2020 NFL Week 13 – Best Bets Against the Spread From the SI Gambling Team – Sports Illustrated

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NFL Best Bets for Week 13

Please note: These are our FREE picks, not our PREMIUM picks which are reserved for MEMBERS only at SI Fantasy PRO. Members receive alert notifications immediately upon pick release.

YTD: 191-131-2 | MLB: 79-60 | NFL: 55-42-1 | CFB: 19-17 | January-March: 38-12-2 | Casey Olson's MMA PICKS: 192-80-5 (71% on all released betting plays)

Please note: These are our FREE picks, not our PREMIUM picks which are reserved for MEMBERS only at SI Fantasy PRO. Members receive alert notifications immediately upon pick release.

Check out the breakdowns for each of our analyst's picks below!

Ben Heisler (@bennyheis)

New England Patriots at Los Angeles Chargers (-1) | TOTAL: 47.5

I was flabbergasted when the line opened at Chargers -1.5 for this game. HOW?

L.A. cant get out of its own way with abysmal clock management and no regard for situational play calling late in games. They willfully find ways to lose, highlighted by this gem from ProFootballTalk.

The Chargers have had 20 games decided by one score since the start of the 2019 season, and they are 4-16 in those games. That is the most one-score losses in the NFL in that span.

Im not saying this years Patriots are world-beaters, but if youre going to gift a Bill Belichick coached team points vs a Chargers squad with a 25% winning percentage in one-score games over the last two years, I think youve made my decision fairly easy.

This line will move towards the Patriots the closer we get, so Id hop on early.

BEST BET: Patriots +1 (this line has since moved to Patriots -1 at DraftKings Sportsbook).

Frankie Taddeo (@Frankie_Fantasy)

Cleveland Browns at Tennessee Titans (-5.5) | TOTAL: 54

Normally, when you have two 8-3 teams likely headed for the playoffs, the line should only be around a field goal. Despite only moderate support in the early wagering, the oddsmakers have made a huge move to the Titans who have gone both 3-1 SU and ATS in their last four games. In addition, how could you not be impressed with Tennessees last two quality road wins over the Colts and Ravens?

On the flip side, Baker Mayfield and the Browns (8-3 SU; 4-7 ATS) have covered just one of their last six games ATS. Talk about burning money. Finally, are you willing to get in front of the Derrick Henry train right now? Im not.

Look for the Titans to extend their winning streak to three straight overall over a Browns team that simply is overrated.

BEST BET: Titans -5.5

Corey Parson (@TheFantasyExec)

Jacksonville Jaguars vs Minnesota Vikings (-10 ) | TOTAL: 51

The Jacksonville Jaguars may only have one win on the season but they are 5-6 ATS on the year, Jacksonville has also covered the number in three of their last four games. Minnesota is 6-5 ATS on the season but only 2-4 ATS in home games, that says that they are overvalued at home.

Minnesota has won four of their last five games but only one of those victories was convincing, not only do I think Jacksonville will cover I think they have a chance to pull off the upset.

BEST BET: Jaguars +10

Michael Fabiano (@Michael_Fabiano)

Cleveland Browns at Tennessee Titans (-5.5) | TOTAL: 54

Its Derrick Henry season for the Titans! The big, bruising back is set to lead the Titans to the playoffs with the first of several favorable matchups, the first of which comes against the Browns. Their defense has been bad on the road, and it would be ranked lower in the league overall if not for a few bad weather games in Cleveland that shrunk their point and yardage allowed totals.

I expect the Titans to win this game easily, so Ill eat the 5.5 points and take Tennessee this weekend.

BEST BET: Titans -5.5

Bill Enright (@BillEnright)

Denver Broncos vs. Kansas City Chiefs (-13.5) | TOTAL: 50.5

We all saw Denver play without a quarterback in Week 12 and muster up just three points, but Drew Lock is expected to return for this AFC West matchup. But this number is all about the Chiefs.

The Over/Under opened at 48.5, actually came down half a point and then took off and is now at 50.5. The over has hit in 3 out of 4 games when the Chiefs play an AFC West opponent, including the last time these two teams met earlier in the season and the over covered by 13 points.

BEST BET: OVER 50.5

Roy Larking (@StatsGuru6)

New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons (+2.5) | TOTAL: 45

Taysom Hill and the Saints (9-3) are playing back-to-back road games following a 31-3 win in Denver last week. New Orleans is riding an eight game winning streak that includes a 24-9 win at home against Atlanta two weeks ago. Matt Ryan and the Falcons (4-7) are playing a second straight home game after they crushed Las Vegas 43-6 last week. The lopsided win is surprising on a few levels including Atlanta gaining just 304 total yards on offense. The Falcons have posted a 4-2 record under interim head coach Raheem Morris.

Its difficult to get a handle on why the point spread is so low on this NFC South rivalry rematch. The Falcons have played better recently, and they have tape on Saints starter Taysom Hill, but Julio Jones and Todd Gurley are both expected to be inactive for this contest. The Saints are playing lights out on defense and have outscored their last four opponents by a 120-28 margin. New Orleans is looking to maintain their lead in the race for the top seed in the NFC playoffs. Not overthinking the low point spread - I am siding with the Saints here.

New Orleans is a -2.5 point favorite at DraftKings. Lay the line and bet on the Saints.

BEST BET: Saints -2.5 (this line has since moved to -3 at DraftKings Sportsbook)

Steve Renner (@Steve_Renner)

Indianapolis Colts at Houston Texans (+3.5) | TOTAL: 51

I personally think the Colts are going to win by double digits running away. Houston losing Will Fuller for the season will make it even more difficult for them to move the ball consistently down the field against a good Colts defense who will be looking to bounce back after a couple down weeks. The Colts announced early Friday morning that DeForest Buckner was activated from the COVID-19 list, a huge boost for their defense against a depleted Texans offense. I love Indianapolis as the better team to cover on the road and expect them to win by double digits.

BEST BET: Colts -3.5

Ian Ritchie (@SIGambling)

New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons (+2.5) | TOTAL: 45

Taysom Hill, meet Tim Tebow! Sean Payton knows how to win and has limited the playbook to exploit what Hill does best, pound the football. He is averaging 10 carries per game since getting the starting job and with that limited playbook they are using, they will continue to win. I am assuming Julio Jones and Todd Gurley will be inactive and in those situations, Matt Ryan has really struggled in the past. The Saints defense has been lights out and with a Falcons team without two top weapons, it will set up exactly how Sean Payton wants it too. The Saints are chasing the top seed in the NFC and would love nothing more than a first round bye in the playoffs. The motivation for the Saints is HIGH and they will take care of business in this NFC South rivalry and cover this spread that still sits under a FG.

BEST BET: Saints -2.5 (this line has since moved to -3 at DraftKings Sportsbook)

Scott Atkins (@ScottFantasy)

Buffalo Bills @ San Francisco 49ers (PK) | TOTAL: 47.5

BEST BET: 49ers (PK)

Casey Olson (@Y2CASEY)

Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs -13.5 |TOTAL: 50.5

Oddsmakers have the Chiefs winning by a couple touchdowns or so, and that shouldn't be an issue here. They've won 19 of 20 dating back into last season, and Patrick Mahomes will put on a show in the primetime spot this week, showing the masses just why he leads all players in Pro Bowl votes as announced this week.

On the other side, lets just forget about last week's 31-3 loss Denver had against the Saints, where they were stuck with literally no quarterback, and consider the fact that the Broncos actually average 19 points per game, and will be motivated to bounce back. Drew Lock is slated to be ready to go, so break out the rapping memes and let's see Lock and the Broncos score enough to force KC to put up 40+ to cover the spread, as they did in week 6, where the total flew past the number and hit 59.

Primetime unders are 22-14 this season, though the last two Sunday nights we've seen 66 points put up.

BEST BET: DEN @ KC OVER 50.5

Gary Gramling, The MMQB (@GGramling_SI)

New Orleans Saints (-2.5) at Atlanta Falcons | TOTAL: 45

I know youre nervous about the Falcons getting to see Taysom Hill for the second time in three weeksI am toobut there are a couple of trends working in the Saints favor. The Falcons are coming off a blowout win over the Raiders, but theyve failed to cover the last four times they played at home following a double digit-point win.

Meanwhile, New Orleans has covered in each of their seven games against an opponent with a sub-.400 winning percentage since the start of 2018. Even if you throw out last weeks win over the QB-less Broncos, the Saints defense has dominated the past three weeks. When they met in Week 11, Atlantas receivers couldnt separate (and theyll likely be without Julio Jones for this one) and their offensive line couldnt protect Matt Ryan.

BEST BET: Saints -2.5 (this line has since moved to -3 at DraftKings Sportsbook)

Mitch Goldich, The MMQB (@mitchgoldich)

New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons +2.5 | TOTAL: 45

Everyone knows the story line here, with Taysom Hill starting his third game in a row and facing the Falcons for the second time in three weeks. I know that conventional wisdom points to an advantage for Atlanta herethey have film on Hill now and a full week to prepare for him after not even knowing if hed start over Jameis Winston until deep into the week last time.

I think Sean Payton also has an advantage after seeing two weeks of Hill on the field full-time. None of us really knew what a Taysom Hill-led offense would look like or what he was capable of as a 60-minute player until Payton officially gave him the keys. I think the Saints also have a better idea of what works and what doesnt, and that can help them game plan with Hill, despite Atlanta having seen him.

The Falcons are on an impressive run since Raheem Morris took over for Dan Quinn, but I think the Saints are still the better team. I expect them to win this game, so with the spread under a field goal I was happy to make it a best bet.

BEST BET: Saints -2.5 (this line has since moved to -3 at DraftKings Sportsbook)

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2020 NFL Week 13 - Best Bets Against the Spread From the SI Gambling Team - Sports Illustrated

Gambling on the future of food – Farm and Dairy

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Three events on consecutive mid-November days show farmers, ranchers and all Americans where U.S. agriculture is now.

On Nov. 18, the Iowa Capital Dispatch, a not-for-profit news website, detailed allegations on how managers at Tyson Foods hog-killing plant in Waterloo, Iowa, literally gambled on employee lives as the coronavirus took root last April.

In mid-April, related the Dispatch from information contained in a recently disclosed lawsuit, Waterloos plant manager Tom Hart organized a cash-buy-in, winner-take-all betting pool for supervisors and managers to wager how many plant employees would test positive for COVID-19 as he continued its 19,500-hog, daily kill.

What empowers a plant manager to, allegedly, run a betting pool on how many of his employees will become infected with a sickening, sometimes fatal, virus during the rise of a global pandemic? Equally important, what do you call a company that harbors such an employee?

A day after the news broke, The Associated Press called Tyson Foods a coronavirus super spreader.

The betting pool, it explained, operated as the virus spread through the Waterloo plant, ultimately infecting more than 1,000 of its 2,900 workers, killing at least six and sending many others to the hospital. The outbreak eventually tore through the broader Waterloo community.

On Nov. 19, one of Tysons key competitors, Smithfield Foods, settled several federal lawsuits filed by plaintiffs who had sued the company over the stench, flies, buzzards and truck traffic coming from its industrial swine farms in North Carolina, noted the Food & Environment Reporting Network, or FERN.

In the opinion that led to the settlements, one of the appellate judges who denied Smithfield a retrial, asked a simple question: How did it come to this?

Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson IIIs answer, based on the facts he had heard in the case, was as succinct as his question: The decades-long transition to concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) lays bare this connection (between) animal welfare and human welfare .

In short, The dangers endemic to such appalling conditions [are] always manifested first in animal suffering and, afterwards the ripples of dysfunction would reach farm workers and, at last, members of the surrounding community.

Every farmer and rancher knows what the judge meant; its a small step from mistreating your animals or land to mistreating your employees, neighbors or, worse, family.

Thats the slippery slope seen both in the Tyson allegations and the Smithfield settlement: The more power given to corporations by lax government or local communities desperate for jobs, the more power the corporations take.

This power underlies the dysfunction that Judge Wilkinson warns will, soon or later, reach members of the surrounding community you, me and Smithfields long-suffering neighbors and, allegedly, Tysons Waterloo employees.

New research proves it.

According to research made public Nov. 19, the day of the Smithfield settlement, corporate ags increasing power has resulted in numerous negative impacts on farmers, workers and their communities as well as consumers, who have experienced higher prices and less innovation.

The study, completed by Mary Hendrickson, of the University of Missouri, Philip Howard, of Michigan State University, Emily Miller, of Family Farm Action Alliance, and Douglas Constance, of Sam Houston State University, has a singular, inescapable point: Todays concentration of ownership, wealth and power (is) directly related to who make(s) decisions in food and agriculture .

And, We observe that these decisions have increasingly migrated from a more community or public arena into the realm of those within the biggest firms (who) have their eye on increasing their power and although this may increase their profits, it does not usually align with enhancing the public good.

In short, the more power we give corporate ag, the more it takes and the more it takes, the more it gambles on the people and communities who grow and deliver everyones food. And, as recent events have shown again, thats a bad bet for rural America.

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Gambling on the future of food - Farm and Dairy

Gambling Industry Announcement and Partnership Roundup December 3, 2020 – CalvinAyre.com

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In the fast-moving world of gambling, sometimes you might miss news that could be important to you. To make sure youre all caught up on gaming industry news, be it online or brick and mortar, were rounding up the some of the announcements and partnerships from the last week that you might have missed.

Dont miss out on all of the latest announcements. Our Press Release section is updated constantly.

Red Rake Gaming partners with Rivalo in Colombia

The industrys well-known games development company, Red Rake Gaming, has agreed a new content deal with Rivalo for the Colombian market which will see it broaden its presence in the growing Latin American online gaming market.

Rivalo will launch a broad selection of Red Rake Gamings localized top performing games in the Colombian market, including its record breaking Super15Stars the non-stop, action-packed slot which combines feature games and bonus rounds from all its predecessors in the Super series of games, all of which have been very well received in Latin America. Additional titles from the Red Rake diverse suite of games includes Million 777; giving players a million ways to win, The Asp of Cleopatra, 1st of the Irish, and Secrets of the Temple, all of which continue to hold top spots across the Red Rake Gaming portfolio.

Skywind Group Announce Partnership with Avento

Skywind Group and Avento have signed a new deal, granting Avento access to all of Skywinds inventive games, acquisition and retention tools.

Avento and Skywind share a passion for innovation, player engagement and finding the best ways to both stand out while providing quality entertainment players can trust. This, in combination with a focus on understanding multiple unique markets, compliance and sustainable markets are a few of the elements that drew Avento and Skywind together.

IMG ARENA signs long term extension with Ekstraklasa

IMG ARENA, a leading sports betting service and content hub, has secured an extension to its global* live streaming partnership with Polands premier football league, the Ekstraklasa.

The multi-year renewal will see IMG ARENA package live footage from the competition for betting and gaming operators to offer to their customers.

Following a period of commercial growth, Ekstraklasa paid record revenues to its clubs in 2019-20, and the league is set to grow from 16 to 18 teams from 2021-22, providing a greater volume of matches and further increasing the live streaming coverage.

GrooveGaming mint a deal with the Coingaming Groups integration platform Hub88.

This latest agreement sees aggregator GrooveGaming hit the headlines again with a deal to supply content to the Hub88 platform, following a whirlwind of announcements over the past 6 months, as GrooveGaming continues to expand rapidly on the back of some of the most robust technology in the iGaming industry.

Earlier this year, GrooveGaming was recognised as one of the 10 Best Innovative Technology Solution Providers of 2020 by IndustryEra, firmly demonstrating that the aggregators technology development is being acknowledged not only in the iGaming industry, but also from outside it.

Becoming the latest in a raft of new agreements entered into so far this year, the new partnership will see GrooveGamings content integrated with the Hub88 platform.

Pragmatic Play Seals Live Casino Direct Integration With Kindred

Pragmatic Play, a leading content provider to the gaming industry, has finalised the direct integration of its Live Casino portfolio with leading operator group, Kindred. This new deal enhances an already robust partnership between the two, with the Nordic operator previously integrating Pragmatic Plays slots.

Kindred will now have direct access to the suppliers acclaimed Live Casino portfolio which has seen amazing success after the launch of the new Blackjack and Roulette Azure tables, the ever-popular Baccarat and Speed Baccarat, as well as the companys first game show, Mega Wheel.

Paysafes Income Access Unveils Upgrades to Affiliate Marketing Platform

Income Access, Paysafes marketing technology and services provider, has announced the release of multiple key upgrades to its award-winning affiliate marketing platform. The enhancements are designed to improve the user experience of iGaming operators and affiliates by focusing on core functionality such as navigation, mobile responsiveness and report display.

The upgrades, which primarily concern the platforms dashboard and reporting interface, have been released across all Income Access-powered affiliate programmes and reflect the Paysafe companys ongoing efforts to gather and respond to constructive feedback from partners. With changes that address the need for a more streamlined and responsive design, Income Access can now equip operators and their affiliate marketing partners with an interface that supports an intuitive user experience and facilitates their assessment of actionable data.

Aimed at maintaining a competitive advantage across both traditional and emerging iGaming markets, these enhancements come in a year when Income Access has also announced major partnerships with brands such as High 5 Casino, Tipico U.S., and ZenSports. In addition, the company expanded its footprint in the global retail foreign exchange (forex) trading space through a partnership with leading online broker FXCM Group.

BTOBET Announces Strategic Partnership with Yellowbet

Cameroon-based betting site to be powered by Neuron 3 platform

BtoBet will be strengthening its presence in Africa announcing a strategic partnership with iGaming group Yellowbet to power its Yellowbet Cameroon brand with the Neuron 3 platform. The deal encompasses the operators digital channels. The partnership also allows Yellowbet to migrate its other brands in Africa to BtoBets advanced betting and gaming platform.

Seeking to deliver a tailored user experience to its players, Yellowbet will be delivering a wide range of content including local and international sports betting which includes live sports events, online and live casino, jackpots and a wide range of virtual sports.

Playtech integrates Affordability UK solution

Playtech partner TruNarrative powers market-leading solution

Playtech, the worlds leading gambling technology company, has announced the integration of Affordability UK into its award-winning IMS platform as its latest move to support operators in meeting regulatory requirements.

Affordability UK is provided by eKYC and fraud detection specialists TruNarrative, extending the companys partnership with Playtech to deliver a leading range of player onboarding and verification services.

Affordability UK can accurately and reliably identify customers whose gambling spend may be unsustainable. The combination of Affordability UK insight and the capabilities of the TruNarrative platform will allow operators to:

Greentube expands Neccton Responsible Gaming solution to Spanish brand

Greentube, the NOVOMATIC Interactive division, is set to implement Necctons Responsible Gaming solution across its Spanish online gaming offering, following a successful rollout in the UK.

The mentor tool, which was first launched with ADMIRAL Casino and has more real-money gaming brands set to follow, helps Greentube identify potentially problematic gambling behaviour in real-time and automatically interacts with players showing harmful behaviour.

The implementation of mentor with the StarVegas brand in Spain reinforces the companys commitment to safer play for its customers and cements its position as a responsible global games supplier and operator.

To ensure the highest level of social responsibility and player protection across the board, Greentube will look to roll-out mentor in more markets in the very near future.

Necctons new AI-based Responsible Gaming (RG) solution, mentor, tracks specific metrics which could indicate that somebody is spending more than they can afford, such as chasing losses, in-session deposits, failed deposits and cancelled withdrawals, and alerts operators instantly if certain markers of harm are surfacing.

The solution also communicates directly with players via customised messages detailing changes in play or overspending, and includes information that allows them to analyse their own behaviour and compare it to the player base.

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Gambling Industry Announcement and Partnership Roundup December 3, 2020 - CalvinAyre.com

Gambling: A look ahead in the NFL with no Thursday game this week – Colorado Springs Gazette

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Every NFL Thursday, I will attempt, using tools and stats from FTNBets.com, to slay the sportsbooks, scribbling my favorite side, total or prop picks for the weeks upcoming NFL slate. Some will win. Many will lose. Fade or follow? That, of course, is up to you. Sans Thursday football this week, heres a look ahead to the Sunday main slate:

Pick 1: OVER 44 Chicago/Detroit (DraftKings, -110) In the battle for NFC North inferiority, the holiday lights could burn brightly. Both teams are mentally checked out. One team pink slipped its coach and GM; the other may soon follow. And both teams have visible and exploitable defensive flaws. Sure, putting your faith in Mitchell Trubisky is akin to trusting your porker brother to avoid the last Christmas cookie, but the data says take the leap. Detroit has allowed 7.9 pass yards per attempt to QBs and 4.62 yards per carry to opposing rushers. Its forgiving defense combined with Chicagos suddenly gashable front seven (4.14 ypc yielded to RBs) arrows to a likely repeat of the 27-23 shootout between these two squads way back in Week 1. Throw in the return of DAndre Swift to spark the Lions' ground game and a final tally in the 50s is palpable. Keep in mind seven of 11 Detroit games have hit the over this season.

Pick 2: Las Vegas/New York Jets Jets +8 (Draftkings, -110) Yes, Im a masochist. Wagering real money on the Jets is, generally speaking, a winless proposition. This season, theyre a lousy 3-8 ATS. Vegas, meanwhile, is a far more fruitful 7-4 in the category. Still, Sam Darnold, for only the second time this season, will have his full battery of weapons Breshad Perriman, Jamison Crowder and Denzel Mims. Its an arsenal featuring prominent and proven field stretchers. Against a leaky Vegas defense, Darnold and Co. should move the ball with considerable success. The Raiders have yielded 7.1 pass yards per attempt and 270.8 pass yards per game. Most importantly for Darnold, they also bring the blitz just 19.2 percent of the time. In the end, a final score within seven points is the most logical outcome. Bet on the Jets? Really? Ok, maybe the tequila is talking.

Pick 3: David Montgomery rushes for 75+ yards (PointsBet, -134) For the unfamiliar readers in attendance, #MandatoryMontgomery is a weekly passion play. My adoration for the average-talented running back strangely runs deep. Hes a solid player trapped in a quagmire. This season hes experienced a major uptick in YAC production (3.02 YAC/attempt) and missed tackle rate (25.4%), still naysayers continuously lambaste him. He can dance too much, but Chicagos woeful offensive line and QB execution are the primary reasons why his surface numbers lack consistency. However, coming off a monster showing against Green Bay, he should blast his way over the proposed threshold. The Hello Kitties (Detroit) are abysmal defensively allowing 4.62 yards per carry and 116.3 rush yards per game to RBs. Back Monty and score all the monies.

Last weeks record: 2-0 ATS

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Gambling: A look ahead in the NFL with no Thursday game this week - Colorado Springs Gazette

Is NCAA Basketball Gambling With the Lives of Its Players? Mother Jones – Mother Jones

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With college football season underway and upended by the pandemic, college basketball season has now also begun in a relative state of chaos. As players, coaches, and other personnel contract Covid-19, colleges and universities large and small have begun to suspend activities, reschedule or postpone games, and bail out of tournaments.

The NCAA and university leaders have moved ahead with their eyes on an obvious prize: college basketballs canonical event, March Madness, which was canceled in spring 2020 as the pandemic set in. That was a painful setback, with the tournament accounting for up to 75 percent of the NCAAs entire revenue stream. Now, the league hopes to restore the event in spring 2021 for 68 teams at a single site, reportedly in Indianapolis, where the NCAA headquarters are located. The NCAA has laid out guidelines for frequent testing, social distancing, and two-week pauses for any programs where a player, coach, or staffer contracts the virus. Yet, teams are still allowed to traveleven as travel has been discouraged by health authorities and the nation faces a surge superimposed upon the surge were already inand it has been left up to the schools themselves whether to create their own on-campus bubbles.

Who will face the greatest risk? Teams and the viewing public undoubtedly are eager for play to continue and for the beloved tournament to take place next March. But in some sense the ongoing scenario mirrors the patchwork and sometimes reckless approach to the pandemic by the nation as a wholedone foremost on the backs of laborers. It is the frontline workersthe unpaid players, in this casewho may be most imperiled by this effort to return to sports normalcy in the teeth of a raging pandemic. Coaches including Syracuses Jim Boeheim, University of Tennessees Rick Barnes, and Michigan States Tom Izzo have already tested positive. But the greatest risk in numbers will likely be to the predominantly Black athletes whose communities have been disproportionately afflicted by the pandemic.

The once-exiled head coach Rick Pitino, who now leads Iona Colleges basketball program, told the New York Times that it made more sense to postpone the tournament at least until May. Hospitals are being overrun, were at 200,000 cases a day, Pitino said. Were not the N.B.A.we dont have $150 million to protect us in a bubble; were not college football and can play in an open-air facility. Interruptions are going to be quite substantial. There are 15 or 20 coaches that have tested positive, and were just entering winter. Its going to be very difficult to manage a good product and keep everybody safe. Within the last week, Gonzaga University went ahead with playing against Auburn University in a Florida tournament, even as they sidelined a player who tested positive and another player sat in quarantine. The entire Ivy League canceled their basketball seasons out of COVID concerns, as did Bethune-Cookman University. At least 40 mens basketball programs have paused activities in recent weeks as a result of positive Covid-19 tests.

As with the broader American economy, it may be the smaller schools with fewer resources whose players and staff are most at risk. I dont understand why were playing or why were opening up when were trying to do away with the virus, Cal State Fullerton head coach Dedrique Taylor, whose program canceled its first three games after a player tested positive, told the Times. Were almost encouraging the virus by bringing people together. Id rather be fatigued than freaking dead.

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Is NCAA Basketball Gambling With the Lives of Its Players? Mother Jones - Mother Jones

I wished the venues stayed shut: Coronavirus shutdown leads to drop in gambling – The New Daily

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The coronavirus shut down of pubs and clubs has led to a small drop in gambling frequency for the average person, but no improvement among problem gamblers, a new study has revealed.

The University of Sydney study has found that in the six months since gambling venues were shut down due to pandemic and subsequently re-opened, the average person reduced the number of times they gambled.

Researchers from the universitys Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic and Technology Addiction Team conducted a series of online surveys in May, August and November to measure the impacts of changes in the availability of gambling in pubs, clubs, and casinos on Australians gambling habits.

On average, survey respondents reduced the number of times they engaged in different land-based and online gambling activities from 34 times per month pre-COVID to 31 times per month in November.

Participants who were already experiencing gambling problems did not change how frequently they gambled compared to pre-COVID levels.

The preliminary results indicate that most people are gambling less frequently, even as venues re-open and we start to get back to normal life, University of Sydney technology addiction researcher Nicola Black said.

However, more efforts are needed to help people experiencing gambling problems to get the support they need, Dr Black said.

Our findings highlight how hard it can be for people experiencing gambling problems to change their gambling behaviour, she said.

Asking for help takes a lot of courage, but effective treatments are available and recovery is possible.

The researchers surveyed 462 adults who had gambled in the past year, mostly based on the east coast of Australia but excluding Victorians due to the states second hard lockdown.

The average age of those surveyed was 45 years, and 87 per cent were male.

Some respondents said that their gambling habits had changed since venues reopened, and that the shutdown had helped them address their gambling habits.

Have made decision to restrict my playing the pokies to shorter amounts of time, one respondent said.

Another respondent said it would be hard to stay away from gambling as venues reopened.

I know that now the venues are opening I will go back, they said.

Hopefully lesser but in any event, I wished the venues stayed shut!

Study lead and Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic director Sally Gainsbury said the preliminary results showed that many people require more help to tackle problem gambling.

Our findings from the first survey in May indicated many people found the venue closures were helping them to break their gambling problem; but these latest findings suggest that in many cases, their problems may have persisted, Associate Professor Gainsbury said.

However, without professional support, overcoming entrenched gambling problems can be very hard.

The Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic offers free, confidential services for individuals and families impacted by gambling with no referral needed.To make an appointment phone 1800 482 482 or email psychology.gtc@sydney.edu.au.

For referral to services across Australia call 1800 858 858 or visit gamblinghelponline.org.au

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I wished the venues stayed shut: Coronavirus shutdown leads to drop in gambling - The New Daily

FuboTV wants to get in on sports gambling, buys Balto Sports – CalvinAyre.com

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FuboTV set out to be the go-to sports streaming channel when it was launched and has found a significant following in the past five years. After getting its feet wet with soccer, it began offering all types of sports coverage in 2017 and has continued to expand ever since. The platform is ready to take its services to the next level, though, and, in a trend that only promises to grow larger, wants to become part of the sports gambling scene in the U.S. The company announced Monday that it is in the process of purchasing Balto Sports as a stepping stone toward greater sports betting integration.

Balto Sports was co-founded in 2018 by Nick Montana, son of former NFL quarterback Joe Montana, as a platform to allow users to set up fantasy sports contests. It has received significant financial support over the years, which has allowed it to build up its software development, automation and marketing. FuboTV plans on leveraging that innovation to launch free-to-play games and to, eventually, maybe even become a full-blown sportsbook.

According to a statement, FuboTV co-founder and CEO David Gandler explains that the launch of a real-money sportsbook would ultimately be the natural progression for the company, adding, As we said in our third quarter earnings announcement last month, FuboTV sees the online wagering space as complementary to our sports-first live TV streaming platform. We believe there are significant synergies between consumers who enjoy wagering and our subscribers who enjoy streaming live sports, creating a flywheel opportunity.

He expects FuboTV to take a methodic and pragmatic approach to development, saying, We will be strategic in our approach to wagering as we consider and evaluate different opportunities and will adjust our plans accordingly. Were excited to launch sports wagering, integrate it into our core offerings and deliver what we believe will be a truly groundbreaking live TV streaming platform to consumers.

This isnt the first time FuboTV has explored hookups with the sports gambling industry. It has been a partner with FanDuel since last year when it started carrying that sportsbooks betting data. It also carries VSiN and other sports gambling-related programming.

Baltos team wont be completely disappearing after the acquisition is finalized. It will be added to FuboTVs roster and is expected to be instrumental in the companys introduction of free-to-play games. The new offering will find a lot of attention, as the broadcaster has over 455,000 paid subscribers regularly tuning in to tens of thousands of live sporting events each year.

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FuboTV wants to get in on sports gambling, buys Balto Sports - CalvinAyre.com

The Luxury Problem of Talent Gambling in the LEC – Hotspawn

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Over the past years, European League of Legends has gone through impressive growth. And no, this isnt particularly about the EU LCS successful rebrand to the LEC or the two times a European team made it to the finals of the World Championship. Rather, Europe has seen impressive growth of the European Regional Leagues the ERLs. All across the region, local leagues have steadily been established, becoming a greenhouse for the LEC. Its here that young talent is spotted and asked by teams for tryouts, with the lucky ones being given a shot at the big stage.

However, Europes talent farm comes with downsides for players already in the LEC, as the 2020 offseason has shown us. Teams that failed to achieve what they aimed for last season are incentivized to roll a die on upcoming talent, and players who debuted, but failed to impress, are shoved aside. Instead of trying to cultivate players who they did see potential in, teams speed-roll through European talent with uncomfortable carelessness.

Lets first take a step back and take a look at the players who debuted in 2020. The specific number of rookies depends on how strict you want to be with the term. For example: Andrei Orome Popa, the MAD Lions top laner, had subbed in for one match before being promoted to a main LEC roster. What about Janik Jenax Bartels, SK Gamings top laner, who played a handful of matches in 2019? Players being imported from smaller regions are seen as LEC rookies too by Riot, even if theyve played at large scale international events (take Origens/Astralis Mitchell Destiny Shaw for example, who played at Worlds 2019).

The exact number of rookies also depends on your own criteria, but the number of players who made their debut in the LEC in 2020 hovers around twenty. So, how many of those will last and stick around in the league, and how many faces wont we see anymore? Based on the announcements so far, and relying on the accurate roster swap reporting done by the likes of Jacob Wolf and Pablo Bloop Surez, around half of the class of 2020 seems to have graduated and is allowed another year on the highest stage. Half of the hopeful debutants, however, will not make a return to the league.

MAD Lions, who initially said theyd be committing to growing their players for at least two years, are parting ways with Orome and Shadow. (Photo courtesy MAD Lions)

Orome and Zhiqiang Shadow Zhao are being let go by MAD Lions after playing two full Splits. Misfits Gaming is thanking Petr denyk Haramach and Mads Doss Schwartz for their services, but wont be on the starting roster anymore. Schalke 04, who heavily cycled through their roster in 2020, has waved goodbye to Lukas Lurox Thoma. SK Gaming also saw Dirk ZaZee Mallner leave the organization. Destiny has already been confirmed to join the LCS after leaving Origen (now Astralis). Lastly there is Vitality, who heavily invested in new talent in 2020. While there are few things known about the team for the next season, the contract of jungler Duncan Skeanz Marquet was extended, indicating that Cantoursna Nji An wont be on the main roster.

Whats particularly striking is how few of these players got the chance to try and grow throughout the year. Only Shadow and Orome played two full Splits for their team. Doss, who was substituted in for just one week in the 2019 Summer Split, played six weeks in the Summer Split this year before his team swapped him back for denyk. Destiny enjoyed one-and-a-half Splits of action until Origen replaced him. Combining his weeks of play during Spring and Summer, Lurox played roughly one full regular Split in the LEC in total. ZaZee was a one-Split mid laner, and jungler Nji played just four weeks in the Summer Split before Vitality promoted Skeanz over him again.

Alright, you might think, but perhaps this talent can be reintroduced at a later point? And yes, they could in theory. However, it tends to be a bad horse to bet on for players who got a brief taste of the big stage. Of the players who were reintroduced to the LEC this yeara small number to begin withnone were to be considered in their rookie year when they left the league originally, but already had gained fame (or notoriety) before.

But even more disappointing is how rookies are funneled into the LEC and how theyre being handled afterwards. All LEC teams, with the exception of Astralis, have active rosters competing in the European Regional Leagues. Fnatic Rising and BT Excel compete in the Northern League Championship, for example, while AGO Rogue competes in the Ultraliga. How often, though, do you hear of teams rising star hailing from their own academy roster? The answer is a sad rarely. Unlike in regular sports, where young debutants are often homegrown, the LEC teams overall dont tend to work as closely with their academy rosters. Instead, teams hire far more rookie players from other teams than they promote from their own academy rosters.

Whats even stranger is how the rookies that didnt live up to expectations tend to be treated. Youd think that, if a player got hired, teams saw genuine potential in that rookie. That it was a gem that needed to be polished in order to carry the team far. Yet, after a failed year, Split, or even just a few weeks, rookies part ways with their organization, and its hard to imagine that the players are the ones who desired the departure. Rather than committing to helping a player live up to their highest potential with a long-term training investment, the rookies are tossed aside, left to be picked up by other teams. The most recent and obvious example of an LEC team actually committing to the growth of a talented player was when Vitality publicly announced that Skeanz would play in Vitality.Bee for a bit to regain his confidence.

We wont be seeing LIDER in the LEC Spring Split next year. (Photo courtesy Riot Games)

Instead of refining the minerals theyve dug up, teams prefer to just keep digging until they find a player that, by luck of the draw, happens to just need one Split to shine. Its an unrealistic expectation for teams to have and it begs the question how high some players tossed aside could have flown had they been granted more than a few weeks to prove themselves.

The most glaring example of this blindly digging behavior is Adam LIDER Ilyasov. The mid laner was very successful with his Misfits Premier roster in the LFL, and was somewhat abruptly promoted to the LEC in 2020 alongside his teammates. They failed to save Misfits bad Split, however, and LIDER was let go by Misfits to the surprise of many. Misfits received a lot of criticism for throwing an Academy roster in the deep only to let the players go, ending their careers. Throughout 2020, LIDER proved that he was an incredible player by stealing the show on mousesports in the Prime League. Hopefuls even listed him as the potential new mid laner for Fnatic. He has been praised by pros and analysts alike. Still, he wont play in the LEC in 2021.

While it may be easy to point at teams and say that their talent development is ruining players careersand dont get me wrong, some teams do need to step up their game drasticallythere is room for nuance. In the still vastly underdeveloped talent ecosystem of European League of Legends esports, its hard to blame teams for this practice entirely. With a World Championship each year and not many matches to prove themselves in, teams are incentivized by the system to keep rolling the dice. The turnover rate is naturally going to be higher.

Nevertheless, the aspiration of teams competing should be to become the best team in the region and in the world. They can try and re-roll until they stumble across the next Caps. Spoiler: you wont. But you dont need to have generational talent thats as mind-blowingly good as Caps is to become the best team. There is far more value in building an actual team, unlocking players full potential and investing in growing the next generation than there is in cycling through rookies and hoping something sticks.

Europe is in an incredibly luxurious position. The regional leagues are the perfect soil for local talent to sprout in and rise to the top. But for rookies who make it to the LEC, this soil becomes a curse. They have extremely little time to prove themselves and before they are ripe they are tossed back into the dirt they worked their way out of. As they look up, they see the next round of plucking commence.

So far, ten rookies coming from the ERL system have been confirmed to join the LEC in 2021. Two players join from another region, and two players make a reappearance after playing outside of the LEC for a bit. Hopefully, even if these rookies do not live up to their teams hopes in one Split, it wont be the last we see of them. The potential the teams see in them now can be polished, it can be refined. LEC teams have to cultivate their talent if they want European League of Legends to advance. And who wouldnt want that?

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The Luxury Problem of Talent Gambling in the LEC - Hotspawn

Estonian government to fund problem gambling services and study – iGaming Business

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Estonias Minister of Social Affairs, Tanel Kiik, has signed a directive offering 200,000 to the non-governmental organisation, MT Gambling Addiction Counselling Centre, to monitor of problem gambling and provide a centre for gambling addicts and their relatives.

The Ministry of Social Affairs announced a strategic partnership application round in October, in order to find a partner through which it could support people with gambling addictions.

The partnership allows the government department to cooperate with and empower NGOs, supporting their organisational development and operational capacity.

More than 200 people in need currently receive free psychological counselling from the centre, and in addition it has planned to offer debt counselling to over 100 people.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Social Affairs, the risk of pathological gambling in the Estonian population is 7%, and it is important to offer those affected comprehensive assistance, including psychological and financial counselling.

The ministry also said it wished to better understand the exposure of minors to gambling in the jurisdiction, and therefore considers it very important to conduct a thorough study and support gambling addicts for a longer period of time.

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected the growth of gaming behaviour among both young people and adults, Pille-Riin Indermitte, head of MT Gambling Addiction Counselling Centre, said. On the one hand, gambling behaviour has increased initially, primarily as a way to spend time, but as it deepens, other interests disappear and it is difficult to return to school and work responsibilities.

On the other hand, the increase in gambling is due to the hope to improve our financial situation when employment opportunities have decreased. We are pleased to pilot a support group service and, for the first time, to carry out a study on the spread of gambling and digital addiction problems among minors in Estonia.

The novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic has led to an increased focus on problem gambling in several jurisdictions. The British Gambling Commission has repeatedly urged its licensees to act responsibly during periods of lockdown, while tough restrictions on licensee behaviour, such as advertising bans in Spain and online casino restrictions in Sweden, have also come into effect.

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Estonian government to fund problem gambling services and study - iGaming Business

Global Online Gambling Market To Witness Huge Gains Over 2020-2026 – The Courier

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The globalOnline Gamblingmarket research report offers all the vital data in the domain. The latest report assists new bees as well as established market participants to analyze and predict the Online Gambling market at the regional as well as global level. It covers the volume [k MT] as well as revenues [USD Million] of the global Online Gambling market for the estimated period. Numerous key players Royal Ace Casino, Sloto Cash Casino, Casino Las vegas USA, Vegas Casino Online, Drake Casino, Vegas Crest Casino, Lucky Creek Casino, Bovada Casino, Planet 7 Casino, Jumbabet are dominating the global Online Gambling market. These players hold the majority of share of the global Online Gambling market.

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This research report includes the analysis of various Online Gambling market segments {Poker, Casino, Sport Betting, Others}; {Entertainment, Commercial, Others}. The bifurcation of the global market is done based on its present and prospective inclinations. The regional bifurcation involves the present market scenario in the region along with the future projection of the global Online Gambling market. The global market report offers an overview of expected market conditions due to changes in the technological, topographical, and economic elements.

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1. What is the expected market size by the end of the forecast period?2. What are the major factors initiating the global Online Gambling market growth?3. What are the latest developments and trending market strategies that are influencing the growth of the Online Gambling market?4. What are the key outcomes of the Online Gambling market developments?5. Who are the key players in the market?6. What are the opportunities and challenges faced by the key players?

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Global Online Gambling Market To Witness Huge Gains Over 2020-2026 - The Courier

What is Transhumanism?

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The human desire to acquire posthuman attributes is as ancient as the human species itself. Humans have always sought to expand the boundaries of their existence, be it ecologically, geographically, or mentally. There is a tendency in at least some individuals always to try to find a way around every limitation and obstacle.

Ceremonial burial and preserved fragments of religious writings show that prehistoric humans were deeply disturbed by the death of their loved ones and sought to reduce the cognitive dissonance by postulating an afterlife. Yet, despite the idea of an afterlife, people still endeavored to extend life. In the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh (approx. 2000 B.C.), a king embarks on a quest to find an herb that can make him immortal. Its worth noting that it was assumed both that mortality was not inescapable in principle, and that there existed (at least mythological) means of overcoming it. That people really strove to live longer and richer lives can also be seen in the development of systems of magic and alchemy; lacking scientific means of producing an elixir of life, one resorted to magical means. This strategy was adopted, for example, by the various schools of esoteric Taoism in China, which sought physical immortality and control over or harmony with the forces of nature.

The Greeks were ambivalent about humans transgressing our natural confines. On the one hand, they were fascinated by the idea. We see it in the myth of Prometheus, who stole the fire from Zeus and gave it to the humans, thereby permanently improving the human condition. And in the myth of Daedalus, the gods are repeatedly challenged, quite successfully, by a clever engineer and artist, who uses non-magical means to extend human capabilities. On the other hand, there is also the concept of hubris: that some ambitions are off-limit and would backfire if pursued. In the end, Daedalus enterprise ends in disaster (not, however, because it was punished by the gods but owing entirely to natural causes).

Greek philosophers made the first, stumbling attempts to create systems of thought that were based not purely on faith but on logical reasoning. Socrates and the sophists extended the application of critical thinking from metaphysics and cosmology to include the study of ethics and questions about human society and human psychology. Out of this inquiry arose cultural humanism, a very important current throughout the history of Western science, political theory, ethics, and law.

In the Renaissance, human thinking was awoken from medieval otherworldliness and the scholastic modes of reasoning that had predominated for a millennium, and the human being and the natural world again became legitimate objects of study. Renaissance humanism encouraged people to rely on their own observations and their own judgment rather than to defer in every matter to religious authorities. Renaissance humanism also created the ideal of the well-rounded personality, one that is highly developed scientifically, morally, culturally, and spiritually. A milestone is Giovanni Pico della Mirandolas Oration on the Dignity of Man (1486), which states that man does not have a ready form but that it is mans task to form himself. And crucially, modern science began to take form then, through the works of Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo.

The Age of Enlightenment can be said to have started with the publication of Francis Bacons Novum Organum, the new tool (1620), in which he proposes a scientific methodology based on empirical investigation rather than a priori reasoning. Bacon advocates the project of effecting all things possible, by which he meant the achievement of mastery over nature in order to improve the condition of human beings. The heritage from the Renaissance combines with the influences of Isaac Newton, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Immanuel Kant, Marquis de Condorcet, and others to form the basis for rational humanism, which emphasizes science and critical reasoning rather than revelation and religious authority as ways of learning about the natural world and the destiny and nature of man and of providing a grounding for morality. Transhumanism traces its roots to this rational humanism.

In the 18th and 19th centuries we begin to see glimpses of the idea that even humans themselves can be developed through the appliance of science. Benjamin Franklin and Voltaire speculated about extending human life span through medical science. Especially after Darwins theory of evolution, atheism or agnosticism came to be seen as increasingly attractive alternatives. However, the optimism of the late 19th century often degenerated into narrow-minded positivism and the belief that progress was automatic. When this view collided with reality, some people reacted by turning to irrationalism, concluding that since reason was not sufficient, it was worthless. This resulted in the anti-technological, anti-intellectual sentiments whose sequelae we can still witness today in some postmodernist writers, in the New Age movement, and among the neo-Luddite wing of the anti-globalization agitators.

A significant stimulus in the formation of transhumanism was the essay Daedalus: Science and the Future (1923) by the British biochemist J. B. S. Haldane, in which he discusses how scientific and technological findings may come to affect society and improve the human condition. This essay set off a chain reaction of future-oriented discussions, including The World, the Flesh and the Devil by J. D. Bernal (1929), which speculates about space colonization and bionic implants as well as mental improvements through advanced social science and psychology; the works of Olaf Stapledon; and the essay Icarus: the Future of Science (1924) by Bertrand Russell, who took a more pessimistic view, arguing that without more kindliness in the world, technological power will mainly serve to increase mens ability to inflict harm on one another. Science fiction authors such as H. G. Wells and Olaf Stapledon also got many people thinking about the future evolution of the human race. One frequently cited work is Aldous Huxleys Brave New World (1932), a dystopia where psychological conditioning, promiscuous sexuality, biotechnology, and opiate drugs are used to keep the population placid and contented in a static, totalitarian society ruled by an elite consisting of ten world controllers. Huxleys novel warns of the dehumanizing potential of technology being used to arrest growth and to diminish the scope of human nature rather than enhance it.

The Second World War changed the direction of some of those currents that result in todays transhumanism. The eugenics movement, which had previously found advocates not only among racists on the extreme right but also among socialists and progressivist social democrats, was thoroughly discredited. The goal of creating a new and better world through a centrally imposed vision became taboo and pass; and the horrors of the Stalinist Soviet Union again underscored the dangers of such an approach. Mindful of these historical lessons, transhumanists are often deeply suspicious of collectively orchestrated change, arguing instead for the right of individuals to redesign themselves and their own descendants.

In the postwar era, optimistic futurists tended to direct their attention more toward technological progress, such as space travel, medicine, and computers. Science began to catch up with speculation. Transhumanist ideas during this period were discussed and analyzed chiefly in the literary genre of science fiction. Authors such as Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, Stanislaw Lem, and later Bruce Sterling, Greg Egan, and Vernor Vinge have explored various aspects of transhumanism in their writings and contributed to its proliferation.

Robert Ettinger played an important role in giving transhumanism its modern form. The publication of his book The Prospect of Immortality in 1964 led to the creation of the cryonics movement. Ettinger argued that since medical technology seems to be constantly progressing, and since chemical activity comes to a complete halt at low temperatures, it should be possible to freeze a person today and preserve the body until such a time when technology is advanced enough to repair the freezing damage and reverse the original cause of deanimation. In a later work, Man into Superman (1972), he discussed a number of conceivable improvements to the human being, continuing the tradition started by Haldane and Bernal.

Another influential early transhumanist was F. M. Esfandiary, who later changed his name to FM-2030. One of the first professors of future studies, FM taught at the New School for Social Research in New York in the 1960s and formed a school of optimistic futurists known as the UpWingers. In his book Are you a transhuman? (1989), he described what he saw as the signs of the emergence of the transhuman person, in his terminology indicating an evolutionary link towards posthumanity. (A terminological aside: an early use of the word transhuman was in the 1972-book of Ettinger, who doesnt now remember where he first encountered the term. The word transhumanism may have been coined by Julian Huxley in New Bottles for New Wine (1957); the sense in which he used it, however, was not quite the contemporary one.) Further, its use is evidenced in T.S. Elliots writing around the same time. And it is known that Dante Alighieri referred to the notion of the transhuman in historical writings.

In the 1970s and 1980s, several organizations sprung up for life extension, cryonics, space colonization, science fiction, media arts, and futurism. They were often isolated from one another, and while they shared similar views and values, they did not yet amount to any unified coherent worldview. One prominent voice from a standpoint with strong transhumanist elements during this era came from Marvin Minsky, an eminent artificial intelligence researcher.

In 1986, Eric Drexler published Engines of Creation, the first book-length exposition of molecular manufacturing. (The possibility of nanotechnology had been anticipated by Nobel Laureate physicist Richard Feynman in a now-famous after-dinner address in 1959 entitled There is Plenty of Room at the Bottom.) In this groundbreaking work, Drexler not only argued for the feasibility of assembler-based nanotechnology but also explored its consequences and began charting the strategic challenges posed by its development. Drexlers later writings supplied more technical analyses that confirmed his initial conclusions. To prepare the world for nanotechnology and work towards it safe implementation, he founded the Foresight Institute together with his then wife Christine Peterson in 1986.

Ed Regiss Great Mambo Chicken and the Transhuman Condition (1990) took a humorous look at transhumanisms hubristic scientists and philosophers. Another couple of influential books were roboticist Hans Moravecs seminal Mind Children (1988) about the future development of machine intelligence, and more recently Ray Kurzweils bestselling Age of Spiritual Machines (1999), which presented ideas similar to Moravecs. Frank Tiplers Physics of Immortality (1994), inspired by the writings of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (a paleontologist and Jesuit theologian who saw an evolutionary telos in the development of an encompassing noosphere, a global consciousness) argued that advanced civilizations might come to have a shaping influence on the future evolution of the cosmos, although some were put off by Tiplers attempt to blend science with religion. Many science advocates, such as Carl Sagan, Richard Dawkins, Steven Pinker, and Douglas Hofstadter, have also helped pave the way for public understanding of transhumanist ideas.

In 1988, the first issue of the Extropy Magazine was published by Max More and Tom Morrow, and in 1992 they founded the Extropy Institute (the term extropy being coined as an informal opposite of entropy). The magazine and the institute served as catalysts, bringing together disparate groups of people with futuristic ideas. More wrote the first definition of transhumanism in its modern sense, and created his own distinctive brand of transhumanism, which emphasized individualism, dynamic optimism, and the market mechanism in addition to technology. The transhumanist arts genre became more self-aware through the works of the artist Natasha Vita-More. During this time, an intense exploration of ideas also took place on various Internet mailing lists. Influential early contributors included Anders Sandberg (then a neuroscience doctoral student) and Robin Hanson (an economist and polymath) among many others.

The World Transhumanist Association was founded in 1998 by Nick Bostrom and David Pearce to act as a coordinating international nonprofit organization for all transhumanist-related groups and interests, across the political spectrum. The WTA focused on supporting transhumanism as a serious academic discipline and on promoting public awareness of transhumanist thinking. The WTA began publishing the Journal of Evolution and Technology, the first scholarly peer-reviewed journal for transhumanist studies in 1999 (which is also the year when the first version of this FAQ was published). In 2001, the WTA adopted its current constitution and is now governed by an executive board that is democratically elected by its full membership. James Hughes especially (a former WTA Secretary) among others helped lift the WTA to its current more mature stage, and a strong team of volunteers has been building up the organization to what it is today.

Humanity+ developed after to rebrand transhumanism informing Humanity+ as a cooperative organization, seeking to pull together the leaders of transhumanism: from the early 1990s: Max More, Natasha Vita-More, Anders Sandberg; the late 1990s: Nick Bostrom, David Pearce, James Hughes; the 2000s: James Clement, Ben Goertzel, Giulio Prisco and many others. In short, it is based on the early work of Extropy Institute and WTA.

In the past couple of years, the transhumanist movement has been growing fast and furiously. Local groups are mushrooming in all parts of the world. Awareness of transhumanist ideas is spreading. Transhumanism is undergoing the transition from being the preoccupation of a fringe group of intellectual pioneers to becoming a mainstream approach to understanding the prospects for technological transformation of the human condition. That technological advances will help us overcome many of our current human limitations is no longer an insight confined to a few handfuls of techno-savvy visionaries. Yet understanding the consequences of these anticipated possibilities and the ethical choices we will face is a momentous challenge that humanity will be grappling with over the coming decades. The transhumanist tradition has produced a (still evolving) body of thinking to illuminate these complex issues that is unparalleled in its scope and depth of foresight.

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What is Transhumanism?

transhumanism | Definition, Origins, Characteristics …

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Transhumanism, social and philosophical movement devoted to promoting the research and development of robust human-enhancement technologies. Such technologies would augment or increase human sensory reception, emotive ability, or cognitive capacity as well as radically improve human health and extend human life spans. Such modifications resulting from the addition of biological or physical technologies would be more or less permanent and integrated into the human body.

The term transhumanism was coined by English biologist and philosopher Julian Huxley in his 1957 essay of the same name. Huxley referred principally to improving the human condition through social and cultural change, but the essay and the name have been adopted as seminal by the transhumanist movement, which emphasizes material technology. Huxley held that, although humanity had naturally evolved, it was now possible for social institutions to supplant evolution in refining and improving the species. The ethos of Huxleys essayif not its lettercan be located in transhumanisms commitment to assuming the work of evolution, but through technology rather than society.

The movements adherents tend to be libertarian and employed in high technology or in academia. Its principal proponents have been prominent technologists like American computer scientist and futurist Ray Kurzweil and scientists like Austrian-born Canadian computer scientist and roboticist Hans Moravec and American nanotechnology researcher Eric Drexler, with the addition of a small but influential contingent of thinkers such as American philosopher James Hughes and Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom. The movement has evolved since its beginnings as a loose association of groups dedicated to extropianism (a philosophy devoted to the transcendence of human limits). Transhumanism is principally divided between adherents of two visions of post-humanityone in which technological and genetic improvements have created a distinct species of radically enhanced humans and the other in which greater-than-human machine intelligence emerges.

The membership of the transhumanist movement tends to split in an additional way. One prominent strain of transhumanism argues that social and cultural institutionsincluding national and international governmental organizationswill be largely irrelevant to the trajectory of technological development. Market forces and the nature of technological progress will drive humanity to approximately the same end point regardless of social and cultural influences. That end point is often referred to as the singularity, a metaphor drawn from astrophysics and referring to the point of hyperdense material at the centre of a black hole which generates its intense gravitational pull. Among transhumanists, the singularity is understood as the point at which artificial intelligence surpasses that of humanity, which will allow the convergence of human and machine consciousness. That convergence will herald the increase in human consciousness, physical strength, emotional well-being, and overall health and greatly extend the length of human lifetimes.

The second strain of transhumanism holds a contrasting view, that social institutions (such as religion, traditional notions of marriage and child rearing, and Western perspectives of freedom) not only can influence the trajectory of technological development but could ultimately retard or halt it. Bostrom and British philosopher David Pearce founded the World Transhumanist Association in 1998 as a nonprofit organization dedicated to working with those social institutions to promote and guide the development of human-enhancement technologies and to combat those social forces seemingly dedicated to halting such technological progress.

singularity

that future information networks and human-machine interfaces would lead to novel conditions with new qualities: a new reality rules. But there was a trick to knowing the singularity. Even if one could know that it was imminent, one could not know what it would be like with any specificity. This

human sensory reception

Human sensory reception, means by which humans react to changes in external and internal environments. Ancient philosophers called the human senses the windows of the soul, and Aristotle described at least five sensessight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Aristotles influence has been so enduring that many people still speak of the

cognition

Cognition, the states and processes involved in knowing, which in their completeness include perception and judgment. Cognition includes all conscious and unconscious processes by which knowledge is accumulated, such as perceiving, recognizing, conceiving, and reasoning. Put differently, cognition is a state or experience of knowing that can be distinguished from

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Fact check: UK deaths linked to COVID-19 did not stop in June – Reuters

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A video being shared on social media makes the false claims that deaths linked to COVID-19 have stopped, the vaccine will be untested and that it will modify your DNA.

Reuters Fact Check. REUTERS

Shared 1,900 times on Facebook, the live video (here) shows a man speaking outside the Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham, UK.

The man makes multiple claims in the nearly one hour-long video, a selection of which will be covered in this fact check.

CLAIM 1 COVID-19 DEATHS CEASED IN JUNE

Speaking into a microphone, the man questions the mad urgency to develop a vaccine for COVID-19 because deaths from the disease allegedly ceased back in June (timecode 0:55).

However, this is not true. On June 1, the UK had recorded 38,263 deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test (here). By Nov. 29 this had risen to 58,443.

CLAIM 2 THE VACCINE WILL BE RUSHED AND UNTESTED

Immediately after this, the man questions why pharmaceutical companies and governments are rushing out a vaccine that hasnt even been tested properly.

While there has been an unprecedented global effort to find a vaccine to mitigate devastating impact the pandemic has had on society, this does not mean the vaccine will not be properly tested.

In a previous Reuters fact check, the MHRA, which is an executive agency of the UK governments Department of Health and Social Care, confirmed that any vaccine that is distributed will go through the necessary safety checks (here).

Based on the available published reports from the clinical trials, we dont currently anticipate any specific safety concerns with COVID-19 vaccines. We expect the general safety profile to be similar to other types of vaccines., the agency told Reuters at the time.

A COVID-19 vaccine will only be deployed once it has been proven to be safe and effective through robust clinical trials and approved for use.

CLAIM 3 THE VACCINE WILL CHANGE YOUR DNA

The man goes on to claim that the COVID-19 vaccine will alter a persons DNA. Its transhumanism, youll no longer be regarded as a human being, he claims (time code 3:55).

As a previous Reuters fact check explains, the vaccine will not genetically modify human DNA (here).

False. Deaths from COVID-19 did not cease in June. Any vaccine that is approved for distribution will have gone through the necessary clinical trials. The COVID-19 vaccine does not have the ability to alter a persons DNA.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.

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Fact check: UK deaths linked to COVID-19 did not stop in June - Reuters

Far Out Meets: Butch Vig on Garbage, Nevermind and 5 Billion In Diamonds – Far Out Magazine

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Butch Vig is a pioneer who, somewhat accidentally, found himself at the forefront of a zeitgeist movement in the 1990s after he produced some of the defining records of the decade and, thanks to his magic touch, the genre of grunge became a worldwide sensation. Following the success of albums such as Nirvanas Nevermind and Smashing Pumpkins Gish, for which Vig worked as ringmaster, he then took a step back from the production desk before stepping into the limelight with Garbage who, in turn, excelled as one of alternative rocks fiercest outfits.

Last month, Vig shared Divine Accidents from his passion project 5 Billion In Diamonds, the cinematic album is the second record from his band with Bristolian Andy Jenks and Southamptons DJ James Grillo. The sonic world which Vig has created with his side-project is a far cry from the brand of rock that he makes with Garbage. 5 Billion In Diamonds has provided him with the perfect opportunity to experiment with a new sonic structure which has helped keep his creative juices flowing.

The band released their debut album in 2017 and Divine Accidents offers up a compelling soundtrack to an imaginary piece of cinema which is utterly gripping. Releasing music at a time like this, when the world is in a state of incomparable flux, is a source of anxiety for most artists but because 5 Billion In Diamonds is a passion project, they just want as many people as possible to put their free time to good use by giving the record a spin. Although the pandemic has tried its best to murder the music industry, incredible records have been one of the few tonics for 2020 has had to offer and Divine Accidents acts as a delightful source of escapism from all the noise going on outside.

People want music, Vig said on the topic of releasing a record in the midst of a global pandemic to Far Out from his home studio in Los Angeles. I mean, streaming is up what Ive been hearing thats people listening to new music. This is a good time to release because music is an escape for them, so theyre looking for great new music.

The record has been one that the three-piece have been working on intermittently since November 2018 but because its none of their full-time focuses, it wouldnt be completed until January this year. This is a project that theyve carefully poured whatever hours possible they can into and thankfully, it was completed before the world turned upside down. The sacred time they spent making the record, was not only fulfilling from a creative standpoint but just the opportunity to hang out together made it a heavenly experience for Vig.

Ive known James for 20 years and because of that, Ive known Andy, Vig noted as he explained how this peculiar triumvirate began making music together. James is a unique individual, he has a gigantic collection of vinyl like 20,000 albums and hes probably got the same amount of CDs. We were out drinking wine one night like four years ago, and I challenged him and said, Why dont you write some music, James? Hes not a musician, but hes a DJ and knows he knows what he likes musically.

So we start working on some music. Basically, James would play like a part from a record, like some obscure record I had never heard before, and we would use that as a reference point to start writing music. When Andy, James and I made the first 5 Billion In Diamonds record, we wrote all these sonic landscapes that, in our head, was music that would work in a film soundtrack.

They then started reaching out to guest vocalists such as The Ocean Blues David Schnelzel, James Bagshaw from Temples and Helen White, who used to bandmates with Andy Jenks in Bristol trip-hop band Alpha. This vast array of different artists helped bring a unique spin to 5 Billion In Diamonds which gives their work an irresistible dynamic feel.

It was quite a slow process, Vig noted about making their 2017 debut. In the end, I think the record turned out great. When we started writing the music for the new album Divine Accidents, we had a much clearer idea of how the process would unfold. We actually wrote pieces of music, specifically for singers like sort of tailor-made for each singer and so the process was a lot easier on Divine Accidents.

Its just sonically the approach that the band (Garbage) takes has a different vibe than 5 Billion In Diamonds, Vig notes on the differences between the two groups before expanding: We let James sort of dictate where were going sonically, even though hes not a producer or a musician and I just trust his taste to define where a song should go. Its fun, we drink lots of wine, were in the studio, we take breaks and go on have really nice dinners and at some point, we want to tour.

Touring was financially impossible to make work on the first 5 Billion in Diamonds record. The cost of creating a cinematic experience which would match the one that comes from listening to the album made the task hard enough, then accounting for taking singers on the road and paying crew fairly, it would eclipse whatever money was paid through the door by fans. This is something that Butch is determined to change in the future.

Weve only played one show, the drummer recalled. We played four songs at a show for James birthday party and the only reason we were able to do that was because he invited all his friends there. We were all like in the same space it was like, Okay, why dont we play some songs? So we rehearsed very quickly, the night before, it was kind of ramshackle. But man, it was fun, he said whilst wearing a giant smile as his mind travelled back to the show.

Even if touring still remains out of the realms of possibility for 5 Billion In Diamonds next year, Vig and Garbage will be hitting the road on an unmissable co-headline UK arena tour alongside Blondie. They have got a brand new record that they are ready to unleash on the world in 2021 and the itch to play live is burning bright. The album format remains something that Vig still holds dearly in his heart, however, hes not naive about being in the minority of modern listeners. The musician is an ardent believer in an artist doing whatever possible to get their music heard. When I started making music in the 80s and 90s, it was verboten to have your music in a commercial or in a TV show, Vig said on the change in tastes. Everybody thought you were selling out but now because no ones selling CDs and streaming pays such a small pittance of a royalty, artists can make some really good income if they can licence your music in TV and film or commercial.

I still feel like music should be listened to as its own entity, Vig maintains. Im old school. I still listen to an album all the way through. But I know thats not the way most people consume music anymore. If it can get at a TV show then its possible millions of people might hear it. I think thats a good thing no matter what vehicle it is.

The record that helped make Vig one of the worlds most sought after producers was Nirvanas seminal LP Nevermind, a project which was not only a great album on tape but it was relentlessly pushed on MTV. Back then, the network was the vehicle that helped spread the word of Nirvana to the masses who, if it wasnt for Smells Like Teen Spirit being on a constant loop, perhaps wouldnt have checked out the record and made the band such a bastion of rock. This philosophy of doing whatever possible to spread the word of your music is something that Vig can champion from experience.

Nevermind was a special record, Vig fondly recollected. I mean, the band had been playing really well and they were really tight and focused when they came into the studio. Kurt had written a bunch of amazing songs that were super hooky but I had no idea it was gonna be a zeitgeist moment, it just completely exploded, it really was like a revolution. It completely changed my life for the better, everybody I know closely associated with the band will say the same thing. No one saw it coming but were all really thankful that we were along for the ride.

The funny thing is, I started getting a lot of calls from publishers, from managers, major labels and they thought that I had tapped onto some sort of formula, Vig says whilst trying and failing to contain his laughter. They thought I could take any type of artist, it could be a blues singer, it could be a folk artist, a country singer, and I knew how to make them sound like Nevermind. Some of the things I was pitched were absolutely ludicrous. I mean, it didnt make any sense at all.

This success, however, did provide him with the freedom to work solely with artists that he wanted to and, therefore, not have to compromise in order to make rent. It gave him the platform to form Garbage and have the backing from a label because of his tried and tested credentials, they became one of the biggest bands to emerge throughout the 90s. Whether they would have the same level of success or even formed, if it wasnt for the stratospheric success of Nevermind, remains unknown.

Garbage have sold over 17 million records worldwide and 27 years after forming are still as strong as ever, with their relationships being the key to their longevity according to Vig: First of all, you have to like the people you hang out with. As a producer, I cant tell you how many bands Ive worked with there that musicians hate each others guts. A lot of bands are run by one person, then everybody else has to fall into place. Garbage is a democracy even though its a very dysfunctional democracy, but we listen to each other and understand each other, Vig proudly declares.

Vig has had a wildly eclectic career that saw him be at the forefront of grunge, but Nevermind is surprisingly not the piece of work from his career that he is most proud of despite it being the one that has had the greatest impact of his life. Every record Ive done is like a bastard child. Theyre all beautiful in their own way, Vig jokes before revealing the identity of his favourite child.

I have to say Smashing PumpkinsSiamese Dream; Im very proud of because that was a really difficult record. It was before Pro Tools, Billy and I set the bar really high in terms of how sonically we wanted it to sound. I had to deal with all of the dysfunctionality of them as four people together but I think the record still sounds really good. It has a sound to it that we kind of came up with in the studio and to me, it still sounds as powerful now as it did when I recorded it.

The sheer number of classic records that Vig is the man behind, from both a production perspective and as a drummer, is awe-inspiring. Despite being 65-years-old, that passion for travelling into new musical landscapes and dipping his toes into unknown territory is perhaps greater now than it has ever been. Vig never set out to sell millions of records but hes thankful that it allows him the freedom to focus solely on fulfilling his own creative ambitions. Now, 5 Billion In Diamonds has allowed him to expand his horizons even further and learn from new people, challenge himself but, most importantly, having fun in the process.

Read more:

Far Out Meets: Butch Vig on Garbage, Nevermind and 5 Billion In Diamonds - Far Out Magazine

Portland’s 20 Best Cheeseburgers, Exhaustively Argued and Ranked – Portland Monthly

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Ten years ago, New York food writer Josh Ozersky barreled into Portland for a 36-hour food binge. He prowled the city for honest Americana food, fuel for his legendary anti-modern food screens. He found it here, calling Portland America's New Food Eden in Time magazine. He even moved here years later. But his hunger was not truly sated before he died in 2015. Where are the burgers? he bellowed incessantly. Ozersky had a point. Weird-ass chef burgers were everywhere, stacked with barbecued pork or perhaps, dear God, donuts. But good luck finding a transcendent exaltation of the humble American icon, with its molten American cheese and squishy bun.

Now, in Portland dining's darkest hour, as the very places that won his heart and stomach hang by their fingernails, Ozerky's burger heaven has arrived. We're in the midst of a Burger Reformation. Food carts kicked it off a few years back, followed by Super Deluxe's drive-through rebirth and miles-long line of cars. The movement is still steaming, incomprehensibly, during the pandemic. To wit: three of the city's best classic cheeseburgers were born in this godforsaken upside-down world. Across the city, cooks are paying homage to the cheeseburger icons, among them: McDonald's Big Mac (double decker with special sauce), Shake Shacks ShackBurger (thin, fast-griddled smash burger with lettuce, tomato, and special sauce on a potato roll), and In-N-Out's cheeseburger (frilly lettuce, tomato, onion, and secret sauce).

Perfecting a classic burger is nowhere near as easy as it seems. Any teenage employee or backyard barbecuer can serve up a patty on a bun. To fine-tune each element to perfection, to create a chorus of flavors, to find and release our inner burger endorphins, is no easy task. But when done right, few things in life are more satisfying. So we had to know. Where are they? Which ones would Josh eat?

Enter The Burger Cabal. A year ago, Portland Monthly food critic Karen Brooks invited four burger nuts to join the quest: famed fast-food poet-reviewer Bill Oakley, the former Simpsons writer behind the much-memed Steamed Hams sketch; legendary Portland diner Gary Okazaki (aka Gary the Foodie), and hard-core food couple Drew and Pauline Lewis. To be considered, a contender had to be nominated by one of us, based on personal experience, reputation, or word-of-mouth buzz. Roughly 60 places made the first cut. Then we set out to eat with one goal: to give you our Top 20 recommendations, ranked.

The rules: Classic cheeseburgers only, topped with classic condimentia. No fast-food chain burgers, no outr toppings, no sliders (sorry Canard, you super delicious ode to White Castle).

How we scored: We filled out secret ballots, scoring burgers on a 100-point system. Once revealed, we had to defend our scores like prosecuting attorneys. Turns out, even for burger purists one person's meat heaven is anothers over-salted poison. To reach consensus, dozens of contenders were tossed. To reach the final ranking, we averaged our final scores. In the end, our favorites flashed a distinctive meat flavor, contrasting temperatures (cold toppings against the warm elements), and a sensual texturethat swoon of creamy sauce and cheese goo; that magic crunch; a beautifully toasted bun. Ultimately, every burger faces the moment of truth. Will it haunt your dreams and craving zone? You know it when you taste it.

Our mission is now complete. Take note: during the pandemic freeze, burgers are take-out or delivery only. The wise eat them in the car, as the cheeseburger gods intended, hot and fresh off the grill.

AMERICAN STANDARD

5424 NE 30th Ave, @expatriatepdx

Take-out only

DEETS 4-ounce patty, onion, ketchup, mustard, 1 slices American cheese, An Xuyen Bakery butter roll

PRICE $18, two per order

CABAL CONSENSUS We arrived at Expatriate one evening last spring, full of burger exhaustion and eater's remorse, slumped in a corner booth. But then a tell-tale smell from the kitchen revved our salivary glands. Just as whales have sonar, burger people can communicate via scenta beefy perfume that taunts olfactory caverns and shouts, Baby, you're home. Then they landed: a sea of shiny bun domes, their mouths opened like Pac Man to reveal juicy meat; an extra-thick blanket of American cheese, ecstatically melted; and two onion slices with the gravitational pull of planetary rings. No lettuce, no tomato, no secret sauce; just a big plunk of Heinz ketchup and French's mustard on top.

As a fun quest, Naomi Pomeroy, Kyle Webster, and their merry crew once set out to create the perfect burger. Based on our scores, four of us agreed: Expatriates American Standard is Portlands best burger. Even the one hold-out on that designation gave it 96 points, noting, Hey, I like my toppings. What united us? The dialed details, top to bottomthe buttered bun, toasted golden; the excellent meat with just the right grind, flavor, and texture; the artful proportions. Call it a chef burger without the chef burger trappings. Even now, as a pandemic take-out option, it hasn't missed a beat.

RANDOM NOTE The hot and sour spiced Indian fries elicited F-bombs of joy all around, down to the dippershouse curry ketchup, sumac ranch, and cilantro-raita aioli. Drew said it all: Just the right level of weird.

QUOTABLE It's not a smash burger, says Pomeroy on bucking the trend. Smash burgers are made for high-volume, fast-cooking. We're not trying to turn and burn. Our burgers take 6 minutes. We love a juicy burger. We are a medium-rare family.

CHEESEBURGER

4835 NE Sandy Blvd. @hitthespotburgers

Take-out, delivery

DEETS 3.2 ounce beef patty, shredded iceberg, tomato, sweet onions, dill pickles, smoky chipotle aioli, Franz bun

PRICE $4.99

CABAL CONSENSUS Instagram, avert your eyes. Behold: the anti-food porn burger, humble and homely. To us, this single cheeseburger best resembled its counterpart at the legendary In-N-Out chain, but with better execution. The building blocks are similar: the smash burger etched in crispy, caramelized crust; the toasty, pillowy bun; the blissful contrasts of sweet/crunch/warm/cold that burgerheads crave. But the sauce goes its own way, subtly infused with the smoke and dry heat of chipotle peppers. We cheered the qualitynatural beef; sweet onions shaved right off the bulb; home-canned Pennsylvania farm picklesfrom a parking lot food cart with a farm-to-table fast food motto. All this for five bucks? No arguments here. This is Portlands best food cart burger.Most impressive: the sense that every burger is carefully made just for you. Owner Jeremy Sivers takes your order, spins around to man the grill, then delivers your bag out front. Sorry, In-N-Out.

QUOTABLE On two occasions, we asked Sivers if In-N-Out is his muse. Once, he said, Not a huge fan. The other: I love what they do. We're all complicated.

SINGLE CHEESEBURGER

6620 SW Scholls Ferry Road (outside Uptown Beer Co), @rdburgershop

Take-out; outdoor seating available, depending on restrictions

DEETS 2.5-ounce patty, onions, pickle, Rough Draft sauce, American cheese, Franz hamburger bun

PRICE $6

CABAL CONSENSUS How excited were we to try this Seattle transplant when it appeared last August, out of nowhere, in the midst of pandemic, in a bare bones,, half-hidden food cart in a deep Southwest parking lot? Day 1: Okazaki, who does not drive, took a $70 ride to taste a $6 smash burger. Day 2: Oakley was first in line at opening time; 15 minutes later, he dropped a rave review on his Instagram story. Even Pauline dug it! And consider this: no lettuce, no tomato, no plot twists. Just the art of simplicity. Every move has been considered by friends and co-owners Nick Jarvis and Aaron Wilcenski: Oregon's prized, pasture-raised Painted Hills Natural Beef, fast-griddled into a crispy-edged beauty; wonderfully molten cheese; some pickle snap; thin onions melting into the action, and a notched-up mayo-ketchup/mustard sauce throwing faint notes of funk and barbecue. Oakley proclaimed it the Platonic ideal of a McDonald's regular cheeseburger but with a taste and execution far better than that inspiration.

RANDOM NOTE If the super-crispy waffle fries ($5) were any lighter, they would levitate from the box. Best deployed with the cheesy house whiz.

SMASH BURGER

Pop-up Dec. 12-13, 11 am 3 p.m., 8212 N Denver Ave; @derbykenton

DEETS Two 4-ounce patties, shredded lettuce, house pickles, two slices American cheese, Derby sauce, Portland French Bakery brioche bun, with house potato chips

PRICE$12

CABAL CONSENSUS Make no mistake, Judith Stokes is determined: solo business owner, proud Filipino American and, with Tita's Pista, a one-time pioneer of Mississippi's food-cart scene. Her philosophy at Derby Kenton, opened in 2018, was direct: My burger, my place. I'll put chocolate sauce on it if I want. Alas, her turmeric-laced burger experiment flopped. So she dove into classic burger research and emerged with Portland's best-kept smash burger secret. Behold: two melty cheese-clad patties; the sublime crunch of lettuce ribbons and homemade pickles; a ketchup/mayo sauce boosted by the kitchen's stoneground mustard aioli. Okazaki is still talking about it. Pauline called it a Top 5 favorite. Moaned Oakley, This is Heaven's version of a Big Mac. Imagine those rough flavors and textures, done to perfection.

CIVIL WAR We battled over the brioche bun, more typical of a bistro burger than a purist's classic. Said Oakley: The best non-Franz, non-Martin's bun yet. Honestly, I am reminiscing about the bun, which I rarely do. Retorted Pauline: Too soft, too floppy.

RANDOM NOTEDerby Kenton is currently closed to remodel its new location, reopening in early spring. Last chance till then: mid-December's window pop-up. We'll fight you for the last one.

QUOTABLE We had to ask: Is a Big Mac Stokess new muse? I've boycotted McDonald's for twenty-three years now. By no means an homage. I'm super anti-them. I support small businesses. Got it.

LOUNGE BURGER

5474 NE Sandy Blvd., @clydesprimerib

Take-out and delivery; indoor and patio dining available, depending on restrictions

DEETS 4-ounce patty, shredded lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion, burger sauce, American cheese, Franz pub bun; fries included

PRICE $9

CABAL CONSENSUS The Cabals biggest surprise. A legit, soul-warming drive-in burger (humble, detailed, crave-inducing) hiding inside of an ancient, dimly lit, beef-meets-Goodfellas steakhouse, complete with creepy chandeliers and curvy leather booths as big as Tilt-A-Whirls. At the helm: newish chef Will Boothe, who flipped the beloved burgers at historic Lighthouse Restaurant & Bar. His little-known Lounge Burger elicited gasps of happiness. The meat: Booth is bringing itrib eye, tenderloin, brisket, ground in-house. His smash burger crust is magnificent; fuhgeddaboudit. The condiments: fully loaded for crunch, contrast, and mayo-ketchup-pickle drip. Only quibble: the brioche bun, a bit heavy and bistro burger-ish.

MAJOR BONUS Stellar fries, served gratis on the side. A killer deal for 9 bucks.

QUOTABLE A lady who's worked here for 20 years breaks down fresh potatoes every week, confides Boothe. Its a whole different ballgame to make all the fries in-house.

"BEAST BURGER"

1845 NW 23rd Place (Nob Hill Food Carts), @farmerandthebeast

Take-out and delivery; outdoor seating available, depending on restrictions

DEETS Two 3-ounce patties, lettuce, shaved onion, pickles, special sauce, two slices American cheese, Franz sesame bun

PRICE $10

CABAL CONSENSUS Two laid-off pandemic-era cooks are making a last stand in a food cart that espouses dueling thoughts on the mind-body connectionone half is devoted to unrepentant, meat-rampaging smash burgers; the other, artisan bowls and salads via their longstanding farm connections. What's surprising is how well it works. The burger captures the zeitgeist of a Big Mac without the middle bun, backed by lots of crust and crisp edges, assorted textures and crunches, and what Okazaki deemed a truly special sauce. We all loved that brain-transporting fusion of warm gooey cheese and sauce, what Oakley calls the glorious glop. Points lost: the meat density is fierce, without a ton of seasoning or vegetable contrast, despite good quality beef. But overall, quite satisfying.

RANDOM NOTE Hard not to love a food cart serving polenta from Oregon's erudite Ayer's Creek Farm.

QUOTEABLE The secret to that sauce? A hidden thrum of spicy brown mustard. It's the most underrated condiment out there, confides co-owner Jeff Larson.

CHEESEBURGER

10131 NE Cascades Pkwy, @fullersburgershack

Takeout/delivery during freeze; indoor dining availabledepending on restrictions

DEETS 4-ounce patty, lettuce, tomato, crinkle-cutpickles, sweet onions, secret sauce, American cheese, Franz sesame bun

PRICE $6.95

CABAL CONSENSUS The cheeseburger is still a fixture at Fullers Coffee Shop in the Pearl, an icon and relic ofDrugstore CowboyPortland. And, as legend has it, Fuller's cheeseburger has not changed since 1947. Now, under a local restaurant group, it has a secondary lifestar attraction and raison d'etre of sister operation Fullers Burger Shack, a sterile mall spot with dreams of franchising. If anything, the Burger Shack version is a hair better than the coffee shop original. What we loved: the warm creaminess, the perfect proportions, the luscious char, the splendid crunch of whole iceberg leaves, the way the cheese pooled over the edges.

CIVIL WAR We clashed over the sauce's uber-sweetnessdistinct note or palate killer?Yes, this is the lone burger blessed with 100 points, via Oakley, who swooned, It's nearly identical to Burger Kings Whopper in construction and the Platonic ideal of that style. Its everything I want in a burger. Brooks logged in 96 points. But Drew was less convinced, going 85, and Pauline locked down at 78 points, deriding its fake-y sweetness.

QUOTEABLEUnder phone interrogation, a Fuller's employee revealed the secret to its secret sauce: mayo, ketchup, and six exotic spices, including cayenne, curry powder, and white pepper. Somewhere in Portland, its still 1947.

CLASSIC SINGLE

5410 NE 33rd Ave., @byhpdx

Pick up or delivery; outdoor dining available, depending on restrictions

DEETS4-ounce patty, shredded lettuce, sweet onions, homemade pickles, Dukes mayonnaise, brown mustard, ketchup, American cheese, Martins potato roll

PRICE$6.95

CABAL CONSENSUS Famed founder John Gorham is famously gone. But the house classic is the same as it ever was, backed by chef-loved Duke's mayo, a Southern specialty, and East Coast cult-worshipped Martin's potato rolls, made famous at Shake Shack. We found it handsome and nicely scaled, with a party of long lettuce shreds falling all about. The patty boasted a juiciness that eluded many burgers we tried. Where it lost points: the bun (despite that nice squish, needed more toasting), the sweet onions (elusive), and the zucchini pickles (slightly weird). But bottom line, overheard at first bite: Damn, thats good. Sweet price, too.

CIVIL WAR We battled over the impact of brown mustard, an unconventional choice. Okazaki called it a nice touch, an unexpected zing. Oakley cringed.

RANDOM NOTE $3 for a can of Diet Coke? For two buckeroos, we coulda ordered your Miller High Life instead. The Cabal rage-sipped.

CHEESEBURGER

1207 SE Hawthorne Blvd., @bottlerocketpdx

Take-out, delivery, outdoor seating available depending on restrictions

DEETS 4-ounce patty, shredded iceberg, raw and grilled onions, kosher dills, Sriracha mayo, Cheddar cheese, Franzpubbun

PRICE $10

CABAL CONSENSUS Head into the heart of Cartopia, Portlands OG food cart pod, to find a fun-loving, hand-hewn burger-joint diner without walls, with calls out to Asian kitsch, artisan culture, and Portland's beloved, R.I.P. dive-bar Club 21 burger. First, let's be clear: the house mayo sauce is hoo-boy spicy, but in other respects, this burger worships classic form. What grabbed us: the rich flavors, the cold-crisp-crunchy elements, the toasty Franz bun, and the hard-formed, nicely charred patty flashing chuck from esteemed meat purveyor Nicky USA. Kudos on the onions, which go acoustic and electric, some raw, some sweetly caramelized. Drawback: the M.I.A. cheese flavor on the burger's back half.

CIVIL WAR That Sriracha mayo sauce. Most agreed: the heat overwhelmed an otherwise lovely burger. Only Okazaki dissented, arguing: I gave it extra points. It's different.

QUOTEABLE Opined Oakley mid-bite: After years after worshipping Martins potato rolls, I now conclude that a well-toasted Franz bun can be superior.

''PORTLAND"

3111 SE Division St., @pdxsliders

Take-out and delivery; indoor and outdoor dining available, depending on restrictions

DEETS 6-ounce patty, raw onions, pickle, aioli, American cheese, Portland French Bakery brioche bun; fries included

PRICE $11

CABAL CONSENSUS In 2016, a Yelp army rallied behind this Sellwood food truck. Aa year later, it was a brick-and-mortar and now, PDX Sliders has Portlands mini-chain fever. Though best-known for playful sliders, the kitchen also erects a full-sized classic cheeseburger. Its not The Wire of burgers, but more like Friends: rewatchable, well-crafted, very likeable. Noteworthy: the ring of smoky char on a tasty bun; that little smack of salt in the beefy meat; the right cheese drip; and big-tasting pickles. What it lacked: contrast, so key to a truly great burger. With lettuce and tomato, or maybe ketchup and mustard, it could be pretty perfect.

RANDOM NOTE The deal includes, seriously, a tray of fries. Noted Drew: Its like a generous pour. You taste something more than potatoes here.

TAVERN BURGER

825 N Killingsworth Ave., @tulipshoptavern

Take-out only; indoor dining available, depending on restrictions

DEETS 4-ounce patty, shredded lettuce, dill pickles, onion, special sauce, American cheese, Dos Hermanos milk bun

PRICE$8

CABAL CONSENSUS When we extracted insider lists from other classic burger hunters, one name kept popping up: the tasty drive thru model at Tulip Shop Tavern, open mid-2019. The place immediately grabbed us, a new spot that feels like an old shoewarm and personal; crooning vinyl music; spot-on vintage drinks. Burgers to beer list, it's what you might expect from industry vets with trench time at Higgins, Rum Club, and Saraveza bottle shop. Admittedly, the vibes elevated the pleasure of a solid, straight-up 1960s-era burger with some loving touchesa thin smash patty, cooked just crisp-right; a fluffy milk bun toasted in clarified butter for a cleaner flavor. Happy to eat one again. Wish list: more cheese, please.

RANDOM NOTE Surprisingly great fries, hand-cut and double fried. Choose a trio of gratis sauces from eight options, curry ketchup to honey mustard.

See more here:

Portland's 20 Best Cheeseburgers, Exhaustively Argued and Ranked - Portland Monthly

Amy Poehler and Natalie Palamides on Finding the Comedy in Consent – Interview

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Natalie Palamides stands center stage under a showerhead. Shes topless and soaking, whimpering beneath a black Lorax mustache, clumps of glued-on chest hair trickling down her chest. She pauses and cocks her hip, modeling her oversized strap-on while morosely staring off into the distance, a petite statue of David with a loofah for a fig leaf. Of course, this isnt really Natalie; this is Nate, the titular tortured douchebro at the center of her one-man show, now on Netflix. Produced by Amy Poehler, who became aware of Palamides from her performances at the Upright Citizens Brigade, Nate is an hour-long experiment in pushing the audience to its most queasy edge, playing with gender in ways that somehow still feel uncharted. Almost entirely naked throughout the show, Nate chugs La Croix, asks to touch an audience members breasts (second times the charm), and challenges another to an on-stage wrestling match. A date with a mannequin has Nate pleading the audience for help around defining consent, and their answers are uncertain. Its a poignant, albeit shamelessly absurd, look into the psyche of a man navigating the debris of 2017s #MeToo tidal wave, and those of everyone watching him.

Palamides is well-trained in the art of absurdity, with a background in drag, improv, and clowning. Nate is her follow-up to 2017s Laid, about a woman who gives birth to an egg, for which she won the Best Newcomer Award at the Edinburgh Film Festival. The costume she used was repurposed from an earlier UCB sketch in which she played an anthropomorphic egg who would like to speak to the manager of the L.A.-based chain and food porn vehicle Eggslut. While her work is decidedly provocative, its only a couple degrees more absurd than this absurd world. And for Palamides, as she tells Poehler on a mid-afternoon Zoom call, thats part of the job.SARAH NECHAMKIN

NATALIE PALAMIDES: Amy, hey!

AMY POEHLER: Hi, Nat! This is exciting. Were doing this for Interview magazine. Youre nervous.

PALAMIDES: Im nervous.

POEHLER: Well, I wish they would start this interview like, She walked into the restaurant and took off her cardigan sweater, her bare shoulders glistened in the sunlight. She ordered poached salmon and the waiter was enthralled.

PALAMIDES: I wish that was more the energy as well.

POEHLER: Its hard to distill Nate into a few sentences, but how would you describe the character to someone who knew nothing about the show?

PALAMIDES: I would probably describe Nate as a macho douchebag with a heart of gold. Hes plagued with toxic masculinity, but is always trying to do better and always failing. Thats the idiot inside of him. And I think thats why we can laugh at him, because hes so deeply complicated by what hes been taught about how a man should act, but still his heart of gold is always seeping through. And you can see that hes really earnestly trying to be good.

POEHLER: Lets go back in time to how you first started playing that character. Where did he come from?

PALAMIDES: He first popped out when I was doing a drag workshop with a theater company in Philadelphia called the Pig Iron Theater Company about eight years ago. I was doing a bunch of men, and Nate was just one of the characters that I drummed up. The first piece I did with him was five minutes, all silence. It was the vibe of a lonely bachelor pad. Hes just sitting there watching TV, sullenly chugging this two-liter bottle of soda, and hes really sad, but you can see that hes having trouble being vulnerable. Hes this really macho dude chugging a bottle of soda who is really sad. And then he keeps burping. Every once in a while, he burps. He chugged the whole bottle in five minutes.

From there, I just had him in my back pocket. I would pull him out in sketches with my friends at UCB or in my clown group, Little Red Feathers. We made a little video with Nate who I call baby Nate because he didnt have a mustache. Back then I just kind of put some stubble on and I actually cut black hair off of a wig and glued it to the side of my face for sideburns. Now I just use mascara instead. Its much simpler, much easier to clean up. After I got back from doing my first Edinburgh, a bunch of stuff was coming up about toxic masculinity in the zeitgeist. And I thought Nate would be a good vehicle to explore a show about toxic masculinity. Honestly, I was scared about exploring the gray area of consent at first, and I kind of shied away from it. But at the time, in 2017, so much of the #MeToo movement was coming up. I was like, I cant do a show about toxic masculinity and not explore consent.

POEHLER: You just explained whats so beautifully complex about the show. There are these really big physical, clowning, slapstick, humorous moments, on top of a very deep message underneath, which is unpacking consent. Youre really comfortable with making yourself and other people uncomfortable. How do you see this as furthering the conversation about consent?

PALAMIDES: I think in that way where Im making myself uncomfortable, as well as the audience, its all fair game. Were in this room experiencing this situation together. And my goal in making everybody uncomfortable is to rip off the Band-Aid of talking about consent. I feel like so much of the discourse about consent happens online because people are uncomfortable addressing it face-to-face. They dont want to hurt their friends feelings, they dont want their friend to think badly of them. And I think that bringing it into the theater, bringing it into a room, into a situation where we cant escape talking about it with each othereven though it feels uncomfortable, we need to get over that bridge before we can start having productive conversations about the gray area of consent. What were lacking online in the discourse is empathy. Theres a point in the show where Nate asks everybody a question and he waits for a response. And I see people who came together and the audience give different responses to that question, but they still leave the show friends. And a lot of them report back to me after coming to the show a second time, or seeing me out around town saying, I had a conversation about the show and it helped my friend and I come to a better understanding of consent and masculinity. I think many conversations about all sensitive issues would go in a much better, more productive direction if we looked at each other when were saying it.

POEHLER: Thats so good. Whats so exciting about the show is youre watching the struggle of a person trying to learn in real time. And thats also very funny. In this case, its Nate trying to figure out how he can be better, but also hes limited. So what you fall into is all this kind of physical action to show how hes feeling, because hes no poet.

PALAMIDES: Hes not.

POEHLER: So what did you have to do? I keep talking about you as if you were an athlete, but watching you perform night after night, you have to really put it on the line. What do you change physically to get into Nate, night after night?

PALAMIDES: You just get in shape as if youre working out every day. I definitely did train. I wanted to be looking maybe a little bit ripped. I was doing intermittent fasting. I had worked with my friend, Chad Damiani. After the special I stopped weight training with him, but I missed being really strong. Its just a fun tool to use in physical comedy, having strength that nobody expects from a person of small stature.

POEHLER: Yes.

PALAMIDES: My younger brother grew up wrestling, and he would always pay me in packs of gum to try out new wrestling moves on me. And so I kind of had a little bit of wrestling training.

POEHLER: You do wrestle audience members in one scene. Its Andy Kaufman-esque in the way that you put yourself forward. But whats so fascinating is the man that youre wrestling with is often much more seemingly vulnerable than you are. Its really fascinating to watch them have to figure out. Because youre there to wrestle. Youre not there to fuck around.

PALAMIDES: Thats right.

POEHLER: They learn that really fast. Do people sometimes really come at you?

PALAMIDES: Yeah. I try to sense that in them, whether they really want to wrestle me or if theyre a bit hesitantthen I do a little bit of staged combat. But, a couple of times, especially in Edinburgh, when people are drinking, a few people get a bit rough and I just have to take a step back and be like, Whoa, this is a show. Its me, Natalie. Hello.

POEHLER: Youre talking about being in staged combat training, and we mentioned a little bit in your clown training. I feel like clowning as an art is very misunderstood. Improv can sometimes fall into that category, too. Its kind of discarded by the cool kids, because it takes a lot of commitment, a certain amount of vulnerability and earnestness.

PALAMIDES: I think clown and improv similarly can get a bad rap for being hokey. Thats what I bump up against a lot. On TV shows youll see like the hokey college improv team and people making fun of improvisers and wearing the plaid shirt uniform, and same with clowning. People just automatically assume its a bad birthday clown that squirts water at your face and does bad tricks with streamers and stuff. What I like to reference for the clown are the Three Stooges and Lucille Ball. Carol Burnetts a great clown, Steve Martin, Mr. Bean. Theres all these modern day clowns that people dont realize are clowns because they dont have the red nose. People dont recognize that the clown is just physical comedy.

POEHLER: Do you know Sebastian Maniscalco? He moves in a way thats completely clown based. Katt Williams used to have that too, in the sense that his body is yet another joke and its so satisfying to watch. Who are your influences? Artists, musicians, dancers, TikTokers. Is there anyone you see right now that you really dig how they move?

PALAMIDES: This is maybe a really obscure influence, but there was this man named Charles Ludlam, who was really famous in the eighties for remounting classical plays, but performing them in drag and being super campy, but still being able to move people to tears. He passed from AIDS in the eighties. I also love the PEN15 girls. I think an element to what they do is clowning because part of clowning is being the child, and they play the innocent child so well to the point where you dont even recognize that theyre 30-year-old women. And its such a beautiful, pure spirit that they produce.

POEHLER: I like a lot of TikTok dancers. Theres this guy Tristan Rubiano that I think is amazing. But also Jack Black. I love how Jack moves.

PALAMIDES: Hes a clown.

POEHLER: Hes a total clown. Hes so funny and precise. Theres just so many levels of talentIm always so impressed.

PALAMIDES: Thats such a good example. Im racking my brain right now. Of course Ill think of 50 people after we hang up.

POEHLER: You can email Carol Interview, the woman that owns Interview Magazine. Its [emailprotected].

PALAMIDES: Great. Awesome.

POEHLER: Theres a lot of absurdity in the show, balanced with these really deep and thoughtful in-the-moment moments. Our world is so absurd right now, you couldnt have dreamed how absurd it is. How do you think absurdity can be used in an absurd world?

PALAMIDES: As artists, I think were challenged to be more absurd than this absurd world. So youve just got to let your freak flag fly and you got to pull out all the stops when it comes to absurdity. Because like you said, the world is a crazy place right now. So on stage you got to be even crazier. And then I think using absurdity as this tool to take out of the emotion that they might feel and bring them to a place where they can have an open mind about it. I think creating comedy and absurdity around sensitive issues allows people to take a step back to a place where they can look at it more objectively. To think about it more, more critically, and not just from a place of emotion. Emotion is important, of course, but sometimes it clouds our ability to have a reasonable discourse.

POEHLER: Speaking of discourse, now were in a time where gender is so fluid and masculinity is changing, and its so great. Because Nate is in the middle of the change. Hes this guy who realizes, Okay, things are different and I need to get in touch with my feelings. How does one do that? And in the news now, Harry Styles is on the cover of Vogue.

PALAMIDES: Good for him.

POEHLER: And hes beautiful wearing dresses. And then Natalie is playing Nate, whos this kind of man trapped in a body that might not feel like his. Theres a long history of men playing women, and I just think its really interesting to see women play men. What could we learn about ourselves and about men and women when we watch somebody take on that character? Thats what I really love about how you play Nate.

PALAMIDES: Yeah. And thats whats fun about using drag as this tool. Historically drag has been used to poke fun at gender roles. We see a lot of men playing women in drag, and I think its good that now were seeing more drag kings out on the scene. I like exploring Nates insecurity about expressing more feminine qualities like vulnerability and just having emotions in general. Its so funny that we perceive the hiding of emotions as something thats masculine. Thats just a person with some unhealthy ways to deal with their feelings. That doesnt make someone masculine.

POEHLER: Its an old story. How do you think Nate would be handling quarantine?

PALAMIDES: Well, little pieces of Nate come from the men who I love in my life, and when you mention Nate and quarantine, I think about my brother, who I quarantined with for a month.

POEHLER: Wow.

PALAMIDES: He signed up for the Navy and his ship out date was pushed when COVID started, and he had already gotten rid of his apartment in San Francisco. And so we were quarantined together for a month while he was looking for a place, but every part of the day he was working out. Anytime I rounded the corner, he had a chain strapped to his head that was like strapped to something heavy and hes lifting it up. And then he would have a case of beer at night and watch National Geographic. My brother loves to paint too. They have that in common. My brother would either be working out, eating or watching Bob Ross and trying to do a painting. I imagine Nate doing something a bit similar.

POEHLER: So, if you like to laugh and then you like to all of a sudden turn the corner and really be encouraged to think deep stuff, then Nate is a special for you because youre going to laugh really hard. And then a second later youre going to be like, Whoa, how do I feel about this? And thats whats so interesting about your work, Natalie, is how deep youre willing to go and how funny you are. Those two things dont always coexist.

Hair: Matthew Collins

Makeup: Loren Canby

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Amy Poehler and Natalie Palamides on Finding the Comedy in Consent - Interview

The greatest rock is prog rock – Newsroom

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NOVEMBER 30, 2020 Updated December 1, 2020

Jim Pinckney aka Stinky Jim is a DJ, writer, broadcaster and producer. His Stinky Grooves show on 95bFM is currently celebrating 30 years on air.

ReadingRoom

Jim Pinckney reviews an ode to a prog-rock band by legendary music writer Gary Steel

I gave progressive rock my best shot on a wet weekend in Barcelona in the mid 1980s. We raided my flatmates older brotherss record collection and proceeded to unscientifically absorb and assess the fiddly fantasies and grandiose virtuosity of the prog-rock movement. Primarily fuelled by criminally cheap gutrot wine from the bodega three floors below, those two days felt so long they may still be carrying on somewhere.

We listened to King Crimson, ELP, Yes, Van Der Graaf Generator and others. It was an arduous and at times ridiculous mission but ultimately time well spent. Prog-rock fans can tend towards zealotry; like conspiracy theorists, if you're going to cross swords with one youd best have some information ammunition.

With a lifetime of keen listening and top-drawer music writing to his name Gary Steel is an excellent man to have an argument with. Over the counter of his much missed Beautiful Music store in K Road we would Statler and Waldorf it on the merits of soporific German ambience versus hectoring dancehall vocalists or a myriad of other musical battlegrounds. Garys got a great mind and formidable knowledge so it was always a respectful, enlightening joust - except when it came to prog, which is where he can get somewhat heated.

Who better then to write a track by track, manual for the faithful, accounting the 10-year lifespan of UK prog legends Gentle Giant. His love for the band is profound, exhaustive and at times wearying. Formed in 1970 after a failed stab at pop stardom as Simon Dupree And The Big Sound, Gentle Giant spent a decade bashing out their own brand of minutely detailed, bumptious baroquenroll. Beloved as a cult outfit, they never really cracked it commercially and a seemingly endless raft of reasons are offered up for that. Curiously an absence of self-awareness and repeated missteps that are only a spontaneously combusting drummer away from Spinal Tap arent among them. By 1980 their final studio album, Civilian, wasnt even getting stocked in some stores and the patience of the press had probably worn out a few years before with the petulant, portentous, anti-media concept album Interview.

Its Garys description of the band as "five hairy, sweaty men on stage going for it" that will be the line that continues to haunt my memory

Gary manages a frugality and focus with his writing that feels refreshingly at odds with the bands why play one note when you can have 15 with a counterpoint in 4/7 time? philosophy. Hoary old rock critic cliches like the incendiary live show or artistic tour de force are pleasantly absent and instead we get "declamatory guitar riffs" and "juicy marimba solos". Tellingly its Garys description of the band as "five hairy, sweaty men on stage going for it" that will be the line that continues to haunt my memory. Its all very very male. Outside of the biographical bookends there isnt a great deal of colour about the players themselves. Presumably the Gentle Giant fanatics already know that form inside out, and theres no mistaking who this is written for.

The oft-trotted out, false dichotomy that casts punk rock as a response to prog and thus its executioner is wisely avoided. Johnny Rotten may have worn an up-cycled Pink Floyd T-shirt with "I Hate" added as a prefix but he was also an avowed fan of Van Der Graaf Generator. There are no absolutes. Punk was as much a reaction to the execrable cabaret mulch polluting the airwaves from the likes of Brotherhood Of Man, Showaddywaddy and the Wurzels as it was to the melanin-challenged boogie of Gentle Giant and their ilk. Unlike Genesis who coalesced in luxury at the centuries old elite Charterhouse School, Gentle Giant were formed around a core of three brothers born in Glasgows notorious Gorbals tenements and raised in Portsmouth. They may well have related to punk's class-battling philosophy considerably better than many of their contemporaries.

Ultimately the wrestling of the zeitgeist from the pompous public schoolers and the dregs of the working mens club scene did everyone a favour, even if its one that Gary sniffs at, saying he first stopped listening to Gentle Giant when he "stupidly bought into (punk), wholesale". Knowing the wide breadth of his taste and knowledge, that's an uncharacteristically disingenuous statement, only really serving to offer up raw meat for the prog balcony and their feelings of victimhood.

After over 120 pages of being on first name terms with Derek, Gary, Kerry, John and Ray I felt I was being lulled into some curious kind of Stockholm Syndrome. It was time to face the elephant in the room - their actual music. Following the authors recommendations and perhaps a little carried away by his eloquent passion I took a curated graze through their back catalogue. I think its kindest to say it very much remains not for everyone.

Gentle Giant: Every album, every song by Gary Steel is available via Sonicbond Publishing

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The greatest rock is prog rock - Newsroom

The rise and fall of Sir Philip Green, the retail king who fell to ground – Evening Standard

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Y

ou f**cking onion dont you f***ing get it?

It could only be Sir Philip Green on the phone. The negative piece the Evening Standard had written on his Arcadia retail empire had ticked him off royally and, as was his wont, he was straight on the phone to bark what he thought of it. And me.

You always knew such barrackings were coming, and when they did, you also knew his initial burst of fury usually with the funniest concoctions of abuse and faux threats of violence - would eventually give way to a joke, a gossip and the invitation to a cup of tea.

It was precisely that mixture of brawn and charm that got him to the riches he achieved as the undoubted kings of the British high street.

As recently as 10 years ago, he held such a position of power in UK retail that his offices at Arcadia, off Oxford Street, were like a sultans palace, where retailers, property barons and bankers would come to have him pass judgement on their feuds and disputes.

For, when it came to retailing of the bricks and mortar type at least there were few big players whose secrets and needs he didnt know.

He was a trader first and foremost. A born negotiator of deals, be they for cloth, property, finance, taxes, and even, latterly, pension liabilities.

So, just how did he get to be in this humbled position?

Green was born in 1952, the North London son of a father who owned property, garages and electrical businesses. His parents sent him to a Jewish boarding school, Carmel College in Berkshire, and gave him a fairly unaffectionate childhood.

He left Carmel with no O-Levels, but learned to be crafty negotiator at the knee of Rodney Geminder, a successful shoe wholesaler based in Old Street.

As told in Oliver Shahs biography Damaged Goods, he learned to buy low and sell high, particularly bankrupt stock, which was traded from the pubs north of Oxford street a district that remained his stomping ground for the rest of his career.

With his mother Alma, he went into clothes manufacturing and importing. Often not successfully and usually underwritten by her money.

But he learned from his mistakes.

With his knowledge of buying stock for Geminder from companies in trouble, he made his first major success in his twenties buying a distressed retail chain called Bonanza Jeans using borrowed money from Bank Leumi.

Green knew it had 400,000 pairs of jeans in stock which had been totally undervalued by the receivers and bought the whole chain for little over 1 million.

Within a month, hed repaid the bank its 1 million and, after roasting its buyers into driving better bargains, he was living high on the hog, working hard during the day and spending fast in the Ritz casino by night.

He learned that menacing style reportedly from an unsavoury loan shark he used to use called Anthony Schneider.

Then, he bought Jean Jeanie, another chain in distress, for around half a million pounds, adding it to Bonanza, turning it into profit and selling the combined group to Lee Cooper for 7 million.

The press, who he assiduously courted even then, called him the Jean Genius.

It was 1986. Green was 34, loaded, and sporting a Spandau Ballet hairstyle.

His barrowboy trading style initially went down well in his next venture, a stock market quoted menswear business called Amber Day. By force of his personality, and trading prowess, he turned the business around, moving manufacturing to Hong Kong for cheaper supplies.

He restructured its Woodhouse and Review chains then bought What Everyone Wants, sending his share price soaring as staid City institutions were drawn to this epitomy of the Eighties , winner takes all zeitgeist.

But when recession came, sales crashed brutally. The same City which once loved his maverick style fled, citing fears of lack of transparency and good practice. They muttered darkly about an apparent share support operation (which he denied) and his connections to characters such as the convicted fraudster Roger Levitt and Schneider.

Green was out, with news leaking about a Department of Trade and Industry Investigation hovering over him. The probe came to nothing and Green was left with a resentment for the Citys posh boys that never left him.

He soon bounced back, teaming up with Scottish tycoon Tom Hunter, fashion importer and now restaurateur Richard Caring and the Telegraph owning Barclay brothers to buy Sears for 548 million. He asset stripped the empire within months, and he and his fellow investors made a 280 million profit.

In 1999, having proved the City he didnt need it to make money, he bid for Marks & Spencer with a view to making a killing selling the freeholds on its 300-strong store estate.

Again though, the double barrelled c***s, as Green called City types were to be his undoing as his banking advisers took fright at dark rumours that his wife Tina had been buying shares in M&S before the bid.

He would not lick his wounds for long. Soon after, he bought BHS in a move that would both propel him to billionaire status and destroy his reputation.

He and his crack management team, including ex-Debenhams chief Terry Green and Allan Leighton of Asda fame, set to work on boosting BHSs profits through skillful buying and stock management, quickly turning a business hed bought for 100 million into a 1 billion one.

He went on to buy Arcadia, where retail veteran Stuart Rose was chief executive, sealing the deal with Rose in a final round of haggling outside the George Club in Mayfair.

Arcadias TopShop brought him glamour as well as wealth. He turned it into the hottest retail property on the street, signing up celebrities like Kate Moss to design ranges and appear with him at parties and fashion shows.

Buoyed by success, he made another bid for M&S, which at that stage was being run by Rose. He failed, and famously had a handbags-at-dawn moment with the suave CEO on the street, jumping out of his limo and grabbing him by the lapels.

At the height of Arcadia-BHSs profitable heyday, Tina, in whose name his empire was owned, took out a record breaking 1.2 billion tax free thanks to her being based in Monaco.

It was 2005, and while some in the business world applauded his success, others found it distasteful. More still were baffled as to how the company could afford it. That question came back to haunt the Greens in future years.

As the retail world moved increasingly online and big, legacy store chains like Woolworths and HMV fell by the wayside, Green neglected to invest in taking his brands digital.

Even in bricks and mortar, competition was leaving his chains behind. Fast fashion chains capable of switching ranges in a heartbeat were beating his brands at every turn. Primark, Zara, H&M began to rule the roost.

BHS was the first of the Green empire to crumble, and the halcyon days of racy profit margins dramatically turned into a miserable tale of contraction.

Worse still, it had a massive hole in its pension scheme.

Green spent his days and nights trying to figure out an exit.

That eventually came in 2015, when he sold the business for 1 to Dominic Chappell, a former bankrupt racing driver.

Green rejoiced at the sale, thinking it had lifted a huge weight from his shoulders. But it was not to prove so.

He was totally incapable of turning the business around and the company collapsed into bankruptcy with 11,000 job losses and a 571 million pension deficit.

The row that ensued was to destroy Greens reputation and almost claim his knighthood. He was pilloried by MPs and the pension hole he had left the company with when he passed it on was described as the unacceptable face of capitalism. A bizarre, six hour, performance in front of the business select committee saw him berate one MP for staring at him.

Eventually, he paid 363 million into the pension fund after lengthy negotiations with regulators. Over the years, he and his family had collected some 580 million from BHS in dividends, rents and interest on loans.

He had once been a regular on the party circuit. Newspapers and glossy magazines salivated over extravaganzas as his 60th birthday party, where he flew 150 of his closest friends to Mexico, including Naomi Campbell, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Moss.

But since the BHS scandal, he has been often exiled in his Monaco base.

Dont feel too sorry for him at the height of the BHS pensions fiasco, he took delivery of a 100 million yacht, Lionheart, on which he spends much of his time.

He became a bogeyman of the #MeToo movement. The friends who remained loyal despaired. Harold Tillman, veteran retailer and former owner of the Jaeger chain, says: Ive known him 40 years. I have seen him do so many kind, good things for people.

But, as even TopShop losses soared to nearly 500 million, he was being seen as a dinosaur in a world of rising online giants like Boohoo, Asos and the Hut Group.

Like his retail empire, he had failed to keep up with the sensibilities of the modern world.

As in so many industries, the coronavirus pandemic accelerated trends that had been running for years.

Covids lockdowns of shops and malls have seen not only Greens own stores suffer like never before, but his sales in Debenhams, the chain on the brink of collapse where he is the biggest holder of concessions.

However, few will feel too sorry for him. The Greens are still one of Britains richest couples.

They have long since diversified their wealth away from retail and into property and other ventures.

But as far as his reputation on the High Street goes, with Arcadia set to follow Debenhams into administration, the king has fallen far.

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The rise and fall of Sir Philip Green, the retail king who fell to ground - Evening Standard

Loungewear stays! And so the Jogging match being used in the following year – Play Crazy Game

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Loungewear, Home-Office- timeless tracksuits for the year 2021

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Bella Hadid in sweatpants.

Gotham

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Meanwhile, Supermodel Irina Shayk in Manhattan was boots in a posh mix of a customized grey velour-Set of SKIMS and also knee-high Stiletto of By Far viewed. The crucial lesson? This year, it was as much regarding uniqueness to Express such agility and also movement, and also exactly how the spring/summer program collections 2021, will certainly not go away in this mindset the initial so promptly.

Dua Lipa in an unwinded Ensemble.

Gotham

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Loungewear stays! And so the Jogging match being used in the following year - Play Crazy Game

What is a supercomputer? – CNBC

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The race for the world's fastest supercomputer is on.

China held the lead for the last 5 years, but the United States has surged ahead with Summit. It's a $200 million government-funded supercomputer built for Oak Ridge National Laboratory in partnership with IBM and Nvidia.

Today's supercomputers are made up of thousands of connected processors, and their speed has grown exponentially over the past few decades. The first supercomputer, released in 1964, was called the CDC 6600. It used a single processor to achieve 3 million calculations per second. While that may sound impressive, it is tens of thousands of times slower than an iPhone.

The Lab Director of Oak Ridge, Thomas Zacharia, says, "I've always thought of supercomputing as a time machine, in the sense that it allows you to do things that most other people will be able to do in the future." As he explains, smartphones today are more powerful than the supercomputers used in the 1990s to work on the Human Genome Project.

Summit consists of over 36,000 processors from IBM and Nvidia that can perform 200 quadrillion calculations per second. Zacharia says that what a typical computer can do in 30 years Summit will be able to accomplish in just an hour.

Summit takes up 5,600 square feet of floor space and has nearly 200 miles of cable. It uses 4,000 gallons of water per minute to stay cool and consumes enough power to run 8 thousand homes.

Supercomputers are used for functions like forecasting weather and climate trends, simulating nuclear tests, performing pharmaceutical research and cracking encryption keys. Some initial projects on deck for Summit include researching possible genetic predispositions to cancer or opioid addiction.

By surpassing China, the U.S. has escalated the tech rivalry between the two countries.

As Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told CNBC, "There's no question the race is on, but this is not the space race, this is the race to knowledge."

But faster supercomputers are already on the horizon. The European Union, Japan and China are all developing machines they say will outperform Summit. The next big frontier is exascale computing, that is, computers that can perform a billion times a billion calculations per second.

John Kelly, IBM Senior Vice President of Cognitive Solutions and Research, says, "Think about what you can do with a system that every billionth of a second it does a billion calculations. We can model and simulate systems that we can't model and simulate today, and we can discover from the world's data insights into major breakthroughs in the area of healthcare, science, materials, etc."

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What is a supercomputer? - CNBC