Monthly Archives: April 2020

Nobody Wants To Go To Work And Feel Like Theyre Gambling: Nurses Weigh Principles Vs. Safety In Virus Fight – WBEZ

Posted: April 11, 2020 at 3:59 am

Paramedics rushed another critical COVID-19 patient into the emergency room, and Chicago nurse Cynthia Riemer felt her adrenaline kick in.

Your heart starts racing, she said. You're thinking, How quickly and safely can we get them intubated? Because if we don't, in the next five or 10 minutes, they could stop breathing. You're thinking: 'What's my next step? Do we need more help?' The more people in the room, the more exposed, so staff stand outside the glass door and you say, Hey, get me this! Hey, get me that!

Her protective gear: a hospital-supplied yellow gown, foot covers and an N95 mask plus, from Home Depot, a welders mask, which she says "helps conserve what we have.

Riemer is 41, a few years younger than a New Orleans ICU nurse who died last week from the virus. She and others became nurses to relieve suffering, to save lives. But with supply shortages, changing guidelines and evolving science, some now are asking: Did I sign up to be a hero?

One nurse in Baltimore, a father with young children, said he began to think about quitting his job after reading a scientific report that said the virus might spread not only in droplets, but also in tinieraerosolizedparticles. He worries, too, about mask shortages and poor crisis planning.

Nobody wants to go to work and feel like theyre gambling, said the nurse, who requested anonymity because he feared retaliation from his employer. "Very few of us get into this field to be heroes.

Each day brings new questions for nurses, who are deciding how much theyre willing to sacrifice, said Cynda Rushton, professor of nursing and bioethics at Johns Hopkins University.

Who am I? What do I stand for? How can I have integrity in the midst of this chaos?" she said. "How do I live with myself at the end of the day?

One nurse posting in anonline forumwrote Feb. 28: The nightmare is real and it has come home. The posts will be collected and published in a report after the pandemic subsides. It already has a title: Never Again.

For weeks, hospitals and clinics across the United States have struggled to stay afloat amid a crippling shortage of personal protective equipment, including N95 masks, which filter out 95 percent of particulates in the air. The masks are typically thrown away after a single use, but nurses and doctors are now being instructed to clean and recycle their masks, with some using a single mask for a whole week.

Absolutely Im conflicted, said Amber Weber, 38, a labor and delivery nurse at Lutheran Medical Center in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, who has been cross-trained in anticipation of a surge of COVID-19 patients. An eight-hour shift refreshed her knowledge of central lines and feeding tubes, equipment she hasnt used since she graduated from nursing school 15 years ago.

More than one family member has told me I should quit, that its not worth it, said Weber, who has two young children. But her professional values won out.

I didnt go into the nursing profession to abandon my patients when their need is greatest, she said, or to abandon the other health care workers in the hospital when theyre drowning."

In Baltimore, nurse practitioner Katharine Billipp, 38, works with patients who are poor, very sick and staying in shelters, encampments or abandoned buildings. Two weeks ago, her husband came down with a fever and a dry cough, classic symptoms of COVID-19. She stayed home while awaiting his test results, which didnt come back negative for almost two weeks, making her feel "completely useless as she read about the worsening crisis.

Now back at work at Health Care for the Homeless, Billipp was given one surgical mask to last a week, which comes off only when she needs another cup of coffee.

Reusing masks is a problem," she said. Its a petri dish to collect any airborne particles throughout the day, Still, one mask for a week is better than no mask.

The gray area of all of this, it takes a mental toll, Billipp said. We find ourselves on the front lines, without proper equipment, being the potential vector of disease to our underserved and most at-risk patients.

The University of Illinois Hospital, where Riemer works, last week granted the hazard pay requested by the Illinois Nurses Association.

For his safety, Riemer and her husband are keeping six feet apart inside their house, but you cant just give up because it gets tough. Thats not an option," she said. In her free time, she is sewing cloth masks for co-workers.

Do we cry? Sure, absolutely, we cry, she said of her colleagues. We get angry, we get frustrated. But the majority of us are not willing to give up.

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Nobody Wants To Go To Work And Feel Like Theyre Gambling: Nurses Weigh Principles Vs. Safety In Virus Fight - WBEZ

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UK gambling consultant: 80% chance gambling turns into the new tobacco – Gambling Insider – In-depth Analysis for the Gaming Industry

Posted: at 3:59 am

Speaking during a Bet 2020 online conference, gambling consultant Steve Donoughue made some regulatory forecasts in regards to the UK gambling industry.

After the Gambling Commission put an end to credit card usage for betting purposes earlier this year, Donoughue believes affordability will be the next focus for increased regulation.

He says: Well have affordability; that will be the killer. I think well have increased regulation and basically I think we will end up with a limit to what you can lose per month.

Itll be purely arbitrary it will be say, 500 ($623). If you want to lose more than 500 a month, you will have to go and prove to your gambling operator all about your sanity, your wealth, your source of wealth, probably the size of your feet and what you like to eat on a Tuesday.

Donoughue believes increased regulation stems in part from a new national health approach towards problem gambling.

He argues that regulators need to avoid placing gambling in the same category as alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs.

Donoughue says: The idea is the more gambling is restricted, the more you will reduce problem gambling.

There is absolutely no evidence that this is the case. Problem gamblers will then go to the black market, where there is no obligation to protect them.

There is an 80% chance gambling turns into the new tobacco with no advertising, real restraints on marketing.

There is a 20% chance of nationalising gambling one gambling organisation run by the state and thats it.

UK gambling consultant: 80% chance gambling turns into the new tobacco - Gambling Insider - In-depth Analysis for the Gaming Industry

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Here’s What You Need to Know Before Gambling Online – – JuveFC

Posted: at 3:59 am

Gambling online is not an easy hobby to master especially if you are just going to start. This is a new way to gamble and is patronized by a lot of players because of how easy it is to place bets and win money, even by just staying at home. To get started, there are a few things that you need to know before gambling online.

The popularity of online gambling has allowed fraudulent sites to appear everywhere. Newbies easily fall into the traps of the anomalous sites just because of how good and irresistible their offers are. Since it is difficult to know if a certain site is legitimate for sure, you should do further research before committing and signing up with any website. To be sure, ask around friends and frequent casino goers if they have any recommendations. It is easier to trust a website if people you know in real life can attest to it. Even though you likely have verified the authenticity of a site, you still have to be careful in giving out your personal details especially your identification and bank details. These can be used by online scammers to extort money and identity from you.

If you are starting to play online gambling then you would notice how common free games are offered together with other bonuses and promotions. Legitimate sites would offer such and it is recommended that you take advantage of it. As stated on Allvideoslots, an online casino website, most free games are offered to players to entice them in trying out more games on the website. This will allow a player to grow more on experience and expertise. Since newbies most likely have no idea where to start, this can give them a preview of what to expect in a game.

Do you know if online gambling is legal in your country? You should know for sure because laws differ from one place to another. There are countries that prohibit certain types of online games while some allow it in all forms. There are also differences in claiming prices which depends on how much the winning is. When it comes to tax, there are countries that require its citizens to declare all their gambling winnings for the right taxation while some allow their people to enjoy it for themselves fully. When it comes to age limit, most countries allow people over 18 while it varies again in other parts of the world. Not knowing where you might get in trouble can result in jail time or fine. To be sure, consult with your lawyer or legal adviser.

Playing games online is a good way to spend your time at home whenever you have the time to spare and the money to bet around. As long as you choose a safe website to try it out, there is no harm in trying online gambling for yourself. You just have to ensure that you are within the law and you maintain self-control all throughout.

Site Administrator and Owner. Started Juvefc.com way back in 2001, still going strong, still supporting one club. Solo Juve.

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Here's What You Need to Know Before Gambling Online - - JuveFC

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Dont’s of Casino gambling before going to play – – VENTS Magazine

Posted: at 3:59 am

Whenever you are looking forward to getting engaged in,it is a must for you to understand about your limit. If you feel like that you are done winning and you are done losing, then quit the game. Do not feel like again, and again by investing the money, you will be able to earn the more. Therefore it is a must for you to understand that you are not getting engaged in the things which are unnecessarily full for you.

Also, when you have earned good money this time, and you feel like that you can earn more, then make sure you are not the surrounding yourself with reading at all. If you surround yourself with the agreed, then you are just creating some unnecessary issues for your upcoming task.

Apart from this, you must have an idea about the donts linked with it. Here all the donts of it are mentioned:-

Dont chase your losses:

At the very first, it is a must for you to understand that you are not chasing your losses at all. Sometimes the scenario is being so that we are in loss, and we try to get rid of it by investing some more money in it. Therefore it is a must for you to understand when you feel like you are losing this time dont get engaged in it for more. Try to quit the game and try next time. Do not feel like that at one time, we will be able to recover The Lost you have done.

Dont drink too much:

Usually, people have a habit that whenever they are getting engaged incasino Korea, they used to drink as well. Drinking is not bad, but it is a must that you are drinking in the limit as well. If you have drunk too much, then you will lose your senses, and it is a must for a gambler that he is in his senses. If they are not in his sense, then they are just on the verge of facing the loss. If you do not wish to be among them, then do not reply to drink too much.

Dont rely on betting systems:

It is also a suggestion to you that you do not rely on the betting system at all. There might be a chance that with whom you are playing, they will fascinate you to get engaged in the betting system. But do not go with it because the betting system is another name of loss. If you have lost this time, then there is no coming back from it. Therefore it is a must for you to recognize whether you wish to enjoy it by playing individually or not. If you feel like that betting will be the right choice for you to consider, then you just have a myth only. It is not the right choice, for example, because there are very few chances of winning.

Dont be Rude:

Sometimes frustrations make you feel worried, and also you feel like that it is not working, and you become rude. It is a suggestion that with all the dealers and with all those with whom you are saying, you are not rude. You are listening to everything they are saying. It is unacceptable behavior, and they will not tolerate it at all. If you do not become among those who will not be able to enter the casino hall again, then make sure you are not rude to them. It is a must for you to maintain your limits, and also you are letting others do their job as well.

Dont let yourself miss out on extra value:

If you become among those, who are you getting fascinated by the offers provided to you bycasino Koreawhenever you are getting engaged in the casino, make sure you are not doing the same at all. Sometimes in the moment of winning some more, we lose whatever we have in our hands. Therefore make sure you are not going to eat at all. Some of the offers will be available to you, which will let you feel like you must get angry. But search for the same effect and then further get towards a decision.

These are the things which are a must for you to remember whenever you are looking forward to getting engaged incasino Korea. Make sure you are not focusing on the thing which is not letting you feel like you are playing the game badly. Focus on every aspect and then for the get engaged in it.is a game with multiple factors. Therefore get aware of it and then further become the part.

Dont's of Casino gambling before going to play - - VENTS Magazine

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Bloomberry Resorts Have Enough Cash to Weather the Storm – GamblingNews.com

Posted: at 3:59 am

During these unprecedented times when the gambling industry is among the most impacted from the coronavirus due to the closure of land-based gaming facilities, Enrique Razon, Chairman and CEO of Manilla-based Bloomberry Resorts Corp, is one of the few that places human beings before businesses.

The billionaire that ranked 565 in Forbes Worlds Billionaires List 2020 shared his expectations that he had already written off 2020 as the global economy had already been hit hard by the outbreak of the virus.

His company, Bloomberry Resorts, owns and operates Solaire Resort & Casino in Entertainment City on Luzon Island in the Philippines. Starting March 15, the casino has been shut, after the countrys gaming regulator, PAGCOR, issued a directive and ordered gaming facilities to temporarily close doors, to minimize the person-to-person transmission of the virus. Initially, the closure was expected to last until April 12, but was later extended until the end of the month.

We will have to tally up the losses later on. The only thing that counts now is defeating the virus.

As much as any other casino operator, Bloomberry would feel the impact on its revenue from the ongoing health crisis and implemented mitigation measures to contain the spread of the disease. Enrique Razon, however, did not have much concerns related to cash depletion, claiming his group was standing pretty healthy and would be able to weather the storm.

The real test for the business would be when the quarantine measures are being lifted, the billionaire that also owns and chairs a port operator company, stipulated in the interview. Enrique Razon is convinced that the virus and the lockdowns impacted everyone, and even after the restrictions are off, people would focus spending only on basic needs such as food, and even prefer to save money instead of spend on things they do not need to survive. Therefore, the economic recovery would be painful and slow, Mr Razon concluded.

Lifting lockdowns in this environment is going to be very tricky. There has to be a plan, its not just one day to the next, so I think a lot of people are under-estimating what this is going to take.

His opinion is opposite to the voices raised from the US, where billionaires called for the authorities to bring back people to work, even at the expense of losing more human lives, as the damage of continuing to keep the economy closed could be worse than that. Such a controversial rallying call, coming from the people that stand to lose the most, and especially when hospitals are at a tipping point capacity-wise, can very easily split the society and have unpredictable effects.

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Bloomberry Resorts Have Enough Cash to Weather the Storm - GamblingNews.com

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Their clubhouses are closed, travel is out and gambling has dried up. How COVID-19 is changing organized crime in the GTA – Toronto Star

Posted: at 3:59 am

Their favourite GTA cafes, restaurants and gyms are closed and theyre uncomfortable meeting their associates on the streets, to walk and talk the business.

And the severe travel restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic mean they cant jet off to Italy or Mexico or even just Montreal or New York make deals.

Social isolation has hit the underworld hard, including in the GTA and Hamilton area, experts say.

Everyone is cash poor, said one GTA private investigator who often bumps up against local mobsters.

Theyre suffering like the rest of us, said Federico Varese, a global organized crime expert and author who teaches criminology at Oxford University.

A lot of wiseguys and bikers have money in property, so theyll lose like every other landlord, said Paul Manning, a former Hamilton undercover police officer who investigated organized crime. Debt collection will be an issue, he added.

Some southern Ontario mobsters have interests in construction firms, which are now shut down, and even those who make money stealing construction machinery are hurting, Manning said.

But probably the hardest-hit segment of the underworld involves illegal sports gambling.

Conscious Evolution | Futurist Transhuman News Blog

Posted: at 3:58 am

Stephen Scott of Underwood Gardens to speak Aug. 8

On August 8 come hear Stephen Scott of Underwood Gardens in Chino Valley, explain how sowing a cover crop in the late summer/early fall will help build your garden soil. Stephen reports that theyve seen tremendous results with bindweed and morning glory both with their raised beds and with customers reports, so this should be valuable info! Meeting is at 6 pm at Pine Shadows Clubhouse, 2050 W. SR 89A, Cottonwood. Bring a friend and well see you on Tuesday, August 8. Questions? Call Janice Montgomery, 634-7172.

Reminder: The Verde Valley Seed Library, sponsored by the Verde Thumbs Gardeners, will open every other Saturday from 11 1 at the Cottonwood Library beginning August 19. There are lots of free veggie, herbs and flower seeds for you to check out.

Solar Viewing at the Library

The first total solar eclipse since 1979 to be seen over the North American Continent will occur on Monday, August 21, 2017. Although totality will not be seen from Arizona, the Moon will cover up nearly sixty-eight percent of the sun for those in the Verde Valley. Join J.D. Maddy of the Astronomers of Verde Valley for a presentation all about the Sun.

Those attending will have a chance to see the Sun safely with special telescopes designed to view the Sun in different wavelengths of light. Come out and learn about the Sun and how to view it safely. The presentation will be on Wednesday, August 9 in Library Meeting Room B. It will begin at 12 p.m. and the solar viewing will begin outside the library at 1 p.m. Free solar viewing glasses will be given out to all who attend. This event is free and open to the public. The library is located at 100 S 6th St in Cottonwood.

The Seed Library returns to Cottonwood Public Library

The Cottonwood Public Library is once again partnering with the Verde Thumbs Gardening Club and offering a seed lending program for the fall growing season. The Seed Library is a collection of free, open-pollinated seeds and a community of gardeners coming together to celebrate their hobby. With a seed library you can check out seeds and grow the plants. From those plants you can save some seeds and then return them to the Seed Library for the next growing season. Eventually these seeds become adapted to our soil and climate and are more productive.

The Seed Library will reopen on Saturday, August 19 and free seeds will be available to be checked out from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the parking lot lobby. Volunteers will be available to answer questions and help with seed selection. The Seed Library will be open every other Saturday, starting August 19 through October 14. The library is located at 100 S 6th St in Cottonwood.

Come Back Buddy ready to rock at Clarkdale Concert in the Park

On Saturday, August 12th, Clarkdale Community Services is proud to present Come Back Buddy. They will perform 7-9 p.m. at the Clarkdale Town Park gazebo. This concert is FREE to the public.

COME BACK BUDDY is a 4-piece rock-n-roll band inspired by the legendary Buddy Holly and the Crickets. The trios repertoire includes the music of many artists from the 50s era including Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Ricky Nelson, and of course, Buddy Holly. Mike Randall provides Come Back Buddys lead vocals and guitar. Accompanied by Janine Randall on bass and Don Rinehart, Austin Case, or Tim Kimbro on drums. Dean Randall on Tenor Sax joins Come Back Buddy on stage at select performances. The band has a strong foundation and a strong following! The bands purpose is to add a fun and musical atmosphere to any event. For some, Come Back Buddy is an education in nostalgia, while for others its a walk down memory lane. So, if youre looking to turn back the clock, or simply want to hear some great music and hits from the 50s, Come Back Buddy is the band for you! Visit: http://www.comebackbuddy.com for the latest news, performance schedule, and music samples.

The park is located in the center of the towns historic district on Main Street, between 10th and 11th Street. There is a 50/50 raffle which all proceeds benefit the Concerts in the Park. Remember to bring your own seating and that alcohol is not permitted in the park.

Vending spaces are available and can be arranged by contacting Community Services at (928) 639-2460. For more information please visit: http://www.clarkdale.az.gov/concerts_in_the_park.htm or contact Clarkdale Community Services at (928)639-2460; email: community.services@clarkdale.az.gov. For up to the minute updates on the status of scheduled concerts visit the Clarkdale Parks & Recreation/Clark Memorial Library Facebook page or call the Concert Hotline: (928)639-2492.

Toys for Tots Golf Tournament set for Oct. 7

On Saturday, Oct. 7, the 12th annual Toys for Tots Golf Tournament will take place at Verde Santa Fe Golf Course in Cornville.

The entry of $85 includes scramble format, green fees, cart, range balls, lunch, promotional item, individual and team cash prizes. ($75 for uniformed services--military, police and fire)

$65 for Verde Santa Fe members. Limited to 80 paid players. Raffles (before golf) and silent auction (after). 8:00 sign in and shotgun start at 9:00. Beverage cart will be available.

Larry Green Chevrolet will provide a new car for a hole-in-one on a designated hole. Bring an unwrapped toy over $15 value and receive a raffle ticket. More raffle tickets will be on sale as you check in. Register 1-4 players, ladies and/or men.

Forms available at the golf course or contact Krys (928) 649-3747 email krysvogler@gmail.com for registration or questions. Early entries help us with planning.

Flight of Obscurity XII on display at Yavapai College Aug. 22

Nationally renowned installation artist, Nathaniel Foley is the featured artist for a solo exhibition titled Flight of Obscurity XII at the Verde Art Gallery on the Yavapai College Campus, 601 Black Hills Drive Bldg. F-105.

Flight of Obscurity XII features sculptures consisting of cones integrated with spires held together under tension, supported by utilitarian containers. This fragile relationship of forms exposes the delicate balance between grace and imminent danger, like the fleeting ballet of courting birds or hostile dogfight between foes. Referring to aeronautical form, the sculptures communicate tension and dance in direct opposition to fundamental forces.

Flight of Obscurity XII will be available to the public at the Verde Art Gallery at Yavapai College 601 S. Black Hills Drive, Bldg. F-105 Clarkdale, AZ, from August 22 through September 15, 2017. The new gallery hours are Tuesday -Friday 10-AM to 3PM. A Special Preview with the artist will be held on August 3, from 5 7pm. This event is free and open to the public.

Camp Verde Quilters Group holding meetings

The Camp Verde Quilters Group meets the 2nd Monday of each month at 8:30 A.M., at the Dennys restaurant located at 1630 W. Highway 260, Camp Verde, Arizona. Please join us to discuss quilts and quilting. We meet monthly to share ideas and plans for the Bi-Annual Quilt Show which is held during the Fort Verde Days Celebration in October. The next Quilt Show will be in 2018. Ongoing plans for the show include a Country Store with fabrics, books, vintage quilts, textiles and even sewing machines. Proceeds will benefit the quilt show and charitable organizations. We also share quilt projects we are working on or have completed. All quilters are welcome! Our next meeting is on Monday, August 14.

Sherman Andrus in Concert

The Verde Valley Church of the Nazarene invites everyone to come and enjoy Sherman Andrus sing during the morning service on Sunday, Aug. 6 at 10:45 a.m. Be sure to bring your friends and family as you will enjoy hearing him Praise the Lord.

Sherman Andrus is an American gospel singer, who was the lead singer with the mainstream Christian music group, the Imperials. He has been a very prolific artist who has been involved in one way or another with thirty gospel albums to date.

*With pic

Sunset Yoga & Wine at Yavapai College

Sunset Yoga & Wine. Enjoy an expansive yoga class on the patios of Yavapai Colleges Southwest Wine Center, followed by a delightful glass of their local, student made wine. This relaxing, Friday evening class is led by yoga instructor, Roxanne W~. 4:30pm, 601 Black Hills Drive, Clarkdale. $11 with wine or $6 for the yoga class only. For more info contact the Southwest Wine Center at (928) 634-6566.

August events calendar at Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot

August will be filled with a lot of fun and educational special programs at both Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National Monuments! Here are some of our featured events:

How Did Montezuma Castle Get Its Name?

Montezuma Castle, Friday, August 4th 9:00am-11:00am

Joint presentation with Fort Verde State Historic Park, to be repeated from 2:00pm-4:00pm at Fort Verde.

Ancient TechnologyArrow making

Tuzigoot, Saturday, August 19th 10:00am-12:00pm

Monthly demonstrations by Zack Curcija of Echoes from the Past School of Ancient Technology, every third Saturday of the month through the end of the year.

Founders Day Fee Free

Friday, August 25thAll National Parks will be fee free in honor of the National Park Services 101st birthday.

Bat Blitz! (rescheduled)

Tuzigoot, Friday, August 25thJoin us for the free event onFriday, Aug 25thfrom6:30pm to 9:00pmfor a peek inside the life of the only flying mammal in the world. The evening will begin at6:30pmwith a ranger talk all about bats. Attendees can learn about the mysteries and misconceptions that surround these amazing night creatures.

Sacred Scarlets Macaw Program

Montezuma Castle, Friday, August 25th 10:00am 11:00am

Tuzigoot, Sunday, August 27th 10:00am 11:00am

Sacred Scarlets presents lectures and demonstrations featuring a young, beautiful captive-bred Scarlet Macaw. These lectures and demonstrations address conservation as well as the Scarlet Macaws fascinating history in American Southwest culture.

Montezuma Castle National Monument is located at 2800 Montezuma Castle Highway, Camp Verde, AZ 86322. Tuzigoot National Monument is located at 25 Tuzigoot Road, Clarkdale, AZ. For additional information, call 928-567-3322 or visit http://www.nps.gov/tuzi and http://www.nps.gov/moca and select the calendar icon.

For the latest updates on events and programs, find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @TuzigootNPS and @MontezumaNPS

More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for Americas 417 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities.

Know your numbers, choose your lifestyle

Camp Verde Community Library offers FREEHealth Screenings FridayAugust 4th,between9 am and 3 pm. These non-fasting screenings for cholesterol, diabetes and blood pressure are sponsored by Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH) and Verde Valley Medical Centers.

During the 20 minute non-fasting Biometric screening you will not only get your Numbers but a healthcare professional will go over your results with you to help you understand the connection between your numbers and healthy lifestyle habits.

Camp Verde Community Library is located at 130 Black Bridge Road. For more information call NAH at 928-853-0879 or contact the Library at 928-554-8391.

Using essential oils to beat the heat

Thursday, August 17 1-3 p.m., FREE CLASS at the Camp Verde Community Library. Summer heat got you down? Essential oils can help -- quickly and naturally!

Learn about the intricate and reliable interaction between essential oils and your body and mind, and you will have a powerful and scientifically proven tool for keeping your cool and protecting your health and well-being. Many oils are also appropriate for our four-legged friends!

Pre-registration is advised due to space considerations.

Call or text Honey Rubin 404-626-5535 or Sarah Jensen 928-451-4847.

Forum on education in Arizona

The Sedona/Verde Valley United Education Team is inviting the public to attend an informative presentation: Education: Whats Happening in Arizona and How Will the Proposed Federal Budget Affect Education. The presentation will be held at the Cottonwood Public Library in Library Meeting Room A at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 5th. The library is located at 100 S 6th St in Cottonwood.

Job Fair at Cottonwood Library

Presented by Goodwill Industries, a Hiring Fest will be held at the Cottonwood Public Library on Wednesday, August 9 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Multiple employers from around the Verde Valley will be on hand with job opportunities for a variety of different career paths. The Hiring Fest will take place in Library Meeting Room B. The library is located at 100 S 6th St in Cottonwood.

Free nutrition workshop

Join Doctor Sandra Bonhomme as she presents a free workshop called Healthier Nutrition Habits for Life. Those attending will have a better understanding of the evolution and global causes of obesity in America, gluten sensitivity, dairies and processed foods. Bonhomme has a PhD in Nutrition from the Paris Descartes University in France, as well as a specialized degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics. She has a passion for helping people appreciate nutrition as a crucial discipline for health and prevention. Bonhomme also graduated from a French Pastry School in Paris and has developed gluten-free, dairy-free and healthy traditional French pastries. This workshop will take place in Library Meeting Room B at the Cottonwood Public Library on Saturday, August 12 from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. The Library is located at 100 S 6th St in Cottonwood.

Author visit with Carol Rifon

Author Carol Rifon has over 30 years of successful training for individuals, businesses, colleges and the United States Navy. She has a Masters Degree in Psychology and Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) professional certification. Her book Rethinking Fear: A simple, unique approach to reprogram old patterns for a happier, more confident life is an award winning finalist of the 2017 International Book Awards. Rethinking Fear is a self-help book that is unconventional in its use of a multi-dimensional approach to stimulate cognitive, emotional and neurotransmitter functions to help individuals override fearful life patterns. Rifon will be visiting the Cottonwood Public Library on Saturday, August 12 from 10 a.m. to noon.

Living Your Life in a Turbulent World

Paula and Alana Green are a mother-and-daughter team who, in 2014, found themselves paring down their possessions and beginning a journey that they later described as a Soul-Journ. Paula was 55 at the time and Alana 15.

After living a year in Australia, New Zealand and Bali, they have recently returned to the Verde Valley where Alana was born and they lived for 15 years.

We had an idea and a couple of intentions with our adventure but really no clue how it would unfold or who and what circumstances we would encounter says Paula, but as we kept following our hunches and trusting our gut instincts, we began to see a pattern unfolding as to where we were being led.

Many people told them during their travels, how significant it was for them to hear about a mother and daughter taking this endeavor together. They were invited to a 3-part radio interview in Melbourne, Australia that you may hear at their Soul-Journ page on Facebook.

After re-entering the American culture in November of 2016, a time of great upheaval, they felt a commitment to share and host conversations around many of the insights they discovered about community, family, young people, parent/child relationships, Indigenous, environment and consciousness.

Alana, today at 18 years: When I was a little girl, I dreamed of a community and future where people helped each other. Everything was interconnected. At the time, I was too scared to share that dream because I was afraid that it would never come true. However, since I have had that dream, I have seen evolution take turns like a river flowing ever more upward. And with each resolution, and revolution, the process goes faster and faster. I think the maturity we have reached compared to twenty years ago is astounding. The only question now is, what do we do with the gained information and maturity?

Join Paula and Alana at the Cottonwood Public Library on Saturday, August 12 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in Library Meeting Room B. Some of the topics to be discussed include coping with disaster, tragedy and the unknown, how to incorporate conscious evolution and action, the differences between consciousness and action-oriented people, how thought translates into action and the changing environments around us. All members of the public are invited to join in the discussion. The Library is located at 100 S 6th St in Cottonwood.

2017 Chamber Golf Tournament and Sponsorship Opportunities

Its tee time! Planning for the 15th Annual Cottonwood Cooler Golf Challenge is well underway. Committee members are inviting area businesses to join as major sponsors.

Sponsorships available: Gold $750-includes one foursome with company name on a Tee or Green, exposure on all marketing promotions, opportunity to hang advertising banner and place a table to promote your business at the event and two flyer inserts in the Chamber Newsletter. Silver $400-includes one twosome with company name on a Tee or Green, exposure on all marketing promotions, opportunity to place a table to promote your business at the event and one flyer insert in the Chamber Newsletter.

There are opportunities for non-golfers as well. The Community Partner Sponsorship $250-includes exposure on all marketing promotions, opportunity to place a table to promote your business at the event and one flyer insert in the Chamber Newsletter. Tee or Green Sponsor $100-sign placed with your logo and company name on a Tee or Green the day of the event! In addition to sponsorship opportunities, Chamber volunteers will be calling community businesses for donations for the raffle & silent auction. Business are also invited to include promotional items or coupons in the golfer goodie bags at no cost.

We would like to thank our Current Sponsors: Northern AZ Rehab, Crazy Tonys Cornville Market, Lawler Construction, Unisource Energy, LaserLyte, SpeedConnect, Big-O Tires, Butler Leavitt Insurance, Colonial General Insurance, SpectrUm Healthcare, Coldwell Banker/Mabery, Edward Jones/Amy Brown, PacWest Insurance, Galpin Ford, Yavapai Title, Meadowbrook Insurance, Stanley Steel Structures.

We hope that area businesses will see this as an excellent marketing opportunity, explains committee Co-Chair Lori Mabery. In addition to the application, prospective golfers will be sent a list of other things to see and do in the Verde Valley. We hope theyll be encouraged to make a family weekend out of it.

Verde Santa Fe Golf Pro, Mike Wright, is once again offering new and exciting changes for this years tournament that were sure you will enjoy. Last year, we donated $1000 to support Junior Golf in the Verde Valley through the CMS Junior Golf Program.

The tournament is scheduled for Saturday, August 5, 2017 at Verde Santa Fe Golf Course. If history is any indication, the tournament is expected to sell out all 112 spots so get your team registered now. For fourteen consecutive years the outpouring of generosity from the business community has been incredible, allowing nearly every participant to go home with a raffle or silent auction prize. For more information about the tournament, to participate as a sponsor, to donate raffle and silent auction items or to include your item in the golfer goodie bag contact Christian at the Cottonwood Chamber office at 928-634-7593. Register on-line at http://www.cottonwoodchamberaz.org.

Opioid Overdose Training: What does it look like and how to respond

MATFORCE is hosting Opioid Overdose trainings on Monday, August 7 in Cottonwood and Tuesday, August 15 in Prescott Valley. The public is invited to attend.

Ivan Anderson, Firefighter/Paramedic with the Verde Valley Fire District and Member of the MATFORCE Speakers Bureau, will present information on opioid overdose, what it looks like and how to respond. Ivan will also discuss details about Arizonas naloxone law, overdose prevention and how to use naloxone to rescue overdose victims. Free Naloxone will be made available for eligible participants.

Arizona lost 790 people to opioid overdoses in 2016, a 74% increase in opioid overdose deaths in four years. On June 5, 2017 Governor Ducey declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency. The declaration seeks to expand the distribution of the overdose reversal drug Naloxone, the development of new guidelines for health care providers on responsible prescribing and the expansion of access to drug treatment options.

The training Monday, August 7 will take place at the Verde Valley Medical Center, 269 S. Candy Lane, Conference Rooms A and B. The training Tuesday, August 15 will take place at the Step One Building, 6719 E. 2nd Street in Prescott Valley. The trainings will take place from 12 1:30 p.m. Lunch will be served.

To register for the training email MATFORCE at matforce@cableone.net or call 928 708 0100.

Bring books to concert to help launch re-opening of Clark Memorial Library

Beginning with July 29s Missouri Opry Country Legends, Friends of Clark Memorial Library will have a booth at the free Concerts In The Park where CML supporters can drop off books for the librarys Grand Reopening Book Sale. Book donors will also find the Friends on August 12 (Come Back Buddy), August 26 (Shri Blues Band), and September 9 (Matchbox Twenty Too).

Concerts are from 7 to 9 p.m. Friends from 6:15 or so. Come early and hear the latest installment of the Clark Memorial Library saga.

Also, watch this space for more book, time, and cash donation opportunities around Clarkdale. For more info, contact Jimmy Salmon, or drop a card to Friends of Clark Memorial Library, P.O. Box 301, Clarkdale, AZ 86324.

Mingus on the Hill class reunion

If you attended Mingus on the Hill in Jerome classes 1959 to 1975, you are invited to our multiyear class reunion at the Verde Valley Fairgrounds on September 23, 2017. Cost is $20.00 per person if paid and registered by September 1st. For info, contact Detta @ 949-290-2872 or Becky @ 928-451-6937

Vendor space available for artists, arts & crafts vendors, local businesses, non-profits

Clarktoberfest2017 is not really like Oktoberfest although there is beer involved. Its Clarkdales unique event, a fall festival that is a street fair/concert/beer garden and a fun time for all and of course live music! This year we are merging Howl-o-ween, the Clarkdale dog event, with Clarktoberfest. There will be lots of fun for dogs, kids and adults with both events in one place and time. More information at our website:http://clarktoberfestaz.com/

Vendor space is available! Vendors will be provided a 10x10 space on the street you will bring your own tent, tables, chairs, etc. The cost of the booth space will be $25 with your business license or $30 for those without a business license. If you are interested in a booth space you can go to http://clarktoberfestaz.com/ and CLICK on Participants Forms to complete our online application then mail a check to us or email us at madeinclarkdale2012@gmail.com and we will email back to you a vendor application. If you have any questions, also email us at madeinclarkdale2012@gmail.com.

Alzheimers Association support group

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Conscious Evolution | Futurist Transhuman News Blog

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No death and an enhanced life: Is the future transhuman …

Posted: at 3:58 am

The aims of the transhumanist movement are summed up by Mark OConnell in his book To Be a Machine, which last week won the Wellcome Book prize. It is their belief that we can and should eradicate ageing as a cause of death; that we can and should use technology to augment our bodies and our minds; that we can and should merge with machines, remaking ourselves, finally, in the image of our own higher ideals.

The idea of technologically enhancing our bodies is not new. But the extent to which transhumanists take the concept is. In the past, we made devices such as wooden legs, hearing aids, spectacles and false teeth. In future, we might use implants to augment our senses so we can detect infrared or ultraviolet radiation directly or boost our cognitive processes by connecting ourselves to memory chips. Ultimately, by merging man and machine, science will produce humans who have vastly increased intelligence, strength, and lifespans; a near embodiment of gods.

Is that a desirable goal? Advocates of transhumanism believe there are spectacular rewards to be reaped from going beyond the natural barriers and limitations that constitute an ordinary human being. But to do so would raise a host of ethical problems and dilemmas. As OConnells book indicates, the ambitions of transhumanism are now rising up our intellectual agenda. But this is a debate that is only just beginning.

There is no doubt that human enhancement is becoming more and more sophisticated as will be demonstrated at the exhibition The Future Starts Here which opens at the V&A museum in London this week. Items on display will include powered clothing made by the US company Seismic. Worn under regular clothes, these suits mimic the biomechanics of the human body and give users typically older people discrete strength when getting out of a chair or climbing stairs, or standing for long periods.

In many cases these technological or medical advances are made to help the injured, sick or elderly but are then adopted by the healthy or young to boost their lifestyle or performance. The drug erythropoietin (EPO) increases red blood cell production in patients with severe anaemia but has also been taken up as an illicit performance booster by some athletes to improve their bloodstreams ability to carry oxygen to their muscles.

And that is just the start, say experts. We are now approaching the time when, for some kinds of track sports such as the 100-metre sprint, athletes who run on carbon-fibre blades will be able outperform those who run on natural legs, says Blay Whitby, an artificial intelligence expert at Sussex University.

The question is: when the technology reaches this level, will it be ethical to allow surgeons to replace someones limbs with carbon-fibre blades just so they can win gold medals? Whitby is sure many athletes will seek such surgery. However, if such an operation came before any ethics committee that I was involved with, I would have none of it. It is a repulsive idea to remove a healthy limb for transient gain.

Not everyone in the field agrees with this view, however. Cybernetics expert Kevin Warwick, of Coventry University, sees no problem in approving the removal of natural limbs and their replacement with artificial blades. What is wrong with replacing imperfect bits of your body with artificial parts that will allow you to perform better or which might allow you to live longer? he says.

Warwick is a cybernetics enthusiast who, over the years, has had several different electronic devices implanted into his body. One allowed me to experience ultrasonic inputs. It gave me a bat sense, as it were. I also interfaced my nervous system with my computer so that I could control a robot hand and experience what it was touching. I did that when I was in New York, but the hand was in a lab in England.

Such interventions enhance the human condition, Warwick insists, and indicate the kind of future humans might have when technology augments performance and the senses. Some might consider this unethical. But even doubters such as Whitby acknowledge the issues are complex. Is it ethical to take two girls under the age of five and train them to play tennis every day of their lives until they have the musculature and skeletons of world champions? he asks. From this perspective the use of implants or drugs to achieve the same goal does not look so deplorable.

This last point is a particular issue for those concerned with the transhumanist movement. They believe that modern technology ultimately offers humans the chance to live for aeons, unshackled as they would be from the frailties of the human body. Failing organs would be replaced by longer-lasting high-tech versions just as carbon-fibre blades could replace the flesh, blood and bone of natural limbs. Thus we would end humanitys reliance on our frail version 1.0 human bodies into a far more durable and capable 2.0 counterpart, as one group has put it.

However, the technology needed to achieve these goals relies on as yet unrealised developments in genetic engineering, nanotechnology and many other sciences and may take many decades to reach fruition. As a result, many advocates such as the US inventor and entrepreneur Ray Kurzweil, nanotechnology pioneer Eric Drexler and PayPal founder and venture capitalist Peter Thiel have backed the idea of having their bodies stored in liquid nitrogen and cryogenically preserved until medical science has reached the stage when they can be revived and their resurrected bodies augmented and enhanced.

Four such cryogenic facilities have now been constructed: three in the US and one in Russia. The largest is the Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Arizona whose refrigerators store more than 100 bodies (nevertheless referred to as patients by staff) in the hope of their subsequent thawing and physiological resurrection. It is a place built to house the corpses of optimists, as OConnell says in To Be a Machine.

Not everyone is convinced about the feasibility of such technology or about its desirability. I was once interviewed by a group of cryonic enthusiasts based in California called the society for the abolition of involuntary death, recalls the Astronomer Royal Martin Rees. I told them Id rather end my days in an English churchyard than a Californian refrigerator. They derided me as a deathist really old-fashioned.

For his part, Rees believes that those who choose to freeze themselves in the hope of being eventually thawed out would be burdening future generations expected to care for these newly defrosted individuals. It is not clear how much consideration they would deserve, Rees adds.

Ultimately, adherents of transhumanism envisage a day when humans will free themselves of all corporeal restraints. Kurzweil and his followers believe this turning point will be reached around the year 2030, when biotechnology will enable a union between humans and genuinely intelligent computers and AI systems. The resulting human-machine mind will become free to roam a universe of its own creation, uploading itself at will on to a suitably powerful computational substrate. We will become gods, or more likely star children similar to the one at the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

These are remote and, for many people, very fanciful goals. And the fact that much of the impetus for establishing such extreme forms of transhuman technology comes from California and Silicon Valley is not lost on critics. Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, the entrepreneur who wants to send the human race to Mars, also believes that to avoid becoming redundant in the face of the development of artificial intelligence, humans must merge with machines to enhance our own intellect.

This is a part of the world where the culture of youth is followed with fanatical intensity and where ageing is feared more acutely than anywhere else on the planet. Hence the overpowering urge to try to use technology to overcome its effects.

It is also one of the worlds richest regions, and many of those who question the values of the transhuman movement warn it risks creating technologies that will only create deeper gulfs in an already divided society where only some people will be able to afford to become enhanced while many other lose out.

The position is summed up by Whitby. History is littered with the evil consequences of one group of humans believing they are superior to another group of humans, he said. Unfortunately in the case of enhanced humans they will be genuinely superior. We need to think about the implications before it is too late.

For their part, transhumanists argue that the costs of enhancement will inevitably plummet and point to the example of the mobile phone, which was once so expensive only the very richest could afford one, but which today is a universal gadget owned by virtually every member of society. Such ubiquity will become a feature of technologies for augmenting men and women, advocates insist.

Many of these issues seem remote, but experts warn that the implications involved need to be debated as a matter of urgency. An example is provided by the artificial hand being developed by Newcastle University. Current prosthetic limbs are limited by their speed of response. But project leader Kianoush Nazarpour believes it will soon be possible to create bionic hands that can assess an object and instantly decide what kind of grip it should adopt.

It will be of enormous benefit, but its use raises all sorts of issues. Who will own it: the wearer or the NHS? And if it is used to carry a crime, who ultimately will be responsible for its control? We are not thinking about these concerns and that is a worry.

The position is summed up by bioethicist professor Andy Miah of Salford University.

Transhumanism is valuable and interesting philosophically because it gets us to think differently about the range of things that humans might be able to do but also because it gets us to think critically about some of those limitations that we think are there but can in fact be overcome, he says. We are talking about the future of our species, after all.

LimbsThe artificial limbs of Luke Skywalker and the Six Million Dollar Man are works of fiction. In reality, bionic limbs have suffered from multiple problems: becoming rigid mid-action, for example. But new generations of sensors are now making it possible for artificial legs and arms to behave in much more complex, human-like ways.

SensesThe light that is visible to humans excludes both infrared and ultra-violet radiation. However, researchers are working on ways of extending the wavelengths of radiation that we can detect, allowing us to see more of the world - and in a different light. Ideas like these are particularly popular with military researchers trying to create cyborg soldiers.

PowerPowered suits or exoskeletons are wearable mobile machines that allow people to move their limbs with increased strength and endurance. Several versions are being developed by the US army, while medical researchers are working on easy-to-wear versions that would be able to help people with severe medical conditions or who have lost limbs to move about naturally.

BrainsTranshumanists envisage the day when memory chips and neural pathways are actually embedded into peoples brains, thus bypassing the need to use external devices such as computers in order to access data and to make complicated calculations. The line between humanity and machines will become increasingly blurred.

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No death and an enhanced life: Is the future transhuman ...

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Light and the quantum universe take center stage in ‘Cosmos: Possible Worlds’ – Space.com

Posted: at 3:57 am

Neil deGrasse Tyson's "Cosmos: Possible Worlds" is as much a treatise of the pursuit of science itself as it is the wonderous achievements humans have reached in the realms of mathematics, physics and other scientific disciplines. Episode 9, "Magic Without Lies," explores the world of light a concept Tyson notes has multiple meanings in scientific and cultural literature.

Tyson refers to light as "one of the greatest mysteries in the history of science," and one which would "unravel the fabric of the cosmos that we thought we knew." The story begins with the legendary Sir Isaac Newton, who contributed greatly to the study of light and color. Newton's homemade experiments some of which involved inserting long needles into his own eyes lead to major breakthroughs which would influence modern understanding of optical sciences. It was Newton who concluded that color is an aspect of light. "Newton's greatness stemmed from his questioning of the 'why' and 'how' of ordinary things," Tyson says of the brilliant physicist. These ordinary things, however, are about to get much more complicated.

Newton would go on to conclude and reason that light consisted of what he called "corpuscles," streams of particles that hit our retinas like bullets. Another visionary and familiar scientist, Christiaan Huygens whose work we explored last week in Episode 8, "The Sacrifice of Cassini" vigorously disagreed with Newton's findings; Hyugens saw light as a wave, much like sound.

Related: 'Cosmos: Possible Worlds' brings the search for E.T. down to Earth

To settle the score, scientist Thomas Young whose accomplishments included deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics and translating the ancient language, identifying a defect of the eye called astigmatism, and much more designed the experiment meant to discover once and for all what light was made of. What he found "sent physics down the rabbit hole we still live in," Tyson says.

"There's a reason that arguments from authority hold little weight in science," Tyson says. "Nature, and nature only, settles the argument." Young had discovered something Newton had missed, and left a ticking time bomb would both astonish and disturb future researchers and scientists. He discovered light had an interference pattern, proving it behaved like a wave and not as a particle as Newton had postulated.

Physicist J.J. Thompson would later discover the existence of the electron by heating up an electrode until it spat the subatomic particles out, one by one. This discovery set scientists on a path to isolate ever shrinking units of light until they arrived at the single photon, performing Young's double slit experiment to track the path a photon took to understand the seemingly random pattern the photons generated. They found the waves from Young's interference pattern had disappeared, inexplicably; scientists had stumbled upon the quantum universe, where the mere act of observation influences the way particles behave.

Quantum physics found that both Hyugens and Newton were right and wrong; light is a wave, and a particle, and neither. Hugyens' probability theory would prove to be instrumental in how we understand quantum reality, which Tyson says represents an "undiscovered frontier," where particles "divorce from our everyday experience." To help illustrate this point, Tyson transports us to the world imagined by Edwin Abbott, called "Flatland," and extends Abbott's theory and applies it to our own three-dimensional reality.

"It's the rarest of events when a searcher happens on a hole in the curtain that hides the matrix," muses Tyson, reflecting on how hints of the existence of a quantum reality were present even when Charles Darwin found that time and the environment sculpted all living beings from the first living cell. Decades later, Albert Einstein would discover the quantum world which seemed to violate every rule of the natural world and the very rules of existence.

Related: 'God plays dice with the universe,' Einstein writes in letter about his qualms with quantum theory

Light, as it turns out, is governed by rules that we have yet to fully understand. "Is there any hope of rescuing our classical idea of reality in the quantum universe," ponders Tyson, before explaining that we don't need to understand quantum physics to exploit its power. Sometimes, science (an excellent exercise in humility, we're finding) forces us to accept certain levels of ambiguity with our research, and to withhold judgement.

There are some instances, however, where judgement in the practice of science is paramount, and ambiguity unacceptable. Episode 10, "A Tale of Two Atoms," recounts our history with military applications of nuclear chain reactions. The story begins with atoms, the building blocks of all matter, which Tyson sees as a fitting point of departure.

"When we seek the origin of atoms, we're searching for our own beginning," Tyson says, and this story is as much about life as it is about absolute death. Our beginning can be traced back to two atoms: a carbon atom and uranium atom.

Until the 19th century, scientists didn't know anything about the activity that went on inside atoms. It wasn't until physicist and chemist Marie Curie and her husband acquired uranium ore from what is now the Czech Republic that the scientific community would have any inkling of the secrets held within atoms. Curie and her husband, Pierre, spent years distilling and purifying the ore into pitchblende, which was 50-80% uranium. "We lived in our single occupation, as in a dream," Curie wrote of the lengthy and arduous process; it took nearly three years to process a tenth of a gram into what she called radium.

The Curies would find the material would not react to extreme temperatures and would randomly emit energy millions of times more potent than chemical energy, suggesting radioactivity. The way these "earthly stars," as Curie called them, glowed was evidence of a process occurring Inside the nuclei of radioactive atoms, proving the existence of particles even smaller than atoms. The darker implications of these findings, akin to the devastation seen in H.G. Wells' "The Time Machine," would coin the phrase "atomic bomb," would soon be known to the world.

Leo Szilard, a Hungarian physicist, envisioned the concept of a nuclear chain reaction leading to a devastating nuclear reaction while waiting for a green light at a traffic stop. "This was the moment our world changed," Tyson said.

"It was just the latest development on a continuum of violence that began long, long before," he continues, before delving into the slow shift in mindset that occurred in early humans causing our "kill radius" to expand as communication became easier and faster and as technology swiftly advanced. Together, an increase in "kill range" and "kill ratio" changed the landscape of war. This leads us to the present day, where speed and technology have made the kill radius large enough to take out an entire civilization.

"It's hard to pinpoint the precise moment when the first nuclear war began; some might trace it all the way back to that arrow sailing over the treetops. Others might say it started much later, with three messages," Tyson says, referring to letters written by scientists who would inform their leaders "that a huge increase in kill ratio was possible." Scientists Paul Harteck, Edward Teller, Albert Einstein, Leo Szilard, Gregory Flerov, J. Robert Oppenheimer and Joseph Rotblat were at the forefront of the investigation into harnessing atomic nuclei for use in modern warfare.

Among these, Rotblat's story is highlighted by Tyson: "If Edward Teller had a polar opposite in this scientific community, it would have been Joseph Rotblat." Scientists cited the building of nuclear weapons as a deterrent to other countries using them, and this was the driving rationale behind the Manhattan Project, the U.S. government's efforts to research, build and use an atomic bomb during World War II.

The Manhattan Project would continue long after the possibility of Hitler acquiring such weapons waned and Germany had surrendered. Only one scientist resigned from the Manhattan Project at this point: Joseph Rotblat. Denying moral superiority, he embarked on a quest to find his long-lost wife in Warsaw, only to discover that she had been killed in the Holocaust.

Today, the specter of nuclear war haunts us still. "How can we sleep so soundly in the shadow of a smoking volcano," Tyson asks solemnly, standing in front of the modest Trinity Site monument in New Mexico, where the first test detonation of a nuclear bomb took place. The small stature of the monument contrasts starkly with Tyson's words and the site's historical significance and the implications of what occurred there.

Tyson ends the episode with a warning, telling us the harrowing story of the 1902 eruption of Mount Pele, a volcano on the Caribbean island of Martinique, whose pyroclastic flow consumed the town of Saint-Pierre in just minutes, killing approximately 30,000 people. This explosion, Tyson says, was the equivalent of just one nuclear warhead. We have "devised a means to tap cosmic fire, hidden at the heart of matter," Tyson says, adding that the ability to make nuclear weapons is knowledge we cannot unlearn.

The uranium and carbon atoms which were present at the origin of life on our planet have interwoven life and destruction into our genetic code. Ionizing radiation is destructive to living things and is what makes atomic weapons so much more dangerous than conventional ones. At high levels of ionizing radiation, exposure to lethal levels of radiation causes cells to become cancerous and genes to mutate, damage that is passed on, "vandalizing our future," as Tyson puts it. Perhaps a revolution in our thinking is what must follow the dawn of the atomic age, Tyson says. "Remember your humanity, and forget the rest."

"Cosmos" airs on the National Geographic channel on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT and will be reprised on the Fox television network this summer.

Making Sense of the Science and Philosophy of Devs – The Ringer

Posted: at 3:57 am

Let me welcome you the same way Stewart welcomes Forest in Episode 7 of the Hulu miniseries Devs: with a lengthy, unattributed quote.

We may regard the present state of the universe as the effect of its past and the cause of its future. An intellect which at any given moment knew all of the forces that animate nature and the mutual positions of the beings that compose it, if this intellect were vast enough to submit the data to analysis, could condense into a single formula the movement of the greatest bodies of the universe and that of the lightest atom; for such an intellect nothing could be uncertain and the future, just like the past, would be present before its eyes.

Its a passage that sounds as if it could have come from Forest himself. But its not from Forest, or Katie, or evenas Katie might guess, based on her response to Stewarts Philip Larkin quoteShakespeare. Its from the French scholar and scientist Pierre-Simon Laplace, who wrote the idea down at the end of the Age of Enlightenment, in 1814. When Laplace imagined an omniscient intellectwhich has come to be called Laplaces demonhe wasnt even saying something original: Other thinkers beat him to the idea of a deterministic, perfectly predictable universe by decades and centuries (or maybe millennia).

All of which is to say that despite the futuristic setting and high-tech trappings of Devsthe eight-part Alex Garland opus that will reach its finale next weekthe series central tension is about as old as the abacus. But theres a reason the debate about determinism and free will keeps recurring: Its an existential question at the heart of human behavior. Devs doesnt answer it in a dramatically different way than the great minds of history have, but it does wrap up ancient, brain-breaking quandaries in a compelling (and occasionally kind of confusing) package. Garland has admitted as much, acknowledging, None of the ideas contained here are really my ideas, and its not that I am presenting my own insightful take. Its more Im saying some very interesting people have come up with some very interesting ideas. Here they are in the form of a story.

Devs is a watchable blend of a few engaging ingredients. Its a spy thriller that pits Russian agents against ex-CIA operatives. Its a cautionary, sci-fi polemic about a potentially limitless technology and the hubris of big tech. Like Garlands previous directorial efforts, Annihilation and Ex Machina, its also a striking aesthetic experience, a blend of brutalist compounds, sleek lines, lush nature, and an exciting, unsettling soundtrack. Most of all, though, its a meditation on age-old philosophical conundrums, served with a garnish of science. Garland has cited scientists and philosophers as inspirations for the series, so to unravel the riddles of Devs, I sought out some experts whose day jobs deal with the dilemmas Lily and Co. confront in fiction: a computer science professor who specializes in quantum computing, and several professors of philosophy.

There are many questions about Devs that we wont be able to answer. How high is Kentons health care premium? Is it distracting to work in a lab lit by a perpetually pulsing, unearthly golden glow? How do Devs programmers get any work done when they could be watching the worlds most riveting reality TV? Devs doesnt disclose all of its inner workings, but by the end of Episode 7, its pulled back the curtain almost as far as it can. The main mystery of the early episodeswhat does Devs do?is essentially solved for the viewer long before Lily learns everything via Katies parable of the pen in Episode 6. As the series proceeds, the spy stuff starts to seem incidental, and the characters motivations become clear. All that remains to be settled is the small matter of the intractable puzzles that have flummoxed philosophers for ages.

Heres what we know. Forest (Nick Offerman) is a tech genius obsessed with one goal: being reunited with his dead daughter, Amaya, who was killed in a car crash while her mother was driving and talking to Forest on the phone. (Hed probably blame himself for the accident if he believed in free will.) He doesnt disguise the fact that he hasnt moved on from Amaya emotionally: He names his company after her, uses her face for its logo, and, in case those tributes were too subtle, installs a giant statue of her at corporate HQ. (As a metaphor for the way Amaya continues to loom over his life, the statue is overly obvious, but at least it looks cool.) Together with a team of handpicked developers, Forest secretly constructs a quantum computer so powerful that, by the end of the penultimate episode, it can perfectly predict the future and reverse-project the past, allowing the denizens of Devs to tune in to any bygone event in lifelike clarity. Its Laplaces demon made real, except for the fact that its powers of perception fail past the point at which Lily is seemingly scheduled to do something that the computer cant predict.

I asked Dr. Scott Aaronson, a professor of computer science at the University of Texas at Austin (and the founding director of the schools Quantum Information Center) to assess Devs depiction of quantum computing. Aaronsons website notes that his research concentrates on the capabilities and limits of quantum computers, so hed probably be one of Forests first recruits if Amaya were an actual company. Aaronson, whom I previously consulted about the plausibility of the time travel in Avengers: Endgame, humored me again and watched Devs despite having been burned before by Hollywoods crimes against quantum mechanics. His verdict, unsurprisingly, is that the quantum computing in Devslike that of Endgame, which cites one of the same physicists (David Deutsch) that Garland said inspired himis mostly hand-wavy window dressing.

A quantum computer is a device that uses a central phenomenon of quantum mechanicsnamely, interference of amplitudesto solve certain problems with dramatically better scaling behavior than any known algorithm running on any existing computer could solve them, Aaronson says. If youre wondering what amplitudes are, you can read Aaronsons explanation in a New York Times op-ed he authored last October, shortly after Google claimed to have achieved a milestone called quantum supremacythe first use of a quantum computer to make a calculation far faster than any non-quantum computer could. According to Googles calculations, the task that its Sycamore microchip performed in a little more than three minutes would have taken 100,000 of the swiftest existing conventional computers 10,000 years to complete. Thats a pretty impressive shortcut, and were still only at the dawn of the quantum computing age.

However, that stat comes with a caveat: Quantum computers arent better across the board than conventional computers. The applications where a quantum computer dramatically outperforms classical computers are relatively few and specialized, Aaronson says. As far as we know today, theyd help a lot with prediction problems only in cases where the predictions heavily involve quantum-mechanical behavior. Potential applications of quantum computers include predicting the rate of a chemical reaction, factoring huge numbers and possibly cracking the encryption that currently protects the internet (using Shors algorithm, which is briefly mentioned on Devs), and solving optimization and machine learning problems. Notice that reconstructing what Christ looked like on the cross is not on this list, Aaronson says.

In other words, the objective that Forest is trying to achieve doesnt necessarily lie within the quantum computing wheelhouse. To whatever extent computers can help forecast plausible scenarios for the past or future at all (as we already have them do for, e.g., weather forecasting), its not at all clear to what extent a quantum computer even helpsone might simply want more powerful classical computers, Aaronson says.

Then theres the problem that goes beyond the question of quantum vs. conventional: Either kind of computer would require data on which to base its calculations, and the data set that the predictions and retrodictions in Devs would demand is inconceivably detailed. I doubt that reconstructing the remote past is really a computational problem at all, in the sense that even the most powerful science-fiction supercomputer still couldnt give you reliable answers if it lacked the appropriate input data, Aaronson says, adding, As far as we know today, the best that any computer (classical or quantum) could possibly do, even in principle, with any data we could possibly collect, is to forecast a range of possible futures, and a range of possible pasts. The data that it would need to declare one of them the real future or the real past simply wouldnt be accessible to humankind, but rather would be lost in microscopic puffs of air, radiation flying away from the earth into space, etc.

In light of the unimaginably high hurdle of gathering enough data in the present to reconstruct what someone looked or sounded like during a distant, data-free age, Forest comes out looking like a ridiculously demanding boss. We get it, dude: You miss Amaya. But how about patting your employees on the back for pulling off the impossible? The idea that chaos, the butterfly effect, sensitive dependence on initial conditions, exponential error growth, etc. mean that you run your simulation 2000 years into the past and you end up with only a blurry, staticky image of Jesus on the cross rather than a clear image, has to be, like, the wildest understatement in the history of understatements, Aaronson says. As for the future, he adds, Predicting the weather three weeks from now might be forever impossible.

On top of all that, Aaronson says, The Devs headquarters is sure a hell of a lot fancier (and cleaner) than any quantum computing lab that Ive ever visited. (Does Kenton vacuum between torture sessions?) At least the computer more or less looks like a quantum computer.

OK, so maybe I didnt need to cajole a quantum computing savant into watching several hours of television to confirm that theres no way we can watch cavepeople paint. Garland isnt guilty of any science sins that previous storytellers havent committed many times. Whenever Aaronson has advised scriptwriters, theyve only asked him to tell them which sciencey words would make their preexisting implausible stories sound somewhat feasible. Its probably incredibly rare that writers would let the actual possibilities and limits of a technology drive their story, he says.

Although the show name-checks real interpretations of quantum mechanicsPenrose, pilot wave, many-worldsit doesnt deeply engage with them. The pilot wave interpretation holds that only one future is real, whereas many-worlds asserts that a vast number of futures are all equally real. But neither one would allow for the possibility of perfectly predicting the future, considering the difficulty of accounting for every variable. Garland is seemingly aware of how far-fetched his story is, because on multiple occasions, characters like Lily, Lyndon, and Stewart voice the audiences unspoken disbelief, stating that something or other isnt possible. Whenever they do, Katie or Forest is there to tell them that it is. Which, well, fine: Like Laplaces demon, Devs is intended as more of a thought experiment than a realistic scenario. As Katie says during her blue pill-red pill dialogue with Lily, Go with it.

We might as well go along with Garland, because any scientific liberties he takes are in service of the seriess deeper ideas. As Aaronson says, My opinion is that the show isnt really talking about quantum computing at allits just using it as a fancy-sounding buzzword. Really its talking about the far more ancient questions of determinism vs. indeterminism and predictability vs. unpredictability. He concludes, The plot of this series is one that wouldve been totally, 100 percent familiar to the ancient Greeksjust swap out the quantum computer for the Delphic Oracle. Aaronsonwho says he sort of likes Devs in spite of its quantum technobabblewould know: He wrote a book called Quantum Computing Since Democritus.

Speaking of Democritus, lets consult a few philosophers on the topic of free will. One of the most mind-bending aspects of Devs adherence to hard determinismthe theory that human behavior is wholly dictated by outside factorsis its insistence that characters cant change their behavior even if theyve seen the computers prediction of what theyre about to do. As Forest asks Katie, What if one minute into the future we see you fold your arms, and you say, Fuck the future. Im a magician. My magic breaks tram lines. Im not going to fold my arms. You put your hands in your pockets, and you keep them there until the clock runs out.

It seems as if she should be able to do what she wants with her hands, but Katie quickly shuts him down. Cause precedes effect, she says. Effect leads to cause. The future is fixed in exactly the same way as the past. The tram lines are real. Of course, Katie could be wrong: A character could defy the computers prediction in the finale. (Perhaps thats the mysterious unforeseeable event.) But weve already seen some characters fail to exit the tram. In an Episode 7 scenewhich, as Aaronson notes, is highly reminiscent of the VHS scene in Spaceballswe see multiple members of the Devs team repeat the same statements that theyve just heard the computer predict they would make a split second earlier. They cant help but make the prediction come true. Similarly, Lily ends up at Devs at the end of Episode 7, despite resolving not to.

Putting aside the implausibility of a perfect prediction existing at all, does it make sense that these characters couldnt deviate from their predicted course? Yes, according to five professors of philosophy I surveyed. Keep in mind what Garland has cited as a common criticism of his work: that the ideas I talk about are sophomoric because theyre the kinds of things that people talk about when theyre getting stoned in their dorm rooms. Were about to enter the stoned zone.

In this story, [the characters] are in a totally deterministic universe, says Ben Lennertz, an assistant professor of philosophy at Colgate University. In particular, the watching of the video of the future itself has been determined by the original state of the universe and the laws. Its not as if things were going along and the person was going to cross their arms, but then a non-deterministic miracle occurred and they were shown a video of what they were going to do. The watching of the video and the persons reaction is part of the same progression as the scene the video is of. In essence, the computer would have already predicted its own predictions, as well as every characters reaction to them. Everything that happens was always part of the plan.

Ohio Wesleyan Universitys Erin Flynn echoes that interpretation. The people in those scenes do what they do not despite being informed that they will do it, but (in part) because they have been informed that they will do it, Flynn says. (Think of Katie telling Lyndon that hes about to balance on the bridge railing.) This is not to say they will be compelled to conform, only that their knowledge presumably forms an important part of the causal conditions leading to their actions. When the computer sees the future, the computer sees that what they will do is necessitated in part by this knowledge. The computer would presumably have made different predictions had people never heard them.

Furthermore, adds David Landy of San Francisco State University, the fact that we see something happen one way doesnt mean that it couldnt have happened otherwise. Suppose we know that some guy is going to fold his arms, Landy says. Does it follow that he lacks the ability to not fold his arms? Well, no, because what we usually mean by has the ability to not fold his arms is that if things had gone differently, he wouldnt have folded his arms. But by stipulating at the start that he is going to fold his arms, we also stipulate that things arent going to go differently. But it can remain true that if they did go differently, he would not have folded his arms. So, he might have that ability, even if we know he is not going to exercise it.

If your head has started spinning, you can see why the Greeks didnt settle this stuff long before Garland got to it. And if it still seems strange that Forest seemingly cant put his hands in his pockets, well, what doesnt seem strange in the world of Devs? We should expect weird things to happen when we are talking about a very weird situation, Landy says. That is, we are used to people reliably doing what they want to do. But we have become used to that by making observations in a certain environment: one without time travel or omniscient computers. Introducing those things changes the environment, so we shouldnt be surprised if our usual inferences no longer hold.

Heres where we really might want to mime a marijuana hit. Neal Tognazzini of Western Washington University points out that one could conceivably appear to predict the future by tapping into a future that already exists. Many philosophers reject determinism but nevertheless accept that there are truths about what will happen in the future, because they accept a view in the philosophy of time called eternalism, which is (roughly) the block universe ideapast, present, and future are all parts of reality, Tognazzini says. This theory says that the past and the future exist some temporal distance from the presentwe just havent yet learned to travel between them. Thus, Tognazzini continues, You can accept eternalism about time without accepting determinism, because the first is just a view about whether the future is real whereas the second is a view about how the future is connected to the past (i.e., whether there are tram lines).

According to that school of thought, the future isnt what has to happen, its simply what will happen. If we somehow got a glimpse of our futures from the present, it might appear as if our paths were fixed. But those futures actually would have been shaped by our freely chosen actions in the interim. As Tognazzini says, Its a fate of our own makingwhich is just to say, no fate at all.

If we accept that the members of Devs know what theyre doing, though, then the computers predictions are deterministic, and the past does dictate the future. Thats disturbing, because it seemingly strips us of our agency. But, Tognazzini says, Even then, its still the case that what we do now helps to shape that future. We still make a difference to what the future looks like, even if its the only difference we could have made, given the tram lines we happen to be on. Determinism isnt like some force that operates independently of what we want, making us marionettes. If its true, then it would apply equally to our mental lives as well, so that the future that comes about might well be exactly the future we wanted.

This is akin to the compatibilist position espoused by David Hume, which seeks to reconcile the seemingly conflicting concepts of determinism and free will. As our final philosopher, Georgetown Universitys William Blattner, says, If determinism is to be plausible, it must find a way to save the appearances, in this case, explain why we feel like were choosing, even if at some level the choice is an illusion. The compatibilist perspective concedes that there may be only one possible future, but, Flynn says, insists that there is a difference between being causally determined (necessitated) to act and being forced or compelled to act. As long as one who has seen their future does not do what has been predicted because they were forced to do it (against their will, so to speak), then they will still have done it freely.

In the finale, well find out whether the computers predictions are as flawless and inviolable as Katie claims. Well also likely learn one of Devs most closely kept secrets: What Forest intends to do with his perfect model of Amaya. The show hasnt hinted that the computer can resurrect the dead in any physical fashion, so unless Forest is content to see his simulated daughter on a screen, he may try to enter the simulation himself. In Episode 7, Devs seemed to set the stage for such a step; as Stewart said, Thats the reality right there. Its not even a clone of reality. The box contains everything.

Would a simulated Forest, united with his simulated daughter, be happier inside the simulation than he was in real life, assuming hes aware hes inside the simulation? The philosopher Robert Nozick explored a similar question with his hypothetical experience machine. The experience machine would stimulate our brains in such a way that we could supply as much pleasure as we wanted, in any form. It sounds like a nice place to visit, and yet most of us wouldnt want to live there. That reluctance to enter the experience machine permanently seems to suggest that we see some value in an authentic connection to reality, however unpleasurable. Thinking Im hanging out with my family and friends is just different from actually hanging out with my family and friends, Tognazzini says. And since I think relationships are key to happiness, Im skeptical that we could be happy in a simulation.

If reality were painful enough, though, the relief from that pain might be worth the sacrifice. Suppose, for instance, that the real world had become nearly uninhabitable or otherwise full of misery, Flynn says. It seems to me that life in a simulation might be experienced as a sanctuary. Perhaps ones experience there would be tinged with sadness for the lost world, but Im not sure knowing its a simulation would necessarily keep one from being happy in it. Forest still seems miserable about Amaya IRL, so for him, that trade-off might make sense.

Whats more, if real life is totally deterministic, then Forest may not draw a distinction between life inside and outside of his quantum computer. If freedom is a critical component of fulfillment, then its hard to see how we could be fulfilled in a simulation, Blattner says. But for Forest, freedom isnt an option anywhere. Something about the situation seems sad, maybe pathetic, maybe even tragic, Flynn says. But if the world is a true simulation in the matter described, why not just understand it as the ability to visit another real world in which his daughter exists?

Those who subscribe to the simulation hypothesis believe that what we think of as real lifeincluding my experience of writing this sentence and your experience of reading itis itself a simulation created by some higher order of being. In our world, it may seem dubious that such a sophisticated creation could exist (or that anything or anyone would care to create it). But in Forests world, a simulation just as sophisticated as real life already exists inside Devswhich means that what Forest perceives as real life could be someone elses simulation. If hes possibly stuck inside a simulation either way, he might as well choose the one with Amaya (if he has a choice at all).

Garland chose to tell this story on TV because on the big screen, he said, it would have been slightly too truncated. On the small screen, its probably slightly too long: Because weve known more than Lily all along, what shes learned in later episodes has rehashed old info for us. Then again, Devs has felt familiar from the start. If Laplace got a pass for recycling Cicero and Leibniz, well give Garland a pass for channeling Laplace. Whats one more presentation of a puzzle thats had humans flummoxed forever?

Monthly Archives: April 2020

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