Energi Coast to Map North East England Supply Chain – Offshore WIND

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North East Englands offshore wind cluster, Energi Coast, is starting a project which aims to produce a comprehensive report of the regions supply chain capabilities in the offshore wind industry.

The supply chain mapping project will identify the range of capabilities available throughout North East England to support offshore wind developers and contractors identifying locations with extensive supply chain expertise to base onshore operations, or to tap into the collaborative capabilities of North East England companies, Energi Coast said.

In addition, the project aims to identify innovations being developed and where transference of skills from other sectors can be utilised for the future of the offshore wind industry, as well as pinpointing any gaps that might exist in the regions capabilities.

The project will be managed by energy sector business development organisation NOF working with a dedicated task group, which includes Energi Coast Chairman James Ritchie, and representatives from developers Equinor, RWE and SSE Renewables, alongside GE Renewable Energy and ORE Catapult.

North East England has become a key region for the offshore wind industry both in terms of developments such as the 3.6 GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm and the RWE Sofia Offshore Wind Farm, and its supply chain cluster.

We welcome this initiative, it presents a good opportunity to demonstrate what the region can deliver to the offshore wind industry, Halfdan Brustad, Vice President for Dogger Bank Wind Farm project, said.

This project will assist us in navigating the regions broad range of capabilities, which is deeply needed for us as new entrants. The Dogger Bank projects will be located at Port of Tyne, and this mapping will give us a valuable insight into the capabilities and innovation potential for our industry.

Sofia Offshore Wind Farm Project Director David Few said that the 1.4 GW project has ambitions for more than 50 per cent UK content.

Few has encouraged the North East England suppliers to engage with the supply chain mapping work which would give as broad a picture of the region as possible and understand what goods and services can be sourced from the area.

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Energi Coast to Map North East England Supply Chain - Offshore WIND

This hybrid offshore wind farm will be a green energy supergroup – Electrek.co

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Oil giant Shell and Dutch utility Eneco have won a tender to build a super-hybrid offshore wind farm in the Netherlands. It will consist of two sites located 11.5 miles (18.5 km) off the west coast, near the town of Egmond aan Zee.

The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy selected the Shell/Eneco consortium, CrossWind, to build the Hollandse Kust (noord) project. CrossWind will pair the offshore wind farms with floating solar facilities and short-duration batteries. They will also generate green hydrogen via an electrolyzer, according to GreenTech Media.

Hollandse Kust (noord) is expected to be operational in 2023 with an installed capacity of 759 MW, generating at least 3.3 TWh per year.

Maarten Wetselaar, director of Shell Integrated Gas and New Energies, said:

Offshore wind will play a pivotal role in the worldwide energy transition. It will also be another important next step in our ambition to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050 or sooner, in step with society.

The Hollandse Kust (noord) is one of three offshore wind areas the Dutch government chose to develop by 2023. The Netherlands intends to reach around 11GW of installed offshore wind capacity by 2030.

Shell wants to reach net zero by 2050 by selling more green energy to reduce its carbon emissions, as Electrek reported in April. It wants to build a green hydrogen plant in Rotterdam, and the Hollandse Kust (noord) offshore wind project is part of that plan.

It also wants to use Hollandse Kust (noord) to power a 200-megawatt electrolyzer for one of its ownrefineries. Thats part of its larger plan to develop anumber of green hydrogen plantson the Dutch coast to feed multiple refineries this is its transition that Wetselaar refers to above.

And dont underestimate the power of money or lack thereof. Shells earnings report today was dire: The companys profits plummeted 82% in the second quarter. Yet its CEO, Ben van Buerden, said, I am very pleased that we have weathered what was probably the most difficult quarter in living memory very well.

So if it wants to survive, it must reposition itself quickly, and this is what its doing here with this new offshore wind project and plans for green hydrogen. But a truly credible transition plan from Shell would mean that it stopped drilling for oil and gas entirely.

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This hybrid offshore wind farm will be a green energy supergroup - Electrek.co

Scarecrow Saves Offshore Wind Farm Substation from ‘Carcinogenic’ – Offshore Engineer

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A scarecrow system designed to prevent the costly issue of seabird droppings on offshore wind farms has proved successful in a year-long trial with Galloper Wind Farm, Scaretech Global, the developer of bird deterrents said.

Per Scaretech, Seabird poo or guano is a huge problem for the global offshore wind industry as it poses a serious health risk, "due to its highly carcinogenic qualities," and is extremely expensive and unpleasant to remove.

A Scaretech system was installed on the substation at Galloper Offshore Wind Farm, 27km off the Suffolk Coast, in July 2019 to address the guano problem.

According to the company, the scarecrow has reduced guano on the structure from approximately 50-60% coverage "to virtually nothing."

Galloper Offshore Wind Farm, which is operated by RWE Renewables, comprises 56 wind turbines and powers more than 380,000 UK homes.

Kieron Drew, Interim Operations & Maintenance Manager at Galloper, said: There is an abundance of seabass around our Galloper site, which attracts large numbers of seabirds. These in turn generate significant quantities of guano, which poses an unpleasant health and safety hazard for us.

We were looking for a solution and, after considering more expensive options, decided to trial Scaretech. This is a new innovation for the wind industry and it certainly worked for us. Once we installed the Scaretch device, we saw dramatic reductions in the amount of guano. In fact, the problem is now almost non-existent," Drew said.

Scaretech is extremely robust, maintenance-free and solar-powered so after installation, we were able to just forget about it. Its been a fantastic asset and has saved us a considerable amount in clean-up costs and technician time.

This is the second time Scaretechs guano solution has been successfully trialed, with an initial four-week pilot also showing strong results, Scarerech said.

Rent-a-Scarecrow

The Scaretech device is based on a traditional scarecrow concept - used successfully for centuries to keep birds off crops - and adapted for the harsh offshore environment of a wind farm or oil platform. Designed to look like an offshore wind worker in full protective clothing, Scaretech is manufactured from steel, flexible foam, and PVC and powered by solar panels. It is fixed to the offshore structure so it can operate in extreme weather conditions.

As well as simulating a human, Scaretech emits sporadic loud noises and high-intensity strobe lights which deters seabirds from landing on the structure.

Terry Christie one of the developers of the ScareTech scarecrow, said: This trial with Galloper wind farm is a game-changer for us and shows once and for all that Scaretech is an extremely effective, long-standing solution for the guano problem.

We knew of the systems potential from our previous trial but this data now proves that just one Scaretech can protect an area as large as a substation or helideck from guano for 12 months and longer. Over time, the birds never become accustomed to the device and simply stay away from it.

This is fantastic news for the offshore industry. Any health and safety matrix highlights the need to eliminate hazards if at all possible, and Scaretech certainly does this for guano.

Weve taken the simple bird deterrent of a scarecrow- tested over hundreds of years - and updated it with the latest, state-of-the-art technology to enable it to withstand the extreme weather conditions offshore. Scaretech works beyond everyones expectations and we now plan to launch a low-cost monthly rental option to enable the offshore sector to benefit from this proven solution.

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Scarecrow Saves Offshore Wind Farm Substation from 'Carcinogenic' - Offshore Engineer

Drilling reveals further resources at Yellowtail offshore Guyana – Offshore Oil and Gas Magazine

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The drillship Stena Carron has completed appraisal drilling at Yellowtail-2 offshore Guyana.

(Courtesy Stena Drilling)

Offshore staff

NEW YORK Two contracted drillships have resumed operations on the Stabroek block offshore Guyana, according to partner Hess.

Operator ExxonMobil had temporarily halted operations due to COVID-19 related travel restrictions in Guyana.

Recently the Stena Carron completed appraisal drilling at Yellowtail-2, 1 mi (1.6 km) southeast of the Yellowtail-1 discovery.

The well identified two additional good-quality reservoirs, one adjacent to, and the other below the Yellowtail field. The partners are assessing this additional resource to help support a possible future development.

Discoveries offshore Guyana.(Map courtesy Hess)

Earlier this month Noble Don Taylor spudded the Redtail exploration well, 1.25 mi (2 mi) northwest of Yellowtail-1. Two more drillships, the Noble Bob Douglas and Noble Tom Madden, are drilling and completing the Liza Phase 1 and Phase 2 development wells elsewhere on the block.

07/29/2020

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Drilling reveals further resources at Yellowtail offshore Guyana - Offshore Oil and Gas Magazine

Two Arrested in Connection with Organized Retail Crime – The Daily Ridge

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On July 24, 2020, the PCSO Organized Retail Crime Unit arrested two suspects who stole merchandise from a Home Depot and a Lowes located in Lakeland. The investigation began when loss prevention personnel from the stores contacted detectives about a series of organized retail thefts that occurred on three different occasions.

On April 22, 2020, security video footage from Lowes in Lakeland shows 44 year-old Shenicka Whittington leaving the store with Yeti brand coolers and laundry detergent totaling $552.89. Whittington did not pay for the merchandise.

On May 21, 2020, Whittington was seen removing several Yeti brand items from the same Lowes store without paying for the merchandise. The stolen merchandise totaled $209.97.

On July 24, 2020, detectives responded to Home Depot where they observed Whittington exit the store with a shopping cart full of merchandise. Her boyfriend, 55 year-old Joseph Lamar was standing next to a vehicle waiting for Whittington.Through witness statements and video surveillance, detectives learned Whittington and Lamar had entered the Home Depot store a total of three times on this day. They removed fuel boxes, a gas pressure washer, chainsaws, a reciprocating saw, Bluetooth headphones, and other items totaling $3,028.83. These items were found in Whittingtons shopping cart and the couples vehicle.

Retail theft is not a victimless crime. It hurts businesses and consumers in the wallet. We are holding these thieves accountable they are both career criminals. Just one look at the long list of charges, and the fact that Whittington is already on probation for the same thing, and you know they have no respect for the judicial system. These are serious crimes and there will be serious consequences.Grady Judd, Sheriff

Lamar was charged with Coordinated Retail Theft (F-3). Lamars criminal history includes 17 felonies and 18 misdemeanors, which includes 4 prior theft convictions.

Whittington was charged with Coordinated Retail Theft (F-3), False Name to Law Enforcement (M-1), and Violation of Probation Felony Petit Theft/3rdConviction (M-2). Whittingtons criminal history includes 41 felonies and 34 misdemeanors, which includes 23 prior theft convictions. Whittington is also being detained on warrants for theft out of Orange and Hillsborough Counties.

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Two Arrested in Connection with Organized Retail Crime - The Daily Ridge

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Third option for president, and her name is Dr. Jo Jorgensen. – Holmes County Times Advertiser

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FridayJul31,2020at12:01AM

Dear Editor,

The 2020 presidential election is both an important one, and (already) a discouraging one in terms of its outlook. Neither major party seems to be in touch with the interests of ordinary Americans. However, there is a third option, and her name is Dr. Jo Jorgensen.

Dr. Jorgensen is the Libertarian Party candidate for president, and she will be on the ballot in Florida. Her platform is essentially about maximizing freedom and bringing government back to within its Constitutional limits. Among her positions are: abolishing the federal DOE, DHS, and ATF (to name just a few agencies); eliminating penalties for victimless crimes such as drug possession; bringing the troops home from overseas and ending U.S. involvement in foreign wars; eliminating the federal deficit; and abolishing the federal income tax so that Americans can keep more of their hard-earned money.

Dr. Jorgensen is formerly a lecturer and professor of psychology at Clemson University, and has also been a homemaker as well as a founding CEO of a technological software corporation. Her achievements speak for themselves. Most importantly, however, she would provide a fresh voice to a broken system of government that has done little to better the lives of its citizens. And for that reason, I would urge those reading to consider her as you think of who to cast your vote for in November. Her website can be viewed at http://www.jo20.com. Thank you.

John Gibson, Vernon

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LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Third option for president, and her name is Dr. Jo Jorgensen. - Holmes County Times Advertiser

Pima County Candidates Battle Over Whether the Prosecutor’s Office Needs an Outsider to Achieve Reform – The Appeal

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Political Report

In this Arizona county with over one million residents, two career prosecutors are facing off against a former public defender in the Aug. 4 Democratic primary, which will decide the election.

Update (Aug. 4): Laura Conover prevailed in this primary election.

The prosecutors office in Pima County, home to Tucson and over one million residents, is sure to change hands this year. Whether that coincides with policies more amenable to criminal justice reform remains to be seen.

Barbara LaWall, who has run the powerful county attorneys office and its $40 million budget for nearly 25 years, is stepping down. Three Democrats, and no other candidates, are running to replace her, so the Aug. 4 Democratic primary will decide her successor.

During her 24 years in office, LaWall helped fill state prisons with punitive practices toward substance use and sentencing; she also fought legislative efforts to reduce the states harsh sentencing statutes. Last summer, for instance, she joined the Republican county attorney in Maricopa County (Phoenix) to successfully urge the states GOP governor to veto a bipartisan reform that would have prevented prosecutors from alleging Hannah priorsa practice unique to the state in which prosecutors are allowed to charge people as repeat offenders if their indictment includes multiple charges, even if they have never been convicted of anything in the past.

Some meaningful policy differences have emerged among the three candidates who are attempting to replace LaWall, and at least two are voicing support for upending some of her approach. Still, none of them are making the sort of bold commitments to shrink the scope of criminal justice seen in other prosecutor elections, including in neighboring Maricopa County.

Instead, the most significant contrast between them may be their professional backgrounds, and how their past activities shape their credibility to change Pima Countys culture.

Two of the candidates, Mark Diebolt and Jonathan Mosher, are longtime deputy prosecutors in Pima County. Diebolt has been a deputy county attorney for 23 years. Mosher is currently the chief criminal deputy in LaWalls office.

Laura Conover, the third candidate, is a criminal defense attorney and former public defender. She told The Appeal: Political Report that the fact that she has not prosecuted a case in LaWalls office is my strength, not my weakness, since they need a person from outside to shift that culture. Some progressives around the country are making a similar case that achieving criminal justice reform requires electing people without a prosecutors background.

Indeed, aspects of Diebolt and Moshers records in the county attorneys office have drawn rebuke, or sparked worries among some local proponents of reform.

Diebolt has received multiple reprimands while at the county attorneys office, including for not disclosing exculpatory evidence and for failing to respond to motions by defense counsel. He did not answer repeated requests for comment from the Political Report. His website mixes some support for diversion programs with conventional tough-on-crime rhetoric promising to go after the worst of the worst.

Mosher, meanwhile, is making some commitments that conflict with past decisions he has made, and with the policies of LaWall, who has endorsed him.

He has pledged not to seek the death penalty if elected, but he signed a death notice in a case as recently as February 2019. He says that he supports assigning special prosecutors to investigate police use-of-force cases, but he was the chief criminal deputy when a Pima County sheriffs deputy was not criminally charged for body slamming a teenager with no arms or legs at a group home in November. A spokesperson for Mosher told the Political Report that Mosher had taken a leave of absence to run for office by the time the decision not to file charges was made, though he was still at work during the first few months of the investigation. Mosher says he would greatly expand deflection and diversion programs for drug possession cases, and points out that he used to struggle with addiction himself, but for years he has held a leadership role in an office that filed a thousands of felony cases last year for drug offenses (nearly three-fourths of those involved less than two grams).

Mosher told the Political Report that he would lobby for criminal justice reforms if elected, as did Conover.

An analysis of the candidates policy positions, and phone interviews with Conover and Mosher, also unearthed contrasts in their stated goals. (Diebolt did not reply to requests to elaborate on his views.)

The Pima County Attorneys Office has a history of being especially punitive when it comes to drug-related crimes. Drug cases have been the most common type of felony charge in the county for 14 out of the last 17 years, according to the public defenders office.

All three candidates have said they would not prosecute people for personal possession of marijuana, and all three talk of expanding diversion and deflection programs as a way to keep people struggling with substance use out of prison. However, none of the candidates indicated another type of drug charge they would decline to prosecute.

Conover talks less about reducing the prison population or about reducing the scope of things that are criminalized than about shifting the priorities of the office.

We will be reframing that $40 million budget so we are going after those who are harming our community, which is going to move us away from all this low-level, victimless stuff, she told the Political Report. She mentioned drug paraphernalia as an example of a charge her office wont be prioritizing. When asked what she meant, Conover explained that her office would still be bringing charges for such offenses, but would steer defendants toward social services and out of the criminal justice system.

Conover uses similar language when asked about decriminalizing behaviors besides substance use. For example, she said that prosecuting sex work would not be a high priority for her office. Consensual adults, we are not spending resources on that under my watch, she said.

Some other candidates who have run for prosecutor on a progressive platform have taken more clear-cut commitments to not prosecute sex work, or drug possession up to a certain quantity. Our courts are the least healthy way to treat people struggling with addiction, a medical issue, Will Knight, who is running in Maricopa County, told the Political Report three weeks ago.

Mosher also did not say he would decline to prosecute any charges other than marijuana possession, and he has raised concerns about the safety implications of going further in decriminalization, stating for instance that that the county still must protect our children from drug sales and drug use, and we must protect our roadways from impaired drivers. He has said that he wants to expand diversion and treatment opportunities for people arrested for drug possession, and also for other offenses that stem from poverty such as loitering, to avoid incarceration.

I have already begun working to develop a new pre-indictment drug diversion program for those arrested on felony drug possession charges, Mosher said in an ACLU questionnaire. This would allow arrestees to avoid ever being indicted and charged with a felony crime, creating an earlier exit from the criminal justice system than is available under the current Felony Drug Diversion Program. Mosher told Political Report that there would be no fee to participate in the pre-charge diversion program for people arrested on felony drug possession charges, and that he expected at least 1,600 and perhaps as many as 2,000 participants per year, depending upon the numbers of arrests for drug possession made by law enforcement officers.

Neither Conover nor Mosher ruled out prosecuting overdose deaths as homicides, a punitive reaction to the overdose crisis that public health advocates decry but LaWall has used.

As county attorney, LaWall lobbied against efforts to curb mandatory minimum sentences and to limit other practices that lead to especially harsh sentences.

Earlier this year, she filed a lawsuit challenging a ballot initiative that would give judges greater discretion in sentencing, expand opportunities for early release to some prisoners, and end the use of Hannah priors, which allow prosecutors to charge people who have never been convicted of a felony as repeat offenders.

Mosher has distanced himself from LaWall on expanding early release. He supports the Second Chance Initiative, and says he even circulated petitions to help get it on the ballot. (Conover supports it as well.)

More broadly, Mosher and Conover both told the Political Report they would use their position to lobby for such criminal justice reform measures at the legislature, flipping LaWalls history of using the office to push against them.

When asked what steps they would take as prosecutors to reduce very long sentences, Conover and Mosher have said they would move away from certain practices, like stacking charges, which means bringing as many charges as possible against a person or alleging every historical prior felony conviction in an effort to increase the sentence.

But neither committed to instructing their office to never seek such charges, again stopping short of commitments taken by some Democrats in neighboring Maricopa County. (Diebolt did not respond and has not elaborated upon his stances on this issue elsewhere.)

We can create policies that require our prosecutors to seek justice and not vengeance, Conover told the Political Report. Stacking charges, seeking consecutive sentences, and historical priors have all been used questionably. Id like to put an end to all of those practices. She later clarified that she would allow highly trained and mentored prosecutors to retain discretion to use such practices.

Mosher similarly said he opposes alleging historical priors or stacking charges, and he too qualified his response, allowing that he may use those practices if pursuing that approach is both legally correct and necessary to protect community safety while increasing the opportunity for rehabilitation. Similarly, he said he would prefer judges to have discretion to deviate from mandatory minimums when those minimums are clearly inappropriate, but also seemed wary of allowing judges to have such discretion, noting that it is what let Stanford swimmer Brock Turner off the hook with a lenient punishment for sexual assault.

Conover has earned the endorsement of Mass Liberation, a group that seeks to end mass incarceration in a state that has one of the highest incarceration rates in the country. (Mass Liberation has advocated for extensive sentencing reforms in the legislature in recent years.)

All three candidates have publicly stated that they would not seek the death penalty if elected. Arizona is one of 28 states that still allows the sentence. Since 1992, the state has executed 37 people; 13 of those people have come from Pima Countymore than any other county in Arizona.

This is another issue where the candidates track records differ greatly. In the 1990s, Conover was the education chairperson of the Coalition of Arizonans to Abolish the Death Penalty, and she says this was her entry point into activism.

Mosher calls the death penalty a waste of taxpayer money. On Feb. 8, 2019, though, he signed a notice stating the county attorneys office will seek the death penalty against Christopher Matthew Clements, who is charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping, and sexual exploitation of a minor in relation to the deaths of two young girls.

Asked how that action squares with Moshers stated opposition to the death penalty now, his spokesperson told the Political Report, Those actions dont show that he would seek it at all. They show that he is a person who has a boss [LaWall]. That was her decision. Mosher added that he argued against the death penalty in this case in internal deliberations.

LaWall has historically opposed criminal justice reform, said Joel Feinman, who serves as the chief public defender in Pima County. (Feinman emphasized that he was speaking in his personal capacity as a criminal defense attorney and not on behalf of the public defenders office.) Their policy clearly is they put the highest priority on prosecuting low-level drug offenses. Thats a horrible policy. Thats exactly the opposite of what we should be doing. That just shows you are not a good steward of public budgets, and you do not understand substance abuse.

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Pima County Candidates Battle Over Whether the Prosecutor's Office Needs an Outsider to Achieve Reform - The Appeal

These states are happiest with their standard of living – YouGov US

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There is a clear correlation between household income and happiness with one's standard of living.

According to YouGov data, satisfaction with living standards does get more likely as household income rises, but it appears to level off after the $200,000 mark, suggesting diminishing returns the more money one makes.

However, money doesnt always seem to equal happiness: nearly all states whose residents are most likely to say they are happy with their standard of living have median household incomes below the national average, according to the United States Census. Residents of these states are also either less likely to be worried or as worried as the rest of the country about serious personal financial issues because of the pandemic.

Residents of North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, New Mexico, and Arizona are most likely to be happy with their standard of living, according to a survey of 60,886 Americans between July 2019 and July 2020.

According to YouGov state-level data, three-quarters (75%) of North Dakota residents agree with the statement I am happy with my standard of living. The midwestern state, whose resource-based economy has hinged on volatile oil prices, has seen a lower-than-national-average unemployment rate. While that number has increased during the COVID-19 crisis, it still is lower than the rest of the country. North Dakota also has a higher median household income than the rest of the United States. Ongoing data collected by YouGov regarding COVID-19 concerns shows a little more than half (56%) of North Dakotans are worried their finances will be severely impacted by the virus, which is in line with the rest of the country in general (54%).

South Dakota has lower-than-average median household incomes, but lower unemployment than the rest of the country. Most (74%) of residents of the agricultural state say theyre happy with their standard of living. South Dakotas financial worry around COVID-19 is roughly in line with the US in general, YouGov data shows.

Most residents of Montana, also heavily dependent on oil, say theyre happy with their standard of living (74%). While median income falls below the national average, YouGov data shows Montana residents (46%) are less likely than the general US population to be worried about their finances or personal health because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moving further southwest, 72 percent of residents of New Mexico say theyre happy with their standard of living. Trading higher incomes for warmer weather, New Mexico has a median household income below the national average, though its unemployment rate has generally been under the national figure. As the coronavirus-fueled recession takes hold, financial worry in New Mexico is line with the rest of the country.

Next door, most residents of Arizona also seem pleased with their lot in life, with 71 percent saying theyre happy with their standard of living. The Grand Canyon States unemployment rate is slightly below that of the United States but has a median income below the national average. Despite that, Arizona residents (52%) are less likely than the country to be worried about their finances because of COVID-19.

At the bottom end, residents of Kentucky (60%), Nevada (60%), Arkansas (59%), Rhode Island (58%), and Oklahoma (56%) are less likely to be happy with their living standards.

Tell your own story with data from YouGov. Contact uspress@yougov.com for more about our datasets.

Methodology: Standard of living data is based on a sample size of 60,886 US Adults aged 18+ who were asked their agreement level with the statement: I am happy with my standard of living. Response options: Definitely agree, tend to agree, neither agree nor disagree, definitely disagree. Responses were collected between July 2019 July 2020. The responding sample is weighted to provide a representative sample of the United States. Financial worry is based on a sample size of 94,683 US Adults aged 18+ who were asked: How much are you worried that each of the following might occur as a result of COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak? (That my finances will be severely affected) Response options: Very worried, fairly worried, not very worried, not at all worried, N/A - this does not apply to me, dont know. Responses were collected between May July 2020. The responding sample is weighted to provide a representative sample of the United States.

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These states are happiest with their standard of living - YouGov US

Tawazun to build, develop Satellite Assembly, Integration and Testing Centre – Emirates News Agency

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ABU DHABI, 5th August, 2020 (WAM) -- Tawazun Economic Council has formed a collaboration with Airbus and the National Space Science and Technology Centre, NSSTC, from UAE University, to build and develop a Satellite Assembly, Integration and Testing, AIT, Centre with the aim of manufacturing components and assembling, integrating and testing small to medium satellites.

The AIT Satellite Centre will develop and build communication, navigation and hyperspectral satellites ranging in size between 50 and 250 kilogrammes and it is planned to commence operations at the beginning of 2021.

The Centre will be based at the NSSTC facilities in Al Ain, with Airbus supporting NSSTC during the design, outfitting and commissioning of the facility. Airbus will also manage the procurement, installation and operational qualification required for the equipment.

The collaboration was established and facilitated by Tawazun as part of its important role as an industry enabler dedicated to driving a collaborative defence and security ecosystem, securing and progressing technology development, and building national competencies and skills within the UAE.

"This is our second project after Yahsat, and there are many more projects to come, as Tawazun works to further develop the UAE space sector," said Matar Ali Al Romaithi, Chief Economic Development Officer of Tawazun. "The UAE is building and acquiring the knowledge required to become a regional hub for space activities and advanced research and development. This Centre is an integral part of those plans and consequently Tawazun has worked to make sure that it operates as a sustainable resource for the next five to seven years with a view to becoming permanent."

"We also value the significant contribution that Airbus is making to the Centres sustainability, as well as to the increase and development of our Emirati resource and expertise. NSSTC will accumulate critical knowledge from Airbus through this project, and our national competencies and skills will increase significantly," added Al Romaithi.

"The space industry is an important and strategic sector for the UAE, as it enables the development of high-level skills and drives innovation," said Mikail Houari, President Africa and Middle East, Airbus.

"Airbus remains committed to supporting the advancement of all key elements of the UAEs aerospace industry. For many years, we have worked closely in partnership with the nations leading industrial entities to help create new technological solutions and provide global expertise and experience to local talent. This new collaboration will support the future growth of the UAEs space and satellite sector, contributing to the countrys economic diversification strategy. It will also support the continued efforts around Emiratisation, which will be vital for ensuring long-term sustainable development of the sector," added Houari.

Currently the UAE space sector has provided 3,000 jobs at 50 space related entities, five space research and development centres and three universities offering space degrees. This new project will create 32 new jobs (at least 22 of whom will be UAE nationals) with significant know-how transfer and training being conducted at Airbus facilities in France as well as locally.

Saeed Ahmed Ghobash - Chancellor of the United Arab Emirates University - emphasised the importance of the scientific research collaboration with Tawazun, which he says is aligned to the vision and strategic direction of the University. The NSSTC is an entity created by the UAE University alongside the UAE Space Agency, and Chancellor Ghobash said that UAEU has established a credible standing and reputation amongst national, regional and international institutes because of its continued strive for excellence.

"This is in line with the vision of the UAE government, achieving the goals of the national agenda through the implementation of contemporary, sustainable developmental projects," said Ghobash, "UAEU possesses distinctive scientific and technical capabilities that enable it to keep abreast of global trends in applied scientific research, the fourth industrial revolution, the requirements of artificial intelligence, and space science and technology. The universitys work contributes to the development of a knowledge and digital based economy."

"Part of the mandate for NSSTC was to develop satellite AIT capability, and it is a pleasure to form this partnership with Tawazun and Airbus to achieve that very objective," said Dr Khaled Al Hashmi, Director of NSSTC. "The UAE will soon have a fully autonomous AIT satellite capability, and this will benefit the countrys satellite programmes as well as further enhancing space-related skills within the country. The NSSTC will become the centre where the knowledge that Airbus has imparted will come together to support the UAE space sector."

The UAE Space Agency is funding the first two projects that will be completed under the management and operation of NSSTC. The first project will be a satellite that will augment navigational capabilities for the UAE and the second will be the Arab 813 Satellite; a project announced by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. Both projects are currently underway with the support of Airbus and will be completed at the new facilities.

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Tawazun to build, develop Satellite Assembly, Integration and Testing Centre - Emirates News Agency

Here’s how we can make health a core part of the global economy – World Economic Forum

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Our obsession with GDP, globalisation and economic growth has failed to take into account the impact on health and the environment.

We need to recover from this collapse in a way which is good for people, planet and the economy. We need a Great Reset. Could "currencies" based on health and well-being be the answer to creating the thriving cities of tomorrow?

GDP has come to dominate economics at the expense of many other things that make life worth living. GDP is powerful because money serves both as a day-to-day means of exchange understood by everyone and a unit of account at national and international levels. Money, therefore, links the worlds of micro-economics and macro-economics of money in our wallet and national policies and politics.

However, GDP is not a good measure of progress. We propose now that health be the currency for the Great Reset. We are working to adapt the concept of "quality adjusted life year", or Qaly, to give us a measure of well-being that links individual health to global health the new worlds of micro-health-economics and macro-health-economics.

There is nothing more important to us as individuals than our health, happiness and wellbeing. Happiness and wellbeing may be more elusive to define, but health has been defined by the World Health Organisation as a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. The word health itself comes from the Old English for a state of wholeness.

Every action we take and every transaction we make can improve or reduce our own health or the health of others, either directly or indirectly. Some effects are obvious; eat more green vegetables and your chances of cancer are reduced. Smoke a cigarette and you can harm both your health and the health of those in your immediate vicinity. Some are less obvious; invest in education and you invest in better health outcomes. Buy local food and you reduce the risk of diseases spreading through a globalized economy. Things are more complex than this, of course, but you get the idea.

We have long recognised that social and economic factors affect our health. If you are well-educated and wealthy, generally your health is better. But the importance of environmental factors is becoming increasingly recognised. At a local level, air pollution affects respiratory health. At a global level, climate disruption is now considered by many public health professionals as the single biggest threat to health far bigger than even the coronavirus. It will increase mortality and morbidity more than any other single factor. Likewise, we are recognising that loss of biodiversity (and other planetary boundaries) can have thresholds that, when exceeded, destabilize the biosphere, affect everything from water availability to crop yields and thus, in turn, impact on our health. Leading health institutions such as the Wellcome Trust now talk about Planetary Health.

We now have huge amounts of data on every conceivable part of our social, economic and environmental systems. Conceptually at least, we can track every transaction in our economy and link it to likely health outcomes. We know what is likely to increase health for the individual, the community and the planet. We can also see the possibility to steering our transactions in the direction of that elusive sweet spot where individual, community and planetary health are all maximised.

To implement our emerging knowledge of planetary health, we have two types of options: using information for down-top direction of our economies to generate health (eg through taxation or regulation), or bottom-up based on the information in transactions in a free-market type operation. The former might be considered easier and is in line with conventional socialist doctrine where the state corrects for externalities. The latter is a new form of market economy based on information embedded in each transaction. In practice, we should deploy both mechanisms for maximum benefit.

For a health-generating free market to work, we need to able to account for the health generated or destroyed by any transaction, so we can value transactions on their health-generating potential. Where for instance that organic fairtrade cup of coffee can be valued properly. This needs a new unit of account to go alongside money, implemented perhaps as a loyalty points system rewarding transactions which boost health by building social and natural capital. But what unit of account could possibly account for impacts as diverse as climate change and cancer caused by smoking a cigarette? And could any such unit of account remain sufficiently robust in the face of scientific scrutiny for it to useful for international governance?

We are working to adapt the Quality Adjusted Life Year or Qaly to serve this function. One Qaly is one year in perfect health. It has been developed by the health profession to help decide, in a resource-constrained world, which medical treatments it can afford and which it cant afford. Of course, it is not the only decision-making mechanism, but it is a useful tool it gives us an indication of what will probably bring more health and what will bring less.

Conceptually, we can imagine calculating the impact on an individuals Qalys from smoking a cigarette, or the impact on the health of the global population of carbon emissions resulting in climate disruption. Every transaction from buying a cigarette to buying a litre of gasoline or that fairtrade organic cup of coffee can be valued in terms of Qalys. In this way, health becomes the currency of the new economy. As data grows and knowledge improves, our estimates of Qalys improves too. Our economy gets better and better at generating health. Individual, national and global Qaly accounts link micro-economics to macro-economics, individual choice to government policy.

We live in the strangest of times. We have increasing data and knowledge, yet the future has never looked less secure. We have been tied to an economy which drove inequality, exposure to fast-spreading disease and environmental destruction to the extent of existential crisis. We have an unprecedented opportunity. We need the Great Reset. Imagine an economy where, alongside financial information, health information is carried too. Just as free operation of markets create financial efficiency, so being able to value and trade in health can create health efficiency.

Imagine then, a world where health is the currency.

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Here's how we can make health a core part of the global economy - World Economic Forum

Crowns and Hops Brewing Launches 8 Trill Pils Initiative to Support Black-Owned Craft Breweries – Brewbound.com

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Eight trillion dollars.

This almost unfathomable sum of money could be added to the U.S. economy in the next 30 years if not for racial disparities baked into social and economic structures, according to The Business Case for Racial Equity a Strategy for Growth, a paper Ani Turner wrote for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

The number left an indelible mark on the minds of Beny Ashburn and Teo Hunter, co-founders of Inglewood, California-based Crowns & Hops Brewing, one of only about 60 Black-owned breweries in the U.S. (According to the Brewers Association (BA), the total U.S. brewery count stood at 8,341 through June.)

We found it to be such an incredible stat, Hunter said. Looking at our own industry and seeing how there was a lack of diversity, it just seemed like a really good opportunity for us to build the strategy around.

Ashburn and Hunter today announced the launch of the 8 Trill Pils Initiative, a fund that will support Black entrepreneurs in the craft brewing industry. Craft brewery owners and employees are notoriously homogeneous, a fact that has been further underscored by the reckoning taking place across the country this summer following protests against systemic racism.

In her paper, Turner defined the categories in which racial inequity needed to be achieved to unlock economic growth: healthcare, education, criminal justice, housing and employment/entrepreneurship. As craft beer entrepreneurs themselves, Ashburn and Hunter knew they could make an impact under that tentpole.

We know first hand some of the struggles, pitfalls that come with building a craft beer brand, and we know how hard it was to identify some of those resources, be it financially or just simple educational opportunities, Ashburn said. With 8 Trill Pils Initiative, we want to create and support that resource for other breweries, specifically Black-owned breweries.

The fund kicked off today with a $100,000 grant from Scotland-based BrewDogs development fund, which also provided funding to Crowns & Hops last year.

As a global craft brewer, it is our responsibility to use our voice as a force for good, BrewDog co-founder James Watts said in a press release. In the case of racial equity, that means literally opening and supporting more Black-owned breweries like Crowns & Hops so that Black people are not only represented in the business of beer, but are also successful.

Since June, several initiatives have been launched to diversify both owners and employees in the beer industry. Brooklyn Brewery brewmaster Garrett Oliver announced the Michael Jackson Foundation for Brewing and Distilling, which will provide educational grants and scholarships for Black, Indigenous and people of color. Constellation Brands announced its venture capital arm would invest $100 million in Black-owned beverage alcohol startups over the next decade.

Last month, craft beer lifestyle brand Beer Kulture reorganized itself as a nonprofit organization to introduce craft beer to communities of color, which would bring about a necessary change to the drinker base. Crafted for All, a platform founded by Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham, works to promote inclusion and equity in craft beer workplaces.

National trade group the BA announced it would draft a new code of conduct for members after being criticized on social media for its inaction in the wake of racist incidents at member breweries.

Ashburn and Hunter see 8 Trill Pils as a complement to these projects, one arrow in a quiver aimed at a more inclusive industry. Using their experience as entrepreneurs, they want to ensure that more business owners in beer who look like them can find similar success.

There is a lot of attention and energy spent around diversity and inclusion in a model that is already there, Hunter said. Im not sure theres been as strong a conversation around racial equity, which is ensuring that Black-owned breweries are successful.

When you look at this country, Black people do make up more than 1% of the country, so in not just our industry, but in industries all over the United States, we need to be looking at how we achieve racial equity as a way of the strategy for economic growth, industry growth, he continued. By doing that we ensure that Black patrons are able to immediately recognize themselves in a brand, in a product and in ownership.

Even a single-digit percentage increase in Black-owned breweries would be significant, Ashburn said.

Its really crazy when you think about 8,000 [craft breweries], and then you think about 63, which is the number of Black-owned breweries, she said. Even if we were to go up by 4%, 5%, it still makes a marginal difference in comparison to where were at right now, so we definitely want to see more Black-owned breweries successful Black-owned breweries and business models and the various points of entry to craft beer.

Crowns and Hops won the 2019 Brewbound Pitch Slam competition at Brewbound Live in December.

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Crowns and Hops Brewing Launches 8 Trill Pils Initiative to Support Black-Owned Craft Breweries - Brewbound.com

Would a government-backed social credit scoring system like China’s ever fly in the US? – ABA Journal

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Business of Law

By Rich Acello

August 1, 2020, 12:45 am CDT

Illustration by Sara Wadford/Shutterstock

Among the casualties of COVID-19 was the planned 2020 rollout of the Chinese social credit system.

In development for years and already in use in several Chinese cities, the social credit system is a way for the government to use the capabilities of cellphones to monitor, track, observe and ultimately judge Chinese citizens as they go about their daily lives. The system uses both carrots and sticks to reward and punish behavior. Donating blood or other community activities might rate a carrot, but bad behavior could prevent the offender from taking trips on high-speed trains or airplanes or engaging in e-commerce.

Thanks to Chinas restrictive internet policies, most functions of Chinese society can be conducted on a few apps, including the ubiquitous WeChat, and all of this is discoverable by the government.

However, COVID-19 forced the government to push the pause button. According to reports, the government had to assure individuals and businesses that tax defaults or other things that would ordinarily dent ones credit would not be held against them while the pandemic raged on.

Nevertheless, observers of the rapid rise of China are intrigued by the system and wonder if it would fly in the U.S.

There are arguably pieces of it in place alreadynotably the credit rating system, which uses computer-stored data to assign consumers a credit score regardless of whether theyve requested it.

Additionally, selling platforms such as eBay require a net positive or neutral score; social media platforms can shut down posters for abusive behavior; and ride-share services can exclude riders with low ratings.

In a society where users already routinely use social media to shame others for behaviors that offend them, what could go wrong?

Plenty, according to Jay Stanley, senior policy analyst for the Speech, Privacy and Technology Project of the American Civil Liberties Union. The concept of taking credit scores and applying it to other areas of life is ominous, he says.

Experts who spoke to the ABA Journal agree there would be massive constitutional obstacles for any centralized credit scoring system.

Stanley points to constitutional protections in the Fifth Amendment for due process, and Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.

Ben Winters calls a potential U.S. social credit system a solution to a problem that doesnt exist. Photo by Joy Asico.

However, Dean Cheng, an Asian Studies Center senior research fellow within the Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at the Heritage Foundation, argues such a system would run afoul of the First, Fourth and Fifth Amendments.

Ben Winters, an attorney for the Washington, D.C.-based Electronic Privacy information Center, calls a potential U.S. social credit system a solution to a problem that doesnt exist and agrees with Cheng and Stanley that the Constitution would rule out such a centralized system.

Additionally, there are cultural reasons why such a system might fly in China but not here.

Because the Chinese have been under a dictatorship for 70 years, they have very little expectations of privacy, Cheng points out.

Dean Cheng: Because the Chinese have been under a dictatorship for 70 years, they have very little expectations of privacy. Photo courtesy of Heritage Foundation.

Meanwhile, Winters adds: In China, cameras show if youre jaywalking, and with 100% enforcement, you could say efficiencies will be achieved in law enforcement. But in America, with constitutional rights and civil rights laws, there are protections against that type of thing. However, Winters cautions that these protections must be accompanied by a meaningful enforcement mechanism, which this country lacks, underlying the need for comprehensive data legislation and protection.

But what about a system that is driven by private businesses and industries?

Cheng doubts it is in any businesss commercial interests to undertake the project. And if such a system arose, participation in the platforms that support it are optional.

I dont have a Facebook or Twitter account because I choose not to, he says. I never bought or sold anything on eBay, either. You can choose to participate or not.

However, Stanley disagrees, arguing that opting out in order to maintain privacy becomes less meaningful over time. Try living a normal life without a credit card, he says.

This article first appeared in the August/September 2020 issue of the ABA Journal under the headline Whats Your Score? Some U.S businesses already require consumers to maintain a certain social credit score, but a government-sponsored system is unlikely.

Whats Your Score? August-September,contained a quote from Ben Winters, an attorney for the Washington, D.C.-based Electronic Privacy information Center, about constitutional rights and protections against governmental surveillance. The quote has been clarified to emphasize that these protections lack a sufficient enforcement mechanism.

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Would a government-backed social credit scoring system like China's ever fly in the US? - ABA Journal

Morning Missouri Primary Election Voting Pace in Livingston County Brisk – Chillicothe Constitution Tribune

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Voters casting ballots in Republican or Democratic party primaries at county, state, federal (U.S. House) levels, as well as one statewide issue

By PAUL STURM, C-T Staff Writer

CHILLICOTHE, Mo. With Livingston County Clerk Sherry Parks having projected, only days before election day, that 40-45% of registered county voters would participate in today's (Aug. 4, 2020) Missouri party primaries and one-issue election, virtually-ideal weather and an envigorated electorate anecdotally seemed to have morning balloting on a brisk pace which would make the clerk's "prediction" attainable.

With the polls at the nine county voting locations (serving 19 precincts) having opened at 6 a.m. and remaining open until 7 p.m., local (Livingston County) voters are deciding only four contested county office races eastern district commissioner, sheriff, collector-treasurer, public administrator that will set the November 3 general election ballot. All four of those contested primaries are on the Republican ballot.

Additionally, there are contested races in both the Democratic and Republican parties for the nominations for U.S. House of Representatives sixth district representative, as well as the statewide offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor. The Democrats also have a two-person contest for Attorney General, while each of those parties, along with the Green and Libertarian parties, have only one candidate each for the State Treasurer and Secretary of State posts. One statewide-office (Secretary of State) candidate appears under the Constitution Park banner.

Additionally, the Republicans and Libertarians each have a single candidate for the 21st district seat in the Missouri Senate.

On the county level, Democrats J. Scott Lindley (coroner), Teresa Sykes (collector-treasurer), and Steve Ripley (assessor) are unopposed today, as is Republican Josh Daniel (coroner). With no Republican running for assessor, veteran incumbent Ripley is assured of reelection in the November vote, barring unforeseen developments affecting his candidacy in the interim.

In addition to the office elections being conducted today, all Missouri voters have the opportunity to decide whether to amend the state constitution to adopt Medicaid Expansion, as set forth in the federal Affordable Care Act.

The candidates involved in the four contested Livingston County office races are:

Eastern District Commissioner Alvin Thompson (incumbent), Roger Barnes

Sheriff Steve Cox (incumbent), Richard "Rick" Knouse

Collector-Treasurer Diana Havens, Kaley Holmes

Public Administrator Geri Curtis, Whitney Ballard

The Constitution-Tribune will be at the Livingston County Courthouse as official election results are released this evening and will be posting them online as time and opportunity permit on this http://www.chillicothenews.com website and on Twitter via reporter Paul Sturm's@CTSportsPSturm account.

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Morning Missouri Primary Election Voting Pace in Livingston County Brisk - Chillicothe Constitution Tribune

These O.C. parents have a message for Gov. Newsom, teachers unions: Open up the schools. – OCRegister

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A pro-charter school group brought some 75 parents, teachers and a couple of Orange County Board of Education members together Tuesday evening to rally for the reopening of schools that were closed because of coronavirus concerns.

Parents, they said, should be making the choice of whether their children learn on campus or online.

Open up the schools, the crowd briefly chanted.

Jeff Barke, right, leads a rally outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally calling for the reopening of schools was organized by the California Policy Centers Parent Union. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Cecilia Iglesias, left, and Orange County Board of Education member Mari Barke, right, join others outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office during a reopen the schools rally in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally was organized by the California Policy Centers Parent Union, a pro-charter school group. Iglesias, a former Santa Ana councilwoman and school board member, works for the center and organized the meeting with Barkes help. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Rhonda Furin, center, joins others during a reopen the schools rally outside the Santa Ana Educators Association in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally was organized by a group called Parent Union. Its a pro-charter school group under the libertarian California Policy Center. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A man holds up a sign during a reopen the schools rally outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally was organized by aParent Union. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

About 75 protesters gathered outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office for a reopen the schools rally in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Cecilia Iglesias protests outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office during a reopen the schools rally in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. Iglesias, a former Santa Ana councilwoman and former School Board member, organized the rally as the head of the Parent Union, a pro-charter school group under the libertarian California Policy Center. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Jeff Barke, a physician who advocates for the reopening of schools without social distancing or face masks, leads a reopen the schools rally outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally was organized by the California Police Centers Parent Union group, a pro-charter group that said parents should have the choice of whether their children can return to campus for in-person learning or continue with online education. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Protestors gather outside the Santa Ana Educators Association for a reopen the schools rally in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally was organized by the California Policy Centers Parent Union. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Jeff Barke, right, leads a rally outside the Santa Ana Educators Association office in Santa Ana on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. The rally calling for the reopening of schools was organized by the California Policy Centers Parent Union. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Flanked by American flags and punctuated with religious references and prayer, the rally was organized by the Orange County-based California Policy Centers Parent Union, which pointedly chose to host its event in front of the offices of the Santa Ana teachers union.

Thats why were here, said Jeff Barke, an Orange County physician who regularly advocates for reopening schools without face masks or social distancing but mentioned neither safety precaution during the rally. Instead, he and others focused attention on teacher unions, which have advocated for resuming school online for now.

Were here to let them know were sick and tired of the schools being closed. Its not based on science. Its not based on statistics. Its not based on facts. Its based on union power.

Barbara Pearson, president of the Santa Ana teachers union the Santa Ana Educators Association called the protest another desperate grab for attention in their struggle to stay relevant.

It has nothing to do with the reopening of schools or the students of Santa Ana. Governor Newsom made the decision to close schools, not the unions. Our priority is the safety of staff and students, Pearson wrote in an e-mail Tuesday night.

On July 17, Newsom ordered that all public and private schools in counties seeing a spike in coronavirus cases could not reopen for in-person learning in the new academic year. That affected all of Orange Countys schools, except for those elementary schools that are applying for a waiver. (State officials unveiled the waiver application process Monday night; its likely to impact mostly private and parochial schools.)

During the rally Tuesday, a few teachers spoke about the detrimental effects of online learning on all students, but especially those who need special services. Students have regressed academically since schools shut down mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic, they noted. And many who are in vulnerable situations, some speakers said, have been made even more vulnerable, exposing them to abuse and even suicide, because they dont have their safe haven school to turn to.

Mari Barke, an elected member of the Orange County Board of Education and Jeff Barkes wife, told the crowd, to keep fighting to reopen schools.

Parents are in the best position to make decisions for their children, Mari Barke said.

Last week, her board voted to file a lawsuit against Newsom to force a reopening of schools. Fellow Trustee Ken Williams also addressed the crowd, invoking God and talking about the fight for the children.

The rally was organized by Cecilia Iglesias, a former Santa Ana councilwoman and former School Board member who works for the California Policy Center, a libertarian think tank that focuses on issues like pension reform and charter schools. The Center runs four chapters of the Parent Union in Southern California. Iglesias said she hopes to hold similar rallies in other counties.

Our call is a call to action, to let parents choose, Iglesias said prior to the rally. Were suggesting: open up the schools, following safety guidelines, and give parents the choice.

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These O.C. parents have a message for Gov. Newsom, teachers unions: Open up the schools. - OCRegister

Seven qualify to fill U.S. Rep. Lewis’s unexpired term in 5th Congressional District – Reporter Newspapers

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Five Democrats, an independent and a Libertarian have thrown their hats into the ring to fill the unexpired term of the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis in the 5th Congressional District, which includes southern sections of Brookhaven and Buckhead.

July 31 was the deadline to qualify for the Sept. 29 special election, which will select one of the seven to take the seat until the end of the year.

The seven contenders include Robert Franklin, a Democrat and former president of Morehouse College; Kwanza Hall, a Democrat and former Atlanta City Council member; Barrington Martin II, an educator and former unsuccessful challenger to Lewis in the June primary; Steven Muhammad, an independent and minister from East Point; Chase Oliver, a Libertarian and customer service specialist; state Rep. Able Mable Thomas, a Democrat who has served nearly 22 years in office; and Keisha Waites, a Democrat and former state legislator.

If none of the candidates get a majority, a runoff will be held Dec. 1.

The election to succeed Lewis, who died July 17, for a full two-year term will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot. State Sen. Nikema Williams is the Democratic appoint to replace Lewis on that ballot. The other candidate on the ballot is Republican Angela Stanton-King.

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Seven qualify to fill U.S. Rep. Lewis's unexpired term in 5th Congressional District - Reporter Newspapers

Global Healthcare Nanotechnology (Nanomedicine) Market Worth $475B by 2027 – Therapeutics Will Account for $369B – Benzinga

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Dublin, Aug. 05, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Healthcare Nanotechnology (Nanomedicine) - Global Market Trajectory & Analytics" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The publisher brings years of research experience to this 9th edition of the report. The 190-page report presents concise insights into how the pandemic has impacted production and the buy side for 2020 and 2021. A short-term phased recovery by key geography is also addressed.

Global Healthcare Nanotechnology (Nanomedicine) Market to Reach $475.2 Billion by 2027

Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the global market for Healthcare Nanotechnology (Nanomedicine) estimated at US$183.9 Billion in the year 2020, is projected to reach a revised size of US$475.2 Billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 14.5% over the analysis period 2020-2027.

Therapeutics, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is projected to record a 14.1% CAGR and reach US$369.5 Billion by the end of the analysis period. After an early analysis of the business implications of the pandemic and its induced economic crisis, growth in the Regenerative medicine segment is readjusted to a revised 15.7% CAGR for the next 7-year period.

The U.S. Market is Estimated at $54.3 Billion, While China is Forecast to Grow at 14% CAGR

The Healthcare Nanotechnology (Nanomedicine) market in the U.S. is estimated at US$54.3 Billion in the year 2020. China, the world's second largest economy, is forecast to reach a projected market size of US$82.8 Billion by the year 2027 trailing a CAGR of 14% over the analysis period 2020 to 2027.

Among the other noteworthy geographic markets are Japan and Canada, each forecast to grow at 12.8% and 12.5% respectively over the 2020-2027 period. Within Europe, Germany is forecast to grow at approximately 10.7% CAGR.

In-vitro diagnostics Segment to Record 16.3% CAGR

In the global In-vitro diagnostics segment, USA, Canada, Japan, China and Europe will drive the 16.1% CAGR estimated for this segment. These regional markets accounting for a combined market size of US$5.7 Billion in the year 2020 will reach a projected size of US$16.2 Billion by the close of the analysis period.

China will remain among the fastest growing in this cluster of regional markets. Led by countries such as Australia, India, and South Korea, the market in Asia-Pacific is forecast to reach US$56.9 Billion by the year 2027.

Competitors identified in this market include, among others:

Total Companies Profiled: 46

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/moa2yk

Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research.

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Global Healthcare Nanotechnology (Nanomedicine) Market Worth $475B by 2027 - Therapeutics Will Account for $369B - Benzinga

OPINION EXCHANGE | Comets may be heralds of hard times, but also of revival – Minneapolis Star Tribune

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On July 14 I needed a first-rate northern horizon.

Comet C/2020 F3 Neowise would be gleaming low in the north-northwest an hour after sunset, rotating with the celestial sphere and out of view not long after. Id seen raves online (Do not miss this!). And besides, hunting comets has been a keen subset of my astronomy hobby for decades.

Six weeks earlier, after several late-night and predawn forays beginning in late March, Id finally spotted a different comet, C/2017 T2. It manifested as a small, dim patch of fuzz in my 15x70 binoculars, not even remotely apparent to the unaided eye a species of quarry only zealots could savor, and a typical cometary experience.

But I was assured that Neowise was special. Shining at fourth magnitude it was easily a naked-eye object, brighter than many of the stars visible in a rural sky.

The day was partly cloudy, but a glance at the weather forecast (and a barometer) indicated a clear night. Not taking any chances, I scaled the 100-feet-tall Side Lake fire tower at dusk. Cant procure a much better panorama than that.

When I reached the cupola and faced north, I groaned. A last bridgehead of cloud was draped along the north-northwest horizon. The gray mass, fringed with fading orange, hovered in precisely the wrong spot. Had the privilege of the tower been neutralized?

At 10:05 p.m. I began scanning with the formidable glass of the 15x70s. I stalked just above the treacherous band of cloud. Nothing. Anyone whos searched for comets has known disappointment. Many recall the hype (entire books were written) preceding the return of Halleys famous comet in 1986. It didnt fizzle exactly, but never approached the splendor that astounded the world in 1910, when it spanned most of the sky, was visible during the day, and inspired apocalyptic fever dreams. The earth passed through Halleys tail and farm families retreated into tornado shelters, frightened by claims the cometary gas could poison our planet.

Searching for Neowise, I spent 20 minutes periodically gridding the north-northwest horizon side-to-side, up and down, taking breaks to admire Jupiter and Saturn rising in the southeast, and noting familiar stars and constellations snapping into view with last light fading.

As darkness develops, objects leap into visibility. A threshold is attained for any given brightness, and what is imperceptible one moment is suddenly revealed a second later.

At 10:27 p.m., the comet in full glory materialized in the lenses, 5 degrees above the clouds. I whooped. The hype was redeemed.

The coma, or head, was intensely luminous; the tail fanned out in a gentle arc, the pressure and heat of mere sunlight fashioning a feather of star dust saturating my field of view. The impression was of a hot, blazing rocket, but comets sustain the icy cold of deep space. Even so, the frozen primordial matter being peeled away by solar wind looked like the pure white product of a forge.

For the next half-hour I relished the rarity, and the surprise. We average only one prominent comet per decade. Unlike Halley and other short-period comets, Neowise blew in from nowhere, calculated to be on a 6,800-year orbit around the sun, last visiting our neighborhood at the dawn of human civilization. Nobody wrote it down.

Just after 11 p.m. I eased down the 126 steps of the fire tower, then paused on the center-line of County Road 5 and looked north. Naked-eye, the comet was a white slash bracketed by tall pine forest on either side of the road. It was a beckoning tableau, as if the pavement steered for the sky through a tunnel of trees and the comet was within reach.

I stood transfixed. Sure, I was glad for the tower, and certainly appreciative of the lenses, but there on the highway I enjoyed the most compelling phase of the spectacle, when the celestial traveler seemed linked to earth.

The reputation of comets as harbingers of doom or revival, explicitly connected to human events, is well known. Who isnt drawn to portents and omens? We understand that comets are essentially dirty snowballs composed of rocky ice and dust, and relatively insubstantial. Indeed, the National Geographic Society once described them as the nearest thing to nothing that anything can be and still be something.

And yet, when I heard of the unexpected arrival of a bright comet my first thought was: of course, its 2020. We are mired in a baneful pandemic unlike anything endured for a century, parsing our lives into 14-day increments of health and survival or not. As of this writing, 150,000 Americans have died, with no end immediately apparent. Against this sobering backdrop, were suffering domestic unrest over racial injustice, the global economy is severely strained, tensions between the United States and China are escalating, and our looming November election is seen by many left and right as an existential, do-or-die moment of truth.

All these challenges (and more) demand attention, action but we cannot be always on red alert, at the barricades, hypervigilant, hypersensitive. We must also play and dream. Otherwise well sooner or later collapse into a bitter vortex of angst and be of little use to anyone. The first rule for all is do no harm, and that includes to ourselves. No one contributes by crashing and burning.

Seeking and witnessing the comet was an intentional, joyous frolic. Its beauty was inspiriting (and bipartisan) and though Im familiar with the physics I also enjoyed an indulgent flight of fancy. I thought, why do I feel so uplifted? What is the message of this comet? Im capable of ascribing meaning if I choose, so what does Neowise mean?

I choose revival. Listen: the comet is a herald of magnificent transformation. I allowed the view of Neowise from the center-line of County Road 5 to assure me that we have a clear route to a metaphorical heaven. The comet beckons to a loftier plane, to acknowledge and celebrate what Abraham Lincoln called the better angels of our nature.

They are often evoked in play, when we set aside the axes were grinding and revisit the wonder, optimism, and uninhibited rumpus of childhood. Mark Twain, whose birth and death were bracketed by Halleys comet, wrote, When Im playful I use the meridians of longitude and the parallels of latitude for a seine, and drag the Atlantic Ocean for whales. I scratch my head with the lightning and purr myself to sleep with the thunder.

Prose poetry of a high order, and resonant with rejuvenating gladness and useful whimsy. Its a mind-set we call recreation. Such imagining can keep us in touch with sanity.

So, washed in starlight on a mild summer evening, I passed through the looking glasses. I strode the highway between the pines to the comet, and straddling the shimmering tail I rode it toward the sun and a dazzling tomorrow. Popping into view just ahead I saw John Muir, that tough and intrepid wanderer of wilderness. He called out, All things move in music and write it. The mouse, lizard, and grasshopper sing together on the Turlock sands, sing with the morning stars.

Why not? Its my choice, my portent. Ill get back to work in the morning.

Peter M. Leschak, of Side Lake, Minn., is the author of Ghosts of the Fireground and other books.

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OPINION EXCHANGE | Comets may be heralds of hard times, but also of revival - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Letter: Lets just continue to bury our heads in the sand, folks – Manitoulin Expositor

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After all, once the bees are dead weve got just four more years

To the Expositor:

Having read a recent editorial regarding herbicides and the dying bees, I realize that bees, trees, water and human health are of supreme importance when compared to making more money.

Our benevolent politicians sign laws that always engender the well-being of the citizens who elected them. They never favour big business and the monied class.

Our representatives would never make laws that would force us to put highly carcinogenic chemicals into the creeks and onto the roadways. I am certain that only the Americans sell out their citizens by dumping Agent Orange onto men, women and children and theirownsoldiers.

The previous sentences are, obviously, tongue in cheek but they lead a thinking person to a grim reality.

Big business and government sign our pay checks so that we may pay our rent and buy our porkchops. Our dependence is undeniable and, as history has proven, we will put babies into ovens if our paymasters and money changers so demand.

Forget about it folks. Go back to your TV and propaganda news bytes. Hate and fear your brothers who are brown, yellow and red. Do not question the laws, read your bible, follow the script and go back to sleep.

Besides, after we kill all the bees, according to Einstein, we still have four years to live.

All the best,

Tommy Lough

Tehkummah

PS: Dear Expositor, I will be shocked if you print this.Cold, hard truth scares all of us.

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Letter: Lets just continue to bury our heads in the sand, folks - Manitoulin Expositor

COVID-19 vaccine makers rue red tape in Telangana – The New Indian Express

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By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Stressing on collaborative efforts to develop a vaccine for Coronavirus, three major Pharma companies Bharat Biotech, Biological E and Indian Immunologicals, said the Telangana government and the Centre needed to streamline the process.

Speaking at an interaction on the subject, 'The Vaccine Race' moderated by IT and MAUD Minister KT Rama Rao, the industry leaders noted that the present ecosystem gave them the shorter end of the stick in the race to find a vaccine.

Demand for decentralisation

"To be a global power, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) needs a South-Indian headquarters. For small clearances, we have to rush to Delhi, which is hurting us. Sixty per cent of pharma business comes from here, so decentralise the power to Hyderabad. Similarly, if the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) and Department of Biotechnology (DBT) set up an institute here for clearances, we would save time and effort," said Bharat Biotech MD Krishna Ella.

'Use World Bank, WHO funds'

On a similar note, Mahima Datla, MD of Biological E flagged the Centre's response in fetching available funds that WHO and World Bank are providing for vaccine development. "There is COVAX facility by WHO which gives a demand certainty, but our governments response to it is not forthcoming. So we are losing competitive advantage despite being leading manufacturers in the world," she said.

She added that as a starter, the World Bank had Rs 2 billion in funding that was made available to vaccine manufacturers and India needs to make that available to vaccine manufacturers.

On the lack of coordinated effort, Dr Anand Kumar, MD of Indian Immunologicals said though there were just seven leading manufacturers, no concentrated effort had come in for a status check on R&D requirements or infra requirements forcing them to work in silos. Rama Rao assured the industry leaders of all support.

HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Science Society has developed a sanitiser robotic vehicle which can be used to spray sanitising liquid on roads and buildings. Hyderabad Science Society director SA Khansaid, "In areas where there is contamination in buildings and humans cannot be employed due to risks of virus, this remote controlled vehicle is a viable alternative."

Originally posted here:

COVID-19 vaccine makers rue red tape in Telangana - The New Indian Express

Just 10 games in, the Red Sox are tied for the worst record in the AL. Its easy to see why – The Boston Globe

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Bogaerts is right. Trying to win with only two reliable starting pitchers is hard. Trying to bond with so many new teammates during a pandemic is hard. Watching Triple A pitchers trying to get the Yankees out is hard.

Losing Eduardo Rodriguez for the entire season because of a heart condition related to his having COVID-19; that was really hard.

At 3-7, the Red Sox are tied for the worst record in the American League and are already five games out first. Its easy to see why.

The Sox really dont have a rotation. Theres Nate Eovaldi, Martin Perez and a series of question marks. Theyve also played poor defense and run the bases like their masks were pulled over their eyes.

When Mookie Betts and David Price were traded in January, it was a clear message that this season didnt matter and the Sox were preparing for the future. Chris Sale undergoing Tommy John surgery seven weeks later only reiterated this would be a lost season.

The Sox had 16 pitchers on their active roster Sunday, seven who were designated for assignment or released in the last nine months before the Sox picked them up.

Pitchers from that group have started four of the 10 games.

One of the castoffs, Matt Hall, inherited a 2-0 lead in the second inning on Sunday and allowed three runs. When the Sox came back to take a 5-3 lead, Hall gave up two more.

Behind Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers, the Sox built a 7-6 lead only to see Matt Barnes allow three runs after retiring the first two batters in the eighth inning.

The go-ahead runs came in Aaron Judges second homer of the game, a 468-foot blast.

You cant win with a pitching staff like that and the players know it. Their level of play has reflected it.

Saturday nights 5-2 loss against the Yankees was a good example.

The Sox put two runners on base with two outs in the ninth inning against journeyman righthander David Hale. One swing could have tied the game.

With J.D. Martinez available to pinch hit, Andrew Benintendi took his turn at the plate and struck out on four pitches to end the game. That left him 2 for 24 on the season.

Martinez at that point had hit .320 against the Yankees with a 1.022 OPS since joining the Red Sox.

But he was not available. Here was how manager Ron Roenicke explained it.

He had been in the cages trying to get loose. Its a little harder to get J.D. quickly loose. But we had given him a couple of innings before and talked to him about it.

Hes used to certain routines that he goes through and he knows different situations when they come up that there may be an opportunity. But Jerry [Narron, the bench coach] had gone down there a couple of innings before and just kind of gave him a heads up to be ready.

I would rather give him the day off, which we did. But if we needed it to win a ballgame we thought we may put him up there.

So he could have hit?

We could have, Roenicke said. Again, both of us probably rather would have not, him and us. Thats kind of what the decision came to.

Youd hope a Red Sox player would be breaking down doors for a chance to beat the Yankees. But Martinez took a pass and Roenicke made it out to be a mutual decision.

It brings to mind the 2014 season, when what appeared to be a good Red Sox team fell apart after ownership made a lowball offer to ace lefthander Jon Lester.

The Sox played with little passion, fell out of contention quickly and there was a fire sale at the trade deadline that included Lester. It was the start of a long fallow period.

That could be where this is headed. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has been careful to say the Sox arent giving up on the season but also have to be mindful of the future.

The trade deadline is at Aug. 31 this season assuming MLB is still operating at that point and Bloom could deal away players like Martinez, Jackie Bradley Jr., Mitch Moreland and Kevin Pillar.

Barnes spoke confidently after the game about the Sox being capable of going on a good run. But even with eight teams from each league making the playoff this season, how could they with this pitching?

Bogaerts is trying to stay hopeful.

We dont have much time. But in 50 games a lot can happen, he said.

A lot already has. Too much.

Peter Abraham can be reached at peter.abraham@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @PeteAbe.

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Just 10 games in, the Red Sox are tied for the worst record in the AL. Its easy to see why - The Boston Globe