimate Constant Security and Safety
A commercial premise handles many people now and then. Since everyone uses the door, keeping it safe is only logical as it sounds. Avoiding liability cases when the door hits someone or does the unthinkable to clients is the end goal here. Regular maintenance will ensure the door is functional and does not pose any threat to anyone in any way.
When it comes to security, a commercial premise is a den of many valuables. A door that fails at odd hours poses risks to the property and other valuables within. Constant maintenance will ensure that business owners avoid security risks to the business in the long end.


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Lunar New Year is around the corner. Celebrated in various Asian countries and based on the Chinese lunisolar calendar, this holiday is a time of bright colors, renewal, and joy. To celebrate we are building a Lunar New Year lantern. Help your students celebrate or learn about the holiday while teaching engineering skills with a lantern of their own!
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When students create infographics, they are using information, visual, and technology literacies. When teachers create infographics, they can spark classroom debates, gamify the activity, or provide aid for a difficult concept. Infographics can make wonderful study guides, but what happens when students can't understand what they mean? Join the Curriculum Specialists as we dissect these graphically designed tools and learn how to develop assessments where students create their own visual representations of data which will help students successfully showcase their mastery of knowledge.
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Dr. Eleanor McGlinchey is an Assistant Professor in the School of Psychology at Fairleigh Dickinson University with a research appointment in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center. She has been studying the emotional consequences of poor sleep for over 15 years. Dr. McGlinchey’s current approach to studying sleep is in the context of adolescent depression and anxiety. This work is important and timely, given hers and others’ recent work indicating that the risk of depression is increased by sleep difficulties and sleep complaints are the most common chronic symptom among depressed adolescents. Dr. McGlinchey hopes to begin to characterize specific aspects of sleep, including biological, psychological, interpersonal and socio-cultural markers that may eventually be used to help direct children and adolescents to the best treatment options for their specific symptom profile. This work would have the potential to produce important treatment implications for children and adolescents struggling with mental health difficulties and would aim to provide more rest to youth who are deprived of quality sleep.