France, Britain Lead Europe’s Foray Into VR Content Creation – Variety

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Theyre already home to two of Europes most vibrant film industries. Now France and Britain are leading the way in the region in creating VR content.

SEE MORE: From the August 22, 2017, issue of Variety

Between them, the two countries have eight of the 22 titles competing in the upcoming Venice Film Festivals new virtual-reality section the worlds first competitive VR strand at a film festival. Add in an entrant apiece from Italy and Denmark, and the number of European titles in the competition exceeds that of the U.S.

The VR industry is booming in Europe, which is great for all of us, said Sol Rogers, CEO and founder of Rewind, the British creator of Ghost in the Shell VR, with U.S. banner Here Be Dragons, and Home: A VR Spacewalk, which just picked up an award at Cannes Lions.

A report in August identified 487 virtual-reality companies operating in Europe, up from the 300 recorded in February.

But in contrast with the U.S., where virtual-reality creation is mainly being funded by deep-pocketed corporations and private investors, the VR industry in France and Britain is being driven in large part by public broadcasters, TV channels, government institutions, independent producers and tech studios.

In France, where the entertainment industry is highly subsidized, the National Film Board has funneled more than 3.5 million ($4.1 million) into VR projects via two schemes: one for writing, development and production and another for technology expenses. The board backed 33 VR projects in 2016, compared with just one in 2014.

Okio, one of Frances top VR companies along with Agat Films (Notes on Blindness) and Camera Lucida (The Enemy), has raised about a third of its budget from subsidies. Most of the money is allocated to development.

The company premiered I, Philip at the Cannes Film Market and will be attending Venice to pitch its upcoming VR experience Lights. It is also developing a segment for an eight-part VR series commissioned by Arte. The segments budget is 120,000, two-thirds of which comes from Arte and the rest from government subsidies.

Antoine Cayrol, producer at Okio, said that steering the subsidies into development is what makes the French virtual-reality experience so original and ultimately popular among festival programmers and platforms. Were able to hire skilled creatives and crews [and] spend time on the graphic bible, the script, said Cayrol. So when we start pitching Arte, Amazon, Oculus or Hulu, we have a well-developed proposition.

I remember someone at Oculus who once told me, We get a lot of people in the U.S. who send us three pages and ask for $3 million, and in France, producers send us treatments of 25 pages and ask for $25,000, Cayrol quipped.

A handful of pure VR players, such as HTC and Oculus, are starting to invest in content creation overseas and can help finance bigger-budget, more ambitious projects. Facebook-owned Oculus is developing projects with Agat Films and Okio. It also pre-bought Okios latest experience, Alteration, and made up 30% of the projects budget, Cayrol said.

Broadcasters such as the BBC, Arte, France Televisions and Germanys ZDF are considered VR pioneers in Europe and have been key in pushing for strong VR-native content. More channels are following suit, including Frances TF1, which recently launched an app dedicated to the technology and commissioned its first VR experiment, Sergeant James.

The channels see their investment as a way to nurture emerging talent, attract younger audiences and boost their brands. It also equips them to compete with Hollywood and Asia. If we dont invest in VR today, in a few years the VR landscape will be fully dominated by American or Asian content, said Gilles Freissinier, Artes head of digital.

In Britain, VR players can apply for funding from government body Innovate U.K. and have access to a strong talent pool of post-production experts, FX specialists and other creatives who have flocked to London and the British entertainment industry.

Theres brilliant stuff from institutions, and from the BBC with Taster, but also a huge amount from the private sector as people work out what VR is, what the business model is and how we can make the experience different and superior to TV or standard games, said John Cassy of VR studio Factory 42, which is developing a hologram project with Sky, Londons Natural History Museum and David Attenborough.

The challenge is to make the VR industry scalable enough to sustain it, said Tom Burton, head of interactive and VR at BBC Studios. So far, there is no return on investment, he noted. Its a medium thats barely a few years old.

Alchemy VR is working with Londons publicly funded Science Museum on Space Descent, which re-creates British astronaut Tim Peakes journey back to Earth from the International Space Station.

There is no template or set business model for VR, said Emily Smith, Alchemys director of marketing and business development. Its a mixed economy. With Space Descent, the Science Museum had the Soyuz capsule and commissioned us to make a visceral VR experience. We also have pay-to-download experiences on the PlayStation Store. There are different models for different projects.

While prospects for monetization remain limited in Europe, one emerging revenue stream is location-based VR. MK2, one of Frances biggest film companies, recently opened Europes largest permanent virtual-reality facility in Paris.

Location-based VR is crucial to give virtual-reality content a commercial life, create a business model and a chain of revenues for right holders, as well as initiate consumers to the technology and have them embrace it before it hits the mass market, said Elisha Karmitz, managing director at MK2.

The company kicked off international sales of its VR content at the Cannes Film Festival. And one of its films is competing in the VR section at Venice: Franois Vautiers aptly named I Saw the Future.

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France, Britain Lead Europe's Foray Into VR Content Creation - Variety

Futurist Theatre Live Theatre Like Youve Never Seen It

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Clark Edwin February 12, 2016

The Royal Court Theatre is the leading national company in Britain that is dedicated to play the new works that are written by the innovative writers. Here are ten things that you can learn from the Royal Court Theatre @royalcourt building tour. Take a look at these below.

On closely observing the concrete walls, you can take a look at the wood grain from boxes that were employed as moulds for the blocks.The Royal Court Theatre was receiving a theatre and it is a producing theatre itself now.The Royal Court Theatre is the one and only theatre in the country that accepts spontaneous play scripts that are all read. In case you send your play script to any theatre such as the National Theatre, you will be asked to send your script to the Royal Court Theatre.

Royal Court Theatre as a theatre fosters the writing talent. Only the playwrights receive start billing and not of the actors do irrespective of who they are.Rehearsing for the play is done on site in a specific room that is created in the eaves of the Royal Court Theatre building. This region was earmarked for the officers originally. Now, even auditions are conducted on the site.The grilles of the Royal Court Theatre act a window decoration and this is found even in the stairwell that leads to the Jerwood Upstairs. These were originally the drains in the womens loo.

The trapdoor that we meant for the Jerwood Upstairs is accessed from the offices of the theatre that are located underneath. SActually, there is no stage at the Jerwood Downstairs. For each production, the boards are made and these give more flexibility to the theatre and a quicker turnaround between the different productions. For instance, for the Haunted Child set up, one could see cracks on the stage that revealed the large space below. This was a little bit frightening.

In the stalls at the Royal Court Theatre building, the very last row is called writers row as that where the playwrights will be seated and watch their plays that are performed during the preview. This way, they can make an immediate exit from the hall at the end of the play.The Jerwood Upstairs was meant for the private members club to move around the laws that approved the play scripts. Therefore, the scripts are edited and censored before they could actually be performed.

Read also :Take A Look At The Almeida Theatre Backstage Tour

Let us see the Almeida Theatre backstage tour in this content. Those who like backstage tours will definitely love the Almeida Theatres backstage tour. The highlight of the backstage tours is that you will get to see the parts of the theatre that you never get to see at the other times. There some tricks that have to be executed at the backstage to make the audience sitting in the hall watching the performance enjoy the show.

The green room as well as the dressing rooms of the theatre are the most impressive ones of the four rooms at the Almeida Theatre. There are many personal items, family photos, good luck cars, etc. at the backstage. You will get a bit of the life backstage before the performance, during the performance and after it as well. The green room has a futon bed for naps between the matinee and the evening performances. Also, there is a fridge with the favourite items of the performers.

The wardrobe department is also interesting. There are stacks of boxes that are labelled to avoid last minute confusion. There are stands with wigs drying in the corner, tumble dryers, washing machines and an industrial strength steam iron.

Theatre productions require a lot of investment and manpower to pull off. Even if youre not mounting an original one, and youre not hiring an orchestra to do the music, there are still a hundred and one things to spend on. These include actors, costume, stage props, directors, and so on.

The expenses begin with the rehearsals because everything needs to be ready by then. While the actors can do without the makeup, costume and props, they will need to be there in time for the actual performance. Such production design requires a lot of skill, creativity, and materials. To cut costs, the production team often source props from secondhand stores or generous individuals whenever they could. The real cost comes in period pieces where the props are hard to come by. These would really need to be crafted and created.

In cases where the settings and scenes are simple, a minimalist approach often works. The only exception is when the props are actually used by a person. For example, a wheelchair needs to be sturdy and fully functional if a cast member is going to use it. It can be a refurbished one if its purpose is just to sit on the corner of a hospital. The same goes with baby cribs and baby walkers. You need to get the best rated baby walkers, not necessarily brand new, if a real baby will be placed there during the production. This ensures that the baby is safe and secured during the play or musical.

Additionally, theres also the issue of wear and tear. Some productions last for months or years at a time. Think West End or Broadway. Using props with inferior quality could be dangerous for the cast and crew, so this is something that should be considered. If your production will only run once or for a short period of time, you can save money by borrowing props, making them, or getting second hand items.

However, if the show will run for a long time, you may need to construct an almost permanent set with props and items of good quality since they will be used by the actors and staff.

Also read:Ten Things To Learn From the Royal Court Theatre Building Tour

What kind of gadgets do theaters use that are also useful at home? If you over analyze the situation, you might start to think about common, everyday items like seats and lights or even electricity. However, most people have a tendency to miss one of the most important things that can easily be found in either location. That item is a dehumidifier. These items are designed to take the humidity out of the air, thus making it more comfortable for a person to be in that environment and making it a better environment for certain items, such as anything made out of wood, that might be in that location.

The answer is simple. They almost have to use them. Theaters are typically dark locations so they usually dont have any windows. This means there is no natural ventilation to the outside. In addition, theaters have a tendency to pack people in and depending on the size of the theater, there could easily be hundreds or even closer to 1,000 individuals located inside one large room at any given time. The more people that are in an enclosed space, the more body heat is produced. This can increase humidity levels noticeably until it is so uncomfortable it is almost impossible to stay inside. With the use of a dehumidifier, the problem is solved.

Generally speaking, the problem can easily be handled by having the right number of dehumidifiers in the right locations. The truth is, most people dont even realize that these devices or are present or that they are in use. The only thing that they do notice is that the room is much more comfortable, effectively allowing them to stay in that room for an extended period of time and enjoy whatever it is they came to see. The same is true for the home. The devices can be used to make rooms more comfortable or to take excessive moisture out of her room so that it doesnt smell musty or moldy.

The best dehumidifiers for home usework wonder for anyone that has mold problem inside their home or for those individuals who have a lot of natural wood inside the house, or even personal possessions like guitars. If there is too much moisture inside the home, the top ten dehumidifiers can be used to remove the proper amount of moisture just as a humidifier is sometimes used to add moisture when the air is too dry. Either way, it makes it much easier for both individuals and certain material possessions to be in that particular environment.

Also see:How Sophisticated is the AV Equipment in the Theatre?

When theaters first came along, nobody knew how much it would change in a century. While there has been vast improvements in picture and audio quality down the years, the trend today is now experiencing movies in a completely different way than before. Theaters are moving away from traditional audio and video equipment. Instead, the focus is on creating a more immersive experience for the viewer.

Today, theatre is about making use of technology in a big way. The innovations are being made use of both onstage as well as backstage as they need to compete with the technology which the user is used to in the digital space.

Most productions and theaters now make use of video designers in a large way to help them with their theater productions. Theaters increasingly make use of virtual reality masks, computer animation and stop motion camera work. With hardware and software getting cheaper, even fringe theaters is able to utilize this.

The audio visual equipment used in 3D theaters is a lot different than before. The RealD 3D technology, which is used in theaters, use circular polarized light. This, when used with polarized glasses, makes the right and left eyes see different pictures creating better 3D effects.

Sound effects play a huge part in theatre as they help in unfolding of the story. They tell you about the action, and about how each of the events will unfold. They also help in manipulating composed or recorded audios. Most theaters, employ sound designers whose entire job revolves around this art of sound designing.

In movie theaters, MIDI and digital audio technology are used in a big way. Computerised theatre sound systems are also used in various plays and productions. Modern audio technology like the ones in DJToolsGuide.com can easily be integrated into live performances, which makes theaters offer a more immersive experience.

IMAX 3D uses larger screens and larger film sizes with Dolby Digital sound. Some other theatres use analog technologies, but that means that if the viewer doesnt look straight at the screen, the 3D effects get lost. There are also digital projectors, LCD shutter glasses which are being used in todays world.

Dolby 3D is another popular technology in use today, and uses polarized glasses which has multiple coatings and cut out specific frequencies of light. The lenses are curved which give better effects too.

With Virtual Reality coming in, it wont be long enough before we have planetarium type shows taking over conventional movie theatres. When it comes to audio, these new theaters can be fitted with 64 speaker feeds which provide an amazing experience to the audience.

The EQ resolution is used for optimization for all types of playback content, and it is used even when the environment is acoustically challenged. The configurations provide I/O interfaces of the digital cinema and there is automatic calibration done so that the quality of playback is consistently at high quality.

These systems allow for individual amplification and equalization of surround speakers and also support bass management of subwoofers.

Jake Gyllenhaals ripped physique in Southpaw, Anne Hathaways slimmed down build in Les Miserables; stars have always taken their exercise and diet routines to extreme limits in order to play the part in films, but how do they do it?

Portman and Kunis have always had slender physiques, but in order to play cut-throat, obsessive ballerinas, the stars both had to drop 20 pounds. Kunis spent seven months training four hours per day, every day of the week, and drastically cutting back on calories, eating very small portions of a balanced diet. Portman, who was already a vegan, continued to eat many of the same foods, although in smaller portions. For nearly a year she trained with a former professional ballerina, spending up to eight hours, six days per week, doing swimming, cross-training, and ballet classes in order to get the ballerina physique.

When Hemsworth took on the role of Thor, he gained 30 pounds of muscle to transform his body into the God-like physique needed. To do this Hemsworth stuck to a strict eating schedule, packing away huge amounts of protein, rice and vegetables every three hours, even when he wasnt hungry. It also meant spending at least two hours a day doing an intense work-out regimen of not just weight-lifting in his home gym but also aspects of Crossfit, martial arts and boxing. One surprising aspect of his get-fit routine? Sleeping, which he says was an important part of the equation.

Portraying a starving prostitute meant Hathaway had to drop 25 pounds through an initial two-week cleanse, followed by two weeks of a diet of two dried oatmeal paste squares each day. Why such a harsh diet? The actress needed to look near death, her character was dying from tuberculosis after all, so exercising was off the table.

Cooper took on the role of the Navy SEAL with just ten weeks to gain 40 pounds of muscle. In order to pull of this near impossibility he turned to a professional trainer and began working out twice a day. Starting with basic exercises like deadlifts and squats he then moved on to traditional weightlifting techniques. To top it all off, Cooper ate a whopping 5,000 calories each day which included 5 meals, protein drinks and energy bars.

Beyonce needed to trim down her usually curvaceous body in order to play the slim 16-year old in the film. In order to lose 20 pounds in two short weeks, the star turned to the Master Cleanse Diet, which meant eating no solid food and drinking daily 6-12 glasses of water mixed with lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne pepper. She does admit to cheating a bit by drinking protein drinks and eating fish and vegetables.

Aiming for authenticity, as well as a seriously ripped physique, Gyllenhaal worked with a professional boxing coach to prepare for the role. Starting at just 147 pounds, Gyllenhaal gained 28 pounds of hard muscle through running, jump roping, boxing drills, and weight training. All of that training had one benefit, an unrestricted diet with only one edict; lots of protein.

Dont think you could get the same results as your favorite star? Youre probably right, but with good reason. While the stars worked with nutritionists and personal trainers almost round the clock to obtain these extreme results, they are nearly universally considered unhealthy.

Also read:Acting in the Theatre can be Very Intense, do Actors Get Enough Sleep?

Celebrities lead fairly fabulous lives but they are often hectic as well. They frequently have to travel across the country at a moments notice, attend parties at late night hot spots for publicity, follow rigorous and demanding schedules, etc.

So, it comes as no surprise that sleep is not always their number one priority. In fact, prescription medication and insomnia have often been the culprits in a number of high-profile celebrity deaths this paints a vivid picture of how dangerous sleep problems can be if not treated responsibly.

But, did you know that the lives of theatre actors are even more hectic? This particular profession is not for the lazy and requires a lot of passion, dedication, and a number of other hardy traits. Some of these include:

There are some theatre actors who love live shows as they provide instant feedback. Still, there are others who dread it because the presence of the audience is a constant reminder that theyre acting something that can be distracting if you lack the discipline and focus needed to stay in the moment while audience members react, answer telephone calls, smoke, take pictures, etc.

Even though all actors make a lot sacrifices, sleep seems to be the hardest hit. Theatre actors, in particular, have to get up early for their day jobs and stay up late to get the chance to follow their passion. They also have to squeeze in time to memorize lines and run errands. When you finally take a minute to see how much time all these activities take, its easy to see why many theatre actors dont get the 7 hours needed for quality rest.

Most actors seem to be handling their hectic lives well but, the truth is, they arent immune to the sleep-related health problems that plague us. But when you consistently miss out on sleep, it can lead to a wide variety of serious health issues like heart problems, diabetes, obesity, and more.

Thankfully, there is some good news to be had its relatively easy to start getting better sleep. Some general rules of thumb include:

Previous post:Ten Things to Learn from the Royal Court Theatre Building Tour

Lately, there were incidences of the audience members at a theatre who did not behave brilliantly. Some of these annoying and bad experiences are given here.

The noisy headphones: A person at the Lyttleton was wearing either to using headphones to listen to music or hadnt turned off the MP3 player. No one could find where the music and singing came from but it was audible during the quieter scenes. On hearing these irritating sounds, there were a lot of puzzled looks that the audience started passing among one another. In the end, many people complained to the escort at the interval and an announcement was made in the general direction of where the noise came from and the music went off during the second half.

The giggling teenagers: One of the tiny studios is Trafalgar Studios 2 and the actors are usually within the reachable distance in this theatre. It was a play Dickens with a Difference, a Dickens themed double bill. James Swanton, the performer, took on the characters for the second show and warping himself into each one in what is said to be a gripping and skilled performance. Two teenager girls were sitting in the mid of the front row that is virtually under the nose of Swanton. They were not too gripped to the play and they decided to giggle, whisper, and snort all their way through the play. Swanton soldiered on the waiting till the curtain call to end the play thanking all for attending the play. He did not forget to point out to the girls by saying he had made the two of them laugh and stated that he hopes that he did not spoil their enjoyment.

Disturbances during play: At the Park Theatre during the Jonah and Otta play, three irritating audience incidents were reported. First, a woman with a ring tone of a child laughing decided to leave to answer the call. Later, someone wandered in the auditorium having gone through a wrong door and apologised loudly before leaving. Finally, a woman with a bad cold was coughing and sneezing for some time. She later sighed and muttered as well.

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Futurist Theatre Live Theatre Like Youve Never Seen It

What is the Future of the Human Resource Function …

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From time to time we respond to questions about the future sent in via email by readers. We dont have a lot of time for this, but when a question seems especially interesting we offer our thoughts.

I am Manager in the Human Resources Function in a large Indian Pharmaceutical company. My question is what is the future of the Human Resource Function? Regards,

Gaurav Gupta Manager-HRD Ranbaxy Laboratories

Response by Richard Wilkinson, 2001

Glen Hiemstra asked me to respond to your inquiry. I think you have asked a simple but powerful and important question. My view is the future of HR appears contradictory.

On the one hand, the view of HR as a marginal contributor to organizational success seems to persist. Periodically the HR function is excoriated in the business press for its alleged irrelevancy to customer satisfaction, business profits, and increasing shareholder or stakeholder value. In this view HR is, at best, a collection of well-meaning but out-of-touch corporate bureaucrats who present barriers for employees and managers to hurdle as these real workers strive to deliver quality and value for the customer. Looked at this way, HR will become even more marginal as the strategic decisions and focus of organizational leaders are directed elsewhere.

Heres the contradictory part: Never before has it been so clear that effective human resource management practices lie at the heart of organizational success. Dr. Jeffrey Pfeffer of Stanford University makes a compelling case for high performance people strategies in his 1998 book The Human Equation (Boston: Harvard University Press). Here are four pertinent citations from this book:

A number of studies spanning different organizations operating in various service industries provide evidence for a positive relationship between employee attitudes and customer service and satisfaction and, moreover, a relationship between employee attitudes, customer attitudes, and profits. p. 55

[C]ustomer satisfaction and perceptions of service quality were significantly related to measures of employee attitudes about fairness of pay, whether management was concerned about employee welfare and treated people fairly, and whether supervisors encouraged an open and participative work environment. Ibid

Better service and higher employee satisfaction do, however, frequently produce higher profits. [N]umerous firms, such as Singapore Airlines, have succeeded financially by emphasizing employee well-being and customer service. p. 56

The existing research clearly shows that: prior empirical work has consistently found that use of effective human resource management practices enhances firm performance. p. 60

My view is that it is HRs job, though not HRs job alone, to champion and shepherd effective human resource management practices at both the strategic and day-to-day levels. That is, to be effective, human resource management practices must be grounded in two ways. First, they must reflect company wide commitments as to how it will manage and relate to its employees. Second, HR must follow-through on such commitments in the moment so that the words of the enterprise and deeds of its agents are congruent.

Although I see a different emphasis for HR in the future, I see HRs fundamental purpose-to build a positive, productive workplace-remaining unchanged. With this in mind, I see a successful future of HR revolving around three complementary and overlapping roles. I believe in fulfilling these roles HR will prove itself an important and legitimate contributor to organizational achievement. The heart underpinning these roles is less control, more learning. Here are the roles:

Facilitating the employee/employer connection, principally through empowering technologies (both digital and procedural) that emphasize employee self-service and managerial independence.

The corollary to this role is consistent striving to minimize dependent relationships between employees/managers and HR through transferring knowledge and expertise from HR to HRs clients. This is accomplished in part by using computer technologies enabling employees and managers to handle transactions online that they formerly needed HR to administer. Through employee and manager self-service features, such technologies also put greater access and control over information in the hands of employees and managers, thus increasing personal mastery and independence.

HRs task here may best be conceived as a help desk function: Set-up the systems, teach others to use them, and then get out of the way, answering questions from the field only as these arise.

Designing and helping implement high performance people strategies in partnership with line staff. The scope of such efforts could be quite narrow-at the team level-or system wide. As in #1, the focus is on developing employee and manager self-reliance through the skillful sharing of expertise by HR. The focus, though, is on applying that expertise in ways that are explicitly tied to priorities of line staffs.

What are high performance people strategies? Dr. Pfeffer identifies, seven dimensions that seem to characterize most if not all of the systems producing profits through people.

Serving as a catalyst for learning and communication. As educator HR has three jobs: (A) Introduce fresh thinking and new ideas to promote creativity, innovation and successful adaptation within the enterprise; (B) Persist in developing mastery of adopted organizational practices and process improvement methodologies by employees and managers; and, (C) Communicate extensively whats happening within the organization and why, especially as these relate to the seven high performance people strategies identified above.

What will such a function be called? I doubt it will be called human resources. While the new name eludes me, I believe it will be along the lines of Center for Organizational Effectiveness; not a department that is separate and apart from other departments, but a Center people are drawn to for nourishment, insight and understanding.

I hope this assessment of the future of HR has some appeal to you. Since I am a strong believer in designing the futures we prefer, the Facilitator/Designer/Educator role may be more reflective of the kind of HR function I want to create, as opposed to where the field is heading generally. Nonetheless, I hope you find the ideas useful as you consider the future human resources function that will best serve your organization.

Best of luck!

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What is the Future of the Human Resource Function ...

THE FUTURIST: Economic and existential concerns cloud the future – Sarasota Herald-Tribune

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By David Houle

September is a month that has had a lot of meaning for most members of the Silent Generation and the Baby Boomers through their lives.

It was the month when most of us went back to school or off to college. It was the start of the traditional TV season back when there were just a few channels. It was the month when the new car models were revealed by the Detroit automakers.

Labor Day was the official end of summer and it was back to the realities of work and school. Summer romances quickly receded as a result. Back to life and the new possibilities. Summer vacation was over.

(When did it become a reality that K-12 schools and colleges started their school years by mid-August? When and why did that happen? School got out in early June and began again in early September. Remember those last two weeks of August when the summer job ended and you had a couple of weeks of hazy summer days? What happened to that seasonal rhythm?)

Well, as we move into September this year, there are a lot of events ahead that could profoundly shape the business and investment landscapes. It is a month when active investors need to pay close attention to non-financial news.

Nuclear war

This is the only part that feels like the old days. For my entire life until I was into my 40s, mutually assured destruction was simply an existential reality. This time, of course, we have shouted boasting from two leaders who seem to have little perspective on what nuclear war truly would be.

I dont think this will happen.But if any type of conflict arises, the equities markets will do a fast and probably prolonged swan dive to substantially lower valuations.

The inability of Congress and the president to get anything done.

History suggests that when either party controls the White House, the Senate and the House of Representatives, that party would move quickly and efficiently on a legislative agenda. Not in 2017. I cannot remember any time in my life and perhaps in history when a party in control of the executive and legislative branches was so incapable of governing. I would say the same thing if it were Democrats.

This inability to work for the benefit of America is dangerous and could have profoundly negative economic consequences.

Health care represents 17 percent of the nations GDP and currently is in a state of suspended animation and uncertainty. Not good.

The all talk, no action on much-needed infrastructure funding needs will be a true drag on the economy. Crumbling roads, a reported 10,000 bridges in critical condition of collapse, railroad tracks in complete disrepair, an aging air traffic control system and even the crumbling of the New York City subway system are all a drag on the economy and a danger to citizens. Imagine the consequences if no acceptable infrastructure bill gets passed and there are several train crashes and collapsed bridges that take American lives because of the absence of leadership and intelligent action in Washington.

Economic issues

Of course, there are truly significant economic events ahead in September that have the capacity to cause havoc with almost any investment portfolio.

First, there is the need to raise the debt ceiling by the end of the month to avoid a government shutdown. Our national debt is $20 trillion and our unsecured indebtedness as a country is close to $100 trillion.

Take the current ineffectual political leadership and layer on top of it the politicians who have spent a lot of hot air talking about the need for a balanced budget and what do you have?

Which bad option will they embrace? A call to keep the debt ceiling where it is, triggering a default? Or passage of legislation raising the debt ceiling and increasing the leveraged state of the country?

A default would have massively negative effects on financial markets. An increase in the debt ceiling continues what seems to be a path to ultimate default and will have a lesser but still significant effect on markets.

The Republicans have stated consistently they want to pass a tax-reform bill that simplifies the tax code and lowers taxes. It is hard to see how this can happen any time during the debt-ceiling discussions.

Am I delusional or are our elected officials?

As a now full-time resident of Sarasota, I look forward to September and October as those months of perfect weather when the snowbirds and winter tourists have yet to clog our streets and restaurants. On the political and financial fronts, however, September 2017 may well prove to be an extremely nervous, unsettling and perhaps negative time for investors and business people.

Pay attention and be ready to move quickly with your portfolios.

Sarasota resident David Houle is a globally recognized futurist. He has given speeches on six continents, written seven books and is futurist in residence at the Ringling College of Art + Design. His website is davidhoule.com. Email him at david@davidhoule.com.

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THE FUTURIST: Economic and existential concerns cloud the future - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Utah Futurist Rebrands NewVistas Effort – Valley News

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Royalton David Hall, the Utah engineer who envisions a planned settlement of thousands in four White River Valley towns, is renaming his operation here as he works to overcome local opposition to his plans.

Even as Hall shifts his attention from acquiring land to cultivating businesses based on technological innovations needed to realize his dream, Vermont planners and activists are moving to alter town plans as a way of promoting their own vision, rather than Halls, for the regions future.

The roughly 1,500 acres on which Hall eventually hopes to build his community now belong to a new legal entity, Windsorange LLC, that he says is part of an effort to rebrand his enterprise and allay fears that his plan, known as NewVistas, is coming anytime soon.

The name is a combination of the two Vermont counties, Windsor and Orange, that Hall says he hopes to improve.

What people never caught on to is (that) NewVistas is way in the future, and the first thing that needs to be done is jobs and commerce, Hall said in an interview last week. I decided to change the name so that people didnt think we were trying to do NewVistas right away.

The land that Hall has acquired in Royalton, Sharon, Strafford and Tunbridge is less than a third of the 5,000 acres that he envisions will hold a self-sustaining, carbon-neutral city based on designs from Joseph Smith, the Mormon prophet, who was born in Sharon.

Although the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints owns the Joseph Smith Memorial near Halls holdings, the Mormon church has denied any connection to the wealthy Provo, Utah, futurist.

The 70-year-old Hall, who always has maintained that a NewVistas community in Vermont is decades away, now says he is focusing on offshoots of the research needed to make his self-sustaining communities possible.

I have lots of expanding businesses under my umbrella, he said, and so what my hope is, is to get some good cooperation with other key people in the area potential partnerships that could bring to the White River Valley some good jobs, he said.

Hall declined to name his contacts or put the Valley News in touch with them, saying that would be premature.

Around the time his plans first became public, in 2016, he mentioned he might like to find a foothold in the Upper Valley by establishing a research partnership with Vermont Law School.

I tried, he said last week, but I got soundly rejected. So Ill just wait. My ideas are too far out for most people. But Im patient. I can wait.

The website for Halls research group, Hall Labs, showcases eight businesses with products on the market, all of them with futuristic-sounding names such as office.xyz, Medic.Life and Vanderhall.

Those last two are the most promising so far, Hall says.

Vanderhall, a boutique auto company, manufactures cars from a single sheet of metal using precise laser cutting techniques. The result is a lightweight, custom-made specialty car with three wheels that looks somewhat like a motorcycle with doors.

The name Vanderhall is a mashup of David Halls last name and that of his wife, nee Karen Van Dyke. The companys president, their son Steve, appeared earlier this month on Jay Lenos Garage, the CNBC show featuring the former late night comedian.

Vanderhalls inventory is low, at about 1,000 per model, but sales are steady, and a new branch of this or another of Halls companies might someday open in the Upper Valley, he said.

The other major project, Medic.Life, will have the greatest long-term effect on its industry, Hall says. The companys health-taking toilet technology is designed to analyze the users vitals, finding patterns and giving warnings before treatment is necessary.

Right now we react when were sick, Hall said. We go to the hospital after the fact. And thats ridiculous. What we need is something thats gathering info about us our whole lives, finding the trends ... and processing the data.

Halls land acquisition has come to a halt for the moment, remaining at about 1,500 acres in the four towns after an influx of offers drove him over budget. But however far off his goal may be, the question remains of what he will do with the land he has taken off the market.

Hall says he has fixed up several of the properties he bought and that he maintains them and pays taxes on them. Yet some of the old buildings he has acquired may be too decrepit to warrant repairs, he says.

Theres really questions as to whether its best to tear them down and restore the land or to fix them up, he said.

Those questions led to other questions. What roads can I get rid of and what buildings can I tear down to start my consolidation ideas? he said.

Despites Halls assurances that a Vermont settlement is a long way off, local critics, most prominent among them the Alliance for Vermont Communities, have continued their work to unite the community under a different vision.

Michael Sacca, a freelance producer from Tunbridge who serves as president of the alliance, expressed frustration last week at Halls determination to pursue his dream, regardless of the communitys response.

Sacca cited this springs Town Meeting votes on anti-NewVistas resolutions in the four communities, all of which overwhelmingly came down against Halls idea.

Its disappointing to us that he has this attitude that everythings fine, Sacca said.

Oh, it doesnt matter, its in the future, he said, channeling Hall. But my sons are living here. There are plenty of people who are staying here. Its not as if the situations going to change. Theres a lot of people working to protect this rural heritage.

To advance its own vision for a vibrant rural community, the Alliance for Vermont Communities recently held a cycling event in Tunbridge, a 16-mile and 32-mile course called the Ranger Ride.

The June event brought riders through many of the lands the alliance deems in danger of development by Hall.

Sacca said his group was planning more events, including public forums, to take place soon.

Many alliance board members also happen to serve on the four towns planning commissions, all of which are in some stage of revisions to their town plans.

Town plans are periodically updated documents that describe communities vision for future land use and development.

Though they do not carry the same regulatory force as, say, zoning, they inform development of regulations and, if worded carefully, can have significant influence in the permitting process under Act 250, the Vermont law governing large-scale developments.

Planners in the four towns last week said they are taking residents views on NewVistas into account, and, in some cases, have been weighing changes that could limit the ideas feasibility.

Beth Willhite, chairwoman of the Royalton Planning Commission, said the panel was preparing to advance a few small changes to the Town Plan to state where we are, but in more firm language that in farm areas we want farming and we dont want multi-unit housing or developments.

The commission likely will hold a public forum soon to discuss these potential changes, she said, after which the Selectboard would have the power to ratify them.

Willhite said the Royalton Planning Commission also was considering changes to the Town Plan addressing allowable density Halls NewVistas development would pack roughly 20,000 people into a few thousand acres. But before it makes any final decisions, the commission is consulting local farmers and other businesses to see what their needs are, she said.

Once you start passing regulations it applies to all and not some, Willhite said, and so you have to be sure youre planning for what you want.

Peter Anderson, a member of the Sharon Planning Commission, said that towns land use board was revising language in the Town Plan relating to rural, residential and forested areas.

Other than that, he kept the commissions talks, which are far from final, close to the chest.

Im not ready to say we tailored it for the NewVista, he said in an interview last week. I think its more like we consciously went over it to see what was there (that needed updates).

In Strafford, the Selectboard is considering a proposal submitted by the Planning Commission that could make developments like Halls more difficult in that town.

Toni Pippy, chairwoman of the Selectboard, said a final hearing on the changes would likely take place in September.

NewVista has definitely had something to do with our plan, she said. I think the neighborhood is pretty nervous about what he could do to our world. Hopefully whats in the plan will help.

Among other changes, the Selectboard is mulling modifications that would break the existing rural residential district into two new districts, each with new expectations for low-density development.

Strafford is the only town among these four that has zoning, apart from some flood plain regulations in other towns. If its Selectboard were to pass these changes, they could lead to zoning changes, too, Pippy said.

Tunbridge also is nearing changes to its Town Plan, which expires in spring 2018.

Co-Chairwoman Ingrid Van Steamburg, who also is a member of the alliance board, said some potential revisions are designed to strengthen the regulatory weight of the Town Plan under Act 250 proceedings.

Regional planners have met with the four towns planning commissions and informed them that such changes as revising should to shall in town plans gives them more power.

It was explained to all of the towns that if you dont have strong language it doesnt have a lot of weight in those hearings, Van Steamburg said.

A public hearing on Town Plan updates in Tunbridge will take place Monday night at 7 p.m. at the Town Hall.

Rob Wolfe can be reached at rwolfe@vnews.com or at 603-727-3242.

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Utah Futurist Rebrands NewVistas Effort - Valley News

Residents ‘Happy’ With Futurist Development – Yorkshire Coast Radio

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Scarborough Borough Council says residents with properties near the Futurist Theatre site are now happy with the plans to develop the area.

It comes after a drop in session that was hosted by the council where residents who had fears about their properties once the development got underway could come and talk to representatives.

The planning application for the development of the Futurist Theatre site that will be looked at later this year is to look at the method of the demolition.

It's likely that the application will be heard by the beginning of October and if that is successful, preliminary works could begin by Christmas.

Mike Cockerill is from Scarborough Borough Council's Cabinet, he said:

"Obviously residents had fears with such a major demolition and site stabilisation going on adjacent to their properties.

Most of the residents who came to the drop in session had their fears significantly allayed and they went away happy.

The major concern with the demolitionand stabilisation, is residents who fear their property may even fall down.

We put those concerns to bed because there is no way that we're going anyway more than 10 metres to any adjacent properties."

You can listen to the full interview with Cllr Mike Cockerill here:

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Residents 'Happy' With Futurist Development - Yorkshire Coast Radio

Visual Effects Society Names Acclaimed Visual Futurist Syd Mead A Keynote Speaker at 2017 VES Summit – SHOOT Online

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Visual Effects Society Names Acclaimed Visual Futurist Syd Mead A Keynote Speaker at 2017 VES Summit
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The Visual Effects Society (VES), the industry's global professional honorary society, announced acclaimed visual futurist and VES Visionary Award honoree Syd Mead as a Keynote Speaker at its 9th annual Summit, Inspiring Change: Building on 20 Years ...

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Visual Effects Society Names Acclaimed Visual Futurist Syd Mead A Keynote Speaker at 2017 VES Summit - SHOOT Online

Acclaimed Visual Futurist Syd Mead to Deliver Keynote Address at … – Animation World Network (press release) (registration) (blog)

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LOS ANGELES -- The Visual Effects Society, the industrys global professional honorary society, has announced acclaimed visual futurist and VES Visionary Award honoree Syd Mead as a keynote speaker at its ninth annual VES Summit, Inspiring Change: Building on 20 Years of VES Innovation. The 2017 VES Summit takes place on Saturday, October 28th at the Sofitel Hotel Beverly Hills.

Featured Speakers will include President of IMAX Home Entertainment Jason Brenek and renowned online security expert and founder of SSP Blue Hemanshu Nigam. The interactive forum on Saturday, October 28th celebrates the Societys milestone 20th Anniversary and will bring together top creatives, executives, thought leaders and visionaries from diverse disciplines to explore the dynamic evolution of visual imagery and the VFX industry landscape in a TED Talks-like atmosphere.

Keynote speaker Syd Mead is an acclaimed visual futurist and conceptual artist whose storied career spans almost six decades. He was honored as the recipient of its VES Visionary Award at the 14th Annual VES Awards in 2016 for his unique ability to create unforgettable images and advance storytelling through his futuristic design aesthetic. Meads career began as he created characters and backgrounds for animated cinema intermission trailers just out of high school. After serving in the U.S. Army and receiving his education at the Art Center School in Los Angeles, Ford Motor Companys Advanced Styling Studio recruited Mead. After Ford, he took on high-profile design assignments for blue chip companies including U.S. Steel, Philips Electronics and Intercontinental Hotels.

In 1979, Meads projects expanded to designing for Hollywood as he began to work with most major studios. His cinema entre was legendary, starting with the creation of the Vger entity for Star Trek: The Motion Picture, followed by two cult classics -- Bladerunner and Tron. Meads designs for robots, vehicles and other-worldly environments have also been featured in films including 2010, Short Circuit, Aliens, Time Cop, Johnny Mnemonic, Mission Impossible 3 and Elysium.

Concept art for director Ridley Scotts 1982 classic feature Blade Runner by Syd Mead.

With transportation design as his first love, Mead seldom misses an opportunity to provide his unique blend of futurism and believability to designing vehicles -- from concept cars, cruise ships and hypervans to interplanetary cinematic spacecrafts that transport audiences to new worlds. In the 1980s, Mead established close working relationships with a number of major Japanese companies including Sony, Minolta, Dentsu, Dyflex, Tiger, Seibu, Mitsukoshi, Bandai, NHK and Honda as well as contributing to Japanese film projects, Yamato 2520 and Solar Crisis. In the 1990s, he supplied designs for all eight robot characters in the Turn A Gundam mobile suit series and TV show. Extensive collections of Meads work have been exhibited worldwide, drawing record crowds and he continues an active schedule of one-man shows and presentations.

Featured speaker Jason Brenek joined IMAX Corporation in 2015 as President, IMAX Home Entertainment, where he oversees a series of global initiatives designed collectively to translate elements of The IMAX Experience to the home setting, including the IMAX Private Theatres, an over-the-top movie service for delivering IMAX-enhanced Hollywood films into homes, and IMAX technology licensing into premium consumer electronics. He also oversees virtual reality content acquisitions and curation for the new IMAX location-based VR centers.

Prior to joining IMAX, Brenek spent more than a decade in senior management at The Walt Disney Studios. He led Disneys international teams and sub-distributors in the commercialization of Disney, Pixar, and Marvel movies in New Media/Digital, Television and Retail channels. His teams have led the industry in the launch of innovative and lucrative partnerships and products around the world. In his concurrent role of Head of Global Business Development and Strategic Partnerships, Brenek was later responsible for sourcing new revenue opportunities, business models, investments, establishing strategic partnerships, and digital product strategy and incubation for the Studios multi-billion dollar Global In-Home Distribution segment.

Prior to these roles, Brenek worked in Disneys Global Theatrical Distribution division as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Digital Cinema and Cinema Programming where he was responsible for setting and executing Disneys global cinema strategy, overseeing Digital Cinema Operations, negotiating Digital Cinema deployment and digital 3D deals around the world, as well as developing and overseeing 3D and Cinema Programming. He was instrumental in Disneys emergence to the forefront of the Digital Cinema and Digital 3D world. In 2015, the International 3D & Advanced Imaging Society awarded Brenek with its first Founders Award.

Featured Speaker: Hemanshu (Hemu) Nigam has worked inside the largest prosecuting agencies, software companies, media and entertainment giants, and most influential trade associations in the world. Nigam served as the Chief Security Officer of News Corporation and Fox Interactive Medias digital properties, as CSO of MySpace, and as a security executive in Microsoft. He was also the Vice President of Worldwide Internet Enforcement at the Motion Picture Association of America. He began his career as Los Angeles County prosecutor specializing in sex crimes and child abuse before serving as a federal prosecutor against online crimes against children and computer crimes in the US DOJ. Today, he is the founder of SSP Blue, a cyber security advisory company that has helped companies like Participant Media, SnapChat, Microsoft/Xbox, Disney, AT&T, Microsoft, JustFab, and others deal with challenges in cyber security, privacy, and safety.

A veteran of online security, he brings over 20 years of experience in private industry, government, and law enforcement. Nigam has been a keynote speaker at the United Nations on stopping cyber hate, and has been a member of the White Houses cyber stalking task force and co-chair of President Obamas Online Safety Technology Working Group. Nigam has spent a career chasing bad guys online and offline bringing them to justice. He was one of U.S. DOJs first online crimes prosecutors who took down an international child sex trafficking ring as well as prosecuted online child predators and hackers. His insightful expert commentary on cyber security offers an insiders view of the dark online underworld. Nigams personable style coupled with his unique ability to simplify cyber security for viewers to understand makes him a frequent guest on U.S. and international media. He also has a video blog at http://www.InsideCyberCrime.com where he breaks down cyber security, privacy, and safety topics in accessible segments.

Source: Visual Effects Society

Jennifer Wolfe is Director of News & Content at Animation World Network.

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Acclaimed Visual Futurist Syd Mead to Deliver Keynote Address at ... - Animation World Network (press release) (registration) (blog)

Anthem Essay Contest Ayn Rand Education

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All fields are required except where indicated. Your Information Address City Country State/Prov Zip/Postal code United States Canada Afghanistan land Islands Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua And Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia And Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia Comoros Congo Congo, The Democratic Republic Of The Cook Islands Costa Rica Cte D'Ivoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island And Mcdonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran, Islamic Republic Of Iraq Ireland Isle Of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, Democratic People's Republic Of Korea, Republic Of Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macao Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic Of Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia, Federated States Of Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Poland Portugal Qatar Runion Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Saint Barthlemy Saint Helena Saint Kitts And Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre And Miquelon Saint Vincent And The Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome And Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia And The South Sandwich Islands Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard And Jan Mayen Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic Of Thailand Timor-leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad And Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks And Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican City State Venezuela Viet Nam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Wallis And Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Your Grade Level Major College Preference Graduate Degree (i.e. Graduate, Law, Med, etc.) Your Teacher and School Information Name of school Address City Country State/Prov Zip/Postal code United States Canada Afghanistan land Islands Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua And Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia And Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia Comoros Congo Congo, The Democratic Republic Of The Cook Islands Costa Rica Cte D'Ivoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island And Mcdonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran, Islamic Republic Of Iraq Ireland Isle Of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, Democratic People's Republic Of Korea, Republic Of Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macao Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic Of Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia, Federated States Of Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Poland Portugal Qatar Runion Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Saint Barthlemy Saint Helena Saint Kitts And Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre And Miquelon Saint Vincent And The Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome And Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia And The South Sandwich Islands Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard And Jan Mayen Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic Of Thailand Timor-leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad And Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks And Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican City State Venezuela Viet Nam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Wallis And Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Name of the teacher who assigned the essay (if applicable) Your Essay Please select the topic question your essay addresses Topic 1: Anthem depicts a world of the future, a collectivist dictatorship in which Topic 2: In Anthem, the City has numerous rules and controls. Why do these exist? Topic 3: Contrast Equalitys view of morality at the end of the novel to the morality exemplified

Anthem depicts a world of the future, a collectivist dictatorship in which even the word I has vanished. Discuss the heros struggle to free himself from collectivism. What makes his victory possible? In your essay, consider what Ayn Rand has to say in The Soul Of An Individualist excerpt from her novel The Fountainhead.

In Anthem, the City has numerous rules and controls. Why do these exist? What is their purpose? Do you think the society that Equality envisions creating at the end of the story would include any of these rules and controls? Explain why or why not.

Contrast Equalitys view of morality at the end of the novel to the morality exemplified by his societys institutions, practices and officials. In your essay, consider what Ayn Rand has to say in these excerpts from her writings.

Have you checked to ensure that all personally identifiable information has been removed from your essay?

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Anthem Essay Contest Ayn Rand Education

30 important life lessons Dirty Dancing taught us – EW.com

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That was the summer of 1963, begins the voiceover that opens Dirty Dancing.When everybody called me Baby, and it didnt occur to me to mind.

But boy, does it occur to her by the end of the summer! After just a few weeks at Kellermans resort, Baby grows up, falls in love, and, most importantly, learns to dance and learns to dance dirty. Babys coming-of-age in 1987s seminal romanceDirty Dancinghas had audiences swooning and trying to nail that lift for 30 years now, teaching three decades worth of impressionable teenagers some hard truths about life that sheltered Baby never discovered for herself until that fateful summer in the Catskills.

In celebration of the 30th anniversary of Dirty Dancing, here are 30 important lessons that we learned from watching Baby have the time of her life, starting at the very beginning, with

1. If people call you Baby, you should mind (unless that is how you introduced yourself to them, in which case, its kind of on you).

2. Your dad is not as great as you think he is.

3. Your sister is just as dumb as you think she is.

4. The following things qualify as tragic: Three men trapped in a mine, a police dog used in Birmingham, monks burning themselves in protest. The following things do not: Insufficient footwear.

5. God wouldnt have given you maracas if he didnt want you to shaaake theeeem!

6. The 60s were basically the same thing as the 80s, except abortion was illegal, and occasionally people played Motown.

7. Never volunteer to take part in a magic show.

8. Always volunteer to carry a watermelon (but, like, try to be cool about it after the fact).

9. Neil Kellerman is the catch of the county, did you know that?

10. Neil Kellerman once stole the lifeguards girlfriend, pass it on.

11. Neil Kellerman has two hotels.

12. People who love Ayn Rand are sleazy and bad, and not to be trusted.

13. Men are in charge on the dance floor (if nowhere else, am I right, ladies?).

14. There is no worse look than beige iridescent lipstick.

15. No spaghetti arms!!!!!!!

16. Want to learn a skill that takes great physical coordination? Do it standing on a log over a body of water.

17. If possible, lose your virginity to someone that you sort of love, or whatever, but more importantly, to someone who can dance really, really well.

18. If you call your lover boy and he doesnt answer, and then you call him again and he still doesnt answer, then simply say, Baby, oh baby, my sweet baby, youre the one.

19. If you cant take your honeymoon at Niagara Falls, the only other option is Acapulco.

20. The one thing Lisa learned all summer: Do NOT open a door with a towel hanging on the doorknob.

21. All rich people are thieves; all poor people can dance.

22. If you ever get fired, just march right back in there and publicly declare that you always do the last dance of the season, and those sorry fools will be helpless to stop you.

23. Dont sit in the corner?

24. If you want people to stop calling you Baby, wear baby pink.

25. If you want people to stop calling you Baby, tell them that your name is actually Frances.

26. The most impressive kind of performance is one set to music that wont come out for another two decades.

27. Always have a group flash mob dirty-dance routine ready to whip out, in case the time comes to stage an end-of-summer mutiny.

28. Just do the lift already.

29. The best way to win back someones trust after you lied to their face is to dazzle them with the power of dance.

30. If your boyfriend has been kicked out of summer camp and your sister is maybe sleeping with an Ayn Rand disciple and your dad doesnt like you anymore, dont lose hope, all is not lost but you should still wear a really swishy skirt just in case.

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30 important life lessons Dirty Dancing taught us - EW.com

Ayn Rand – Salon.com

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Progressives must reclaim the tradition of Thoreau, Gandhi and King and deny the right the moral high ground

A Democratic candidate has already thrown his hat into the ring to oppose the House Speaker

Despite promises to the rural working class, the Republican Party is still under the influence of Rand's elitism

No, Donald Trump hasn't really read "Atlas Shrugged." Sad! But he's surrounding himself with Ayn Rand superfans

The value-neutral media "ideal" has left us with a society drained of kindness and mutual responsibility

My father believed in two things, which deeply informed his parenting: making money and doing whatever he pleased

The HBO show's creator may or may not be a Randian, but a version of her philosophy runs through his body of work

Carl Barney has run a lucrative nonprofit education empire under the principles of the libertarian figurehead

The Uber model just doesn't work for other industries. The price points always fail -- and that's a good thing

Yesterday, the House Speaker apologized for calling America's impoverished "takers." But he hasn't changed a bit

Snyder working on an adaptation of Rand's novel makes perfect sensejust look at his body of work VIDEO

John Boehner is laying the groundwork for a "Draft Ryan" campaign at the GOP convention. The whole thing is absurd

Values voters, Tea Party conservatives, faux-populists grifting for book deals and Fox spots -- meet today's GOP

Fans feel "so betrayed" seeing the "Star Wars" heartthrob in an "Atlas Shrugged" shirt

The brilliant critic Evgeny Morozov discusses the myths Silicon Valley tells about itself, and why we believe them

The most effective ways to expose their contradictions and faulty logic

A stern, serious Krugman says anyone who doesn't believe the GOP's real gold standard fervor is deluding themselves

Freedom now means winner-take-all capitalism, and it's slowly morphing our political system into a plutocracy

We've been a fed a myth about heroic individuals -- and that allows the 1 percent to prosper at everyone's expense

The Wisconsin congressman may be a radical, but he's also a product of the insider cronyism the Tea Party abhors

Page 1 of 7 in Ayn Rand

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Ayn Rand - Salon.com

Is There Really an ‘Insidious Libertarian-To-Alt-Right Pipeline’? – Reason (blog)

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Daily Beast"Libertarianism has an alt-right problem," writes Matt Lewis over at The Daily Beast. "It seems observably true that libertarianism is disproportionately a gateway drug to the alt-right."

He notes that a number of high-profile leaders of the alt-rightMilo Yiannopoulis, Richard Spencer, Christopher Cantwell, among otherseither flirted with or explicitly identified as libertarian at some point in their stumblebum hegiras toward anti-Semitism, white supremacism, reactionary sexism, and/or neo-Nazism.

For instance, Cantwell, who can barely complete a sentence or a crying jag without slagging "the Jews," was part of the Free State Project before he rightly got bounced after advocating the indiscriminate killing of "government agents." Milo flirted with the term too before concluding that "libertarians are children...obsessed with weed, Bitcoin, and hacking." Richard Spencer apparently attended Reason's 2007 "Very Secular Christmas Party" at which Christopher Hitchens led a sing-along of Tom Lehrer's "Christmas Song" (I organized that event, which drew a couple of hundred people but had no idea that such a future thug was among the crowd).

Lewis notes that libertarianism and the alt-right tend to non-interventionism when it comes foreign policy and that

libertarianism is somewhat unique in its unflinching support of free speech. In some cases, this free speech is unsavory. If you're anti-political correctness, libertarianism might seem like a good place to landeven if you don't buy into the whole libertarian philosophy.

Along the same lines, libertarians mostly believe that private actors have a right of association that would allow businesses to refuse customers even for racist, homophobic, or sexist reasons. That is in no way an endorsement of such behavior, but it clearly creates space for alt-right haters to catch their fetid breath.

Lewis' article (in which I appear, more on that in a moment) builds on a recent post at Hot Air by Tyler Millard, a libertarian contributor to that conservative site. Millard argues that the loose coalition of libertarians and conservatives needs to "purge White Supremacist Leaders, Ideology," from our midst.

The problem is these Richard Spencers and Peter Brimelows [the founder of the racist site Vdare.com who wrote anti-immigration articles for National Review in the 1990s] got their start in "the movement," under the guise of paleoconservatism, while others are part of the Hans-Hermann Hoppe bloc of libertarianism. They are the wolves in sheep clothing looking to draw more and more people into their pack while ripping away at the foundation of freedom and liberty at the same time.

So there is definitely some mingling going on. But does any of this add up to a "pipeline"? I don't think so, for reasons I explained to Lewis.

"These people [may] start off calling themselves libertarian, but they are the antithesis of everything that the libertarian project stands forwhich is cosmopolitanism versus parochialism, individualism vs. group identity, and libertarianism or autonomy versus authoritarianism," Nick Gillespie, editor in chief of Reason.com tells me....This affinity for libertarianism "wears off when they realize that we're principled, that no, we're not just trolling," says Gillespie.

The Cato Institute's David Boaz reminds Lewis that Jason Kessler, the organizer of the fascistic and deadly "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, was originally a member of the Occupy movement while granting that "some libertarians become conservatives, some become welfarist liberals, a few drift into creepy extremes." And Lewis himself admits "that many of today's alt-righters are disaffected conservatives." So it's an overstatement at the very least to characterize the alt-right as mostly former libertarians.

Yet there is no question that some elements in the broadly defined libertarian movement articulate policy positions almost indistinguishable from those of the alt-right and Donald Trump. This is especially true when it comes to issues such as immigration. From Lewis' story:

On a post-Charlottesville blog post, Cantwell discussed his conversion from libertarianism to the alt-right. "As immigration became a leading news story in America and Europe," he writes, "Lew Rockwell gave a talk titled 'Open Borders Are an Assault on Private Property.' From here, I decided to read Hans Hermann Hoppe's 'Democracy: The God That Failed.' From these, I realized that the libertine vision of a free society was quite distorted. The society we sought actually would provide far more order and control than [would] modern democratic governments. It would encourage more socially conservative behavior and less compulsory association. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, I was once again reminded of my naivety."

I told Lewis that Ron Paul's high-profile presidential runs in 2008 and 2012 played a role too. When I started at Reason in the fall of 1993, I'd say that most people came to libertarianism via exposure to some mix of Ayn Rand and Milton Friedman, along with some Robert Heinlein, F.A. Hayek, Murray Rothbard, and institutions such as Cato, the Foundation for Economic Education, the Institute for Humane Studies, and Reason. But over the past decade or so, there's no question in my mind that Dr. No is probably more responsible than any individual for raising libertarianism's visibility and reach.

"In a way, Ron Paul is the guy who lit the fuse," Nick Gillespie says. "And he embodies some of those contradictions [between libertarianism and the alt-right]." Gillespie tells me that Richard Spencer came up to him at the Republican National Convention in 2016 and said that he was activated into politics because of Paul. Gillespie sees Paul's legacy as very mixed, as someone who was "simultaneously positing this very libertarian worldview, but then he's also speaking to people's fears and anxieties." If one were looking for the missing link to explain this phenomenon, Ron Paul (and his paleolibertarian allies) would be a good place to start.

Paul really did simultaneously embody an attractive, idealistic version of libertarianism and an appeal to populist paranoia that is very evident in alt-right fears about porous borders, encroaching Sharia law, and foreign control of America's economic and cultural life. As Brian Doherty reported in 2008, Paul was packing college auditoriums with a basic stump speech that went something like this:

He wraps up the speech with three things he doesn't want to do that sum up the Ron Paul message. First: "I don't want to run your life. We all have different values. I wouldn't know how to do it, I don't have the authority under the Constitution, and I don't have the moral right." Second: "I don't want to run the economy. People run the economy in a free society." And third: "I don't want to run the world....We don't need to be imposing ourselves around the world."

Paul does not mention abortion or immigrationareas where his views are more conventionally conservative and not of great appeal to this age group. He's against abortion and thinks the fetus is a human life deserving of state protection, but he also thinks that like all such crimes against persons, abortion is a matter for states to decide without federal interference. He thinks that border defense is a legitimate function of government, and that government has been doing a bad job of it. He wants tougher border enforcement, including a border wall; he wants to eliminate birthright citizenship; and he wants to end the public subsidies that might attract illegal immigrants. Paul's style of libertarianism includes a populist streak of distrust for foreign forces overwhelming our sovereignty, whether through the United Nations, international trade pacts, immigration, or a feared "North American Union" between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

If you bleach out the libertarian aspects of Ron Paul's 2008 stump speech, you're pretty much left with the agenda pushed by Donald Trump and the alt-right, both of which seem comfortable with a welfare state as long as the welfare is going to the right kind of people. Paul also eschews the sort of "Make America Great Again" rhetoric, which undergirds Trump's and the alt-right's fetishizing of masculine virtues and an overbuilt military.

Which is to reiterate that there is no "pipeline" between libertarianism and the alt-right. The alt-rightand Trumpism, too, to the extent that it has any coherenceis an explicit rejection of foundational libertarian beliefs in "free trade and free migration" along with experiments in living that make a mess of rigid categories that appeal to racists, sexists, protectionists, and other reactionaries. In that sense, the call by Hot Air's Taylor Millard for libertarians to purge white supremacists, anti-Semites, and living, breathing Nazis from our movement is misdirected since such people by definition are not libertarian. But he is surely right that alt-righters need to be called out wherever we find them espousing their anti-modern, tribalistic, anti-individualistic, and anti-freedom agenda.

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Is There Really an 'Insidious Libertarian-To-Alt-Right Pipeline'? - Reason (blog)

BOB BARR: Violent tribalism on display in Charlottesville – MDJOnline.com

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When it comes to political violence such as we witnessed in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend, there are no partisan sides to the issue. In an enlightened society, you either believe violence is an acceptable means to an end, or you do not. In this parity, there is no room for equivocation, where the perceived nobleness or virtue of ones agenda can excuse it. Initiating force against any group or individual for the sake of achieving a political goal or simply making a political statement, is morally and legally wrong. Full stop.

Last weekend was a national embarrassment in every sense of the word; from the pathetic display of a bunch of wimps carrying Tiki torches trying to look tough, to yet another appearance of masked antifa thugs sucker-punching anyone with whom they disagree. Initially too, President Trump, missing what could have been a defining moment for his young presidency, tip-toed over the violence rather than offering a dose of his trademark blustering and rage to blast the neo-Nazis who reflect the worst side of humanity. Instead, Trump, like so many others on the Left and Right, once again attempted to distill the deplorable conduct into a political blame game, insinuating one side would have been right if not for the provocation of the other.

Attempting to ascribe degrees of blame to the protest groups in Charlottesville misses the point entirely about todays political violence. The alt-rights venomous racism is no more, or less, contemptible than the alt-lefts belief that offensive speech must be banned at any price. Violence is violence, regardless of the politics behind it.

If there is a side to the violence in Charlottesville, both of these groups are on it and deserve our scorn as practitioners of a toxic, post-modern mindset that there is no objective truth other than how they see it, and that protecting their truth is the true public good. In fact, aside from differing political agendas, these neo-Nazis and antifa-ites are cut from the same cloth. Both wallow in delusions of self-righteousness, and embrace violence as an acceptable, if not noble, means of achieving their political goals. Most of all, they suffer from the same paranoia of oppression that drive them into virulent tribalism.

Tribalism is a product of fear, declared philosopher Ayn Rand, and fear is the dominant emotion of any person, culture or society that rejects reason. The reality is that our true enemy today is not a Nazi flag or a black balaclava; those are only physical manifestations of tribalism. Rather, our real enemy is the philosophy of those who use such symbols. It is the rejection of reason in favor of emotional sophistry driven by fear and designed to produce more of it. This is the source of todays violence, and reflects the fact that only violence can exist in the vacuum of reason.

We can point fingers at one side or the other, but neither liberals nor conservatives are blameless in allowing such an un-American, anti-enlightenment philosophy to take root. Liberals traded free thinkers for professors who indoctrinate students to feel (rather than to reason), and government officials who went from filling potholes to piously tearing down statues. Meanwhile, conservatives traded the thoughtful punditry of Ronald Reagan and William F. Buckley for a 24-hour news cycle of talking heads regurgitating just enough soundbites to excuse viewers from having to think for themselves. Over the years, both the Right and the Left were enabled by lazy party leaders fostering the idea that to win you simply yell louder, not think harder.

What is the result of this nonsense? Gunning down congressmen during a baseball practice, ramming cars into protesters, sucker-punching people with whom you disagree, and mass protests every time one tribe feels slighted by another. You dont see advocates of reason and science clogging a street in the belief that using their bodies to stop traffic, will solve any problem, Rand reminds us. That this most recent display of non-reason occurred just steps from the university founded by one of historys greatest and most reasoned minds, is a sad irony.

The roots of the violence in Charlottesville last week, in Berkeley last April, and in other cities and campuses across America in recent months, go far deeper than a few statues; and removing them will in the end solve nothing. The only solution lies in reigniting a true belief in, and advocacy of reason throughout our culture, to replace the toxic environment of tribalism and violence that has taken hold. And that is far more difficult than tearing down a few statues.

Bob Barr is a former federal prosecutor and a former Congressman. He represented Georgias 7th congressional district as a Republican from 1995 to 2003.

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250000 of fake goods seized at Glen Park Market in Ingoldmells – Lincolnshire Today

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Fake designer clothes and bogus perfume were among a staggering 250,000 counterfeit haul seized at Glen Park Market in Ingoldmells .

Amongst the items were: Adidas trainers, Superdry jackets, The North Face coats, Hermes bags, Chanel perfumes and watches.

The swoop was part of a joint operation between Lincolnshire Trading Standards, Lincolnshire Police, Immigration Enforcement, Brand Enforcement UK, Surelock, WRi, Adidas Group, REACT UK, IPMS, Cath Kidston and Deckers, alongside the market management .

Emma Milligan, principal trading standards officer at Lincolnshire County Council, said: By working together with the market management and the local neighbourhood policing teams to tackle these sellers, we are sending out a strong message that this behaviour will not be tolerated.

Lincolnshire Police Sergeant Kathryn Odlin said: This enforcement is a fantastic example of successful partnership working to investigate the counterfeit world.

The raids took place following intelligence from our partners and we hope it will remind people that fakes are illegal and will not be tolerated.

People often see selling knock-offs as a victimless crime, but buying fakes may help to line the pockets of criminals which can often fund more sinister crimes.

Graham Mogg from the Anti-Counterfeiting Group, added: The large scale availability of counterfeit goods at markets, as weve seen today, seriously undermines legitimate businesses and in turn impacts on the UKs ability to grow the economy through creativity and innovation.

A multi-agency collaborative approach is the only way that we can effectively undermine this criminal activity and to that end we are extremely grateful for the time, effort and professional approach by all the partners involved to tackle this problem.

Investigations are ongoing.

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250000 of fake goods seized at Glen Park Market in Ingoldmells - Lincolnshire Today

Postcode lottery for shops scared of theft | Express & Star – expressandstar.com

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Fifty cases of shoplifting in the Dudley borough were reported to police in May, and that is compared to 24 in the Walsall borough.

In Sandwell there were 39 and in Wolverhampton 33. Meanwhile, in Solihull, there were just 18 offences. The figures, from a Freedom of Information Act request to West Midlands Police force, by the Lib Dems do not surprise traders in Dudley.

Mohammed Sagir, chairman of the Voice of Dudley Businesses, said about the new figures released: It is a subject which is raised increasingly by members. There are CCTV cameras all around Dudley, but too often we report crimes, get a reference number and then do not hear anything more, Mr Sagir added.

We want confidence that these people doing it are getting caught.

Mr Sagirs shop, which he wishes not to name, was targeted last month. A 500 Samsung S7 was taken during the incident. He said of how the offence was committed: They came in and they snatched the phone before getting in a get-away car.

I passed the CCTV on to the police, but havent heard anything since.

That was in January.

West Midlands Police did charge 561 in connection with shoplifting offences over the same month.

Sixty six others received a caution during the same period.

For those reported crimes where the value was reported to the police, 24 incidents were for 1 items. The highest value item stolen in a raid was 1,400.

Chief Superintendent Keith Fraser, force lead for business crime, said: Some people think of shoplifting as being a victimless crime but the impact it has on everyone should not be underestimated. In addition to the actual cost, these offences can have a detrimental and long-lasting impact on staff who work in shops and stores, the economy and also communities.

We are involved in a number of initiatives to target shoplifters in the West Midlands, including retail radio schemes which link officers with shopkeepers, shop security marking goods with invisible ink to help trace stolen goods and a robust offender management programme. We also put those found guilty through the courts.

We continue to work with the local business community and the Police and Crime Commissioner as part of a business crime partnership. This follows a force-wide consultation which has recently taken place to get views and opinions from the local business community.

The partnership gives us a strong voice. We take this crime seriously and will work with businesses and others to prevent and detect offences.

Earlier this year, a prolific thief, Gavin Garratt, who is 29, was jailed for 18 months after going on a shoplifting spree in Dudley town centre. He struck nine times in two months all in stores from which he had been outlawed taking food, cosmetics and even pens to feed his drug habit.

It started on January 5 and continued until his arrest on March 1 a period of almost two months.

CCTV was used to prosecute the criminal by the authorities.

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Postcode lottery for shops scared of theft | Express & Star - expressandstar.com

Silicon Quantum Computing launched to commercialise UNSW … – ZDNet

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A new company dubbed Silicon Quantum Computing (SQC) has been launched to take advantage of and commercialise the work done by the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in the quantum space.

SQC will work out of new laboratories within the Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology (CQC2T) at UNSW, and is slated to hire 40 staff members -- made up in part by 25 post-doctoral researchers and 12 PhD students.

The board for SQC will consist of professor Michelle Simmons, who has been the driving force behind CQC2T; Telstra chief scientist Hugh Bradlow; Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) CIO David Whiteing; and Secretary of the federal Department of Industry, Innovation and Science Glenys Beauchamp, with corporate lawyer Stephen Menzies to serve as its interim chair.

Announced on Wednesday as a new shareholder, but not taking a board seat, was the NSW government, which funded the company to the tune of AU$8.7 million from its Quantum Computing Fund.

The state government funding follows CBA investing AU$14 million, Telstra injecting AU$10 million, the federal government allocating AU$25 million over four years, and UNSW putting $25 million towards CQC2T.

SQC is targeting having a 10-qubit machine commercialised by 2022.

Menzies told ZDNet that the creation of the company would shorten the time to market by three years, and allow for a patent portfolio to be built. He said the company is seeking three more investors to fund it at similar levels to Telstra and CBA, and is currently on the hunt for a CEO.

"We will fund hardware, but from that we will develop a patent pool which we hope will be without peer in the world," Menzies said during the launch.

"In the first five years, we are very focused, the business plan is focused on the patents associated with an engineered 10-qubit device. But beyond that, we see that we have a stage on which we develop across Australia and across Australian institutions, a broad quantum industry."

Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Arthur Sinodinos said quantum computing was important to the country's future.

"Whatever sector of innovation, we want to be really good in, we need to be world beaters," he said on Wednesday.

"We want to be able to create a competitive advantage, command a premium, and you do that by doing something new, something that others find it hard to replicate, or it takes them time to replicate and by the time they have replicated it, you've moved on to something else."

Previously, Simmons said she believes the work completed by CQC2T to develop silicon-based qubits will win out in the race to a 30-qubit system.

"We do believe that silicon is the one that has longevity; it's a manufacturable material, and it has some of the highest-quality qubits that are out there," Simmons said in June.

"That's why it's very exciting for Australia. We actually believe this can go all the way, and we believe we can build it in Australia."

Telstra chief scientist Bradlow reiterated on Wednesday that Telstra sees itself offering quantum computing as a service.

"I can assure you they are not going to walk in on day one and know how to use these things," he said previously.

"We want to be able to offer it as-a-service to them ... they will need a lot of hand holding, and they are not going to run the equipment themselves, it's complicated."

For its part, CBA is preparing for a quantum future by using a quantum computing simulator from QxBranch.

"The difference between the emulator of a quantum computer and the real hardware is that we run the simulator on classical computers, so we don't get the benefit of the speed up that you get from quantum, but we can simulate its behaviour and some of the broad characteristics of what the eventual hardware will do," QxBranch CEO Michael Brett told ZDNet in April.

"What we provide is the ability for people to explore and validate the applications of quantum computing so that as soon as the hardware is ready, they'll be able to apply those applications and get the benefit immediately of the unique advantages of quantum computing."

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Silicon Quantum Computing launched to commercialise UNSW ... - ZDNet

IEEE Approves Standards Project for Quantum Computing … – insideHPC

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William Hurley is chair of IEEE Quantum Computing Working Group

Today IEEE announced the approval of the IEEE P7130Standard for Quantum Computing Definitions project. The new standards project aims to make Quantum Computing more accessible to a larger group of contributors, including developers of software and hardware, materials scientists, mathematicians, physicists, engineers, climate scientists, biologists and geneticists.

While Quantum Computing is poised for significant growth and advancement, the emergent industry is currently fragmented and lacks a common communications framework, said Whurley (William Hurley), chair, IEEE Quantum Computing Working Group. IEEE P7130 marks an important milestone in the development of Quantum Computing by building consensus on a nomenclature that will bring the benefits of standardization, reduce confusion, and foster a more broadly accepted understanding for all stakeholders involved in advancing technology and solutions in the space.

The purpose of this project is to provide a general nomenclature for Quantum Computing that may be used to standardize communication with related hardware, and software projects. This standard addresses quantum computing specific terminology and establishes definitions necessary to facilitate communication.

Confusions exist on what quantum computing or a quantum computer means, added Professor Hidetoshi Nishimori of the Tokyo Institute of Technology and IEEE P7130 working group participant. This partly originates in the existence of a few different models of quantum computing. It is urgently necessary to define each key word.

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IEEE Approves Standards Project for Quantum Computing ... - insideHPC

Hype and cash are muddying public understanding of quantum … – The Conversation AU

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An ion-trap used for quantum computing research in the Quantum Control Laboratory at the University of Sydney.

Its no surprise that quantum computing has become a media obsession. A functional and useful quantum computer would represent one of the centurys most profound technical achievements.

For researchers like me, the excitement is welcome, but some claims appearing in popular outlets can be baffling.

A recent infusion of cash and attention from the tech giants has woken the interest of analysts, who are now eager to proclaim a breakthrough moment in the development of this extraordinary technology.

Quantum computing is described as just around the corner, simply awaiting the engineering prowess and entrepreneurial spirit of the tech sector to realise its full potential.

Whats the truth? Are we really just a few years away from having quantum computers that can break all online security systems? Now that the technology giants are engaged, do we sit back and wait for them to deliver? Is it now all just engineering?

Quantum computers are machines that use the rules of quantum physics in other words, the physics of very small things to encode and process information in new ways.

They exploit the unusual physics we find on these tiny scales, physics that defies our daily experience, in order to solve problems that are exceptionally challenging for classical computers. Dont just think of quantum computers as faster versions of todays computers think of them as computers that function in a totally new way. The two are as different as an abacus and a PC.

They can (in principle) solve hard, high-impact questions in fields such as codebreaking, search, chemistry and physics.

Read More: Quantum computers could crack existing codes but create others much harder to break

Chief among these is factoring: finding the two prime numbers, divisible only by one and themselves, which when multiplied together reach a target number. For instance, the prime factors of 15 are 3 and 5.

As simple as it looks, when the number to be factored becomes large, say 1,000 digits long, the problem is effectively impossible for a classical computer. The fact that this problem is so hard for any conventional computer is how we secure most internet communications, such as through public-key encryption.

Some quantum computers are known to perform factoring exponentially faster than any classical supercomputer. But competing with a supercomputer will still require a pretty sizeable quantum computer.

Quantum computing began as a unique discipline in the late 1990s when the US government, aware of the newly discovered potential of these machines for codebreaking, began investing in university research

The field drew together teams from all over the world, including Australia, where we now have two Centres of Excellence in quantum technology (the author is part of of the Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems).

But the academic focus is now shifting, in part, to industry.

IBM has long had a basic research program in the field. It was recently joined by Google, who invested in a University of California team, and Microsoft, which has partnered with academics globally, including the University of Sydney.

Seemingly smelling blood in the water, Silicon Valley venture capitalists also recently began investing in new startups working to build quantum computers.

The media has mistakenly seen the entry of commercial players as the genesis of recent technological acceleration, rather than a response to these advances.

So now we find a variety of competing claims about the state of the art in the field, where the field is going, and who will get to the end goal a large-scale quantum computer first.

Conventional computer microprocessors can have more than one billion fundamental logic elements, known as transistors. In quantum systems, the fundamental quantum logic units are known as qubits, and for now, they mostly number in the range of a dozen.

Such devices are exceptionally exciting to researchers and represent huge progress, but they are little more than toys from a practical perspective. They are not near whats required for factoring or any other application theyre too small and suffer too many errors, despite what the frantic headlines may promise.

For instance, its not even easy to answer the question of which system has the best qubits right now.

Consider the two dominant technologies. Teams using trapped ions have qubits that are resistant to errors, but relatively slow. Teams using superconducting qubits (including IBM and Google) have relatively error-prone qubits that are much faster, and may be easier to replicate in the near term.

Which is better? Theres no straightforward answer. A quantum computer with many qubits that suffer from lots of errors is not necessarily more useful than a very small machine with very stable qubits.

Because quantum computers can also take different forms (general purpose versus tailored to one application), we cant even reach agreement on which system currently has the greatest set of capabilities.

Similarly, theres now seemingly endless competition over simplified metrics such as the number of qubits. Five, 16, soon 49! The question of whether a quantum computer is useful is defined by much more than this.

Theres been a media focus lately on achieving quantum supremacy. This is the point where a quantum computer outperforms its best classical counterpart, and reaching this would absolutely mark an important conceptual advance in quantum computing.

But dont confuse quantum supremacy with utility.

Some quantum computer researchers are seeking to devise slightly arcane problems that might allow quantum supremacy to be reached with, say, 50-100 qubits numbers reachable within the next several years.

Achieving quantum supremacy does not mean either that those machines will be useful, or that the path to large-scale machines will become clear.

Moreover, we still need to figure out how to deal with errors. Classical computers rarely suffer hardware faults the blue screen of death generally comes from software bugs, rather than hardware failures. The likelihood of hardware failure is usually less than something like one in a billion-quadrillion, or 10-24 in scientific notation.

The best quantum computer hardware, on the other hand, typically achieves only about one in 10,000, or 10-4. Thats 20 orders of magnitude worse.

Were seeing a slow creep up in the number of qubits in the most advanced systems, and clever scientists are thinking about problems that might be usefully addressed with small quantum computers containing just a few hundred qubits.

But we still face many fundamental questions about how to build, operate or even validate the performance of the large-scale systems we sometimes hear are just around the corner.

Read More: Compute this: the quantum future is crystal clear

As an example, if we built a fully error-corrected quantum computer at the scale of the millions of qubits required for useful factoring, as far as we can tell, it would represent a totally new state of matter. Thats pretty fundamental.

At this stage, theres no clear path to the millions of error-corrected qubits we believe are required to build a useful factoring machine. Current global efforts (in which this author is a participant) are seeking to build just one error-corrected qubit to be delivered about five years from now.

At the end of the day, none of the teams mentioned above are likely to build a useful quantum computer in 2017 or 2018. But that shouldnt cause concern when there are so many exciting questions to answer along the way.

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Hype and cash are muddying public understanding of quantum ... - The Conversation AU

Finns chill out quantum computers with qubit refrigerator to cut out errors – ZDNet

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This one centimeter-sized silicon chip can help to cool down quantum bits.

Quantum computing is a revolutionary technology, but the obstacles to creating viable quantum computers remain significant.

Chipping away at the task is a team of Finnish researchers, who have found a way to cool down quantum bits, or qubits, using a quantum-circuit refrigerator.

"To my understanding, no one else has done a standalone component that can refrigerate a quantum system," Mikko Mttnen, quantum physicist and research team leader at Aalto University, tells ZDNet.

The significance of this development comes down to the fickle nature of qubits. Unlike in traditional computing, where electronic bits are set to a value of zero or one, qubits can simultaneously hold values of zero, one, or both. Consequently, they can carry out more computations in parallel and solve complex big-data problems much faster than today's systems.

But qubits are very sensitive to external perturbations and need to be well isolated, and that isolation can in turn cause them to heat up and result in calculation errors.

Furthermore, every qubit needs to be reset to its low-temperature ground state at the beginning of a computation. If qubits get too hot, they keep switching between different states.

This is where the cooling mechanism of the Finnish research team comes in. Their system works by tunneling single electrons through a 2nm-thick insulator.

By giving the electrons slightly less energy than that required for tunneling, they instead capture the missing energy from the nearby quantum device, which in turn loses energy and cools down.

This approach means most electrical quantum devices, including computers, could be initialised quickly and made more reliable.

So far, the system has been tested by postdoctoral researcher Kuan Yan Tan with qubit-like superconducting resonators, with the results published in scientific journal Nature Communications.

"In the experiments we did with the resonator, the temperature of the resonator we achieved was too high for quantum computer operations. So we have to show we can cool down to even lower temperatures," Mttnen explains.

In addition to this goal, the next steps for the team will be to test the system with actual quantum bits and make its on-off switch faster.

Mttnen estimates that viable practical applications could be possible in a few years' time, but says it is too early to speculate when these applications could turn into commercial products.

Mttnen's team is only one of the many companies and research organisations working on quantum computing, including tech giants Google, IBM and Microsoft. Despite all these efforts, Mttnen remains cautious when pressed about when the world will finally see the first commercial quantum computer.

"It's almost impossible at this stage to say when. But what I can say is it's more likely we will get there at some point than that we don't," Mttnen says.

US Energy Department lab bolsters quantum computing resources

Researchers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory are getting cloud access to a D-Wave 2000Q system, allowing them to explore hybrid computing architectures.

Microsoft deepens University of Sydney quantum research partnership

Microsoft has beefed up its efforts to commercialise quantum computing, giving the university funding for new equipment, staff, and talent, as researchers delve deeper into the underlying technology.

Accenture, 1QBit partner for drug discovery through quantum computing

Accenture and quantum computing startup 1QBit have partnered with pharmaceutical giant Biogen to develop a quantum-enabled molecular comparison application for drug discovery.

IBM aims to commercialize quantum computing, launches API, SDK and sees Q systems in next few years

IBM put some more meat on its roadmap and plans to commercialize quantum computing for enterprises. For now, developers will get APIs and a software developer kit to play with qubits.

Read more:

Finns chill out quantum computers with qubit refrigerator to cut out errors - ZDNet

UNSW launches Australia’s first hardware quantum computing company with investments from federal and NSW … – OpenGov Asia

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Above image: Silicon Quantum Computing Pty. Ltd. board members with the federal Industry Minister and NSW Chief Scientist. L to R: CBA Head of Emerging Technology Dilan Rajasingham, Telstra Chief Scientist Professor Hugh Bradlow, Secretary of the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science Glenys Beauchamp, Minister for for Industry, Innovation and Science the Hon Arthur Sinodinos AO, UNSW Scientia Professor Michelle Simmons, Silicon Quantum Computing Pty Ltd Chair Stephen Menzies, NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer Professor Mary O'Kane, UNSW President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Jacobs. Image courtesy cqc2t.org(Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology)

The University of New South Wales (UNSW) launched Australias first hardware quantum computing company, Silicon Quantum Computing Pty. Ltd. (SQC) to advance the development and commercialisation of the universitys quantum computing technology.

The Australian Government through its National Innovation and Science Agenda will invest AU$25 million over five years in Silicon Quantum Computing to produce a prototype quantum computer chipthe first step in building a fully-functional quantum computer.

The New South Wales (NSW) Government also announced that it will also invest AU$8.7 million in Silicon Quantum Computing from its recently announced AU$26 million quantum computing fund.

In addition, UNSW is contributing AU$25 million, while the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and Telstra are providing AU$10 million each over the next five years. These investments build on previous government support for the technology and the CBAs previous AU$4.14 million prior investment in the sector.

SQC will drive the development and commercialisation of a 10-qubit[1] quantum integrated circuit prototype in silicon by 2022 as the forerunner to a silicon-based quantum computer. The company will work alongside theAustralian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology (CQC2T),operating from new laboratories within the Centres UNSW headquarters.

Up to 40 staff are projected to be hired because of the new company, including 25 postdoctoral researchers, 12 PhD students, and lab technicians. Recruitment is currently underway.

Above image:Chemical cleaning station in the new fast processing laboratory at UNSW. Image courtesy INTREC

Federal Minister for Science, Innovation and Industry, Arthur Sinodinos, hailed SQC as a prime example of how governments, researchers and business can work together to translate great Australian research into commercial reality.

He said quantums computational possibilities and capabilities had the potential to create entire new industries and revolutionise sectors across the economy. Australia was at least two or three years ahead of the rest of the world in developing the technology and the Australian government knew it had to back the effort.

Quantum computing will help shape how we deal with health, our living spaces, our businesses, our transport systems, our financial systems and our whole economy and way of life, Minister Sinodinos said.

Speaking at an event to launch the company at UNSW today, chief researcher and board member Professor Michelle Simmons,The world is accelerating in this field and by having a company sitting alongside a Centre of Excellence, with the powerhouse of students and post docs that come through, we can make sure that Australia stays at the very forefront of this race. We really are creating the future here today. With Silicon Quantum Computing Pty Ltd now incorporated, we are fully committed to developing a 10-qubit silicon prototype. We are open for business and open to further investment.

Silicon Quantum Computing Pty Ltd board members are Professor Simmons; Hugh Bradlow, Telstras Chief Scientist; David Whiteing, CBAs Chief Information Officer; and Glenys Beauchamp, Secretary of the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science. The board will be chaired initially by corporate lawyer and company director Stephen Menzies.

Interim Chair of the board of SQC, Stephen Menzies, said that the company would maintain vital IP in Australia and develop a nascent quantum information ecosystem in NSW.

We will fund hardware, but from that we will also develop a patent pool that will be without peer in the world. And that patent pool will allow us to work with other Australian institutions and corporations to lead to further innovation in the quantum age, Mr. Menzies added.

Mr. Menzies hoped that the initial shareholders would be the first of many, saying, The company will need additional monies and the business plan contemplates that additional shareholders will join all of whom we hope will bring strategic focus to the business and who will bring their own enthusiasm and passion to the technologies.

What is quantum computing?[1]

At the subatomic level, the laws of classical physics no longer apply. Particles can exist in more than one state at a time. Quantum computing utilises these quantum-mechanical phenomena, such as superposition and entanglement, to perform operations on data. Entanglement occurs when pairs or groups of particles are generated or interact in ways such that the quantum state of each particle (such as the polarisation of a photon) cannot be described independently of the others, even when the particles are separated by a large distance, while superposition states that any two (or more) quantum states can be added together and the result will be another valid quantum state.

A classical bit can be in one of two states, 0 or 1, whereas a single qubit or quantum bit can represent a 1, a 0 or any quantum superposition of those two qubit states. This implies that qubits can store a lot more information than classical bits, using less energy. Only when we measure to find out what state it's actually in at any given, the qubit "collapses" into one of its possible states, giving the answer to problem. A quantum computer's ability to work in parallel would make it millions of times faster than any conventional computer.

Large-scale quantum computers would theoretically be able to solve certain problems much more quickly than any classical computers that use the best currently known algorithms. They could potentially solve in a matter of hours, complex problems that would take a digital supercomputer more than a lifetime to achieve.

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UNSW launches Australia's first hardware quantum computing company with investments from federal and NSW ... - OpenGov Asia