Daily Archives: March 23, 2017

Truckers do a lot of stuff besides driving that automated vehicles don’t – Quartz

Posted: March 23, 2017 at 1:52 pm

There are 1.8 million heavy truck drivers and 800,000 light truck drivers in the US. Driving a truck is the most common occupation in 29 states, and a high-paying one relative to other jobs that require similar levels of education.

All of this makes the prospect of self-driving vehicleswhich many manufactures say they expect to have on the road within the next five yearsa focal point in the discussion about how automation will impact employment.

The relationship between trucking jobs and automation is more complicated than simply replacing drivers with vehicles that drive themselves, says Joseph Kane, a senior research analyst at the Brookings Institute. Many truck drivers and many support workers, mechanics and other administrative workers, they will continue to play an enormous role in this industry, he says. Work that doesnt involve driving wont be as easy for robots to take over.

As Kane and co-author Adie Tomer explained in a recent report:

Just as there are different types of doctors, there are different types of truck drivers from heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers who focus on long-haul journeys to delivery truck drivers who carry lighter loads and navigate local streets. Not surprisingly, many of these drivers are not simply sitting behind the wheel all day on auto drive. They also inspect their freight loads, fix equipment, make deliveries, and perform other non-routinized tasks.

The work of those non-driving tasks may shift elsewhere when trucks drive themselves, but it wont disappear.

In addition to driving jobs that include other types of tasks, there are also many trucking jobs that dont include driving at all. About 40% of workers in the trucking industry arent truck drivers. Even as automated trucks may alter the actual shipment of goods, Kane and Tomer write, these technologies are unlikely to supplant all of the various technical, financial, and logistical work activities in support of that movement.

Like other technologies throughout history, automated vehicles will create new types of jobs. The task of unloading trucks or receiving packages, for instance, might shift to the people who are receiving the delivery. New types of workers may refuel and maintain trucks.

Kane and Tomer dont say that jobs in trucking will remain unchanged or argue that automated cars dont threaten any jobs, but rather argue that even as driving becomes automated, trucking wont turn into a industry without job opportunities. Rather than glossing over the potential labor impacts, they write, policymakers, employers, educators, and others should closely monitor these developments over time and link them to relevant workforce development efforts.

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Truckers do a lot of stuff besides driving that automated vehicles don't - Quartz

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Factory Automation Banks on Wireless and AI Technology to Succeed – Electronic Design

Posted: at 1:52 pm

As more factories become automated, its clear that communications between machines, robots, and the computers that direct them is critical. The more information thats communicated, the greater the productivity. But with ever-larger amounts of data being communicated, the need to analyze and interpret the information, and use it in decision-making, becomes that much more critical. Integration of wireless sensor networks and artificial intelligence (AI) helps meet those demands.

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)

The ultimate solution, of course, is the industrial internet of things or IIoT. This is the application of standard IoT concepts to manufacturing. IIoT is essentially the monitoring and control of factory equipment using wireless methods, internet cloud connectivity, and advanced data analysis incorporating artificial intelligence. You may also know of this as Industry 4.0, the German reference to the current fourth generation of manufacturing that incorporates better communications and intelligent computers and software to greatly improve manufacturing through automation.

IIoT advocates connecting all possible devices with sensors to a network thats able to send the data to computers that can store, analyze and display the data. Software will analyze the data and harvest the knowledge it contains to help make smart decisions that will succeed in achieving the productivity objectives previously set.

Virtually every employee, tool, robot, or device contains valuable data that can potentially improve your manufacturing operations. Such data will identify inefficiencies, spot potential problems, and provide improved quality control. The outcome could produce a competitive edge. An IIoT system can also spot trends, help streamline the manufacturing process, avoid downtime, and optimize your existing assets. The whole approach involves new hardware and software.

Wireless Factory Communications

In the past, wired communications was the norm in factory automation. Many special networks and fieldbuses were created to connect sensors and controlled devices to computers and one another. Many of these networks are still used. In addition, Ethernet has emerged as THE networking technology of choice for industrial applications, sometimes replacing older legacy technologies.

Furthermore, wireless technology has become more reliable with many flexible choices. Thus, its emerging as a way to not only replace older systems, but also to increase the amount of sensor monitoring, further increasing the breadth of useful machine data. Below is a rundown of some choices to consider when looking to expand the communications capabilities for a factory automation system (see table).

IEEE 802.15.4

IEEE 802.15.4 is designed to support peer-to-peer links as well as wireless sensor networks. The standard defines the basic physical layer (PHY), including frequency range, modulation, data rates, and frame format, and the media-access-control (MAC) layer. Separate protocol stacks are then designed to use the basic PHY and MAC. Several wireless standards use the 802.15.4 standard as the PHY/MAC base, including ISA100a, Wireless HART, ZigBee, and 6LoWPAN.

The standard defines three basic frequency ranges. The most widely used is the worldwide 2.4-GHz ISM band (16 channels), which has a basic data rate is 250 kb/s. Another range is the 902- to 928-MHz ISM band in the U.S. (10 channels). The data rate is 40 or 250 kb/s. Then theres the European 868-MHz band (one channel) with a data rate of 20 kb/s.

All three ranges use direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) with either binary phase-shift-keying (BPSK) or offset quadrature phase-shift-keying (QPSK) modulation. The multiple-access mode is carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA-CA). The minimum defined power levels are 3 dBm (0.5 mW). The most common power level is 0 dBm, while a 20-dBm level is defined for longer-range applications. Typical range is less than 10 meters.

6LoWPAN

Developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (ITEF), 6LoWPAN provides a way to transmit IPv6 and IPv4 Internet Protocols over low-power wireless point-to-point (P2P) links and mesh networks. The 6LoWPAN standard (RFC4944), which is short for IPv6 protocol over low-power wireless PANs, also permits the implementation of the Internet of Things on even the smallest and remote devices.

The protocol provides encapsulation and header compression routines for use with 802.15.4 radios. If your wireless device must have an internet connection, this is your technology of choice.

Cellular

With services from most network carriers, cellular radio provides data-transmission capability for machine-to-machine (M2M) applications. M2M is used for remote monitoring and control. Cellular radio modules are widely available to build into other equipment. Older 2G and 3G modules are now being replaced by 4G LTE modules such as NB-IoT. The working range is from 1 to 10 km, which is the range of most cell sites today.

Dust Networks

Dust Networks was acquired by Linear Technology, which in turn was acquired by Analog Devices. Its SmartMesh technology is based on the 802.15.4 and 6LoWPAN standards. The prime benefit of this technology is its ability to form ad hoc, self-repairing mesh sensor networks that increase range and reliability. Other key features are its 10,000-hour battery-lifetime modules and NIST-grade AES-128 security.

SmartMesh networks communicate using a time-synchronized channel-hopping (TSCH) link layer, a technique whereby all nodes are synchronized to within a few microseconds. Network communication is organized into TDM time slots that permit channel hopping and full path diversity. They also offer a version of a HART wired network called WirelessHART (see below).

ISA100a

Developed by the International Society of Automation, ISA100a is designed for industrial process control and factory automation. It uses the 802.15.4 PHY and MAC, but adds special features for security, reliability, feedback control, and other industrial requirements.

ISM Band

Most of these standards use the unlicensed ISM bands set aside by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in Part 15 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 47. The most widely used ISM band is the 2.4- to 2.483-GHz band, which is used by Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 802.15.4 radios, and many other devices. The second most widely used band is the 902- to 928-MHz band, with 915 MHz being a sweet spot. Modulation is typically ASK/OOK or FSK. Other popular ISM frequencies are 315 MHz for garage-door openers and remote-keyless-entry (RKE) applications, and 433 MHz for remote temperature monitoring.

RFID

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is used primarily for identification, location, tracking, and inventory. A nearby reader unit transmits a high-power RF signal to power passive (unpowered) tags and then read the data stored in their memory.

RFID tags are small, flat, and cheap, and can be attached to anything that must be tracked or identified. They have replaced bar codes in some applications. RFID uses the 13.56-MHz ISM frequency, but other frequencies are also used, including 125 kHz, 134.5 kHz, and frequencies in the 902- to 928-MHz range. Multiple ISO/IEC standards exist.

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi is the commercial name of the wireless technology defined by the IEEE 802.11 standards. Next to Bluetooth, Wi-Fi is by far the most widespread wireless technology. Its in smartphones, laptops, tablets, and ultrabooks, as well as TV sets, video accessories, and home wireless routers. On top of that, its deployed in many industrial applications. Wi-Fi is now showing up in cellular networks, where carriers are using it to offload some data traffic like video that clogs the network.

The initial version, called 802.11b, was popular because it offered up to 11-Mb/s data rates in the 2.4-GHz ISM band. Since then, new standards have been developed including 802.11a (5-GHz band), 802.11g, and 802.11n using OFDM to get speeds up to 54 and 300 Mb/s under the most favorable conditions.

More recent standards include 802.11ac, which uses multiple input, multiple output (MIMO) to deliver up to 3 Gb/s in the 5-GHz ISM band. Wi-Fi is readily available in chip form or as complete drop-in modules. The range is up to 100 meters under the best line-of-sight conditions. This is a great option, where longer range and high speeds are needed for the application.

Wireless HART

HART is the Highway Addressable Remote Transducer protocol, a wired networking technology widely used in industry for sensor and actuator monitoring and control. Wireless HART is the wireless version of this standard. The base of it is the 802.15.4 standard in the 2.4-GHz band. The HART protocol is a software application on wireless transceivers.

ZigBee

Emanating from the ZigBee Alliance, this software protocol and technology uses the 802.15.4 transceiver as a base. It provides a complete protocol stack designed to implement multiple types of radio networks that include point-to-point, tree, star, and point-to-multipoint. Its main feature is the ability to build large mesh networks for sensor monitoring. And, it can handle up to 65,000 nodes.

ZigBee also provides profiles or software routines that implement specific applications for consumer home automation, building automation, and industrial control. Examples include building automation for lighting and HVAC control, as well as smart meters that implement home-area-network connections in automated electric meters. ZigBee is widely used in factory automation and can be used in other M2M and Internet of Things applications as well.

Critical Design Factors

The performance of a wireless link is based on pure physics as modified by practical considerations. In implementing a short-range wireless product or system, the important factors to consider are range, transmit power, antenna gains if any, frequency or wavelength, and receiver sensitivity. Basic guidelines include:

Lower frequencies extend the range if all other factors are the same. This is strictly physics. A 900-MHz signal will travel farther than a 2.4-GHz signal, and a 60-GHz signal has substantially less range than a 5-GHz signal.

Lower data rates will also extend the range and reliability for a given set of factors. Lower data rates are less susceptible to noise and interference. Always use the lowest possible data rate for the best results.

Latency is a major factor today in many automation scenarios. Latency is that time delay between the initial trigger of an event and the actual start time of the event. Robot operations are sometimes critical of timing. Latency is usually in the millisecond range, but varies with the technology used. Check your needs before choosing a technology.

Security may be important if the company fears outside tapping into valuable production data available via wireless. Most wireless products today incorporate security in the form of AES-128 encryption thats sufficient to protect most systems.

Losses through walls, surrounding equipment, or other obstacles should also be considered.

Add fade margin to your design to overcome unexpected environmental conditions, noise, or interference. This ensures your system will have sufficient signal strength over the range to compensate for unknowns. Increase fade margin if the signal must pass through walls and other obstructions.

Keep in mind that antennas can have gain. By making the antenna directional, its beam is more focused with RF power and the effect is the same as raising the transmit power. Half-wave dipoles and quarter-wave verticals arent considered to have gain unless compared to a pure isotropic source.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

What good is added sensor data if you cant interpret it or use it to boost efficiency? Data-acquisition software can help sort the data and graph it for interpretation. That is positive, but often engineers discover that specialized software is needed for the specific processes involved. As more experience is gained, engineers are finding that AI software can help do more in less time and with minimal injection of human decision-making operations. AI can quickly analyze data and implement process changes to boost productivity on the fly.

One example of an AI application is predictive maintenance. This is the practice of being able to determine what parts might fail in each machine tool and schedule replacement during regular scheduled shutdowns. This prevents unexpected failures that occur during regular production runs and shuts all or many parts of the factory. Unscheduled failures cost massive amounts of money in lost output.

AI software can be built to use regular maintenance data in a knowledge base that records parts replaced in each machine and other factors such as time between breakdowns and other critical data. The AI software analyzes all of these factors and then decides what to replace or service next during a regular maintenance period. This process of predictive maintenance can boost uptime and save thousands if not millions of dollars in lost productivity.

Such AI software needs to be custom-designed in most cases. In some situations, machine learning with neural networks can be used to learn from past maintenance data about what can go wrong and with what frequency.

While the details of AI are beyond the scope of this article, the ultimate goal of AI is to bring a degree of human intelligence to the application, intelligence that can assess a situation and take action. The idea is to analyze raw data and derive knowledge and understanding from it. Then the result is used to solve problems or make decisions. AI is a combination of hardware and special software that exploits search, logic, probability, and other special techniques like neural networks to work its human-like magic.

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Important HR changes from 1st April – HR News (press release) (registration) (blog)

Posted: at 1:51 pm

Posted on Mar 23, 2017

April is the busiest time of the year for changes to employment law taking effect and employers need to be ready. We asked the UKs leading employer advice services to look at the changes in legislation which are due to take effect on 1st April, so HR can prepare:

Emma OLeary, employment law consultant for the ELAS Group, highlighted:

Apprenticeship Levy A new initiative which will take effect in April 2017 is the new apprenticeship funding for 16-18 year olds and 19-24 year olds to encourage employers and young workers alike to increase job opportunities and production accordingly. A levy of 0.5% of an employers pay bill will be introduced on large employers (those with payrolls over 3million) to fund 3 million additional apprenticeships over the next five years. Each employer will receive 15,000 to offset against their levy payment. A full copy of the new structure can be downloaded from the Department of Education and employers can use the Skills Funding Agency tool to check whether they will be liable for the levy and if so, how much funding will be available. It is important to note that the levy will apply to all employers if their annual pay bill hits the criteria. The annual pay bill is all payments to employees that are subject to Class 1 secondary National Insurance Contributions, which includes all wages/pay, bonuses and commissions.

Gender Pay-Gap Reporting This new law requires employers with more than 250 employees in England, Wales and Scotland to publish mean and median gender pay gaps from April 2017. The first reports are due to be published in April 2018 for the period covering April 2017-April 2018. Information on any bonuses paid also needs to be published in April 2018 for the 12month period ending April 2017. Employers cannot ignore this. Companies should be gathering the data now to ensure that they comply with the reporting procedures ready for April 2017.

There is no obligation for companies to explain the gender pay gap nor any duty to address it if a company is complying with the Equality Act, neither is there any penalty for failing to publish (as of yet). That said, reputational penalties will be significant as there is no doubt the press will be waiting with baited breath to discover who has failed to produce their report and why and will be looking establish a gender pay gap in high profile organisations. Furthermore, the best candidates may not be attracted to working for companies with a big gender pay gap if they feel that their gender will adversely impact on their career prospects. The reason for this new piece of legislation is self explanatory; research has demonstrated that despite huge equality progress, women are still being paid less than their male counterparts.

National Minimum Wage / National Living Wage These are two areas which will continue to increase in 2017, with the next raise coming on 1st April taking the National Living Wage up to 7.50 per hour for those aged 25 and above. We are unlikely to see any changes when it comes to NMW/NLW following the triggering of Article 50 as this was very much a British idea and regulation is not required by European law. Furthermore, the UK National Minimum Wage is significantly higher than that in similar European systems and the government recently introduced the National Living Wage. The government introduced a name and shame policy for employers who are found to be paying under the National Minimum Wage so it is important for businesses to take this seriously.

The National Minimum Wage& Living Wage rates will be as follows from 1st April:

Aged 25 and over National Living Wage increases to 7.50 per hour (up from 7.20)

Aged 21-24 7.05 (up from 6.95)

Aged 18-20 5.60 (up from 5.55)

Aged 16-17 4.05 (up from 4.00)

Apprentices 3.50 (up from 3.40) **applicable to apprentices aged 16-18 and those aged 19 and over who are in their first year. All other apprentices are entitled to the NMW for their age

Modern Slavery The Modern Slavery Act came into effect for any private organisation operating business in the UK with a turnover of 36 million or more (including subsidiaries) obliging them to either provide a statement showing the steps they have taken to ensure that slavery and human trafficking are not taking place in any part of their business or supply chain, or a statement that it has not taken any such steps. Such companies are advised to file the required statements as the Secretary of State can apply to the High Court for injunctions against them if not done and prison sentences can follow for directors. The purpose of the Act is to eradicate modern slavery, which includes forced labour, human trafficking and domestic servitude. Even if you are a smaller business with a lower turnover, you may still be asked for a statement or policy on Modern Slavery if you trade with a larger business i.e. in order for the larger business to comply with their own obligations under the Act, they would need to ensure everyone in their supply chain also complies. Certain industries would be more at risk that others especially those using raw materials such as cotton or cocoa, which they import from at risk countries across the world.

Salary sacrifice schemes As of 6 April 2017 the government will abolish tax savings through many salary-sacrifice schemes, aside from those related to pension savings, child care, cycle-to-work or ultra-low emission cars. Those which are in place prior to April 2017 will be protected until April 2018 while any arrangements related to cars, school fees or accommodation will be protected until April 2021. This would also affect employers who operate a buying and selling annual leave scheme under salary sacrifice.

Data Protection Changes The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDRP) was passed in May 2016. While it doesnt take effect until May 2018, the scale of the changes mean that preparing for GDRP should be a priority for employers in 2017. This regulation will take effect before the UK exits the EU so employers need to be prepared. Those who are not compliant risk fines of up to 20 million or 4% of their annual worldwide turnover, whichever is higher. Its difficult to predict exactly how the Data Protection Act will be affected by Brexit however its unlikely that it would be repealed as to do so would cause public outrage.

Alan Price, HR Director for employment advice servicePeninsula,added:

Increase to statutory payments

The weekly amount of statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory adoption pay and statutory shared parental pay will increase for the first time in two years from 139.58 to 140.98 from the 2nd April.

In addition, the rate of statutory sick pay will increase from 88.45 to 89.35 per week from the 6th April. The amount an employee has to earn to receive the statutory payments will also increase from 112 to 113 per week.

Tribunal compensation limits

Employers who are being taken to tribunal from April will see their compensation awards increase as new limits come in to force on the 6th April. From this date, the maximum amount of a weeks pay will increase from 479 to 489 and the maximum basic award for unfair dismissal will increase to 14,670.

The maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal will also increase from 78,962 to 80,541. This means that the total basic and compensatory award for unfair dismissal has now gone over 95,000 for the first time.

Changes to foreign worker rules

Further to changes made in the autumn of 2016, the Tier 2 minimum salary threshold will be increasing to 30,000 per year although certain roles will remain exempt until July 2019. An Immigration Skills Charge will be introduced to be paid by all Tier 2 sponsors from 6th April. This will cost 1,000 per year for each Certificate of Sponsorship, with a reduced rate of 364 to be paid by small and charitable sponsors.

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Four Peabody women are the focus of new exhibit at Peabody Historical Society and Museum – The Salem News

Posted: at 1:50 pm

Eleanor Felton was a widow who moved from England to Peabody with three small children in 1636, carving a life for her family out of what was then a wilderness.

Feltons home now houses the Peabody Historical Society and Museum, and she probably would have liked the exhibit thats opening there on Sunday, March 26, which features four women who shared her independent spirit.

The Peabody Woman: Love, War, Work and Beauty introduces visitors to Elizabeth Whitman, Mary Ophelia Stevens, Martha Osborne Barrett and Bessie Buxton, who lived during different eras in Peabodys history.

We asked ourselves, can we pick four women from Peabody that would help us characterize would it would be like to be a woman at those times?said Kelly Daniell, curator at the historical society.

That question was raised because Daniell felt that historical societies tend to focus on men, and define women only in terms of the men in their lives. Shebegan to assemble this show six months ago, and always planned to open it in March for Womens History Month.

The exhibition has grown to be timely with the national conversation right now, and Im pleased thats happening, she said.

Peabody Woman also goes hand in hand with an April exhibit at the society, Inspired by Time, featuring a display of quilts by local artisans that were inspired by the four women and the times when they lived.

Whitman, the earliest of the four subjects in Peabody Woman, was born in 1752 andlived a restless life, moving up and down the East Coast until she finally took a room under an assumed name in 1788 at the Bell Tavern, which at the time was in Danvers.

She came to Bell Tavern in May, and kept telling people her husband would be joining her, Daniell said. In July she ended up giving birth to a stillborn child, then dying a few weeks later.

The local community publicized her fate, and eventually made contact with her family, discovering Whitmans real identity.

Whitman is best remembered today as the inspiration behind the central figure in the novel The Coquette, which was written by her cousin Hannah Webster Foster. The book romanticized Whitmans life, and after it was published people made pilgrimages to her grave in the Old South Burial Ground.

As an unmarried woman who followed her passions, Whitman represents love, one of the four themes that the exhibit explores through the lives of its subjects.

That contrasts with the theme of war represented by Mary Ophelia Stevens, who lived from 1842 to 1928 and served as a nurse in the Civil War, working in the same hospital in Washington, D.C., as Clara Barton.

She would have seen casualties straight from front, Daniell said.

After moving to Peabody with her husband in 1868, Stevens then became a suffragette, fighting for womens right to vote.

Women gained the vote in 1919 and she registered to vote at City Hall in Peabody, Daniell said. We have the book she registered in at the exhibit.

The show also examines the life of Martha Barrett, a diarist and poet who was born in 1827 and died in 1905, and represents the theme of work.

While she published essays on the abolition of slavery and wrote speeches for public occasions, Barrett had to support herself by working in a millinery shop in Salem.

She writes about depression and being unmarried and working hard to support herself, Daniell said.

Barretts economic struggles contrast with the wealth of Bessie Buxton, who represents the theme of beauty because she founded the Peabody Garden Club. She wanted to counter the impact of the leather industry on the citys appearance.

Buxton was also concerned that older ways of life were disappearing, and she recorded sea chanteys that she heard during her many travels.

Her thing was, she wanted to make Peabody a more beautiful place to live, and the garden club is still around, Daniell said. She left a lasting legacy, to be sure.

IF YOU GO

What: The Peabody Woman: Love, War, Work and Beauty

When: Opening reception Sunday, March 26, 2 to 4 p.m., and open Saturday, April 1, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Sunday, April 2, noon to 3 p.m.

Where: Nathaniel Felton Senior House, Felton-Smith Historic Site, 47 Felton St., Peabody.

Information: Exhibit open for groups and by appointment. More details at http://www.peabodyhistorical.org or 978-877-0514.

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What I learned as a body painting canvas for Rachel Deboer – MauiTime Weekly

Posted: at 1:50 pm

Early this fall, I binge watched all the Skin Wars seasons on Hulu. Though I had never met Rachel Deboer in person, I definitely knew who she was and have some Maui friends in common with her. So, being a fan of her body painting art, I was stoked when I saw her ripping up the dance floor in early November at a DJ Mark Farina show at Lulus. That night, I didnt have the guts to walk up to her and fan-girl on her, but I did when I came across her face painting table at Maui Comic Con the following day at the Lahaina Cannery Mall.

Deboer is an internationally recognized and award-winning body painting artist. She won 3rd Place in the Semi-Pro Professional category at the World Body Painting Festival in Austria in 2008. She also won 5th Place in UV Body Painting in 2012 and made the Top 30 In The World list for the Professional Brush & Sponge category at the concurrent festival in Austria in 2016. Shes renowned for her work with blacklight body paint, as well as for the mystical characters she creates. Deboer also has a degree in Theater Performance from the University of South Florida.

Body painting is an art form unlike any other, DeBoer says. Its been around since humans have been here. Body painting political and social justice issues on womens bodies seems to me like one of the most revolutionary act we can do.

At Maui Comic Con, though weaning a small kine headache from the previous night, I found the strength to say hello to her. It was awesome, and she was very cool. We discussed body-painting, I asked her how a person becomes body-painted and we exchanged information.

Then, on Nov. 8, 2016, tragedy struck. Donald Trump won the presidency. In the history of my life, I do not think I have ever experienced the combination of sadness, depression and shock that I felt on the days that followed. Though I know that more than half of America felt the same way, it wasnt until I reached out to Deboer via Facebook Messenger that I began to heal my feelings of political hopelessness and presidential PTSD.

We began a series of messages regarding ideas for what type of body painting Id like to do. At first, I just wanted her to paint something that would be a good addition to her professional portfolio. But once we discovered that we were both irate about the new President-Elect, we decided to do a political body art piece. We met in person, discussed a plan, set up meeting times and it was on.

Many women and men feel insecure about their bodies and being naked in public, and I was no different. Okay, Ill admit that I was actually a little bit mortified. I kept asking myself questions like, Is my body okay for this? Are my boobs too small to be body painted? Even more negative and weird nervous brain chatter fled through my mind in the days leading up to my first body painting session. To put it mildly, I was scared.

*

Back in 2015, we published a feature article about Deboers experience on Game Show Networks Skin Wars. She was a cast member on the second season, vying for a $100,000 prize amongst a group of her peersworld renowned body painting artists.

Since her experience on Skin Wars, Miss Rachel Deboer has been consistently painting human canvases in many different mediums and forms; full body painting, face painting, pregnant belly painting and live human art installations. In the most recent months (since Trumps election, in fact), Rachels art has begun to take a new direction which she calls Political Body Art and Body Art Activism. The main issues that DeBoer focuses on are discrimination against women, discrimination against immigrants, LGBTQ marriage equality rights, pro-choice for women and even the abolition of the electoral college.

Ive noticed that there is a lot of control and suppression around the human body, especially around womens bodies, Deboer says. With the extremely nasty, cruel and shocking disregard for women in this election, and normalization of the presidents comments about women, I felt kicked in the gut by our country. The current government aims to control peoplecontrol our behavior, who we marry, where we work, what we buy, our healthcare, our education, etc. Literally drawing the issues concerning our country and our globe on womens bodies was the only obvious antidote for this oppression.

Deboer strongly believes we need to get back to a whole-istic view of our place here on this earth. Instead of raping and consuming the earth for its resources with a greedy acquistion of things, be a steward of the earth and champions of each others rights, she says. If she can encourage people to have more compassion and tolerance towards all, then Deboer believes that her job as an artist is done.

For our first body painting project, I went to her home in Kula. I was nervous, but to my surprise getting body painted wasnt scary at all. After spending a few hours topless while she painted my chest, I discovered that she wasnt just an intensely passionate artist and woman, but also very comfortable to be around. Her humor and intelligence are engaging, and throughout our discussions I realized that Deboer is more than just an artist; shes an art-activist.

Art is visceral, she says. You feel it in your body. Artists have a responsibility to influence, educate and expand human consciousness. For Deboer, the purpose of art is to remind people of the heart in the decision making process, not just the head or the ego.

The first body painting piece that I did with her was called You Cannot Censor the Heart. It was a tribute to efforts against not only art censorship, but the ways that a political climate can run counter to public opinion. With a censorship bar painted across my mouth, a realistic heart painted on my chest, and me appearing to rip my chest open with a deer-in-headlight expression in my eyes, the piece was incredibly powerful. Maui photographer Zen Panda arrived to take photographs, and within a few days the images hit social media like a ton of bricks.

A few weeks later, You Cannot Censor the Heart images flooded Instagram and Facebook feeds, even being re-posted by internationally acclaimed body painters, art groups and Standing Rock No DAPL communities. It was incredible. With this kind of social media popularity and the confirmation about how Deboers art is helping people throughout the world, the fire within us grew. Deboer, Zen Panda and I were all pumped to produce more such art.

Political body painting became my focus immediately after the election, Deboer says. I was horrified with the whole process and wanted to bury my head in the sand. I admit I was complacent for a long time in politics, taking our hard won social freedoms such as LGBTQ gains for granted. As soon as our now president was elected, I knew I needed to express what was in my heart and thats when You Cannot Censor the Heart came out.

*

A few weeks later, DeBoer and I returned to Zen Pandas photography studio in Kahului. There was a new political body art piece idea, and this one was going to be insane. Although we werent exactly sure how it would turn out, it ended up amazing.

Deboer painted my body as an American flag using black-light body paint. I was tied up in Shibari ropes, a form of Japanese bondage. I was also wearing a V for Vendetta mask, a sort of homage to the international network of political activists and hackers called Anonymous. DeBoer named the piece America Held Hostage. I see it as a direct artistic reflection of how many Americans felt and still feel since Trump took over the Oval Office.

Given the social media success of You Cannot Censor the Heart, America Held Hostage was the perfect follow-up. Like a laser focused on justice, Deboers newest piece burned into the darkest alleys of Americas soul. Then in early January, Deboer went to Los Angeles, where she attended the anti-Trump march and the 750,000-strong Womens March, also in LA. At the anti-Trump march, she painted half of her face with hearts and flowers and the other half as Trump. She marched with her fellow activists holding a sign that said, Which Face of America are You? She told me that shell attend as many marches and demonstrations as she can in the next four years.

Attending these marches have helped me to silence the voices of doubt and insecurity that no one would care about what I cared about, she says. When things this important such as our lives are on the line, artistic expression and public gatherings of like-minded people can boost the soul and heart morale of the nation.

A few weeks ago, Deboer painted me again. The newest of her body art activism collection is a dedication to womens rights and gender equality. Titled Rosie the Resister, she painted me in an illustration-style as Rosie the Riveter, the iconic image of the female defense plant worker created by J.Howard Miller in 1943 for the U.S government.

My overall experience of meeting, getting to know and creating a sisterhood with Deboer has been incredible. Im sure that well be creating more art pieces together, but Im most excited to see where Rachels political art and efforts as a political activist will take her. Given the words and actions of President Trump, she will have a lot of work ahead of her.

Art lovers can support political body art by beginning to paint on themselves, Deboer says. Even face painting and painting words on the body is very powerful. The act of putting color and shape to mental constructs on the human canvas is transformative and forever creatively fulfilling.

Follow Rachel Deboer on Instagram @neverdeboering, on Facebook by searching for Rachel Deboer and online at RachelDeBoer.com.

Photography by Zen Panda Photography

Cover design: Darris Hurst

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‘Empowerment’ feminism is not working we need a far more radical approach to gender equality – The Conversation AU

Posted: at 1:50 pm

An International Womens Day protest march in Sydney.

International Womens Day has come and gone, leaving the annual short burst attention to womens issues in its wake. So now is a good time to look at what emerged from it, and whether gender equity has stalled.

Simone de Beauvoir famously said that women are the second sex, made and not born. Society is what makes us. The use of the term womens issues indicates we are still seen as such, as our presumed concerns are not universal. Feminism should be about ensuring we have the same power as men, so the question is whether women can equally set agendas and determine what matters.

The activities around International Womens Day did not suggest we were even on the way there. There were breakfasts to raise money, events to celebrate individual successes, and some interesting talkfests, but no political plans to implement the ideas.

We gathered at fundraising runs and marched with diverse womens groups waving a wide range of protest banners of protests. Solidarity was symbolised by many wearing newly knitted pink pussy hats to raise funds.

In short, there was much to like. But it seemed to be more social and celebratory than a political event, at a time when major changes and retro populism are threatening both what we have gained and an equitable future. Feminism seems to have lost its political way.

Yet, in extra flow of media attention, and limited protests at what is, there were some who expressed this wider concern. One of those was Jessa Crispin, a US author making waves with her polemic Why I Am Not a Feminist: A Feminist Manifesto.

Crispins case against feminism claims it has become tamed and universal, seeking acceptance and a share of the status quo and so has lost its radical commitment to changing society.

This resonated with my questioning of whether what were real feminist changes were obvious to younger women who grew up after the 1980s, in the more individuated and less socially connected modes of neoliberalism.

When I talked publicly of a 70s badge that stated women who want equality with men lack ambition, most were confused. Most of those over 30 failed to understand that being allowed to share some aspects of male equality was not nearly enough, nor would it lead to wider change. The younger ones, however, often responded with excitement, wanting to know more about serious changes that do not seem to be happening within feminism anymore.

Crispin offered some interesting analysis that suggested that feminist desires for change had been replaced by a universal feminism. In its attempts to become widely accepted, she writes, feminism had become as banal, as non-threatening and ineffective as possible. She goes on to say:

The feminism I support is a full on revolution. Where women are not simply allowed to participate in the world as it already exists but are actively able to reshape it.

Tough words that are obviously designed to stir, but she raises interesting questions about whether a once-dynamic, radical movement has dissipated into fragmented, identity-based subgroups. These often tend to promote self feel-good and bodily self expression as forms of much more personal politics.

Crispin wasnt the only feminist asking such questions. Germaine Greer, my age peer, launched her own critique, saying aiming for equality is a profoundly conservative goal for women. She continued:

What everybody has accepted is the idea of equality feminism. It will change nothing women are drawing level with men in this profoundly destructive world that we live in and, as far as Im concerned, its the wrong way. Were getting nowhere.

If were going to change things I think were going to have to start creating a womens polity that is strong, that has its own way of operating, that makes contact with women in places like Syria, and that challenges the right of destructive nations. Women needed to aim higher and achieve more than simply drawing level with men and entering into traditionally male-dominated fields.

As a sociologist, I think it is important to look at the political environments that created the changes that have occurred since the 1970s. Feminism, like other social movements, was infected by the neoliberal virus that altered politics and policy from the 80s on.

And heres a mea culpa: I argued, in the 80s, for more childcare funding to boost womens paid work. So now we have a market model, creating A$1 billion profit for corporations but excluding children whose parents dont have paid jobs.

This change is an example of the lack of clear feminist opposition to moving from our right to paid work to being obliged to do it.

Feminism did achieve much, but by the 1990s, having removed legal barriers and formal sex discrimination, collective changing of what mattered stopped. There was no interest in funding and developing the social (feminised) areas of societies, so there is little change and some backward slides.

The so-called DIY third wave arose in the 1990s as a much more fragmented movement, raising critiques of Western feminisms as undervaluing diversities. But these became entrenched and often divisive.

Crispin tends to label many of these types of changes as empowerment feminism, a shallow version of political action on personal issues. While this ignores the many community groups that raise funds and run feminist services for example, for victims of domestic violence they do not tackle issues of how we can stop the violence.

Identifying the problems of feminism and talking about it publicly is not enough. Crispin and Greer are right to say that we badly need some substantial feminist input to broaden the options for serious reform of our current politics, which is both seriously macho and damaging.

The over-emphasis on GDP and individual material wellbeing is creating the trust deficit, in which Australians believe governments no longer care about their futures and social wellbeing.

Whether there are those with the political and policy energy out there who can offer broad feminist leadership to get us out of the mess remains to be seen. It requires not just participating in decisions on current terms, but offering serious policy options that allow people to feel good about their social wellbeing and comfortable with the society we live in.

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Queen Geniuses and Sen. Parker host 5th annual Girls Empowerment Conference – Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Posted: at 1:50 pm

On Saturday, March 18, more than 100 young girls between the ages of 14-18 joined state Sen. Kevin Parker and Queen Geniuses Founder and President Regine Roy for the fifthannual"Its In Your Hands"Girls Empowerment Conference at Medgar Evers College in Crown Heights. According to Sen. Parkers office the event catered to young girls from across the five boroughs and had a full day of programming, including inspiring presentations, a panel discussion, live performances by local cultural organizations and five breakout session workshops all focusing on supporting students to take full ownership and responsibility over their future legacies

A little bit of inspiration goes a long way. It is important to give young ladies a platform to confidently share their hopes, dreams and aspirations with each other, said Roy. They are able to develop a strong and purposeful foundation for themselves when given the opportunity to share their brilliance with one another.I am thankful to Sen. Kevin Parker for his continuous partnership and for making the empowerment of women and girls a priority.

Activist and Sexuality EducatorEricka Hartserved as the keynote speaker for this year's event. Music industry executives, entrepreneurs and community leaders also supported the event by offering personal stories about their professional journeys and sharing powerful messages for the young women to internalize throughout the day.

Queen Geniuses, Inc. is an educational consulting company that offers the Reclaiming Your Throne leadership development curriculum that engages young women in discussions around identity, obstacles, goals, love and sex, family and the media, according to the group. The series enhances students critical thinking skills, soft skills development and sense of self-actualization. With the opportunity for teenage girls to figuratively sit in their throne, they get to assess how they are governing over their personal empire, their lives.

"I have been a proud partner since the inception of the conference, and I truly believe in what comes out of the daylong event, said Parker. Ms. Roys dedication and confidence in our collective ability to improve the lives of others drives her every year to produce a better conference for our young girls, and I am humble to be a part of such a timely and essential event.

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Review ‘Deidra & Laney Rob a Train’ Is Dual Genre Delight – Film School Rejects

Posted: at 1:50 pm

Contrary to the title, Deidra and Laney rob many trains. They become prolific thieves, mastering and streamlining their illegal profession into the delicate series of events we usually see in heist movies. All while the sisters attend high school. Yes, Deidra & Laney Rob a Train is both a caper film and a high school comedy and for every moment it stumbles at one, it excels at the other.

Put into a desperate living situation after their mothers (Danielle Nicolet) nervous breakdown-induced incarceration (she liberates a TV from her blue-poloed electronics store job, then this mortal coil), elder sister Deidra (Ashleigh Murray) must care for her younger sister Laney (Rachel Crow) and kid brother Jet (Lance Gray) against forces such as mortgage payments and snooping CPS agents. I like movies that understand how a small part of the world works and use that knowledge to inform how their worlds unfold. Deidra & Laney understands a few parts very well: commercial trains, high school drama, and the suburban working class.

On top of finding money to pay for bail, bills, and food for the family, Deidras a senior. Valedictorian, too. That means college isunexpectedly for her schoolan option. We learn this via an animated performance by Sasheer Zamata as the worlds coolest guidance counselor, a job that movies already romanticize like English teacher or lawyer. Shes here to get Deidra into the Ivy League so they can both move on to bigger and better things, but pressure mounts as the problems pile up and the solutions dwindle.

Sydney Freelands direction keeps the film inventive, snappy, and bubblythe perfect combination to bridge the gap between unpopular Laneys surprise nomination for Miss Teen Idaho and the decision to start stealing from boxcars. This final solution comes not just from the meandering track behind the familys house, but a meandering ex-member of the family. Their father Chet (David Sullivan), deftly defined as a complex combination of charming and toxic, is a yard mechanic whose trainjacking knowledge offsets his deadbeat finances. He mentions the crime in passing, but by now we know that Deidra is an ambitious girl.

Then the fun really starts. A beautiful montage of planning, explanation, and execution empowers the sisters with all the moxie of Hollywoods vaultbusters and an easy-breezy familial bond forged by hateful words and loving gestures. The script may include a few too many pet names (glitter bunny?) that underestimate how believable their relationship already is to its audience, but the pace is quick and the conversations always feel real. First time screenwriter Shelby Farrell captures the dichotomy of petty immaturity and graduate-and-youre-not-my-problem responsibility thrust upon high schoolers on the cusp of the real world. She also shows how far past that cusp some studentsminority students, impoverished students, disabled students, anyone that may not have the same privileges as the restare pushed.

And yes, the family members (aside from Chet) are people of color. Its not an accident. The film allows them to be simultaneously hard workers undone by the system and badasses finding empowerment where they shouldnt (either by robbing trains or finding the small pleasures in prison), weaving complexity where kitsch or indie insufferability could overwhelm. The family is real, even if the train is just the way we understand them. Theyre the 63% of Americans whore one emergency away from being on the street. The crime is the dreaded hypothetical, discussed over microwaved dinner, proving both desperation and ability.

All this subtlety would be for naught without the leads. Ashleigh Murray wows whether in science class or busting a lock with a hoe. She crackles and sparks as she seeks personal success, preens and flexes when she achieves itall standing completely still. She and Rachel Crow share the quick jabber and lived-in facial expressions that fade the idea that theyre actors far into the background. When theyre in front of us, all were wondering is what theyll do after throwing a boxload of jeans off a moving train, forever changing the meaning of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

The script can get a bit too cutesy at times (all the basic white girls at school obsess over Taylor Swift) and Jets character exists as cliched plot motivation more than anything (always need a child being threatened by authority), but the films a delightfully vulgar blast. The teens talk like teens. Its surprisingly refreshing to hear Aw, shit from a young person outside a Judd Apatow film. Tim Blake Nelsons over-zealous train cop is the one tonal misstep in the whole precariously pitched movie, somehow not threatening enough while being an attempt at the wrong kind of humor. The rest of the film is so sharp that his characters bumbling makes it feel a lot more low-rent than it deserves. Heroes of this caliber, even if theyre teen criminals that use their money to stunt on their bitchy ex-friends, deserve a villain to match.

Im not wont to recommend the creation of more films in a genre mashup so rife with pretentious pratfalls as teen/heist, but if theyre all about sisters finding personal empowerment through a bit of Robin Hoodery (and theyre all directed by Freeland), Im game for much more.

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Trump fails to strike health care deal with Freedom Caucus – Politico

Posted: at 1:49 pm

President Donald Trump will huddle with the arch-conservative House Freedom Caucus at the White House, just hours before Speaker Paul Ryan is set to bring the bill to the floor for a vote. | AP Photo

UPDATE 1:35 p.m.:

President Donald Trump failed to reach a deal with members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus to amend the Republican Obamacare replacement bill ahead of an expected vote later Thursday.

Story Continued Below

Many lawmakers from the three-dozen-member caucus huddled at the White House with Trump and his senior leadership team, but they emerged without guaranteeing their support for the GOP bill. With little margin for defections and eroding support from moderates, House leaders need most Freedom Caucus members to support the bill.

Original story below:

President Donald Trump will engage in the most high-stakes negotiation of his young presidency Thursday, as he tries to sell hard-line conservatives on a GOP Obamacare replacement they despise.

Trump will huddle with the arch-conservative House Freedom Caucus at the White House, just hours before Speaker Paul Ryan is set to bring the bill to the floor for a vote.

There were daunting obstacles to a deal heading into the decisive meeting.

A number of Freedom Caucus members have suggested Trumps latest concession repealing Obamacare's mandate that insurance plans provide a minimum level of "essential" benefits isnt enough. The group wants a complete repeal of all Affordable Care Act regulations including popular provisions Trump promised he would maintain.

The conservatives' target list encompasses a prohibition against discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions and a requirement that adults up to age 26 can remain on their parents health insurance.

Repealing [essential health benefits], w/out making other substantial changes, would make the bill worse, not better, tweeted Freedom Caucus member Justin Amash (R-Mich.). It would hurt the sickest people on exchanges.

If Trump fails to clinch an agreement with the group, the Republican effort to repeal Obamacare will be all but dead.

Ryan (R-Wis.) can afford to lose only 22 votes on the floor. The House Freedom Caucus has three dozen members, who have vowed to block the bill unless they get what they want. Roughly a dozen centrist Republicans also have come out against the bill.

The Freedom Caucus has been a constant thorn in the side of House GOP leadership, sinking bills its members believe were too accommodating to Democrats. The group was expected to fall in line behind Trump after he won. Its refusal to do so on the health care bill has moved the legislation toward the far right.

But now, the Freedom Caucus has to decide whether it's truly willing to deliver a stinging defeat to the Republican president.

Many House Republicans are furious at the Freedom Caucus, saying the group keeps moving the goal posts, and they argue that the group really just wants to sink the health care bill altogether.

The president is good at negotiating, but he has to have someone who wants to get to yes, Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), an ardent Trump supporter, told POLITICO. I was never able to sell a car or a truck to someone who didnt want a car or a truck. It just doesnt work. And thats where we are right now. I dont think theyre really interested in getting to an end.

He then added: Maybe the end is: making sure it doesnt pass.

Group insiders contend they havent changed their demands at all. They said theyve always needed a repeal of all Obamacare regulations.

The Freedom Caucus risks overplaying its hand if it continues to hold out support for the bill. Trump has made clear he wants to get health care passed and move on. If he loses his patience with them, they could find themselves in his crosshairs.

The meeting with Trump comes not 24 hours after the group huddled with Vice President Mike Pence and Trumps most senior advisers. In recent days, the group had been emphasizing that it needed a repeal of Obamacare's "essential health benefits" requirement something GOP leaders for months have said would be fatal to the bill in the Senate because of the chambers arcane budget rules.

But Trump officials asked Ryan to reassess that diagnosis, and GOP leadership agreed to add the provision.

The odds of the entire group coming on board without a commitment to axing all Affordable Care Act regulations, however, look slim.

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Freedom Caucus, Trump reach ‘agreement in principle’ on … – The Hill – The Hill

Posted: at 1:49 pm

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) said Wednesday night he and President Trump have come to an agreement in principle on a plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare, just one day before a highly anticipated House vote on the bill.

The president and I came to an agreement in principle, Meadows said during an interview with Fox Newss Sean Hannity, adding that he was still ironing out a few final details with the White House.

I think what we're trying to do now is make sure that our agreement is actually something that can be executed in a way that passes the Senate, he added. There's still work to be done, but I can tell you that the president is all engaged."

But those changes have now alienated some centrist Republicans, who met with Ryan and his leadership team for more than two hours Wednesday night to discuss the impact of moving the bill to the right.

After the meeting, one of the leaders of the centrist Tuesday Group, Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.), announced he was opposed to the legislation, warning that the bill would cause too many Americans to lose insurance coverage.

I believe this bill, in its current form, will lead to the loss of coverage and make insurance unaffordable for too many Americans, Dent said in a statement, particularly for low-to-moderate income and older individuals.

Meadows said Trump has been the crucial factor in working toward a deal and even personally called him during a Freedom Caucus meeting Wednesday night.

A GOP source said the White House has offered to include repeal of the essential health benefits in the bill.

Our request has been consistent about Title I and essential health benefits and so that's really what we're discussing,Meadows said earlier in the day as he left a meeting with Freedom Caucus colleagues.

We're encouraged just based on the real willingness of not only the White House but our leadership to make this bill better, he added, noting he hopes to work around the clock to hopefully have a final deal by around noon Thursday.

Meadows has changed his comments markedly since earlier in the day Wednesday, when he pledged that leaders lacked the votes to pass the bill and called on them to start over.

Conservatives say repeal of the essential health benefits, which mandate what an insurance plan must cover, is necessary to bring down premiums. Republican leaders had been wary, though, given that it is in doubt whether repeal of those regulations would be allowed under Senate rules that are preventing a Democratic filibuster.

Sources said the House GOP has gotten new information that including repeal of the essential health benefits would not be fatal to the entire bill in the Senate, though the provision could still be challenged under Senate rules.

But Democrats are warning that repeal of the essential health benefits will not be permitted.

Some Freedom Caucus members are more skeptical a deal can happen.

Rep. Mo BrooksMo BrooksFreedom Caucus, Trump reach 'agreement in principle' on healthcare GOP faces risky decision on ObamaCare vote Defying Trump, Freedom Caucus insists it'll oppose GOP ObamaCare replacement MORE (R-Ala.) indicated that the White House is only offering repeal of the essential health benefits and not other insurance regulations that conservatives say must be repealed.

"Weve said many times that essential health benefits by themselves would not be enough, added Rep. Justin AmashJustin AmashHealthcare fight pits Trump against Club for Growth Freedom Caucus, Trump reach 'agreement in principle' on healthcare Defying Trump, Freedom Caucus insists it'll oppose GOP ObamaCare replacement MORE (R-Mich.).

"Theres no deal in the offing, Amash added. We dont have any language on anything. Were not sure what kind of language well see."

Earlier in the day Trump won over conservative Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) by pledging a Senate vote on an amendment to add repeal of essential health benefits.

But Meadows said that a promised Senate vote is not good enough and that changes must be made in the House.

There is no denying why he has made so many deals, Meadows said of Trump. I thought I was a good dealmaker; I'm nothing compared to the president.

Cristina Marcos and Max Greenwood contributed.

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