Urban Dictionary: wage slave

Is a person with little to no education who works for wages. These people are usually slaves to their employer and have to kiss butt otherwise they will be fired. Being that these people don't have many other job opportunities, they are forced to live the rest of their lives working for wages and being a slave. Their only other option besides being a wage slave is going to jail or becoming homeless. Because they lack job skills, they are very limited in the type of work they can do. Many adults who are wage slaves now, dropped out of school and got caught up in the popularity game. Or they are people who never took school seriously and instead wanted to party like a rockstar. These people are basically the physical labor of this country and if they misbehave at work they are fired. Then they lose their living quarters,cars,family, and their life takes a turn for the worst. Let me mention, that many of these people were born to low to middle class families which is why histroy is repeating itself.

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Urban Dictionary: wage slave

World’s first floating city to be built off the coast of …

Ambitious plans to create a city in the sea, complete with homes, offices and restaurants, are beginning to materialise.

Long touted as the next frontier for humanity by tech billionaires and libertarians, seasteading the idea of building autonomous, self-sustaining cities in international waters has moved one step closer to reality.

A pilot project underway in the coastal waters of French Polynesia is set to become the first functioning floating community by 2020, offering homes for up to 300 people.

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Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Picture: the Seasteading Institute

Joe Quirk, president of the Seasteading Institute, outlined his plans for cities in the ocean that are free from the constraints imposed by world governments in a recent interview .

If you could have a floating city, it would essentially be a start-up country, Mr Quirk told the New York Times, explaining his disillusionment with current governments that just dont get better, and are stuck in the past.

He said he sawseasteading as a way to escape this system.

We can create a huge diversity of governments for a huge diversity of people," he said.

For the time being, however, the seasteaders seem prepared to cooperate with existing governments in order to get their initiative off the ground. For their Floating Island Project, run by a new company set up by Mr Quirk and his collaborators called Blue Frontiers, they are working with the local government of French Polynesia to create a Semi-Autonomous Floating Venice in Paradise.

This floating city will exist in a special economic seazone, allowing the the Seasteading Institute to try out some of its ideas in a relatively controlled environment.

Engineers and architects have visited an undisclosed location where the project is set to begin. Their ambitions extend to the creation of a research institute in the floating city, and even a power plant to sell energy and clean water back to their host nation.

The project is projected to cost $167 million.

The team has made a deal with French Polynesia to create a "unique governing framework"in a patch of ocean where their project can begin.

Mr Quirk, who describes himself as a seavangelist, first became interested in the notion of seasteading at Nevadas Burning Man festival in 2011. The festival provided him with an idea of the type of unconstrained society he would like to see flourishing in offshore cities.

Another early backer of seasteading, the Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, has invested $1.7 million in The Seasteading Institute, but has since fallen out of love with the idea.

"They're not quite feasible from an engineering perspective," MrThiel told the New York Times in a separate interview. "That's still very far in the future."

Indeed, past efforts to get seasteading off the ground have not been successful, with a prototype planned for the San Francisco Bay in 2010 failing to appear.

But the team behind the Floating Island Project are sure of their new idea, and are currently in the process of demonstrating the projects viability to the French Polynesian local government.

The Memorandum of Understanding they have signed is based on the seasteaders ability to show the positive economic and environmental impact it would have for their host nation.

If that all goes to plan, they anticipate work beginning on development of the pilot project as early as 2018 and beyond that, many more.

I want to see floating cities by 2050, thousands of them hopefully, said Mr Quirk.

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Abolitionism – u-s-history.com

The abolitionist movement called for the end of the institution of slavery and had existed in one form or another since colonial times; the early case had been stated most consistently by the Quakers. Most Northern states abolished the institution after the War for Independence, reacting to moral concerns and economic unfeasibility.

The movement gained new momentum in the early 19th century as many critics of slavery hardened their views and rejected their previous advocacy of gradualism (the slow and steady progress towards the goal of freedom for slaves) and colonization (finding land in Africa for former slaves). As the movement grew and became more formally organized, it sparked opposition in both the North and the South; Northern mill owners depended upon slave-produced cotton every bit as much as the Southern plantation owners.

Undeterred, many abolitionists defied the original Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, as well as the later Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, and actively sought to assist runaway slaves in their quest for freedom, most notably through the auspices of the Underground Railroad.

Abolitionist leaders included such figures as William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman and William Lloyd Still.

Garrison adopted a militant tone which differed strikingly from the more timid proposals of prior abolitionists, who generally favored "colonization" of blacks away from white society. Garrison demanded the immediate end of slavery without compensation to slaveowners and equal rights within mainstream society for everyone, regardless of race.

Garrison`s efforts led to the formation of the American Anti-Slavery Society in 1833. He wrote its initial declaration, which appeared on December 14, 1833, reading in part:

Within five years, the society had 1,350 local chapters. The success of the abolition movement in the North, and the large amount of propaganda that it generated, enraged the South. South Carolina took the step of declaring that

They further petitioned the federal government to have the post office stop the distribution of abolitionist literature. Congress decided that this would be unconstitutional, but in practice it was not unusual for Southern postmasters to prevent the delivery of offending material.

After the Reverend Elijah Lovejoy, editor of an Abolitionist newspaper in St. Louis, moved it in 1836 to Alton, Illinois, the citizens of Alton destroyed in on three occasions. On the fourth, on November 7, 1837, the mob murdered Lovejoy. His associate Edward Beecher, brother of Henry Ward Beecher, wrote in the narrative of the Alton riots, which appeared in 1838, "The true spirit of intolerance now stood exposed. Events were so ordered by the Providence of God as to strip off every disguise. It now became plain that all attempts to conciliate and to discuss were vain; and nothing remained but to resist or to submit."

One of the early leaders of the Abolitionist movement was Theodore Weld, who helped organize the American Anti-Slavery Society in 1833, and whose 1839 work, Slavery As It Is, inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe to write Uncle Tom`s Cabin.

Although some in the Abolitionist Movement, especially Garrison, felt that women should play a prominent role, that position was resented by many. When in 1840, Garrison and his followers elected a woman to the American Anti-Slavery Society`s business committee, a split in the organizations resulted. The departing members explained themselves:

It is interesting to note that abolitionists anticipated an argument later used by the Confederacy. Just as Southerners eventually concluded that their institution of slavery could not be protected under the Constitution while the number of free states grew, abolitionists argued that since slavery could not be abolished under the existing Constitution, it was the obligation of the north to secede! In 1843, the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society endorsed disunion by a vote of 59 to 21. They argued that no principled abolitionist could either vote or hold office under the Constitution as it then existed. In 1845, the group published a pamphlet to that effect with an introduction by Wendell Phillips.

---- Selected Quotes ----

Quotes regarding Abolitionism.

By Stephen A. DouglasAbolitionism proposes to destroy the right and extinguish the principle of self-government for which our forefathers waged a seven years' bloody war, and upon which our whole system of free government is founded. Speech in the U.S. Senate, March 3, 1854By Susan B. AnthonyMany Abolitionists have yet to learn the ABC of woman's rights. Written in her journal, 1860By John C. CalhounAbolition and the Union cannot exist. As the friend of the Union, I openly proclaim it, and the sooner it is known the better. The former may now be controlled, but in a short time it will be beyond the power of man to arrest the course of events.Senate Speech in 1837By Jefferson DavisDo they find in the history of St. Domingo, and in the present condition of Jamaica, under the recent experiments which have been made upon the institution of slavery in the liberation of the blacks, before God, in his wisdom, designed it should be done do they there find anything to stimulate them to future exertion in the cause of abolition ? Or should they not find there satisfactory evidence that their past course was founded in error? 1850 speech

- - - Books You May Like Include: ----

Abolitionism and the Civil War in Southwestern Illinois by John J. Dunphy.Southwestern Illinois played a fierce and pivotal role in the national drama of a house divided against itself. St. Clair County sheltered Brooklyn, f...From Midnight to Dawn: The Last Tracks of the Underground Railroad by Jacqueline L. Tobin.The Underground Railroad was the passage to freedom for many slaves, but it was full of dangers. There were dedicated conductors and safe houses, but ...Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism by Susan Jacoby.At a time when the separation of church and state is under attack as never before, Freethinkers offers a powerful defense of the secularist heritage t...Narrative of Sojourner Truth by Sojourner Truth.This inspiring memoir, first published in 1850, recounts the struggles of a distinguished African-American abolitionist and champion of women's rights...Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men: The Ideology of the Republican Party Before the Civil War by Eric Foner.Since its publication over four decades ago, Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men has been recognized as a classic, an indispensable contribution to our u...Bound for Canaan: The Epic Story of the Underground Railroad, America's First Civil Rights Movement by Fergus M. Bordewich.Interweaving thrilling personal stories with the politics of slavery and abolition, this work shows how the Underground Railroad gave birth to America...Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass.Born into a family of slaves, Frederick Douglass educated himself through sheer determination. His unconquered will to triumph over his circumstances ...A Shopkeeper's Millennium: Society and Revivals in Rochester, New York, 1815-1837 by Paul E. Johnson.A quarter-century after its first publication, A Shopkeeper's Millennium remains a landmark work--brilliant both as a new interpretation of the intima...

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Abolitionism - u-s-history.com

Transition Probabilities and Fermi’s Golden Rule

One of the prominent failures of the Bohr model for atomic spectra was that it couldn't predict that one spectral line would be brighter than another. From the quantum theory came an explanation in terms of wavefunctions, and for situations where the transition probability is constant in time, it is usually expressed in a relationship called Fermi's golden rule.

In general conceptual terms, a transition rate depends upon the strength of the coupling between the initial and final state of a system and upon the number of ways the transition can happen (i.e., the density of the final states). In many physical situations the transition probability is of the form

The transition probability l is also called the decay probability and is related to the mean lifetime t of the state by l = 1/t. The general form of Fermi's golden rule can apply to atomic transitions, nuclear decay, scattering ... a large variety of physical transitions.

A transition will proceed more rapidly if the coupling between the initial and final states is stronger. This coupling term is traditionally called the "matrix element" for the transition: this term comes from an alternative formulation of quantum mechanics in terms of matrices rather than the differential equations of the Schrodinger approach. The matrix element can be placed in the form of an integral where the interaction which causes the transition is expressed as a potential V which operates on the initial state wavefunction. The transition probability is proportional to the square of the integral of this interaction over all of the space appropriate to the problem.

This kind of integral approach using the wavefunctions is of the same general form as that used to find the "expectation value" or expected average value of any physical variable in quantum mechanics. But in the case of an expectation value for a property like the system energy, the integral has the wavefunction representing the eigenstate of the system in both places in the integral.

The transition probability is also proportional to the density of final states rf. It is reasonably common for the final state to be composed of several states with the same energy - such states are said to be "degenerate" states. This degeneracy is sometimes expressed as a "statistical weight" which will appear as a factor in the transition probability. In many cases there will be a continuum of final states, so that this density of final states is expressed as a function of energy.

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Transition Probabilities and Fermi's Golden Rule

The Phony Debate About Political Correctness – ThinkProgress

In 1991, New York Magazine published an influential cover story, titled Are You Politically Correct? The headline was splashed across the glossys front page in bold red and white letters, followed by a list of supposed politically correct questions:

The article opened with what appeared to be a heated exchange between students and a Harvard professor, Stephan Thernstrom, as he made his way through campus. As John Taylor, the author of the piece told it, Thernstrom was anonymously criticized by students in the Harvard Crimson for racial insensitivity in an introductory history course he taught on race relations in America. As word of the criticism spread throughout campus, Thernstrom quickly found himself embroiled in controversyand the target of an angry group of students. The first paragraph describes Thernstroms reaction in vivid detail:

Racist Racist! The man is a racist! Such denunciations, hissed in tones of self-righteousness and contempt, vicious and vengeful, furious, smoking with hatredsuch denunciations haunted Stephen Thernstrom for weeks It was hellish, this persecution. Thernstrom couldnt sleep. His nerves were frayed, his temper raw.

Taylors opening certainly painted a dramatic picture. But there was only one problemit wasnt exactly true. In a 1991 interview with The Nation, Thernstrom himself told reporter Jon Weiner that he was appalled when he first saw the passage. Nothing like that ever happened, he quipped, describing the authors excerpt as artistic license. What eventually happened was perhaps unsurprising: Thernstrom decided not to offer the controversial course again. Although it was a voluntary decision, the professors story soon turned into a famous example of the tyranny of political correctness. The New Republic declared that the professor had been savaged for political correctness in the classroom; the New York Review of Books described his case an illustration of the attack on freedom led by minorities.

These claims ultimately proved to be greatly exaggerated. Weiner tracked down one of the students who complained about Thernstrom; she explained that their goals werent to prevent him from offering the class, but to point out inaccuracies in his lecture. To me, its a big overreaction for him to decide not to teach the course again because of that, she said. A professor of government at Harvard went a step further, concluding that there is no Thernstrom case. Instead, a few student complaints were exaggerated and translated into an attack on freedom of speech by black students. The professor called the episode a marvelous example of the skill of the neocons at taking small events and translating them into weapons against the pluralistic thrust on American campuses.

Back in the 90s, the conversation around political correctness was largely driven by anecdote that could easily be distorted to support a particular point of view. Last year, the same magazine that published Taylors 1991 story returned to the topic, this time publishing a treatise on political correctness by Jonathan Chait. The piece, Not a Very P.C. Thing to Say, describes a resurgence of the P.C. culture that flourished on college campuses in the 90s, even more ubiquitous now thanks to the rise of Twitter and social media. This new movement of political correctness, Chait argues, has assumed a towering presence in the psychic space of politically active people in general and the left in particular. He describes it as: a system of left-wing ideological repression that is antithetical to liberalism itself. P.C. ideology can be seductive to some liberals who can be misled into thinking that this is liberalism, Chait told ThinkProgress. And I think we need to understand that its not.

Its a depiction thats made its way outside of coastal media commentary to rhetoric on the campaign trail. Criticism of the illiberal strain of political correctness has found an eager audience among a range of GOP presidential hopefuls, many of whom readily invoke P.C. as a leftist bogeyman. At a recent Republican Jewish Coalition Conference, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) declared that the politically correct doublespeak from this administration has gone beyond ridiculous.

Cruzs proclamations coincide with a string of recent student protests denouncing institutional racism on college campuses throughout the country. At Yale and Georgetown, students have asked that buildings named after white supremacists and slaveowners be renamed. At Claremont-McKenna College in California, the dean of students resigned after students criticized her response to complaints of racism on campus, and at the University of Missouri, the president resigned from his position after failing to respond to several racist acts against students, including an incident where a student drew a swastika with feces in a university bathroom.

There have also been recent student protests at Amherst, Brandeis, Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, and Ithaca College, among others.

The protests have earned plaudits and harsh condemnation. The Atlantic denounced The New Intolerance of Student Activism. On Fox News, Alan Dershowitz claimed that a fog of fascism is descending quickly over many American universities It is the worst kind of hypocrisy. The National Review argued that the notion that students need a safe space is a lie. They arent weak. They dont need protection Why would they debate when theyve proven they can dictate terms? Pathetic.

Others, meanwhile, are quick to point out that these angry responses often come from people who hold more institutional power than the students they critique. Marilyn Edelstein, a professor of English at Santa Clara University who wrote about political correctness in the 90s, said shes been troubled by commentators impulse to dismiss important ideas and and perspectives as simply politically correct.

I think whats going on today is a resurgence of the same kind of fear by privileged white men that other people might have different experiences and legitimate grievances about the way theyre often treated, she explained. A lot of the commentators who are crying, oh political correctness now again are not at risk of actually losing any power. Conservatives are controlling the Congress and Senate and a lot of state houses, and yet they want to mock 18 to 22 year-olds for caring about things like their own experiences of being excluded or made to feel like less-than-welcome members of a college community.

If theres one thing these two camps can agree on, its that censorship does exist on college campuses. But according to those who track incidents of censorship most closely, its impacting students and faculty across the ideological spectrum. Acknowledging the true nature of repression on college campuses is complex and does not neatly fit the narrative of P.C.s detractors, but it shouldnt be ignored. Absent a discussion rooted in reality, we appear condemned to repeat fruitless debate of the 90s.

In The Coddling of the American Mind, a cover story published last year in The Atlantic, Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt examine the climate of censorship and political correctness on college campuses. Something strange is happening at Americas colleges and universities, they begin ominously. A movement is arising, undirected and driven largely by students, to scrub campuses clean of words, ideas, and subjects that might cause discomfort or give offense.

Lukianoff and Haidt describe a number of incidents intended to demonstrate the surge of censorship on college campus. They distinguish the climate on campuses today from that of the 90s, arguing that the current movement is centered around emotional well-being. More than the last, it presumes an extraordinary fragility of the collegiate psyche, and therefore elevates the goal of protecting students from psychological harm.

The authors cite real examples of suppression on campuses, but they blame the rush to censor on students apparent aversion to uncomfortable words and ideas. The ultimate aim, it seems, is to turn campuses into safe spaces where young adults are shielded from words and ideas that make some uncomfortable, they conclude. And more than the last, this movement seeks to punish anyone who interferes with that aim, even accidentally. You might call this impulse vindictive protectiveness. It is creating a culture in which everyone must think twice before speaking up, lest they face charges of insensitivity, aggression, or worse.

This narrative positions censorship as the product of students who seek comfort, coddling, and refuge from challenging ideas. But John K. Wilson, an editor at The Academe Blog and author of the book The Myth of Political Correctness: The Conservative Attack on Higher Education, says that a significant portion of the criticism aimed at students is misguided. Commentators focus on student calls for censorship often ignores the growth of the administrative class, which can have just as profound consequences on speech.

I think that where there is a lot of efforts of repression going on its coming mostly from the administration, Wilson explained. One of the changes that has come about in the structure of higher education in recent decades is you have a dramatic growth in administration. And so you have more and more people whose sort of job is to work for the administration and in many cases suppress controversial activity.

Wilsons point is backed up by the data. The New England Center for Investigative Reporting found that the number of administrative employees at U.S. colleges and universities has more than doubled in the past 25 years. Moreover, the expansion of the administrative class comes as colleges and universities cut full-time tenured faculty positions. According to an in-depth article by Benjamin Ginsberg in the Washington Monthly, between 1998 and 2008, private colleges increased spending on instruction by 22 percent, but hiked spending on administrative and staff support by 36 percent.

Will Creeley, the vice president of legal and public advocacy at the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), explained that the growth of college administration has resulted in the creation of new fiefdoms for administrators that previously did not exist. In order to justify their existence, those administrators will occasionally make themselves known by investigating and punishing speech that at public universities is protected by the first amendment or at private universities should be protected by the promises that the university makes about free speech.

As the campus administration expands, there is no doubt that some conservative-leaning voices on university campuses have been censored. Earlier this year, a libertarian student group at Dixie University was blocked from putting up flyers on campus that mocked President Obama, Che Guevara, and former President George W. Bush. At Saint Louis University in 2013, a group of College Republicans was barred from inviting former senator Scott Brown (R-MA) to speak at a campus event over concerns it would jeopardize the schools tax-exempt status. In 2014, the Young Americans for Liberty student group at Boise State University was charged nearly $500 in security fees for a gun-rights event featuring Dick Heller of the Supreme Court guns-rights case D.C. v. Heller.

Then there are examples of suppressed speech deemed hateful or offensive, such as the University of South Carolinas suspension of a student who used a racial slur and the suspension of a student at Texas Christian University for tweets about hoodrat criminals in Baltimore. These instances are where questions involving censorship become more nuanced. For many, the line of acceptable, or even free speech, ends where hate speech begins. The definition of silencing, after all, depends on who you ask. To some, censorship comes in the form of tearing down a xenophobic poster; to others, its the impulse to equate student activism with the desire to be coddled.

But how do you define hate speech? Free speech absolutists say censorship is never the answer to constitutionally protected hate speech, no matter how offensive it may be. There is no legal definition of hate speech that will withstand constitutional scrutiny, Creeley pointed out. The Supreme Court has been clear on this for decades. And that is because of the inherently fluid, subjective boundaries of what would or would not constitute hate speech. One persons hate speech is another persons manifesto. Any attempt to define hate speech will find itself punishing those with minority viewpoints.

Liberals can, and have, gone too far in their calls for suppressing hateful speech. But the excesses of whats been deemed political correctness are not representative of the culture writ large, nor do they signify a broad leftist conspiracy to silence any and all dissenting voices. The reality of censorship on college campuses is more complicatedand less useful to the most vocal critics of political correctness. Left-leaning voices are censored, toothey just rarely seem to provoke the same amount of public outrage and hand-wringing.

When it comes to repression on college campuses, theres really no evidence that theres some left-wing, politically correct attack on freedom of speech, Wilson said. In fact, there are many examples of efforts to repress left-wing speakers and left-wing faculty. Most of the attacks on academic freedom, he explained, especially the effective attacks, come from the right.

You dont have to look far to find examples. Just last week, a professor at Wheaton College in Illinois was fired for claiming that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. Last month, George Washington University barred a student from hanging a Palestinian flag outside his bedroom window. In November, the Huffington Post reported that Missouri state Sen. Kurt Schaefer (R-Columbia) attempted to block a graduate student at the University of Missouri from performing research on the impact of abortion restrictions. At the University of South Carolina in 2014, a performance called How to Become a Lesbian in 10 Days was canceled after state legislators expressed concern that it would promote perversion. A professor at the University of Kansas was suspended in 2013 for anti-NRA comments. At the University of Arizona, a professor was fired for conducting research on the effects of marijuana for veterans with PTSD. In 2015, a vegan rights activist at California State Polytechnic University was prevented from handing out flyers about animal abuse on campus. In 2014, campus police blocked students at the University of Toledo from peacefully protesting a lecture by Karl Rove. The same year, adjunct faculty members at St. Charles Community College in St. Louis attempting to unionize were prohibited from gathering petition signatures.

Still, these cases havent really become widely cited or popular talking points. Wilson says thats because conservatives have been more effective at advancing their narrative. The left isnt really organized to tell the stories of oppression on campus and to try to defend students and faculty who face these kind of attacks, he explained. They need the institutional structure out there, organizations that are going to talk about the issues that will counter this media narrative of political correctness thats been around for 25 years now.

Hundreds of years before political correctness made its debut in thinkpieces or the fiery rhetoric of presidential candidates, it appeared in an opinion written by Justice James Wilson in the 1793 Supreme Court case, Chisholm v. Virginia, which upheld the rights of people to sue states. Arguing that people, rather than states, hold the most authority in the country, Wilson claimed that a toast given to the United States was not politically correct. The Justice used the term literally in this context; he felt it was more accurate to use People of the United States.

The states, rather than the people, for whose sakes the states exist, are frequently the objects which attract and arrest our principal attention. This, I believe, has produced much of the confusion and perplexity which have appeared in several proceedings and several publications on state politics, and on the politics, too, of the United states. Sentiments and expressions of this inaccurate kind prevail in our common, even in our convivial, language. Is a toast asked? The United states, instead of the People of the United states, is the toast given. This is not politically correct.

The Chisholm decision was ultimately overturned and Justice Wilsons phrase slipped into obscurity. Its hard to pinpoint exactly when the expression made a comeback, but, as John K. Wilson outlines in his book, The Myth of Political Correctness, it was mainly used jokingly among liberals in the twentieth century to criticize the excesses and dogma of their own belief system. Professor Roger Geiger wrote that it was a sarcastic reference to adherence to the party line by American communists in the 1930s. Conservatives began to subvert that framing in the 1980s and use it for their own political gain, eventually transforming the term politically correct to political correctness. The latter phrase was used to describe not just a few radical individuals, as politically correct was, but an entire conspiracy of leftists infiltrating the higher education system.

This narrative gained mainstream visibility in the 1990s, but it hadnt come out of the blue. Fears about the radicalization of American universities had been brewing for years. The attacks on colleges and universities that propelled it had been organizing for more than a decade, Wilson wrote. For the conservatives, the 1960s were a frightening period on American campuses; students occupied buildings, faculty mixed radical politics into their classes, administrators acquiesced to their standards, and academic standards fell by the wayside. Conservatives convinced themselves that the 1960s had never ended and that academia was being corrupted by a new generation of tenured radicals.

These concerns eventually found a home in the conservative commentary of the 1980s, of which Wilson provides several examples: A 1983 article in Conservative Digest claiming a Marxist network doling out the heaviest dose of Marxist and leftist propaganda to students had over 13,000 faculty members, a Marxist press that is selling record numbers of radical textbooks and supplementary materials, and a system of helping other Marxist professors receive tenure; philosopher Sidney Hooks proclamation in 1987 that there is less freedom of speech on American campuses today, measured by the tolerance of dissenting views on controversial political issues, than at any other recent period in peacetime in American history; and Secretary of Education William Bennetts assertion in 1988 that some places on campus are becoming increasingly insular and in certain instances even repressive of the spirit of the free marketplace of ideas.

The media soon latched onto this narrative. Many of the articles published were almost uniformly critical of the Left and accepted the conservatives attacks without questioning their accuracy or motives, Wilson wrote. By using a few anecdotes about a few elite universities, conservatives created political correctness in the eyes of the media, and in herdlike fashion journalists raced to condemn the politically correct mob they had discovered in American universities.

Fast-forward 25 years and not much has changed. Back in the 90s, the P.C. buzzwords were speech codes and multiculturalism; now, theyre trigger warnings and microaggressions. Whether or not you agree with microaggressions and trigger warnings, they dont constitute an existential threat to free speech. Just because a person finds them frivolous or unnecessary doesnt mean theyre censorious.

The term microaggression, for example, is often used to highlight subtle biases and prejudices. The point is to open up a dialogue, not to censor students. Nevertheless, microaggressions and trigger warnings are often used as examples of campus illiberalism. Chait wrote that these newly fashionable terms merely repackage a central tenet of the first P.C. movement: that people should be expected to treat even faintly unpleasant ideas or behaviors as full-scale offenses.

But is there any evidence that the P.C. movement on campuses has gotten worse, or even exists at all? We asked Chait how and why he determined that political correctness, once again, was an issue worthy of exploration. He didnt offer any concrete examples. The idea for the story came from my editors, who noticed it, he replied. When I started to research the issue thats when I started to see something happening on campus that at the time wasnt getting that much attention. Now, in the months since, people are starting to pay attention. But I think its happening much more often.

Wilson offered a different take. I dont think theres really a crisis of any kind like this. Things are not that much different than they have been in the past. You have professors who get fired for expressing controversial views on Twitter, you dont have professors getting fired for microaggressions or for failing to give a trigger warning, he said, referring to the Steven Salaita casea professor at the University of Illinois who lost a promised tenured position over tweets that were critical of Israels invasion of Gaza in 2014.

Creeley did say that FIRE has seen an increase in case submissions, but he noted that isnt necessarily an accurate gauge of how much censorship is occurring on campus. He did point out that calls for speech limitations appear to be coming increasingly from students, a trend he described as new and worrying. He added that there seem to be a worrying number of instances where students are asking the authorities to sanction or punish speech that they disagree with, or to implement some kind of training on folks to change viewpoints they disagree with.

But if people who criticize these efforts are genuinely concerned about censorship, they should also worry when it comes from other sides of the political aislenot just when it neatly fits into a caricature of campus liberalism run amok. Creeley said that FIRE was disappointed to find that the case of Hayden Barnes, an environmentalist who was expelled from college for posting a collage against a proposed parking garage online, didnt take off in the media the way that other explicitly partisan cases did. It did not capture the sense of where those kinds of efforts to censor those types of students came from, he said. Its disappointing to me to see free speech be cast in partisan terms because I think that it turns the issue into a much more binary, much less nuanced, and much less thoughtful discussion.

The Missouri state senators proposal to block a students dissertation on the impact of abortion restrictions, for example, would appear to be just the kind of case that raises the ire of free speech proponents. But it doesnt appear to have gained much attention beyond coverage from a few predictably left-leaning sites. Furthermore, neither Chaits nor Haidt and Lukianoffs pieces mention the Salaita case, despite evidence suggesting punitive measures, including administrative sanctions and censorship, have been taken against Palestinian rights activists. A recent report from Palestine Legal and the Center for Constitutional Rights detailed more than 150 incidents of censorship and suppression of Palestinian advocacy in 2014 alone; 89 percent of which targeted students and facultycausing speculation about a Palestine exception to the free speech debate.

ThinkProgress asked Chait about how censorship driven from the right fits into his analysis of political correctness as the province of progressives. I think thats a separate issue than the phenomenon Im describing, he answered. If you look at my original piece, very few of the examples are formal censorship. I think youve got something much deeper which is a bigger problem for people on the left, which is a broken way of arising at truth on race and gender issues. That can happen and does happen in non-censorship ways.

It doesnt take a thorough examination of the medias framing of political correctness to realize that the conversation is fraught and prone to exaggeration. Thats partially due to a lack of research on the topic. Because theres not much data available, anecdotes are often elevated as evidence; people choose the sides that best confirm their preexisting political biases and worldviews. So how does political correctness actually impact creativity? A team of researchers decided to put this question to the test with hundreds of college students.

The researchers randomly divided students in groups of three and asked them to brainstorm ideas for new businesses that could go into a vacant restaurant space on campus. Groups were either all men, all women, or mixed. The control was allowed to start brainstorming ideas immediately, but the test group was asked to take ten minutes to think of examples of political correctness on the college campus. Cornells Jack Goncalo, one of the studys researchers, told ThinkProgress that the primer was their way of making P.C. salient to students in the test group. The control group wasnt asked to talk about P.C., so it wasnt on their minds.

Researchers wanted to challenge the assumption that an anarchy approach to creativity is sort of the only way to go or even the best way to go, Goncalo said. Our argument was that although P.C. is dismissed as being overly controlling and sort of the conservative view is that P.C. is a threat to free speech, we actually predicted that P.C. would provide a framework that would help people understand what the expectations are in a mixed-sex group and would reduce uncertainty. And by reducing uncertainty it would actually make people more comfortable to share a wide range of ideas.

Indeed, the researchers found that the mixed-sex groups instructed to think about political correctness generated more ideas and were more creative than the diverse groups that hadnt received the P.C. primer. But that didnt hold true for the same-sex groups. Groups of all men or all women that were told to think about political correctness ended up being less creative than the control group.

Goncalo said those results suggested that talking about political correctness actually reduced uncertainty among mixed-sex groups, making it easier for men and women to speak up and share their ideas. For diverse groups, P.C. can be a creativity booster.

Until the uncertainty caused by demographic differences can be overcome within diverse groups, the effort to be P.C. can be justified not merely on moral grounds, but also by the practical and potentially profitable consequences of facilitating the exchange of creative ideas, the study concludes.

Unfortunately, there arent many scientific papers on the topic of political correctness. The researchers study appears to be the only one that looks specifically at political correctness, creativity, and group activity. And even then, it wasnt easy to get their research published.

It was an uphill battle, Goncalo said. A lot of academics see the whole term political correctness as a colloquial non-scientific, non-academic thing. We had to push really hard to say this is a legitimate thing. It took the team nine years to publish the reportand when it eventually came out, there was push-back. I got emails from angry people who were really pissed off and actually hadnt read the paper or understood what we did or what found, Goncalo remarked. Just knee-jerk reactions to the whole thing. So it was polarizing as you might expect.

To be sure, their paper is just one study on a topic with limited scientific research. But its conclusions shouldnt be ignored; it raises worthwhile points about the impact of speech constraints and communication among diverse groups. After all, the ongoing conversation about P.C. often relies on anecdotal evidence rather than data. This is part of the reason its subject to such vigorous debatepeople like to tailor the evidence to their worldview, not vice versa.

Goncalo also came to an interesting conclusion about the value assigned to political correctness throughout the course of the study, which took nine years to publish. Were exactly where we were in the 80s and 90s, he noted. And I think what that says is that the word is still meaningful and people are still using it in the same way.

For all of the commentary about campus activism and political correctness, theres one group we rarely hear from: actual college students. ThinkProgress visited students at American University to learn about their impressions of the political correctness conversation taking place. Although the responses were from just a sampling of college students, they were telling.

Students at American University overwhelmingly told ThinkProgress they didnt find political correctness to be a pressing campus problem. Only one student we spoke to equated P.C. with censorship, while the rest of the students we spoke with seemed more concerned about hate speech and racist comments posted in online forums. The students quoted below preferred to be identified by their first names.

Azza, a senior at American University, said that much of the commentary aimed at critiquing political correctness fails to understand the experience of being a minority student on campus. Students of minority backgrounds deal with certain issues, they face certain issues, there are things that affect them differently, and when you enter a learning environment that is hostile towards you, you cant learn, she explained. People who are saying that this is suppressing free speech or that people want to be coddled are actually not at all concerned about free speech. The vast majority of people are concerned with a particular type of discourse being fostered on American universities that reflects their particular understanding of American life and society and values.

Azza used the suppression of Palestinian activism on campuses as an example: No one in these groups who are so supposedly concerned with free speech has said anything about that, because they dont actually care about free speech, she remarked. If they did, theyd be speaking on behalf of Palestinian students. What they care about is just not letting minority voices dominate the discourse by trying to get university administrators to create an environment thats safer.

Mackenzie, a senior at AU who was sitting near Azza in a student cafe, added: Just because [the conversation] is different from when [critics] were in college doesnt mean its wrong and that were being babied. We dont want to be babied, its not that. Were fighting for something that is right.

Other students told ThinkProgress they were unsatisfied with the administrations response to offensive messages posted on Yik Yak, an online platform where students have been known to anonymously post racist content. One of the biggest things thats been going around is the racist speech on Yik Yak, and how as an anonymous platform to spread information about other people its been used to threaten and scare students and make certain students feel unsafe, another student, who did not share her name, explained. Hate speech is not free speech. Once that the language that you use infringes on another students ability to feel safe on campus and to feel that theyre allowed to come to class without feeling threatened, that isnt free speech because youre taking someone elses rights away.

Marlise, a junior at AU, said she has encountered students who abuse the system. They use the trigger warnings if they dont want to hear the other side of things, or if they dont agree with something. I think that people on the outside appear to stand in solidarity with Mizzou but theres always going to be those people that say I dont want to hear the other side. Still, she agreed that the content posted on Yik Yak is a big issue.

Students also said that criticisms of political correctness are often underpinned by racial insensitivities on campus. Jendelly, a sophomore at AU of Dominican descent, said she feels as though there is a racially divided hierarchy on campus. My dad works for the county and he works alongside the mayor, she said. And a lot of people who hold those high positions in our town are white. But theyve never made us feel like were second to them or were three-quarters of a person. Coming here, in this school, I do feel like were placed in a hierarchy. And I feel like when I see a white person its like, oh I have to step up my game to reach their level. And I shouldnt have to feel like that.

Its unclear what the multi-decade debate over political correctness has accomplished in aggregate. But there is one group of people who find it incredibly useful: Republican politicians.The use of the term political correctness, particularly in the Republican presidential primary, does not have a specific definition. Rather it functions like a swiss army knifeit is the answer to every kind of issue that a candidate might confront. Its a get out of jail free card for bigotry, sexism and lying.When Fox News Megyn Kelly confronted Donald Trump in an August GOP debate with a litany of sexist attacks he made against women, he had a ready answer. I think the big problem this country has is being politically correct. Ive been challenged by so many people, and I dont frankly have time for total political correctness. And to be honest with you, this country doesnt have time either, Trump said. The audience applauded.

Trump loves to rail against political correctness on Twitter. He argues that our country has become so politically correct that it has lost all sense of direction or purpose. For example, he is not able to use the word thug without criticism.Ted Cruz goes a step further. Political correctness is killing us, he argued during a Republican debate in December. On his website, Cruz blames political correctness for 9/11.Cruz also finds political correctness useful for collecting email addresses.Ben Carson tweeted that we should #StoPP funding political correctness and PlannedParenthood. What does funding for Planned Parenthood have to do with political correctness? He doesnt really explain, except to say that political correctness is making us amoral.

.@RealBenCarson: Were gradually giving away the morals & values that made us into a great nation for the sake of political correctness.

Fox News (@FoxNews) July 29, 2015

Carson also uses political correctness to justify his opposition to Obamacare and accepting Syrian refugees.

Confronted with criticism for saying that a Muslim should not be presidenta religious test that would violate the constitutionCarson replied that political correctness is ruining our country.

Why are these candidates so quick to point out instances of political correctness? Like a lot of things politicians talk about, it polls very well. A recent poll found that 68 percent of Americans, and 81 percent of Republicans agreed that A big problem this country has is being politically correct. Even among Democrats, 62 percent agreed.

Poll numbers like these have a snowball effect. The more popular the message, the more politicians will talk about it or use it as a way to divert the conversation away from more troublesome topics. The more politicians talk about political correctness, the more Americans will believe its a big problem. Rinse and repeat.Is Chait, a liberal who regularly blasts Republican candidates as extreme and incompetent, concerned that political correctness has been co-opted to justify the ugliest aspects of American political life? Not really.I think its always been misused by conservatives [liberals should] ignore the way that conservatives talk about this phenomenon, completely. And lets just have a debate among people who are left of center Conservatives are trying to interject themselves into it, Chait said.This might be what Chait prefers but, on a practical level, the far-right has captured the bulk of the conversation about political correctness. Articles by Chait, while purportedly for the left, are promoted voraciously by the right to bolster the argument about political correctness on their terms, not his.

While the exploitation of the term political correctness by Republicans is, on the surface, problematic for liberals, it also serves an important function. Many people on the left prefer to think of themselves as open-minded and not captured by a particular political party or ideology. But over the past several years, the Republican party has tacked hard right. The policies embraced by Republicansincluding a harsh crackdown on immigrants, massive tax cuts for the wealthy and the destruction of critical environmental protectionshave left little substantive common ground with liberals.By embracing criticisms of political correctness, liberal commentators are able to do something that is somewhat ideologically unexpected, while avoiding embracing substantive policies they might find intensely destructive. Its a painless way to demonstrate intellectual independence.Bill Maher, a self-described liberal firebrand with his own show on HBO, has touted himself as politically incorrect for years. It makes his show more appealing to a broader audience and allows him an easy way to respond to charges of racism, sexism and other controversies that have plagued his career.

Concluding his piece in New York Magazine, Chait claims that the P.C. style of politics has one serious, fatal drawback: It is exhausting. There is certainly some truth to this. But the debate about political correctness is just as exhausting: Thirty years later, weve broken no new ground.

At its core, the P.C. debate is about something meaningful. It is a discussion about how people should treat each other. The language we use to define it may change, but the conversation will keep going. Still, after more than three decades of repeating the same arguments, perhaps its time to recognize that the current iteration of this discussion has run its course.

A new debate could rely less on anecdote and more on actual data. It could be less about protecting rhetorical preferences and more about prohibiting actual censorship. It could dispense with political grandstanding and become more grounded in reality, without the apocalyptic and shallow narratives.

The end of the phony debate about political correctness will not be the end of the debate about political correctness. But it could be the beginning of something better.

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The Phony Debate About Political Correctness - ThinkProgress

Company Seven | Astro-Physics 305mm f3.5 / 12 Inch f3.8 …

Astro-Physics 305mm f3.5 / 12 Inch f3.8 Riccardi-Honders Astrographic Telescope (P/N 305RHA)An amazing 1,160mm f3.8 Apo Lens!

Development of the Riccardi-Honders Design

Astro-Physics Company are known for making the world's most advanced, versatile, and desired lines of apochromatic refractor telescopes. In 2000 after more than a decade of research and development to "get it right" they surprised the astronomy community with the announcement of their first production Catadioptric telescope. This is designated the Astro-Physics Astro Physics 10" f14.6 Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope, a compact 33 lb. (15 kg) high resolution instrument designed to provide refractor like views (and images) of the brighter, small objects including the planets, moon, double stars, and the like.

Right: Astro-Physics 305mm Honders telescope (OTA to the left) as introduced in 2009 atop the Astro-Physics 3600GTO 'El Capitan' German Equatorial Mount (79,387 bytes). Image courtesy of David Illig.Click on image to see enlarged view (253,556 bytes).

Since then Astro-Physics has been working to perfect a new catadioptric telescope, one ideally suited for imaging wide areas of sky and not compromised by considering visual applications. This new telescope would be compact, perform well in temperature extremes around the world, and meet their traditional exacting requirements for optical and mechanical excellence. The result is a telescope that is the first of its kind: the Astro-Physics 305mm f3.8 Astrograph. The 'Honders" as it is known here at Company Seven and in most of the community is based on Klaas Honder's original idea of a fast optical system using a crown glass objective and meniscus correcting mirror in a Newtonian configuration. By adding a secondary mirror and field lens, Italian designer Massimo Riccardi was able to design an ultra-fast (short focal ratio) astrograph using only comparatively affordable crown glass elements. Astro-Physics has added their more than years of telescope design experience to create a truly unique and fast astrograph to take full advantage of today's CCD imaging cameras. With this telescope you will collect photons most efficiently producing wide-field of view images that you could previously only have imagined.

A further goal in this development effort was to equal or to approach the performance of their highly prized triplet apochromatic refractors in at least certain applications. One thought in producing these Catadioptric telescopes is that if a number of customers who do not require the versatility of the Apo refractors (which perform superbly well at extremely high magnifications, and down to very low magnifications) will order the Mak telescopes instead of the triplet Apos then this may take some of the burden from the Triplet production line, and thereby help Astro-Physics to satisfy a far greater number of the more demanding amateur and professional clientele.

In April 2008 Roland Christen had presented a paper entitled "Optical Design for High Resolution Imaging" discussing the advantages of the Riccardi-Honders optical design. The prototype 305mm f3.8 Riccardi-Honders Astrograph prototype was introduced to the public on 18 April 2009 (image at right) although by then it had already proved itself with numerous amazing images taken while at the Astro-Physics observatory. It was shown mounted in parallel with the prototype 305mm f12.5 Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope atop the Astro-Physics 3600GTO 'El Capitan' German Equatorial Mount. Pricing was announced in August 2010 as the first invitations to order were sent out. Deliveries from the first production run will commence in limited numbers in the Fall of the year 2010.OPTICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The system includes the optical tube assembly, a 3.5 inch diameter focuser, Dewcap (Lens Shade), Dust Cover, pair of Mounting Rings, and Carrying Case. Company Seven will offer an optional Airline Transport Association Approved (ATA) shipping case for this instrument.

Any optical imperfections such as a degree of surface roughness and zonal errors on the optical surface will compound the problem.Astro-Physics tested a commercial telescope where the central obstruction, optical errors and surface roughness were large enough to cause the first diffraction ring and central Airy disc to have almost equal brightness (with a 35% obstruction, theoretically there should be at least a4 to 1 difference). Even so, this sample telescope "tested" very well on the star test - it had quite similar inside and outside Fresnel patterns and might be judged to be textbook perfect by the star test. Yet it was a very poor performer on all but the most steady of nights, when the seeing was essentially perfect. The slightest motion in the atmosphere would result in a display of "cotton ball" stars. This is one reason whyAstro-Physics and Company Seven have not been a major fans of the "star test" to evaluate the actual performance of a telescope. The only unbiased way to measure an optic is with interferometry, or by an MTF (modulation transfer function) test, or with a PSF (point spread function) test, which measures the relative strength of the Airy disc versus the diffraction rings with the image in focus.

Astro-Physics has endeavored to achieve the highest absorption of stray light possible by employing state of the art baffling and anti-reflection techniques; this will help to provide the user with maximum contrast. The exterior of the telescope is finished in a durable textured off white finish, with black anodized focuser and cells; these will retain their beauty for many years. You will appreciate the unique design and fine craftsmanship of this telescope.

Knife edge baffles are machined into the walls of the telescope optical tube and of the focuser draw tube, these and painted flat black in order to maximize contrast by essentially eliminating any internal reflections. The inside diameter (I.D.) of the draw tube permits the avid astrophotographer to employ up to a 35mm format film or CCD camera to capture images. While this is designed as an astrographic instrument, you can attach a Barlow lens then attach standard 2 inch diameter accessories, and with the furnished 1.25 inch adapter (threaded for 48mm filters) to use common oculars and accessories too. Recessed brass locking rings are installed at each thumbscrew location; as you tighten a thumbscrew a brass locking ring clamps onto the part that has been inserted; consequently the focuser draw tube and any accessories are held securely in place and will not mar the surface of your accessories. This is particularly important considering the heavy and expensive accessories that you may use.

* Specifications are subject to change without notice.

Right: Company Seven ATA Case custom fitted for a Astro-Physics 13cm EDT Apochromat Telescope with 2.7 inch Focuser (65,974 bytes).Click on image to see enlarged view (215,942 bytes).

Features include:

Left: Astro-Physics Model 900 Mount in optional Company Seven ATA case.Case 1 of 2 shown here, with Declination housing (left side shown) with GTO Keypad Controllerand Counterweight Shaft (94,326 bytes).

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Company Seven | Astro-Physics 305mm f3.5 / 12 Inch f3.8 ...

Reagan declares ‘War on Drugs,’ October 14, 1982 – POLITICO

On this day in 1982, President Ronald Reagan declared illicit drugs to be a threat to U.S. national security.

On this day in 1982, President Ronald Reagan declared illicit drugs to be a threat to U.S. national security.

Richard M. Nixon, the president who popularized the term war on drugs, first used the words in 1971. However, the policies that his administration implemented as part of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 dated to Woodrow Wilsons presidency and the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act of 1914. This was followed by the creation of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics in 1930.

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Speaking at the Justice Department, Reagan likened his administrations determination to discourage the flow and use of banned substances to the obstinacy of the French army at the Battle of Verdun in World War I with a literal spin on the war on drugs. The president quoted a French soldier who said, There are no impossible situations. There are only people who think theyre impossible.

Spreading the anti-drug message, first lady Nancy Reagan toured elementary schools, warning students about the danger of illicit drugs. When a fourth grader at Longfellow Elementary School in Oakland, Calif., asked her what to do if approached by someone offering drugs, the first lady responded: Just say no.

In 1988, Reagan created the Office of National Drug Control Policy to coordinate drug-related legislative, security, diplomatic, research and health policy throughout the government. Successive agency directors were dubbed drug czars by the media. In 1993, President Bill Clinton raised the post to Cabinet-level status.

On May 13, 2009, R. Gil Kerlikowske, the current director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, signaled that though the Obama administration did not plan to significantly alter drug enforcement policies, it would not use the term war on drugs, saying it was counterproductive.

SOURCE: 30 YEARS OF AMERICAS DRUG WAR, A CHRONOLOGY BY PBSs FRONTLINE

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Reagan declares 'War on Drugs,' October 14, 1982 - POLITICO

Stem Cell Therapy in Mexico – Certified Treatment Clinics

Adipose Derived Stem Cells:

Adipose derived stem cells are obtained from a sample of human abdominal fat tissue. The cells themselves are not fat. They are encased in and surrounded by fat tissue.Once the fat sample has been obtained, a special enzyme is used to melt-away the fat, and leave only something called SVF (short for Stromal Vascular Fraction), which contains stem cells, accessory cells and growth factors.

This SVF is washed and purified in the lab, and is then isolated for infusion or injection.

This method provides a much larger number of stem cells than bone marrow or peripheral blood, making it more efficient and highly effective in a variety of conditions, especially those that require creation of new blood vessels, and repairing tissues damaged due to lack of oxygenation.

Whartons Jelly Derived Stem cells:

Unlike Fat, Bone marrow or other tissues that can be harvested for stem cell isolation, Whartons Jelly does not contain SVF. It is a gelatinous substance found in the umbilical chord, which separates maternal and fetal tissues, acting as a kind of buffer so that these tissues dont come into direct contact with each other. This particular characteristic is the reason they became known as universal donor cells, since they are able to interact with any tissue, in any host, without causing any form of immune response.

Unlike cells obtained with SVF, stem cells in Whartons jelly are not found grouped with other cells types or blood products. They can be obtained in much larger numbers, and are already completely isolated, which means that you get stem cells exclusively.

The fact that they are obtained from umbilical chords, donated by pre-screened donors after their pregnancy has come to full-term, means that they are much easier to harvest, in much larger numbers, and without the need for a specific, invasive and painful procedure. It also means that because of the incredibly large number of cells that can be obtained, they can be cryo-preserved and stored at pre-determined dose sizes in individual containers for specific uses.

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Stem Cell Therapy in Mexico - Certified Treatment Clinics

South Florida Stem Cell Center | Regenerative Therapy Clinic

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Led by Melvin M. Propis, M.D., South Florida Stem Cell Center is one of theleading Stem Cell Regenerative Therapy Clinics in South Florida. Dr. Propis is a seasoned M.D. and surgeon who has had solid success rates.

Stem Cell Regenerative Therapy is a breakthrough in medical science that treats and prevents conditions and diseases using stem cells. This is accomplished by harvesting cells and then concentrating those cells in a lab before precisely re-injecting them. This greatly increases your bodys own natural repair cells and promotes healing.

South Florida Stem Cell Center is made up of research scientists and experts in Stem Cell Therapy.Our passion and belief is that our treatments truly helpthose that are suffering and need our help.

Maribella MKnee Injury

I injured both of my knees. After confirming that the cartilage was still in the joint, Dr. Propis injected my knees with a mixture of stem cells and PRP 4 months ago. Today I walk comfortably, No pain in those joints. I have noticed significant improvement in my balance and no longer need a walker or narcotics for pain.

Mia HCrohn's Disease

I have had Crohns disease for most of my short life which has led me to miss out on many teenage activities. After seeing other patients improve from having stem cells injected, I (and my mother) decided to try it. It was a wonderful thing to gradually be able to discontinue giving myself Humara shots routinely. I can actually have an active social life without worrying and even married the love of my life last year. Thanking my doctor, mom, God, and the many people who believe in stem cells for my happy ending!

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A chronic inflammatory bowel disease that affects the lining of the digestive tract.

Widespread muscle pain and tenderness.

A chronic inflammatory disorder affecting many joints, including those in the hands and feet.

An inflammatory disease caused when the immune system attacks its own tissues.

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Neurological Conditions

A congenital disorder of movement, muscle tone, or posture.

Damage to the brain from interruption of its blood supply.

A progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions.

A disease in which the immune system eats away at the protective covering of nerves.

A disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement, often including tremors.

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Degenerative Conditions

Damage to any part of the spinal cord or nerves at the end of the spinal canal.

A chronic condition that affects the way the body processes blood sugar (glucose).

Kidney Failure (Renal Failure)

A condition in which the kidneys lose the ability to remove waste and balance fluids.

A type of arthritis that occurs when flexible tissue at the ends of bones wears down.

Occurs when a man can't get or keep an erection firm enough for sexual intercourse.

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Cris "Cyborg" Cyborg Fight Results, Record, History …

Amanda Nunes is at the top of the world of women's MMA after her stunning knockout of Cris Cyborg. Now it's up to "The Lioness" and the storytellers at the UFC to see how far the two-division champ can go.

After defending his UFC light heavyweight championship on Saturday, Jon Jones is a unanimous No. 1 in the ESPN pound-for-pound MMA rankings. New welterweight champ Kamaru Usman enters the Top 10, too.

Former women's featherweight champion Cris Cyborg would like a new deal with UFC, her agent said.

Former UFC women's featherweight titlist Cris Cyborg says she wants to fight five more years, but she's unsure about her future with the UFC.

Brett Okamoto speculates on whom we should expect to see in the Octagon with Jon Jones, Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg and others who fought over the weekend in Los Angeles.

The final UFC event of 2018 was thrilling, with two champions being crowned. Brett Okamoto is looking for 2019 to bring the excitement, too, and he suggests some fights that will ignite fireworks.

Amanda Nunes stunned Cris Cyborg with a first-round knockout Saturday night to win the women's featherweight title. Nunes became the first female fighter to win UFC titles in multiple weight classes.

Ariel Helwani and Chael Sonnen recap Jon Jones' win vs. Alexander Gustafsson and Amanda Nunes knocking out Cris Cyborg at UFC 232.

Everything you need to know about UFC 232, which takes place on Saturday, Dec. 29, in Las Vegas. Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson meet for the vacant light heavyweight title in a rematch of their epic 2013 battle.

Amanda Nunes is not allowing a last-minute change of venue to be a distraction. The bantamweight champion is keeping her focus where it needs to be: on her opponent in Saturday's UFC title fight, featherweight belt-holder Cris Cyborg.

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Cris "Cyborg" Cyborg Fight Results, Record, History ...

Pilots Were Worried About Boeing 737 Max Before Deadly Crash

Boeing's 737 Max planes were involved in two deadly crashes. Pilots have warned repeatedly prior to both crashes that its anti-stall system is dangerous.

Grounded

Boeing has a lot of questions to answer.

Its 737 Max passenger jetliner was supposed to provide more comfort for passengers and better fuel efficiency. But the plane’s reputation has been tarnished by two recent crashes that have captured international attention: October’s Flight 61, operated by Indonesian airline Lion Air and which killed 189, and a second crash only four months later of Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 which killed more than 150.

Now more bad news is coming out for the aerospace giant: pilots have reportedly been complaining about the jet’s automatic flight features since before the latest crash.

“The fact that this airplane requires such jury rigging to fly is a red flag,” said an unnamed pilot in a November statement to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the aftermath of the October crash, as quoted by Politico. The pilot had reportedly experienced the aircraft pitching its nose down within seconds of turning on the feature back in November.

“Criminally Insufficient”

The 737 Max 8’s futuristic Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) automatically adjusts the pitch downwards to reduce the risk of stalling the engine. It turns itself off automatically when the angle of attack — essentially the horizontal angle of the plane — is sufficiently lowered.

Or at least, that’s how it’s supposed to work.

“Now we know the systems employed are error prone — even if the pilots aren’t sure what those systems are, what redundancies are in place, and failure modes,” the pilot said in the FAA statement. “I am left to wonder: what else don’t I know? The Flight Manual is inadequate and almost criminally insufficient.”

“Not Airworthy”

Despite the flagged issues, the exact link between the MCAS anti-stall system and the two deadly crashes has not been confirmed by authorities.

A preliminary report by Indonesian investigators found that the 737 Max 8 plane was “not airworthy” weeks after the deadly crash. The investigation also found that the plane’s nose dove down repeatedly, even when it wasn’t stalling.

Boeing was clear in its response to the report: “As our customers and their passengers continue to fly the 737 Max to hundreds of destinations around the world every day, they have our assurance that the 737 Max is as safe as any airplane that has ever flown in the skies.”

The FAA has yet to follow a large number of countries in banning the use of Boeing’s 737 Max altogether. Its reasoning: it’s too early. “Thus far, our review shows no systemic performance issues and provides no basis to order grounding the aircraft,” reads a statement from yesterday.

READ MORE: From the flight manual to automation, why pilots have complained about Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 [USA Today]

More on Boeing’s 737 Max plane: Boeing Promises Software Update for Plane That Crashed

The post Pilots Were Worried About Boeing 737 Max Before Deadly Crash appeared first on Futurism.

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Pilots Were Worried About Boeing 737 Max Before Deadly Crash

Ethicist Warns: Future AI Could Take Revenge for How We Treat It Now

Right now, we can tip robots over and insult smart homes without fear of a robotic revolution. But ethicist Nicholas Agar warns that may someday change.

BattleBots

Right now, the bulk of artificial intelligence systems are computer programs that are particularly good at spotting patterns within data. Sure, there are impressive robots out there, but they still have serious limitations.

If machines become truly intelligent or sentient, an ethicist at Victoria University Wellington named Nicholas Agar is sharing a dire warning: future machines may want payback for how we treat their insentient ancestors today.

“Perhaps our behaviour towards non-sentient AI today should be driven by how we would expect people to behave towards any future sentient AI that can feel, that can suffer,” Agar wrote in an essay for The Conversation published on Tuesday. “How we would expect that future sentient machine to react towards us?”

Payback Time

The idea of abused robots turning violent has pervaded science fiction from “Westworld” to “Bladerunner.” In short, according to Agar’s thinking, you’d better stop calling Alexa a butthead or telling Cortana to spell “icup” lest a Terminator kick down your door.

“If we are going to make machines with human psychological capacities, we should prepare for the possibility that they may become sentient,” Agar wrote. “How then will they react to our behaviour towards them?”

Real World

The notion of mistreating robots does raise the issue of how humans treat other beings. Advocates of robot brothels, for instance, argue that people with violent tendencies may be able to act on their impulses without hurting anyone, while others worry that this may give people a taste of violence that they seek out with real people.

Agar likened the situation to how animals are currently killed for their skin and meat, arguing that people have an outdated tendency to act violently toward their perceived inferiors, and that the potential future ability of robots to fight back should give us pause.

“Animals cannot take revenge,” he argued. “But sentient machines just might.”

READ MORE: Careful how you treat today’s AI: it might take revenge in the future [The Conversation]

More on sentient AI: Artificial Consciousness: How To Give A Robot A Soul

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Russian Scientists Used a Quantum Computer to Turn Back Time

Russian physicists, armed with a quantum computer, managed to send a single electron back in time, resetting the computer to its state from a moment earlier

Fall Back

Russian scientists have apparently reversed the flow of time in an experiment they conducted on a quantum computer.

The finding is unlikely to lead to a time machine that would work on people. But the team of physicists managed to restore IBM’s public quantum computer to the state it had been in just a moment earlier, according to research published Wednesday in the journal Nature Scientific Reports — a nuanced result, but one that could have striking implications for the future of computing, quantum physics, and our understanding of time itself.

“We have artificially created a state that evolves in a direction opposite to that of the thermodynamic arrow of time,” Gordey Lesovik, a quantum physicist from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology who led the research project, said in a university-published press release.

 Great Scott

Lesovik’s team worked with scientists at the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois to run thousands of experiments on a quantum system programmed to reverse time’s arrow on a single electron.

After thousands of trials, the physicists managed to restore the quantum computer’s earlier state about 85 percent of the time, but only if they were working with a simplified, two-qubit system. A more complex quantum computer with three qubits was too chaotic, and the time reversal experiment only worked 49 percent of the time.

Just like research into quantum teleportation has nothing to do with transporting people, there’s no reason to link this study to the notion of a machine that could travel through time. Rather, the scientists hope that their work can help quantum computer scientists make sure their software is actually doing what it’s supposed to by kicking it back through time and double checking its work.

READ MORE: Physicists reverse time using quantum computer [Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology newsroom via EurekAlert]

More on quantum computers: Scientists Are Building a Quantum Computer That “Acts Like a Brain”

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See the Robot Head That Might Interview You for Your Next Job

An AI-powered robot head named Tengai could make the applicant screening process less biased while still providing a

You’re Hired

The next time you interview for a job, the recruiter you need to impress might not be human.

Since October, Swedish recruitment agency TNG has been using an artificially intelligent robot head called Tengai to conduct test interviews in place of a human recruiter. Starting in May, the device will begin interviewing candidates for actual jobs with the goal of eliminating the biases human recruiters bring to the hiring process — an encouraging example of an AI eliminating discrimination rather than amplifying it.

Perfect Tengai

Tengai is the work of Furhat Robotics, a conversational AI and social robotics startup. Furhat designed the robot head to be placed on a table where it rests at about eye level with a job candidate. It then asks the person a series of questions, with its voice and face designed to mimic human inflections and expressions.

Unlike a human recruiter — who might develop unconscious biases about a candidate based on anything from their gender and ethnicity to how they answer informal chit chat before the interview — Tengai will ask every question in the same order and the same way.

It then provides a human recruiter with a transcript of the candidate’s answers so that they can make a decision about whether or not to move forward with that person.

Eventually, Furhat hopes to program the robot to make its own decisions on which applicants should proceed to the next round of interviews. It already has an English-language version of the bot in development, with plans to roll that out in early 2020.

Robotic Delivery

According to a recent TNG survey, 73 percent of job seekers in Sweden believe they’ve been discriminated against during the job application process. By replacing the human recruiter with Tengai, TNG and Furhat believe they can make the screening process more fair while still providing a “human” touch.

“I was quite sceptical at first before meeting Tengai, but after the meeting I was absolutely struck,” healthcare recruiter Petra Elisson, who has been involved in the testing, told the BBC. “At first I really, really felt it was a robot, but when going more deeply into the interview I totally forgot that she’s not human.”

As for ensuring that Tengai doesn’t reflect the biases of its creators and training data — a problem that has cropped up with other AIs — Furhat’s chief scientist, Gabriel Skantze, told the BBC the company is making it a point to conduct test interviews with a diverse mix of recruiters and volunteers before Tengai is ever in the position to actually decide an applicant’s employment fate.

READ MORE: Meet Tengai, the job interview robot who won’t judge you [BBC]

More on HR: You May Have to Go Through a Robot Recruiter to Land Your Next Job

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First Graphene-Based Device Is A “Few Months” Away, Says Startup

A University of Cambridge spin-out company claims it has found a way to produce graphene at commercial scale and will release a device soon.

The Waiting Game

Scientists first isolated graphene — a transparent layer of carbon just one atom thick — in 2004. Almost immediately, we began hearing about all the wondrous ways the material could transform our world, ushering in everything from quantum computers to unlimited drinking water.

Fifteen years later, that transformation has yet to take place, as graphene’s complex, expensive manufacturing process has prevented it from reaching the mainstream.

Now that could be poised to change, with a University of Cambridge spin-out company claiming it’s found a way to produce graphene at commercial scale — meaning the world might finally be able to make good on the promise of this “wonder material.”

Mystery Device

In 2018, a trio of Cambridge researchers created a spin-out company they named Paragraf.

On Tuesday, Cambridge announced that Paragraf had started to produce graphene at commercial scale, generating wafers of the material up to eight inches in diameter using a method the researchers developed in 2015.

According to a press release, the company’s first graphene-based electronic device will be “available in the next few months.”

Limitless Opportunity

While the press release doesn’t specify what Paragraf’s first device will be, the applications for graphene are nearly endless — the material is 200 times stronger than steel and 10 times better at conducting heat than copper, the conductor used in most electronics.

Graphene is also 250 times better at conducting electricity than silicon, and Cambridge anticipates that if we replaced the silicon chips in today’s transistors with graphene-based chips, we could increase the speed of electronic devices ten-fold. The university also estimates that graphene could make chemical and electrical sensors 30 times more accurate.

“Paragraf has the potential to transform a wide range of industries, including electronics, energy, and healthcare,” Paragraf chairman Colin Humphreys said in the press release. “It will enable the basic science results achieved in laboratories worldwide using small graphene flakes to be commercially exploited in graphene-based devices and to realise the potential and benefits to society of graphene, the wonder material.”

READ MORE: Cambridge spin-out starts producing graphene at commercial scale [University of Cambridge]

More on graphene: Five Ways Graphene Could Transform Our World

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Experts Call for Temporary World Ban on Gene-Hacked Children

Global Moratorium

Late last year, Chinese scientist He Jiankui carried out a highly controversial gene-editing experiment by altering the genome of a human embryo.

In a response to growing concern over future changes or edits to hereditary genes, some of the biggest names in gene editing signed an open letter published in the journal Nature this week, calling for a global moratorium on editing DNA to make genetically modified children.

Unintended Consequences

The reasoning behind the letter, which is signed by 18 scientists from across the globe, is rooted in the fact that we simple don’t know how exactly germline editing could affect the human body — or the bodies of future generations.

“By ‘global moratorium,’ we do not mean a permanent ban,” reads the letter. “Rather, we call for the establishment of an international framework in which nations, […] voluntarily commit to not approve any use of clinical germline editing unless certain conditions are met.”

An initial fixed period would allow no germline editing to allow for the creation of said framework.

International Framework

The letter points out that about 30 nations have legislation that “directly or indirectly bars all clinical uses of germline editing” already. But the international framework the letter suggests would cover all other countries as well.

The moratorium would exclude any experiments that don’t intend to implant live embryos and produce children. But any experiments meant to “improve” individuals “will require extensive study” and even then “substantial uncertainty would probably remain,” according to the letter.

READ MORE: CRISPR experts are calling for a global moratorium on heritable gene editing [MIT Technology Review]

More on gene editing: Tiny New CRISPR Protein Could Make Human Gene-Hacking Less Risky

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Get Ready For More Interactive Netflix Programming

More interactive Netflix programming is on the way following the success of Bandersnatch, a choose-your-own-adventure style episode of

Under Control

In December, Netflix released Bandersnatch, a choose-your-own-adventure style episode of its hit dystopian sci-fi series “Black Mirror.”

Based on the positive response to that episode, Netflix’s VP of product Todd Yellin has now announced the company’s intentions to make interactive storytelling a more regular part of its programming — a sign that the future of entertainment could put more control in viewers’ hands.

Doubling Down

On Tuesday, Yellin delivered a keynote presentation at a media and entertainment conference in India during which he shared plans for more interactive Netflix programming.

“[Bandersnatch is] a huge hit here in India, it’s a huge hit around the world, and we realized, wow, interactive storytelling is something we want to bet more on,” he told the audience, according to a report by Variety. “We’re doubling down on that. So expect over the next year or two to see more interactive storytelling.”

Pick Your Poison

As for the kinds of interactive Netflix stories viewers can expect, that’s still up in the air.

“[I]t won’t necessarily be science fiction, or it won’t necessarily be dark,” Yellin said, according to Variety. “It could be a wacky comedy. It could be a romance, where the audience gets to choose — should she go out with him or him.”

READ MORE: Netflix ‘Doubling Down’ on Interactive Series After ‘Bandersnatch’ Success [Variety]

More on Netflix: Netflix’s Bandersnatch Teases the Future of Entertainment

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NASA Might Send Astronauts Around the Moon on Commercial Rocket

NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine suggested NASA might use a commercial rocket to boost its Orion crew capsule around the Moon in 2020.

Private Ride

NASA’s several-billion-dollar Space Launch System (SLS) is on thin ice. The culprit: the enticingly low-cost and high-performance rockets of its private industry competitors.

At a Senate hearing today, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine suggested that NASA might use a commercial rocket to boost its Orion crew capsule around the Moon in 2020.

“We need to consider, as an agency, all options to accomplish that objective,” Bridenstine said of the first launch of its Orion crew capsule. “We’re talking about a rocket that’s taller than the Statue of Liberty with a fairing that can put really big objects into space — and into deep space.”

Delays

NASA’s SLS was supposed to use a massive two-stage rocket design to launch astronauts towards the Moon and even Mars. But when that will happen is hard to say.

“SLS is failing to meet its schedule,” Bridenstine said during the hearing.

NASA initially signed a contract with Boeing to build those two stages in 2012. The first planned uncrewed test flight was scheduled for December 2017. Next time window: June 2020 — but even that date is likely to change.

Over Budget

And that’s not to mention the fact that the SLS is grossly over budget. Conservative 2017 estimates pegged the cost for each launch at $1.5 to $2.5 billion. Estimates for the total authorized budget of the SLS is $46 billion since its conception, according to Ars Technica.

To put that into perspective: the White House budget proposal for all of NASA’s operations in 2020 is just $21 billion.

Ditching the SLS altogether would be a huge admission of failure, but Bridenstine isn’t about to give up on NASA.

“The Space Launch System, SLS, the largest rocket that’s ever been built in American history, is a critical piece of what the United States of America needs to build,” Bridenstine said during the hearing.

READ MORE: NASA considers using a commercial rocket for upcoming trip around the Moon [The Verge]

More on the SLS: How Does NASA’s New Mega-Rocket Compare to the Falcon Heavy?

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Mercury Is Every Planet in the Solar System’s Closest Neighbor

Every picture of the solar system shows Venus as our closest neighbor. Sure, it comes closer to Earth than any planet, but on average Mercury is closer.

Well, Actually

You probably learned in school — or space camp — that Venus is Earth’s closest planetary neighbor.

Ready to get your mind blown? A new model of the planets’ orbit shuffles things around, calculating that Earth’s closest neighbor, on average, is actually Mercury. In fact, it says that every other planet in the solar system’s nearest neighbor is Mercury as well.

Averaging Out

Sure, Venus comes closer to Earth than Mercury, but it also spends a lot of time on the opposite side of the sun. Scientists from NASA, Los Alamos National Lab, and the U.S. Army put together a new model published Tuesday in Physics Today that breaks down the average distance among planets — and it turns out that they’re all, on average, closest to Mercury.

The team built an animation showing how even though Earth and Venus briefly pass each other, Mercury’s close proximity to the sun meant that its nearest and farthest distances from Earth weren’t that different. It’s that tight orbit around the sun which, when averaging out all the distances between the planets, keep Mercury from ever getting too far away from any given planet.

Orbituary

Sure, this doesn’t change much. The planets are still in the same order that they were in when you learned about them as a kid, in terms of orbits.

But if you want to blow someone’s mind — or maybe bore them with math — at Happy Hour, you can whip out some nifty new space trivia about the solar system.

READ MORE: Venus is not Earth’s closest neighbor [Physics Today]

More on space: Mercury is Alive: New Photos Show Evidence of Tectonic Activity

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Mercury Is Every Planet in the Solar System’s Closest Neighbor

New Google App Describes Objects to Blind People

Google has released a new app called Lookout that describes objects and reads text or currency for people with visual impairments.

Gift of Sight

An estimated 1.3 billion people across the globe live with some sort of vision impairment, and of those, 36 million are blind.

Now, Google has released an artificial intelligence-powered app designed to serve as a helpful pair of “eyes” for those people, providing them with a level of independence they may have previously lacked — and showing the world yet another way AI can help people with disabilities.

On the Lookout

Google named the app Lookout, and the way it works is simple: open the app on your phone, and listen while Lookout audibly describes whatever the phone’s camera is pointed at.

The app features three modes designed for specific situations.

Explore mode is useful for navigating a new setting. Google suggests in a blog post that people with severe visual impairments might choose to wear their phones around their necks, perhaps in a lanyard or in their shirt pocket, so that Explore can provide them with constant updates on their surroundings as they navigate the world.

Shopping mode is useful for scanning barcodes or reading currency — a person with a visual impairment might use this mode if they aren’t sure whether the bill they’re holding is worth $10 or $20.

Quick Read mode, meanwhile, is pretty self-explanatory. A person points their phone at text — anything from a sign in a grocery store to a piece of mail — and Lookout reads it to them.

It’s a Start

While Google points out in the blog post that the app “will not always be 100 percent perfect,” Lookout has the potential to dramatically improve the quality of life for people with visual impairments.

That’ll be especially true if Google expands Lookout to include more languages, locations, and devices — it currently speaks only English and is only available for U.S. owners of Pixel devices — which the company claims in the blog post it plans to do soon.

READ MORE: With Lookout, discover your surroundings with the help of AI [Google]

More on AI: Instagram Will Use AI to Describe Images for Visually Impaired Users

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