text:
The boy had no idea how long he sat in the corner, waiting. It was cold, and even though he had a blanket, there was little it could do against the stony chill that seemed to emanate from every wall in the room. The food had come, cold porridge in a wooden bowl, through the slat at the bottom of the door. He hadn't even touched it yet. All he wanted to do was sleep, but it was too cold, to uncomfortable. Before, he had had a bed, an actual, real bed, and he would have given anything for that plain white room right then.

He sat shivering in the corner, the thin wool blanket wrapped around his shoulders, and let his mind wonder. If he could only get some sleep, maybe, just maybe, he could get away. After all, it was after he had changed things in his dream that he had found himself in the cell instead of the white room, and from the look of his clothes and the sporadic memories, or images, as he referred to them in his mind, he had been in the dank musty cell for some time.

For hours he sat, huddled in the corner, his only friend a rat who had found it's way into the cell somehow, and even the rat had barely touched the horrid porridge, and had left and not returned. It was a long time before anything happened at all, and when it did, it was not but the slat at the bottom of the door sliding open to reveal another bowl, and then sliding shut again. The boy realized that this was breakfast, and that he had stayed awake all night. Surely sleep would find him soon.

It did.

But he had no dreams.

He woke to a small tapping noise, like a birds beak on a window sill, and he took a moment to come to and get the sleep from his eyes and brain. Then he realized; he hadn't dreamed! How could that be? He always dreamed. Always. And always the same dream. So what happened? It was then that he realized the tapping sound. He sat very still for a moment, and began to notice a rhythm to the tapping; three quick taps, then two slow ones, then three fast, then four slow. He didn't know what they meant, but something about them lifted his spirits and he almost laughed out loud. But he didn't know why. The tapping seemed to be coming from the wall on his left, behind the cot, and he slowly crawled over to it, pushing the cot out of the way and putting his ear to the brick wall. Suddenly the tapping stopped. The boy pulled his head away from the wall and looked at it as though a face was going to appear in the cold smooth stone. For several minutes he sat crouched there, then he had an idea. It was so obvious, he kicked himself mentally for not thinking of it before. He scrambled back to the bowl of porridge and grabbed the spoon, then moved back to the wall. He hesitated only a moment, then he began to tap the same rhythm into the stone wall.

taptaptap. tap-tap. taptaptap. tap-tap-tap-tap. And repeat.

He did the whole sequence three times, then stopped. After a few seconds the tapping resumed from the wall, and the boy couldn't help but smile. There was someone there, someone on the other side of his wall, and they were trying to communicate. But what? Suddenly another thought came to him. A crazy, wonderful, brilliant, dangerous thought. But he needed to sleep. He needed to dream. And he hadn't dreamed the last time he slept. He need to sleep, and he needed to dream.

He spent the rest of the day tapping on the wall with the other person. He had decided it was another boy, probably his age, maybe even from the same orphanage, someone he might recognize. Hopefully one of the boys he had gotten along with, and not one of the bigger bullies.

That night, when the porridge came, he forced himself to eat some. After all, how was he to get any sleep on an empty stomach? Then he curled himself into as tight a ball as possible and wrapped the wool blanket around himself like a cocoon, and prayed that sleep would find him quickly, and that he would dream. He stared at the stone wall for a while, then closed his eyes and started counting to a thousand. And suddenly, he was back in the orphanage...

*The noise woke him, and he was ready for it. He quickly jumped off the bed and ran to great the two men coming to get him.*

*"I am coming with you," he said to the two men. He saw the looks of shock cross their faces, but they simply stepped aside and let him walk between them. The one on the left grabbed his arm as though to guide the boy, and he ripped his arm free.*

*"I can walk fine, thanks," he said as condescendingly as possible. The man did not try to grab him again. They made their way to the car outside and the boy climbed in the back. And the car began to drive...*

He snapped wide a wake, and had to squint at the light spilling through from the balcony. He let his eyes adjust a moment, then looked around... and his jaw fell to the floor.

He was in a huge room, quite possibly the largest room he had ever seen occupied by only one person before. The walls were a bright yellow, and there were paintings hanging sporadically across the walls. There was a door way that led out into the hall, he knew, from the memories rushing into his head, and the hall was one of many in the mansion. The sunlight was spilling through the balcony doors, and it fell warm on his face. the bed was a huge four-poster, with curtains pinned back on the posts so as the let in the light, and the mattress was so soft and warm, and the blankets thick and wonderful. He jumped off the bed and walked out onto the balcony. And this time he did laugh out loud.

He was standing on a cliff on the sea, and it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. The waves crashed against the base of the cliff and billowed in white and blue and green, and the sun was rising over the water, the bright yellow sun, and it warmed everything it touched. He simply stood there and let the warmth wash over him for moment. Suddenly he heard the shuffling of feet from the room behind him, and he spun around and almost screamed.

"Your breakfast for you, young master," said the Fat Lady. She held a tray of food in her arms, and the smell, a smell the boy could remember, but had never truly had. It was amazing. The sweetest, most mouthwatering smell ever. He walked into the room cautiously, eyeing the Fat Lady.

"Put it just there," he said, pointing to the small table by his bed. He knew this was where he always had her place the tray.

The fat lady put the tray on the table and made a small bow, then simply stood there.

"What do want?" the boy asked harshly. The Fat Lady flinched at his tone, and he had a memory, somewhere, and image. A very confusing, disturbing, image. Of them on the beach together, and he was laughing, and was sitting reading a book, and he felt something for her, felt that she could be something to him.

The boy pushed the images from his mind. He had seen what this lady could do, what she would become, had he not turned things around.

"Get out out," he snapped at her. He saw her look at him with a hurt, confused look on her face, but then she made the same small bow and left. He went over to the table and, sitting at the edge of his bed, began picking at the food. Then he checked himself. What was he doing? He was there on a mission, that was it, and he needed to get it done. Right? But how, really, and the food was just sitting there. What could it hurt to eat a bit of it.

The first bight was delicious, like heaven in his mouth, and he took his time chewing. then he swallowed. Then he took another bite. And another. Soon the entire tray was polished off, and he lay back on his bed a moment, and his eyes felt heavy. But he had just woken up, hadn't he? Why was he so tired? He had something to do, he couldn't go back to sleep, not now. Not now...

*The dream was different. He wasn't in the orphanage, he was in the house, with his imaginary parents, and the father sitting at the dinner table talking about his day, and his sister, sitting across from him, looked at him, and the question, the question he had never heard, came from her lips.*

*"Why?"*

*Why? That was it? Why? And the boy thought about it a moment, then replied, "Why not?", and a smile began to form on his sisters lips, and then he was smiling, but then the world was shaking....*

And they were gone, and there was a face above his own, a face he did not recognize, the face of an old man with not hair and a crooked nose, and he tried to move, but couldn't. He looked at his feet and hands and saw that they were clamped to the chair he was now sitting in, and he turned his head this way and that, taking everything in, trying to find a way out.

"You cannot escape, not here," said the old man, a cruel smile revealing crooked yellow teeth. "Here, you can't even sleep, so you can't change it."

The boy looked at the man, shocked. How did he know? Who was he? The boy tried to ask a question, but nothing came out of his mouth. He felt as though every fiber of his body was on fire, and sizzling for action, needing to move. He was awake. So awake. He felt as though he would never sleep again, and the thought made his heart fill with dread.

TO BE CONTINUED

title: The Boy Who Dreamed: Part 2

question: What does the story say about the boy's recurring dreams?

answer: The boy usually stays in a plain white room before he changes something in his recurring dreams. Then, he finds himself in a cold, stone room. While he's fed, there are no creature comforts. He wants to be able to sleep and dream, try to change his situation again. The content of his dreams seems to include a dream where he's in an orphanage, where two men come to take him to someplace else. We don't see any more of his repeating dreams because he changes places, eventually ending up with an old man who knows his ability to dream.

question: Summarize the boy's dreams after he wakes from the recurring one.

answer: He wakes from the recurring dream in a huge room with yellow walls and several paintings. He goes out to a large balcony there, and a lady brings him food. He falls asleep after eating it, this time dreaming that he's with his imaginary parents, eating dinner. Everything starts to shake then, and an old man appears. He knows the boy is able to dream to change things, but he somehow made that impossible.

question: What does the story say about psychiatric institutions?


split: test

text:
Page 1 of 17 1 ← 2 3 4 5 6 → 17 Next >

1.

     [Dan007]

      ENABLING A5 EFFECTS ON A4 DEVICES:
      All us Iphone 4 users (A4 chip) know how many graphical features were removed from GTA 3 in favor of a `performance boost`! These include:
      *No traffic lights
      *Low-res textures
      *No car lights
      *No night lights (including pole lights)
      *Basically no light effects AT ALL, not even the sun effects!
      *No shadows
      *No blood effects
      Did all these (apparently unnecessary) sacrifices give crispy, solid performance? NO!
      The game is still jittery and sometimes reaches unplayable framerates on iphone 4. Well, then why should we deal with much less pretty graphics if there is a way to enjoy this:
      [[IMG]]
      By modding the gta3.set file.

      INSTRUCTIONS:
      1. Download XVI32 (or any other hex editor you like)
      2. Download iExplorer (a program that lets you browse files on your iphone)
      3. Open iExplorer and connect your iphone 4 (with gta 3 installed) to your PC via USB.
      4. You should see a selection of catalogs of your iphone 4 in iExplorer. Under APPS, find gta3 (a folder with a name starting with com.rockstargames...). in that folder, open the `Documents` folder. There should be a gta3.set file there.
      5. Extract the file and open it with a hex editor (e.g. XVI32)
      6. Find the following registers to enable the effects:
      Register 0x67C is responsible for enabling \ disabling lighting effects (lights, lamps, flashing lights): 00 - off, 02 - on
      Register 0x678 is responsible for enabling \ disabling shadows under objects: 00 - off, 01 - on
      Register 0x676 is responsible for resolution... in Ipad 80 (HiRes), in DHD 19 (LowRes)"
      7. FOR DRAW DISTANCE:
      view distance varies gta3.set at offset 0x568. Here are all the levels are taken from the PC version, since the maximum

      "66 66 E6", Maximum drawing distance
      "66 66 DE",
      "66 66 D6",
      "66 66 CE",
      "66 66 C6",
      "66 66 BE",
      "66 66 B6 ",
      " 66 66 AE ", Medium drawing distance (good compromise performance/quality)
      " 66 66 A6 ",
      " 66 66 9E ",
      " 66 66 96 "
      " 66 66 8E ",
      " 66 66 86 ",
      " CC CC 7C ",
      " CC CC 6C ",
      " CC CC 5C ",
      " CD CC 4C ". Minimum drawing disance
      " CC CC A4 " iOS A4 chipset drawing distance (some sort of custom value)
      8. Using the above instructions, edit the gta3.set file, and place it back in the Documents folder in iExplorer (replacing the old file). I found that medium draw distance, no shadows and all other effects enabled actually BOOSTS performance on the iphone 4 AND looks HEAPS better than the default preset Rockstar gave us.
      9. Open GTA 3 on your iphone, and go to options - controls - reset defaults
      10. Enjoy your much better looking and performing GTA 3!

      IMPORTANT: you do NOT need to jailbreak or pirate the game in order to get these features!
      PRESET FILES:Preset gta3.set file (no shadows, lights, med. draw distance, better textures, blood etc.):gta3.set
      Another preset with MAX. Graphics settings (blood, shadows, max. draw distance, traffic lights): gta3.set MAX
      First preset file with enabled traffic lights and better blood (BEST PRESET SO FAR/NO FPS LOST): gta3.set BEST
      UPDATE:For some bizarre reason, when shadows are turned off, traffic lights and blood get turned off as well. So if you are willing to sacrifice 2-3 FPS for those, enable shadows

      COMING SOON: Custom vehicles guide + enabling Xbox vehicles for A4 devices!

2.

3.

      I think u forgot no tire skid marks.. This is partly the reason some people found the controls unresponsive as they hit the E break and ran head on into a wall.

      And umm.. I think the game runs fine, just a _minor_ crashing issue when memory gets too heavy. Is this recommended for iPod touch users? I can't help but call bull when u say it actually _'performs better'._

4.

     [squarezero]

    _STAFF MEMBER_ _PATREON SILVER_

      Are the rules at TA really that hard? This is the the 6th thread I've had to move today, and I have to say that it's getting pretty tedious.

      Is your thread about a new game? Put it the iPhone and iPod Touch Game section.

      Is it about an existing game? Don't create a new thread; post your comment in the existing thread.

      Is your information way too important for the thread? Get over yourself.

      Is really, really too important for it to mingle with other folks comments? Create a new thread in the General Game Discussion section.

      Can't understand these instructions? DON'T CREATE A NEW THREAD!

      I know it happens by accident, but I can't help feeling that some folks don't care because "the mod will fix it." Well, we've got better things to do, like fend off the constant barrage of spam threads.

      /Rant

      This sounds neat. On the Mac you can access these files also with PhoneView.

5.

     [Dan007]

6.

      I'm sure they were removed for a reason but interesting you found a way to turn the features back on. it has to run slower with the features on though

7.

8.

     [Xapped]

      wow.. [:eek:]

      Anyway, you can see that the A4 draw distance is slightly above CC CC 7C. It's different from the normal 66 66 XX - maybe reduced spawn rate or something?

      [By the way, I seriously suggest EVERYONE to try it. I don't feel a FPS reduction at all.]

      Also, Rockstar should have added AA as settings. We won't be able to run it, but in a few years when we got our iPhone 5Ses, we can come back to old games with better graphics.

9.

      can you explain better for us who dont know to work with hex editor?i use search but can find symbols that you post in first post...

10.

      Cant wait for all the people to do this on their ancient iPod 2's then go write 1 star reviews because the game is unplayable.

11.

     [arce]

      can you upload your files please?

12.

     [Dan007]

      Check the bottom of the first post.
      TO EVERYONE: link to my gta3.set file is at the bottom of the first post. It won't necessarily guarantee you mind-blowing results, but it's the preset I found works best for me.

13.

     [arce]

14.

     [12yam]

      Any alternative to iexplorer? I don't want to pay 5 bucks for it...

      EDIT: nvm, i feel like an idiot. You weren't talking about the iPod app "iexplorer", were you?

15.

     [Xapped]

16.

     [12yam]

      OMG this works so well on my 4th gen iPod!!!!! THANK YOU!!! Framerate's taken a little hit...but the draw distance and textures make up for that in a HUGE way! BTW, i used the preset, so better textures, shadows, a bit of lighting effects, and better draw distance. but no blood.

      I'm just curious though, if an update is released would I have to mod it again?

      I'm kind of a noob, so sorry [:p]

17.

18.

     [arce]

      working perfect on my iphone 4

19.

      Help! I do not know how to work the hex editor [:(] I do not see a 0x67C / how do I work this- do I use the 0 on the left column? But then where do I find the 67C? Thanks!

20.

     [12yam]

      Dan007 did a really good job with his presets. I'd suggest you skip the hex editor and use his.

Page 1 of 17 1 ← 2 3 4 5 6 → 17 Next >

question: What is the general reception to the modifications mentioned in the text?

answer: The reaction is positive in general with most people thanking the first poster for sharing the method of how to mod GTA 3 on iPhones. A moderator chides the thread's author about using the wrong subforum, and there are a few people who are confused about how to apply the mod and asking for help.

question: What does the text say about the art style of GTA 3?


text:
TEAM NEUSTA GMBH is a private holding of Carsten Meyer-Heder. It is a computer software company headquartered in Bremen, Northern Germany. Team Neusta is one of the top-selling Internet companies in Germany. The holding owns 25 companies with several based in Germany, Toulouse, France and Lachen, Switzerland. Team Neusta employs around 1,100 people and around 500 free-lancers.[1]

In 2018 the holding had a transaction volume of ca 170 Mio. Euro.[2] The CEO is Heinz Kierchhoff.[3]

The company was founded bei Carsten Meyer-Heder in 1993 as Neusta GmbH. First jobs came form tourist company TUI and the software company Szymaniak. In March 2018, Meyer-Heder joined the conservative CDU and ran as candidate for his party for the office of the President of the Senate and Mayor of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen in the 2019 Bremen state election. He gained 26.7% and could not reach power.[4][5]

Holdings

Because of business and tax reasons, Team Neusta runs 25 companys:

-   neusta GmbH[6]
-   neusta aerospace GmbH[7]
-   neusta communications GmbH[8]
-   neusta consulting GmbH[9]
-   neusta destination solutions GmbH[10]
-   neusta enterprise services GmbH[11]
-   neusta eTourism GmbH[12]
-   neusta grafenstein GmbH[13]
-   neusta identity & access management GmbH[14]
-   neusta infomantis[15]
-   neusta infrastructure services GmbH[16]
-   neusta mobile solutions GmbH[17]
-   neusta next GmbH[18]
-   neusta portal services GmbH[19]
-   neusta software development west GmbH[20]
-   neusta sport portals GmbH[21]
-   neusta SAS[22]
-   neusta webservices GmbH[23]
-   HEC GmbH[24]
-   neusta experience[25]
-   neusta marketing[26]
-   eWerk GmbH[27]
-   neusta forty-two[28]
-   Kurswechsel Unternehmensberatung GmbH[29]
-   neusta inspire GmbH[30]

[1] https://bremen.ai/directory/team-neusta/

[2] https://www.medianet-bb.de/de/company/team-neusta/

[3] https://www.team-neusta.de/service/impressum/

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]  Unser Impressum|periodical=|publisher=|url=http://www.neusta-consulting.de/impressum/%7Cformat=|access-date=2017-04-10|last=|date=|year=|language=de-DE|pages=|quote=}}

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

[27]

[28]

[29]

[30]  Ein Team neusta Unternehmen|periodical=|publisher=|url=https://www.neusta-inspire.de/%7Cformat=|access-date=|last=|date=|year=|language=|pages=|quote=}}

title: Team neusta

question: Who is the CEO of Team Nuesta GmbH?

answer: Carsten Meyer-Heder is the CEO of Team Nuesta GmbH

question: Who is Carsten Meyer-Heder?

answer: He is the CEO of Team Nuesta GmbH, and is also a politician.

question: How many companies does Team Neusta own?

answer: Team Neusta owns 25 companies.

question: How many people does Team Neusta employ?

answer: Team Neusta employs 1100 people and about 500 freelancers.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: This article gives a brief description of Team Nuesta GmbH, a private holding company owned by Carsten Meyer-Heder. It is based in Bremen, Germany.


text:
ROEUN CHANBORA ( ; March 16, 1998), known professionally as BORATWENT2 (pronounced “Bora Twenty Two”), is a Cambodian rapper.

Career

In 2018, BoraTwenT2 uploaded his first song, titled “Shooting Star”,[1] to the music streaming service SoundCloud.

“Shooting Star” was BoraTwenT2's first released track, produced by “BlackMayo”,[2] and served as his debut commercial single.[3] Its music reached over 1milion views on YouTube.[4] On March 14, 2018, BoraTwenT2 released his second commercial single “Season”. Its music video has received only 109 views on YouTube after its release.[5] The rapper released “Christmas Alone”[6] as his third commercial single.

On October 19, 2018 he released his debut studio album titled _Season,_ which includes all three of his commercial singles and eight other tracks.

On November 8, 2019, he released his second studio album, _I walk on ma way_.

On February 21, 2020, he released another studio album, _Hope Goes Popular,_[7] which includes all three of his commercial singles for TikTok.[8][9]

Discography

Studio albums

  --------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Album                 Details                                       Year
  --------------------- --------------------------------------------- ------
  _Garageband_          -   Label: អនន្ត production                   2017
                        -   Format: Digital download

  _Season_              -   Released: October 19, 2018                2018
                        -   Label: អនន្ត production
                        -   Format: Digital download, CD, streaming

  _I walk on ma way_    -   Released: November 8, 2019                2019
                        -   Label: អនន្ត production
                        -   Format: Digital download, CD, streaming

  _Hope Goes Popular_   -   Released: February 21, 2020               2020
                        -   Label: អនន្ត production
                        -   Format: Digital download, CD, streaming
  --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Singles

  Title                             Year   Album
  --------------------------------- ------ ---------------------
  “3bae”                            2017   _Garageband_
  “OKKK”
  “Love is Pain”
  “Shooting Star”                   2018   _Season_
  “I walk on ma way”                2019   _I Walk on Ma Way_
  “Private Love”
  “Chhma”                           2020   _Hope Goes Popular_
  “Catz'x”
  “Back2skool”
  “Never Give Up”                   2020   —
  “Srorlanh Neary Sork Treum Kor”
  “Aquarius”
  “Long Night”
  “Sart Face”

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HD7zff6POyj

[6] [Christmas music]

[7]

[8]

[9]

title: BoraTwenT2

question: What does the text say about hip hop?

question: What does the text say about BoraTwenT2?

answer: BoraTwenT2 (Bora Twenty Two) is a Cambodian rapper whose real name is Roeun Chanbora (March 16, 1998). In 2018, BoraTwenT2 uploaded his first song, titled "Shooting Star" to the music streaming service SoundCloud. The track, produced by "BlackMayo", was the first one he ever released and served as his debut commercial single. Shooting Star's music video reached over a million views on YouTube. On March 14, 2018, he released his second commercial single "Season", but its music video only got 109 views on YouTube after its release. The rapper released "Christmas Alone" as his third commercial single. On October 19, 2018, BoraTwenT2 released his debut studio album titled "Season" which includes all three of his commercial singles and eight other tracks. On November 8, 2019, he released his second studio album, "I walk on ma way". On February 21, 2020, he released another studio album "Hope Goes Popular" which includes all three of his commercial singles for TikTok.


text:
MARION COUNTY is located in the U.S. state of Indiana. The 2010 United States Census reported a population of 903,393,[1] making it the largest county in the state and 55th most populated county in the country. The county seat is Indianapolis, the state capital and largest city.[2] Marion County is consolidated with Indianapolis through an arrangement known as Unigov.

Marion County is the central county of the Indianapolis–Carmel–Anderson MSA in Central Indiana.

Geography

The low rolling hills of Marion County have been cleared of trees, and the area is completely devoted to municipal development or to agriculture, except for wooded drainages.[3] The highest point (920 feet/279 meters ASL) is a small ridge at the county's northwest corner.[4]

According to the 2010 census, the county has an area of , of which (or 98.34%) is land and (or 1.66%) is water.[5]

The White River flows southwestward through the central part of the county; it is joined by Eagle Creek and Fall Creek, both of which have dams in the county forming Eagle Creek Reservoir and Geist Reservoir, respectively.

Marion County has two Indiana State Parks, Fort Harrison State Park and White River State Park, as well as many municipal parks.

Adjacent counties

-   Hamilton County - north
-   Hancock County - east
-   Shelby County - southeast
-   Johnson County - south
-   Morgan County - southwest
-   Hendricks County - west
-   Boone County - northwest

Transportation

Major highways

-   -   -

-   -   -   -   -   -   -   -   -   -   -   -   -

* I-69 currently ends in Indianapolis at the I-465 interchange in the northeast section of the county. The extension connecting Indianapolis and Evansville is expected to be completed in the mid to late 2020s.

Airports

-   KIND - Indianapolis International Airport
-   KEYE - Eagle Creek Airpark[6]
-   Post-Air Airport[7]

[Control tower at Indianapolis International Airport]

History

Marion County was created on April 1, 1822, from part of the “New Purchase” lands that had been obtained from its inhabitants, the Lenape, by the Treaty of St. Mary's.[8] It is named for Francis Marion, a Brigadier General from South Carolina in the American Revolutionary War.[9]

The state capital was moved to Indianapolis in Marion County from Corydon on January 10, 1825. This began a period of rapid growth in population.[10]

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in Indianapolis have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in January to in July.[11]

Demographics

[Age and gender distribution in Marion County]

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 903,393 people, 366,176 households, and 218,338 families in the county.[12] The population density was . There were 417,862 housing units at an average density of .[13] The racial makeup of the county was 62.7% white, 26.7% black or African American, 2.0% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 5.4% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 9.3% of the population.[14] In terms of ancestry, 18.9% were German, 11.8% were Irish, 8.4% were English, 6.6% were American, and 5.2% were Subsaharan African.[15]

Of the 366,176 households, 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.9% were married couples living together, 17.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 40.4% were non-families, and 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.08. The median age was 33.9 years.[16]

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $54,142. Males had a median income of $42,215 versus $34,169 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,498. About 13.5% of families and 17.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.7% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.[17]

Cities and towns

MARION COUNTY has a consolidated city-county government, known as Unigov, in which only four municipalities retain full government autonomy (including a mayor and city council) as “excluded cities”. The remaining municipalities within the county are “included towns” and exercise very limited authority, mainly in zoning and appointing their own police departments and maintaining some of their own municipal services and town identities. They retain the ability to levy taxes for these purposes.

Municipalities

EXCLUDED CITIES IN BOLD.

-   BEECH GROVE
-   Clermont
-   Crows Nest
-   Cumberland (western portion)
-   Homecroft
-   Indianapolis
-   LAWRENCE
-   Meridian Hills
-   North Crows Nest
-   Rocky Ripple
-   SOUTHPORT
-   SPEEDWAY
-   Spring Hill
-   Warren Park
-   Williams Creek
-   Wynnedale

Townships

Marion County has nine townships roughly organized into a grid-like, three-by-three pattern. This arrangement can be seen below, with the top being north.

  --------- ------------ ----------
  Pike      Washington   Lawrence
  Wayne     Center       Warren
  Decatur   Perry        Franklin
  --------- ------------ ----------

Politics

Most of Marion County is in Indiana's 7th congressional district, which is held by Democrat André Carson. Indiana's 5th congressional district, which runs along the northern edge of the county, is held by Republican Susan Brooks. The county is represented by 15 seats in the Indiana House of Representatives, 86th through 100th districts, with ten seats held by Democrats and five by Republicans. In the State Senate Marion County is divided among nine districts, which are held by two Democrats and seven Republicans. The Senate districts are numbered 28 through 36.

The Indianapolis City-County Council is the combined legislative body of Indianapolis and Marion County. The consolidated government, known as Unigov, was formally established in 1970 upon the merger of the city government with the county government. The council passes ordinances for the city and county, and makes appointments to certain boards and commissions.

County elected officials

-   Mayor (County Executive): Joe Hogsett (D)
-   Auditor: Julie Voorhies (D)
-   Clerk: Myla A. Eldrige (D)
-   Coroner: Dr. Lee Sloan (D)
-   Assessor: Joseph P. O'Connor (D)
-   Prosecutor: Ryan Mears (D)
-   Recorder: Kate Sweeney Bell (D)
-   Sheriff: Kerry J. Forestal (D)
-   Surveyor: Debra S. Jenkins (D)
-   Treasurer: Claudia O. Fuentes (D)

The Auditor, Assessor, and Treasurer form the county's Board of Commissioners.

For most of the 20th century, Marion County was considered one of the most conservative urban counties in the nation. Between 1896 and 2000, it went Democratic only four times, in the national landslides of 1932, 1936 and 1964 as well as 1912 when Woodrow Wilson won a plurality in the county. The Republican edge began to lessen considerably in the 1990s, and in 2004 John Kerry became the first Democrat since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 to carry the county. The trend continued in 2008 and 2012 with Barack Obama showing strongly in Marion County, winning 63% and 60% of the vote respectively.

  Presidential election results[18]
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  Year
  style=“text-align:center;” |2020
  |2016
  |2012
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  |2004
  |2000
  |1996
  |1992
  |1988
  |1984
  |1980
  |1976
  |1972
  |1968
  |1964
  |1960
  |1956
  |1952
  |1948
  |1944
  |1940
  |1936
  |1932
  |1928
  |1924
  |1920
  |1916
  |1912
  |1908
  |1904
  |1900
  |1896
  |1892
  |1888

[1]

[2]

[3] [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Marion+County,+IN/@39.7088572,-86.2466654,23113m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x886b55a6bc124cb1:0xb7219ec29ef5eff0!8m2!3d39.83619!4d-86.1751759 _Marion County IN_ (Google Maps, accessed 31 August 2020)]

[4] _Marion County High Point, Indiana_ (PeakBagger.com, accessed 31 August 2020)

[5]

[6] [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Eagle+Creek+Airpark/@39.8277361,-86.3010015,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x886ca9832f704b8d:0x3c53be355384252!8m2!3d39.827732!4d-86.2988128 _Eagle Creek Airpark_ (Google Maps, accessed 31 August 2020)]

[7] [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Post+Air+Airport/@39.7505705,-86.0176997,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x886b4f55b6b173cf:0xc9144e73e574d74c!8m2!3d39.7505664!4d-86.015511 _Post Air Airport_ (Google Maps, accessed 31 August 2020)]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

title: Marion County, Indiana

question: What does the text say about the county's geography?

answer: The low rolling hills of Marion County have been cleared of trees, and the area is completely devoted to municipal development or to agriculture, except for wooded drainages. The highest point is a small ridge in the northwest, at 920 feet above sea level. 98.34% of the county is land, with many municipal parks and two Indiana State Parks: Fort Harrison State Park and White River State Park. The White River flows southwestward through the central part of the county; it is joined by Eagle Creek and Fall Creek, both of which have dams in the county forming Eagle Creek Reservoir and Geist Reservoir, respectively.

question: What does the text say about the county's namesake?

answer: Monroe County is named for Francis Marion, a Brigadier General from South Carolina in the American Revolutionary War.

question: What does the text say about ghost towns?


text:
MISS JAPAN 2019 () was the 45th edition of the Miss Japan pageant. It was held on September 11, 2019. The winner was Honoka Tsuchiya of Tokyo Prefecture. The is the first edition of the Miss Japan pageant under the HDR corporation, who started the pageant after the HDR corporation lost the franchises to Miss Universe and Miss Earth. Representatives from 42 out of the 47 prefectures of Japan competed at the pageant.

Results

Placements

  --------------------------------------------
  Final results[1]   Contestant
  ------------------ -------------------------
  MISS JAPAN 2019    -    - HONOKA TSUCHIYA

  1ST RUNNER-UP      -    - Yuka Shintake

  2ND RUNNER-UP      -    - Chiaki Owaki

  3RD RUNNER-UP      -    - Moeka Horie

  4TH RUNNER-UP      -    - Haruka Yamashita

  TOP 16             -    - Miho Otsuka
                     -    - Lara Negishi
                     -    - Shiori Fujita
                     -    - Nana Takahashi
                     -    - Aya Ohno
                     -    - Aya Kawasaki
                     -    - Rina Mitsuya
                     -    - Haruka Koyanagi
                     -    - Yuki Sorasaki
                     -    - Haruka Kato
                     -    - Mizuki Kato
  --------------------------------------------

Contestants

42 contestants competed[2][3][4]:

  Prefecture   Candidate             Japanese Name   Age
  ------------ --------------------- --------------- -----
               Yuka Shintake         新竹 由佳       20
               Miho Otsuka           大塚 美帆       25
               Miu Inoue             井上 美羽       19
               Lara Negishi          根岸 らら       24
               Shiori Fujita         藤田 栞         26
               Riko Hasegawa         長谷川 莉子     24
               Mayu Fukuyama         福山 真由       21
               Nana Takahashi        高橋 奈那       25
               Aya Ohno              大野 彩         25
               Marise Hayase         早瀬 茉里美     27
               Aya Kawasaki          川崎 彩         25
               Rina Mitsuya          三津谷 里奈     27
               Saki Hagiyama         萩山 沙貴       25
               Chisato Komatsuzaki   小松崎 ちさと   27
               Risa Nishitaki        西瀧 理紗       27
               Kanako Nakano         中野 加奈子     23
               Mako Matsumoto        松本 茉子       26
               Ai Kitagawa           北川 あい       24
               Aika Taka             高 絢一果       20
               Chiaki Owaki          大脇 千明       26
               Ayano Kubo            久保 彩乃       19
               Ami Nakano            中野 愛美       25
               Misa Tisaoka          立岡 三沙       25
               Haruka Koyanagi       小柳 春花       19
               Momoka Kawakami       川上 もも香     19
               Sagiri Kobayashi      小林 沙霧       26
               Haruka Yamashita      山下 遥香       23
               Yuki Sorasaki         空先 有紀       26
               Maria Matsunaga       松永 麻莉亜     24
               Moeka Horie           堀江 萌花       19
               Momoka Kakumoto       角元 百花       22
               Saori Komori          小森 沙織       26
               Aki Tamaki            玉城 亜樹       21
               Sayaka Akiyama        秋山 沙也香     27
               Chihiro Mori          毛利 千紘       25
               Erina Awai            粟井 絵里奈     23
               HONOKA TSUCHIYA[5]    土屋 炎伽       26
               Haruka Kato           加藤 遥香       24
               Nene Taniguchi        谷口 寧々       24
               Saki Nakabayashi      中林 沙妃       24
               Shoko Nishida         西田 祥子       22
               Mizuki Kato           加藤 瑞生       21

Notes

Did not compete

-
-
-
-
-
-

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

title: Miss Japan 2019

question: Summarize the edition of Miss Japan 2019.

answer: Miss Japan 2019 was the 45th edition of the pageant. 42 out of Japan's 47 prefectures were represented in the pageant which was held on September 11, 2019. The winner was Honoka Tsuchiya of the Tokyo prefecture.


text:
_SOMEWHERE I'VE NEVER TRAVELLED_ is the second album by Ambrosia, and their final album on 20th Century Fox Records, released in 1976. It is one of the 1st pressings issued in custom “pyramid” cover, having 3 fold-out panels that turn the cover into a Pyramid.[1][2]

The album peaked at #79 on the Billboard 200. None of its singles charted on the Billboard Hot 100.

Track listing

Personnel

Ambrosia

-   David Pack - guitar, lead and backing vocals, keyboards
-   Christopher North - keyboards, backing vocals
-   Joe Puerta - bass, lead and backing vocals
-   Burleigh Drummond - drums, lead and backing vocals, percussion, bassoon

Additional musicians

-   Ruth Underwood - marimba
-   Andrew Powell - orchestration (Tracks 3, 8, 10)
-   Ian Underwood - saxophone
-   Daniel Kobialka - violin

Production

-   Producer: Alan Parsons
-   Engineers: Alan Parsons, Tom Trefethen
-   Photography: Ed Caraeff Studio

Charts

Album

  Year   Chart             Position
  ------ ----------------- ----------
  1976   _Billboard_ 200   79

[1]

[2]

title: Somewhere I've Never Travelled

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The second album by Ambrosia, 'Somewhere I've never travelled', was the final album by the band by 20th Century Fox Records and released in 1976. Subsequently, the album peaked at number 79 on the Billboard 200, and it's one of the first pressings issued in custom pyramid cover.


text:
"_The building codes of the democracies embody, of course, only what the previous generation knew, or thought they knew, about building...”_- Frank Lloyd Wright

“_If a detailed, factual study were made of all those instances in the history of … industry which have been used by the statists as an indictment of free enterprise and as an argument in favor of a government-controlled economy, it would be found that the actions blamed on businessmen were caused, necessitated, and made possible only by government intervention in business. The evils, popularly ascribed to big industrialists, were not the result of an unregulated industry, but of government power over industry. The villain_ _in the picture was not the businessman, but the legislator, not free enterprise, but government controls_.”
- Ayn Rand

THE LEAKY HOMES DEBACLE is costing everyone in the country dearly.  Homes full of mould and misery – builders, designers and contractors fearful of opening their letterbox for fear of a summons -- and “a bill that is likely to top $11.5 billion” to fix it all that is being picked up by ratepayers, by home-owners, and by everyone who’s  got a dollar in their pocket and anyone who ever visited a building site.

It’s a big problem, isn’t it – and a big problem needs a big villain.

The myth persists that the leading villain in the leaky homes debacle was the “light-handed regulation” introduced to the building industry in the early nineties by the National Government, which allowed “alternative solutions” to undermine good professional practice, and cowboy builders and unregistered designers to fly by night and rip off old ladies.

According to this myth, there was once a golden age in which kindly building inspectors and knowledgeable bureaucrats were everywhere, reining in the cowboys, prohibiting shonky practices and banning shoddy building systems – and who are now grasping the nettle to return things to sanity.

Unfortunately for those who peddle the myth, nothing could be further from the truth. It's a fairy tale.

The fairy tale, however, is everywhere. Its latest appearance was on Leighton Smith’s morning show in the person of John Gray from the Home Owners and Buyers Association, where  he peddled the myth that this “light-handed regulation” is the cause of all the leaky-home misery, along with all the cowboy builders, designers and inspectors it let loose on unsuspecting home-owners.

Unfortunately for the headline writers and Mr Gray, it’s just not true.  In fact it’s almost one-hundred-and-eighty-degrees the opposite of the truth.  It’s a fairy tale erected out of whole cloth.

The _misery_ is certainly true,however – and it’s been killing good builders, good designers and unfortunate home-owners.  And let’s not downplay either the misery, or the good intentions of Mr Gray. But the _cause_ of all that misery is not “light-handed regulation,” since that wasn’t the regime under which most of the damage was done then, it’s far from the regime in which the damage is still being done now, and in any case it doesn’t speak to the actual pathology of the problem: what actually allowed water into houses and let them rot.

I’ll talk about the physical causes tomorrow, and on Monday I’ll talk about how the “solutions” set up by government to “fix” the leaky homes problem have conspired instead to make things worse for everyone, including the regulators.  Today I’ll just talk about this myth of light-handed regulation.

[110263519_full]FOR A START, JUST think about this: there was a much more light-handed regulatory regime in the early 1910s and 1920s, when most of the villas and bungalows were built for which people now pay huge money – even for “original” examples.  Things couldn’t be more light-handed then, but the disastrous systemic problems now being experienced weren’t in evidence then – not even for the many stucco (solid plaster) buildings like these two on the right still decorating some of our leafiest suburbs.[80521246_full]

In fact, even in 1982 when I started building, a relatively light-handed regulatory regime was still in existence – even in those Muldoonist times.

The ‘Bible’ on site was a document called NZ Standard 3604, which back then was about forty pages long; permits took around two weeks at most to process; council inspectors were seen on site around three times maximum – and the thing called a Code Compliance Certificate didn’t even exist.

The first house I ever worked on, in the leafy suburb of Remuera as it happens, had just  two pages of plans (no details) and each time the inspector arrived it was to discover that my boss had changed something else from the drawings.  Inspector Dumbo eventually just told us to send him a sketch when we’d finished – if we could get around to it.  We never did. The house is still there, still solid.

I tell you that story not because it was unusual, but because it wasn’t. By the time I was building EIFS-clad houses in Mission Bay in 1987, things were no different (and I have to report, these were EIFS-clad houses that had no problems with leaking cladding).  But things were about to change.
Enter the bureaucrats.

THE BUREAUCRAT WHO BEARS the greatest guilt is a know-nothing called Bill Porteous whose agitation for more building regulation and an “Integrated Building Code” leveraged him into the job as head of the new bureaucracy set up to oversee the building industry, the Building Industry Authority.

I say “a know-nothing,” and I say that from personal experience, since Porteous was inflicted on me as an alleged construction lecturer in my two years at the Wellington Architecture School in the mid-eighties – where I quickly discovered that what Porteous knew about construction could be written on a very small postcard (a postcard which needed to be folded until it was all sharp corners and stuffed up his arse) and was awfully excited about the idea of an “integrated national building code.”

As you can imagine, we didn’t get on.

[] That's a sample on the right of just _some_ of the paperwork that accompanied the 'deregulation' of the nineties. The new bureaucracy was of a similar size.

Now if that’s _de_regulation, then you can call me Norwegian and ship me to Oslo.

Promoted from his job lecturing budding architects how not to build a house, Porteous’s new bureaucracy quickly set about regulating, ahem, “integrating” the building industry, giving increased powers of oversight to councils, giving increasing authority to the bunch of bureaucrats in Porirua known as the Building Research Association of NZ (BRANZ), and putting his new integrated “performance-based” building code into action.

I say “performance-based” building code since that’s what it said right there on the label, but in reality the new code was about as “performance-based” as its near-identical twin, the Resource Management Act – and just as heavy-handed.

Want to build a balustrade?  The new Building Code told you (and still does) how you’re allowed to do it, right down to the size of bolts and the spacing of balusters. Want to specify the timber you’re going to build your house with? The standards specified under the new Building Code told you (and still do) what timber you’re allowed to use where.  Want to install a cladding system? The new Building Code told you (and still does) what hoops you have to jump through before you’re allowed to.

One of those hoops was (and still is) that the system, item or building material had to have obtained approval from those bureaucrats out at Porirua.  Those bureaucrats at BRANZ.  The next hoop to jump was (and still is) obtaining a building consent from your council -- which now routinely take months rather than weeks to process, and _can even take months just to be allowed to submit a consent_. And the next hoop was (and still is) to endure an increased number of building inspections from the council -- which these days can easily run into double figures, and that’s before enduring the Sisyphusian and expensive task of trying to be awarded the Holy Grail of the Code Compliance Certificate (a task that now involves lawyers, inspectors and a pile of paperwork from everybody who’s ever visited the building site while construction is in progress.

Now despite Mr Porteous’s certified and gold-plated regulatory scheme, everything failed.  It failed not _despite_ his new heavy-handed regime, but _because_ of it.

JUST TO CONCRETISE WHAT I mean, let’s look at two leading players in the drama : untreated dry-frame timber produced and marketed by the likes of Fletcher’s Origin Timber and Carter Holt Harvey, and James Hardie‘s Harditex – a low-density autoclaved board made with wood pulp and cement used to back monolithic claddings.  Between them, and for reasons I’ll go into tomorrow, these two products account for more than eighty percent of the problems associated with the 7,571 properties registered with the government’s Weathertight Homes Resolution Service (WHRS). You know which houses I mean, don’t you: they’re usually the Mediterranean looking things around the place now covered with tarpaulins and scaffolding.

Without jumping too far ahead to what I’ll say tomorrow, the primary problem found in houses registered with  the government’s WHRS is that James Hardie’s Harditex “system” let water into the houses, and the untreated dry-frame timber they were built with rotted.

Use of Carter’s and Fletcher’s dry-frame timber in wall framing was allowed because a committee of the New Zealand Standards Authority decided that it should be (and sitting on that committee were representatives of, you guessed it, Carters and Fletchers) and because the boys from BRANZ issued an “appraisal” declaring it to be fit for that purpose.  (Without ticking those boxes, no building materials can be brought to market here in NZ – and as it was then, so it still is now.)

And use of Harditex was allowed because James Hardie prepared a set of details to be used when installing the Harditex system on the outside of your house, and the boys at BRANZ duly issued an appraisal saying that it was fit for that purpose.

Everybody was happy – or at least was prepared to be happy because the process set up by Mr Porteous was working and all these materials had all the necessary ticks from all the nice bureaucrats who had your best interests at heart.  And so everyone set off in complete confidence to build the slums of tomorrow.

-   Registered architects designed Harditex buildings with dryframe using details supplied by James Hardie and approved by BRANZ.
-   Master builders built Harditex buildings with dryframe using details supplied by James Hardie and approved by BRANZ.
-   Building suppliers were told by both Carters and Fletchers to substitute dryframe for treated timber – and everybody was happy, because Mr Porteous’s regime had declared it to be safe.
-   Building inspectors inspected Harditex buildings built with dryframe using details supplied by James Hardie, and were happy with the work – and delighted that all the details were approved by BRANZ.
-   And home-owners bought Harditex buildings built with dryframe using details supplied by James Hardie and approved by BRANZ.

And everybody was happy. But they’re not so happy nowadays.

The problem wasn’t cowboys or lack of registered or qualified professionals.  Cowboys built a few of the buildings that failed, but cowboys will always be with use, and they weren’t the cause of the 7,571 failures, or of the systemic problems that caused them. Good builders and good architects relied on the process and in good faith they built and designed buildings that failed.  In fact _master_ builders and _registered_ architects built and designed buildings all over the country that failed – one  I’m trying to fix now was designed by a president of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, drawn up the son of a former architecture school Dean and built in good faith by registered master builders.

It still failed.

What went wrong was that the details weren’t worth a damn.  The Harditex building system wasn’t worth a damn. Untreated dryframe timber isn’t worth a damn when it’s wet.

But when it comes to sheeting home the blame for all this, it’s not those who are responsible for the materials or their approval who are feeling the heat.

Good builders who relied on James Hardie’s details are being ruined, but it looks to me like James Hardie themselves has been made immune from any responsibility.

Good architects who relied on BRANZ’s approvals are being ruined, but BRANZ themselves have been held by the courts to be immune from any responsibility.

Good home-owners who were told by Bill Porteous’s Building Industry Authority that if what they bought had made it through Mr Porteous’s regulations, were soon surprised to see the government dissolve the Building Industry Authority so that it couldn’t be held legally responsible – and to then see it reborn under a new name, in the same offices, with the same staff, as the Department of Building and Housing.  Different name, different department. “Wasn’t us, honest Guv.”

You’ve heard people damn fly-by-night cowboy operators? Crikey, you’ve never seen ‘fly-by-night’ until you’ve seen the speed with which government departments sidestep their responsibilities.  (You’ve seen it again just this week, haven’t you, this all-care-and-no-responsibility attitude that only a regulatory authority can bring to things, with the news that the Overseas Investment Commission ignored warnings that Cedenco’s owners were crooks, and instead gave them their imprimatur. )

All care and no responsibility – and not so heavy on the care. That’s the ticket for the bureaucracy.

So where is Bill Porteous now?  Bill Porteous has disappeared, and his bureaucracy has disappeared with him – and you and I are left to pick up his pieces.

Where are BRANZ?  BRANZ are still issuing appraisals that councils cling to like drowning men cling to a liferaft – and the courts have declared that BRANZ were not at fault for anything.

Everyone did it, but no-one’s to blame. Turns out you can’t sue these entities.  Turns out the government’s bureaucrats really are  above the law. Turns out that so the consequences of their mistakes and misdirections are now being visited upon the licensed and unlicensed, the registered and the unregistered, the home-owners and the would-be investors, all of whom built and designed and bought houses on the basis that the materials and standards were "certified," and all of whom now suffer the consequence of that false sense of security.

Because it turns out Frank Lloyd Wright was wrong.  Turns out that neither Bill nor BRANZ nor the BIA knew even as much as the previous generation – and they forced that ignorance on us by law.  By Bill’s law.

[JamesHardie]

And big companies like James Hardie?  When good builders, designers and home-owners who relied on their materials and details are being nailed to the wall, how have they somehow managed to shirk their responsibility?  That’s an excellent question – a question that some good investigative journalist needs to answer.

The Australian government has just bailed out James Hardie to the tune of A$320 million for its responsibilities over asbestos.  Has some similar deal been cooked up over here?  I really do think we should be told. . .

question: What does the text say about Civil Engineers?

question: What does the text say about Bill Porteous?

answer: Bill Porteous was the bureaucrat guilty of imposing more building regulations and spearheaded the "Integrated Building Code" that set up the bureaucracy in the building industry known as the Building Industry Authority in New Zealand. Porteous is accused of not knowing anything about architecture or the construction industry even though he was a construction lecturer at the Wellington Architecture School in the mid-eighties. Unfortunately for architects and builders, he got promoted from lecturing and he set about regulating the industry, giving increased powers of oversight to councils, and giving increasing authority to a new bureaucracy called the Building Research Association of NZ (BRANZ). Porteous' regulations made it increasingly difficult to secure the necessary permits and certifications in time, and the paperwork was horrendous. Despite all his regulations, however, the NZ building industry failed due to "BRANZ certified" building materials from Fletcher’s Origin Timber and Carter Holt Harvey, and James Hardie‘s Harditex that rotted or let water in homes, leading to the $11.5 billion "Leaky Homes Debacle" in New Zealand. After the fiasco, Porteous disappeared and the government dissolved his Building Industry Authority so that it couldn't be held legally responsible.

question: Summarize the point the author is trying to make.

answer: The point the author is trying to make here is that heavy-handed government regulations can ruin entire industries, businesses, and careers. The leaky homes debacle in New Zealand is a prime example of too much government oversight, bureaucracy, and possibly corruption/collusion between bureaucrats and some concerned businesses. The author shares a personal story that he was part of a team that built a house with only two pages of drawings, at a time when there were sparse government regulations or a national building code. The house they built is still standing today. He compares this with the 7,571 homes that used government-approved building materials but still failed catastrophically due to water damage. These houses were designed by good architects and master builders following the strict building requirements of the government, but now they're all rotting. The master builders and architects who designed these houses have now been ruined because they followed the government's rules, but the government refuses to take the blame.


text:
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question: What is the article about?

answer: It is about a server that enables consolidating data from multiple laptops or desktops onto a single server with up to 4 x internal 3.5" cabled or hot-plug HDD. The article is an ad for the server. It praises its capacity, speed, reliability, security, and performance.

question: What does the article say about the price of the server?


text:
Los Angeles (AFP) - The Houston Rockets thrashed the Utah Jazz 113-92 in Salt Lake City on Friday to regain home court advantage in the NBA playoffs.

Stung by 116-108 game-two defeat on their home floor, the Rockets responded with a vengeance to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference second-round series.

Rockets star James Harden scored 25 points with 12 assists in 30 minutes on the court.

Eric Gordon added another 25 points in a merciless display by a Rockets team that led the league with 65 regular-season victories.

Royce O'Neale led the Jazz with 17 points as Houston's stifling defense shut down game-two standouts Donovan Mitchell and Joe Ingles.

Mitchell connected on just four of 16 from the field for 10 points while Ingles, who scored 27 points in game two, finished with six points on two-of-10 shooting.

After a game-two performance that Harden described as "lackadaisical," Houston came out with laser-like focus.

The Rockets scored on six of their first seven possessions, Harden's first field goal putting the Rockets up 15-5.

Houston led by as many as 22 in the first quarter and by as many as 38 in the third, harrying Utah into 16 turnovers that the Rockets converted to 19 points.

To make matters worse, the Jazz, already without injured point guard Ricky Rubio, saw Derrick Favors exit with a sprained ankle in the third quarter.

question: How many points did James Harden score?

answer: He scored 25 points.

question: Who won the basketball game?

answer: The Houston Rockets.

question: Why did Derrick Favors exit the game?

answer: He sprained his ankle.

question: How did the players think the game went?

answer: Information not found.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The text is a summary of a basketball game between the Houston Rockets and Utah Jazz.


text:
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

A ‘SKELETAL’ BABY ELEPHANT WHO WAS FORCED TO ‘RAVE’ FOR TOURISTS IN THAILAND HAS DIED.

The three-year-old, who spent his entire life at the infamous Phuket Zoo, was named ‘Dumbo’ by animal rights campaigners who filmed him being forced to dance and do tricks.

Vets said he died from an untreated infection in his digestive tract, which caused him to have ‘constant diarrhoea’.

It meant that his body was not absorbing nutrients as it should, making his bones brittle.

He became so malnourished that both of his back legs snapped under the weight of his own body.

[viral baby elephant "dumbo" dies after being forced to perform in thailand]

Dumbo, three, has died after becoming so malnourished both his legs snapped (Picture: Moving Animals)
[viral baby elephant "dumbo" dies after being forced to perform]

The ‘skeletal’ elephant was being kept in Thailan’ds notorius Phuket zoo (Picture: Moving Animals)
It took keepers three days to realise his legs were broken before they took him for treatment on April 17.

He died three days later.

One of the vets who treated him said the debilitating injuries happened due to a ‘horrible accident.’

She said: ‘It was the worst. His front legs became stuck in some mud while he was holding himself up with his back legs on dry ground.

‘First, he tried to lift himself out with his back right leg, but the bone was too thin and too brittle, and the stress on it caused it to break.

[viral baby elephant "dumbo" dies after being forced to perform]

He was forced to dance for paying tourists (Picture: Moving Animals)
[viral baby elephant "dumbo" dies after being forced to perform]

The zoo have broken no laws (Picture: Moving Animals)
‘So he tried to push himself out of the mud with his back left leg, and that broke, too.’

Moving Animals, the campaign group who filmed the footage, said: ‘This is a tragic and horrific end to Dumbo’s heartbreakingly-short life.

‘His skeletal body clearly suggested that he was unwell and could be suffering from undernourishment and exhaustion.

‘I can’t bring myself to imagine Dumbo’s suffering during this time.

‘For Dumbo to die whilst under the so-called “care” and “treatment” of the zoo shows just how neglected these animals are in captivity.’

[viral baby elephant "dumbo" dies after being forced to perform]

They will be able to ‘aquire’ a new baby if they choose to do so (Picture: Moving Animals)
As Phuket Zoo have not broken any laws, Phuket department officials have claimed that the zoo are free to ‘acquire’ another baby if they choose to do so.

The Zoo’s Manager Mr Pichai, was reported to be ‘deeply saddened by Dumbo’s passing’.

He added: ‘This elephant baby was worth more than 1 million baht (£24,670)

‘Nobody wants to lose something they love. We did the best we could do to protect him.’

Get your need-to-know latest news, feel-good stories, analysis and more

question: What does the article say about injuries and illness?

answer: The elephant, named Dumbo, died from an untreated infection in his digestive tract. Malnourishment caused both of his back legs to snap under the weight of his own body. These dibilitating injuries happened due to a horrible accident where his front legs became stuck in some mud.

question: What does the article say about the elephant's parents?


text:
[8-channel Cirrus Logic CS4382 digital-to-analog converter as used in a sound card.]

In electronics, a DIGITAL-TO-ANALOG CONVERTER (DAC, D/A, D2A, or D-TO-A) is a system that converts a digital signal into an analog signal. An analog-to-digital converter (ADC) performs the reverse function.

There are several DAC architectures; the suitability of a DAC for a particular application is determined by figures of merit including: resolution, maximum sampling frequency and others. Digital-to-analog conversion can degrade a signal, so a DAC should be specified that has insignificant errors in terms of the application.

DACs are commonly used in music players to convert digital data streams into analog audio signals. They are also used in televisions and mobile phones to convert digital video data into analog video signals. These two applications use DACs at opposite ends of the frequency/resolution trade-off. The audio DAC is a low-frequency, high-resolution type while the video DAC is a high-frequency low- to medium-resolution type.

Due to the complexity and the need for precisely matched components, all but the most specialized DACs are implemented as integrated circuits (ICs). These typically take the form of metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) mixed-signal integrated circuit chips that integrate both analog and digital circuits.

Discrete DACs (circuits constructed from multiple discrete electronic components instead of a packaged IC) would typically be extremely high-speed low-resolution power-hungry types, as used in military radar systems. Very high-speed test equipment, especially sampling oscilloscopes, may also use discrete DACs.

Overview

[Ideally sampled signal.] [Piecewise constant output of a conventional DAC lacking a reconstruction filter. In a practical DAC, a filter or the finite bandwidth of the device smooths out the step response into a continuous curve.] A DAC converts an abstract finite-precision number (usually a fixed-point binary number) into a physical quantity (e.g., a voltage or a pressure). In particular, DACs are often used to convert finite-precision time series data to a continually varying physical signal.

An _ideal_ DAC converts the abstract numbers into a conceptual sequence of impulses that are then processed by a reconstruction filter using some form of interpolation to fill in data between the impulses. A conventional _practical_ DAC converts the numbers into a piecewise constant function made up of a sequence of rectangular functions that is modeled with the zero-order hold. Other DAC methods (such as those based on delta-sigma modulation) produce a pulse-density modulated output that can be similarly filtered to produce a smoothly varying signal.

As per the Nyquist–Shannon sampling theorem, a DAC can reconstruct the original signal from the sampled data provided that its bandwidth meets certain requirements (e.g., a baseband signal with bandwidth less than the Nyquist frequency). Digital sampling introduces quantization error that manifests as low-level noise in the reconstructed signal.

Applications

[A simplified functional diagram of an 8-bit DAC] DACs and ADCs are part of an enabling technology that has contributed greatly to the digital revolution. To illustrate, consider a typical long-distance telephone call. The caller's voice is converted into an analog electrical signal by a microphone, then the analog signal is converted to a digital stream by an ADC. The digital stream is then divided into network packets where it may be sent along with other digital data, not necessarily audio. The packets are then received at the destination, but each packet may take a completely different route and may not even arrive at the destination in the correct time order. The digital voice data is then extracted from the packets and assembled into a digital data stream. A DAC converts this back into an analog electrical signal, which drives an audio amplifier, which in turn drives a loudspeaker, which finally produces sound.

Audio

[Top-loading CD player and external digital-to-analog converter.] Most modern audio signals are stored in digital form (for example MP3s and CDs) and, in order to be heard through speakers, they must be converted into an analog signal. DACs are therefore found in CD players, digital music players, and PC sound cards.

Specialist standalone DACs can also be found in high-end hi-fi systems. These normally take the digital output of a compatible CD player or dedicated transport (which is basically a CD player with no internal DAC) and convert the signal into an analog line-level output that can then be fed into an amplifier to drive speakers.

Similar digital-to-analog converters can be found in digital speakers such as USB speakers, and in sound cards.

In voice over IP applications, the source must first be digitized for transmission, so it undergoes conversion via an ADC and is then reconstructed into analog using a DAC on the receiving party's end.

Video

Video sampling tends to work on a completely different scale altogether thanks to the highly nonlinear response both of cathode ray tubes (for which the vast majority of digital video foundation work was targeted) and the human eye, using a “gamma curve” to provide an appearance of evenly distributed brightness steps across the display's full dynamic range - hence the need to use RAMDACs in computer video applications with deep enough color resolution to make engineering a hardcoded value into the DAC for each output level of each channel impractical (e.g. an Atari ST or Sega Genesis would require 24 such values; a 24-bit video card would need 768...). Given this inherent distortion, it is not unusual for a television or video projector to truthfully claim a linear contrast ratio (difference between darkest and brightest output levels) of 1000:1 or greater, equivalent to 10 bits of audio precision even though it may only accept signals with 8-bit precision and use an LCD panel that only represents 6 or 7 bits per channel.

Video signals from a digital source, such as a computer, must be converted to analog form if they are to be displayed on an analog monitor. As of 2007, analog inputs were more commonly used than digital, but this changed as flat panel displays with DVI and/or HDMI connections became more widespread. A video DAC is, however, incorporated in any digital video player with analog outputs. The DAC is usually integrated with some memory (RAM), which contains conversion tables for gamma correction, contrast and brightness, to make a device called a RAMDAC.

A device that is distantly related to the DAC is the digitally controlled potentiometer, used to control an analog signal digitally.

Mechanical

[IBM Selectric typewriter uses a mechanical digital-to-analog converter to control its typeball.]

A one-bit mechanical actuator assumes two positions: one when on, another when off. The motion of several one-bit actuators can be combined and weighted with a whiffletree mechanism to produce finer steps. The IBM Selectric typewriter uses such a system.[1]

Communications

DACs are widely used in modern communication systems enabling the generation of digitally-defined transmission signals. High-speed DACs are used for mobile communications and ultra-high-speed DACs are employed in optical communications systems.

Types

The most common types of electronic DACs are:[2]

-   The pulse-width modulator where a stable current or voltage is switched into a low-pass analog filter with a duration determined by the digital input code. This technique is often used for electric motor speed control and dimming LED lamps.
-   Oversampling DACs or interpolating DACs such as those employing delta-sigma modulation, use a pulse density conversion technique with oversampling. Speeds of greater than 100 thousand samples per second (for example, 192 kHz) and resolutions of 24 bits are attainable with delta-sigma DACs.
-   The binary-weighted DAC, which contains individual electrical components for each bit of the DAC connected to a summing point, typically an operational amplifier. Each input in the summing has powers-of-two values with most current or voltage at the most-significant bit. These precise voltages or currents sum to the correct output value. This is one of the fastest conversion methods but suffers from poor accuracy because of the high precision required for each individual voltage or current.[3] This type of converter is usually limited to 8-bit resolution or less.
    -   Switched resistor DAC contains a parallel resistor network. Individual resistors are enabled or bypassed in the network based on the digital input.
    -   Switched current source DAC, from which different current sources are selected based on the digital input.
    -   Switched capacitor DAC contains a parallel capacitor network. Individual capacitors are connected or disconnected with switches based on the input.
    -   The R-2R ladder DAC which is a binary-weighted DAC that uses a repeating cascaded structure of resistor values R and 2R. This improves the precision due to the relative ease of producing equal valued-matched resistors.
-   The successive approximation or cyclic DAC, which successively constructs the output during each cycle. Individual bits of the digital input are processed each cycle until the entire input is accounted for.
-   The thermometer-coded DAC, which contains an equal resistor or current-source segment for each possible value of DAC output. An 8-bit thermometer DAC would have 255 segments, and a 16-bit thermometer DAC would have 65,535 segments. This is a fast and highest precision DAC architecture but at the expense of requiring many components which, for practical implementations, fabrication requires high-density IC processes.[4]
-   Hybrid DACs, which use a combination of the above techniques in a single converter. Most DAC integrated circuits are of this type due to the difficulty of getting low cost, high speed and high precision in one device.
    -   The segmented DAC, which combines the thermometer-coded principle for the most significant bits and the binary-weighted principle for the least significant bits. In this way, a compromise is obtained between precision (by the use of the thermometer-coded principle) and number of resistors or current sources (by the use of the binary-weighted principle). The full binary-weighted design means 0% segmentation, the full thermometer-coded design means 100% segmentation.
-   Most DACs shown in this list rely on a constant reference voltage or current to create their output value. Alternatively, a _multiplying DAC_[5] takes a variable input voltage or current as a conversion reference. This puts additional design constraints on the bandwidth of the conversion circuit.
-   Modern high-speed DACs have an interleaved architecture, in which multiple DAC cores are used in parallel. Their output signals are combined in the analog domain to enhance the performance of the combined DAC.[6] The combination of the signals can be performed either in the time domain or in the frequency domain.

Performance

The most important characteristics of a DAC are:

Resolution: The number of possible output levels the DAC is designed to reproduce. This is usually stated as the number of bits it uses, which is the binary logarithm of the number of levels. For instance a 1-bit DAC is designed to reproduce 2 (2¹) levels while an 8-bit DAC is designed for 256 (2⁸) levels. Resolution is related to the effective number of bits which is a measurement of the actual resolution attained by the DAC. Resolution determines color depth in video applications and audio bit depth in audio applications.
Maximum sampling rate: The maximum speed at which the DACs circuitry can operate and still produce correct output. The Nyquist–Shannon sampling theorem defines a relationship between this and the bandwidth of the sampled signal.
Monotonicity: The ability of a DAC's analog output to move only in the direction that the digital input moves (i.e., if the input increases, the output doesn't dip before asserting the correct output.) This characteristic is very important for DACs used as a low-frequency signal source or as a digitally programmable trim element.
Total harmonic distortion and noise (THD+N): A measurement of the distortion and noise introduced to the signal by the DAC. It is expressed as a percentage of the total power of unwanted harmonic distortion and noise that accompanies the desired signal.
Dynamic range: A measurement of the difference between the largest and smallest signals the DAC can reproduce expressed in decibels. This is usually related to resolution and noise floor.

Other measurements, such as phase distortion and jitter, can also be very important for some applications, some of which (e.g. wireless data transmission, composite video) may even _rely_ on accurate production of phase-adjusted signals.

Non-linear PCM encodings (A-law / μ-law, ADPCM, NICAM) attempt to improve their effective dynamic ranges by using logarithmic step sizes between the output signal strengths represented by each data bit. This trades greater quantization distortion of loud signals for better performance of quiet signals.

Figures of merit

-   Static performance:
    -   Differential nonlinearity (DNL) shows how much two adjacent code analog values deviate from the ideal 1 LSB step.[7]
    -   Integral nonlinearity (INL) shows how much the DAC transfer characteristic deviates from an ideal one. That is, the ideal characteristic is usually a straight line; INL shows how much the actual voltage at a given code value differs from that line, in LSBs (1 LSB steps).[8]
    -   Gain error[9]
    -   Offset error[10]
    -   Noise is ultimately limited by the thermal noise generated by passive components such as resistors. For audio applications and in room temperatures, such noise is usually a little less than 1μV (microvolt) of white noise. This limits performance to less than 20~21 bits even in 24-bit DACs.
-   Frequency domain performance
    -   Spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR) indicates in dB the ratio between the powers of the converted main signal and the greatest undesired spur.[11]
    -   Signal-to-noise and distortion (SINAD) indicates in dB the ratio between the powers of the converted main signal and the sum of the noise and the generated harmonic spurs[12]
    -   i-th harmonic distortion (HDi) indicates the power of the i-th harmonic of the converted main signal
    -   Total harmonic distortion (THD) is the sum of the powers of all the harmonics of the input signal[13]
    -   If the maximum DNL is less than 1 LSB, then the converter is guaranteed to be monotonic. However, many monotonic converters may have a maximum DNL greater than 1 LSB.[14]
-   Time domain performance:
    -   Glitch impulse area (glitch energy)[15]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

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[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

title: Digital-to-analog converter

question: What does the article say about how DAC is used?

answer: DAC, a digital-to-analog converter, is a system that converts a digital signal into an analog signal. DACs are commonly used in music players to convert digital data streams into analog audio signals. They are also used in televisions and mobile phones to convert digital video data into analog video signals. Due to the complexity and the need for precisely matched components, all but the most specialized DACs are implemented as integrated circuits (ICs). A video DAC is, however, incorporated in any digital video player with analog outputs. The DAC is usually integrated with some memory (RAM). DACs are widely used in modern communication systems enabling the generation of digitally-defined transmission signals.

question: What does the article say about what are the most important characteristics of a DAC?

answer: The most important characteristics of a DAC are Resolution (the number of possible output levels the DAC is designed to reproduce), Maximum sampling rate (the maximum speed at which the DACs circuitry can operate and still produce correct output), Monotonicity (the ability of a DAC's analog output to move only in the direction that the digital input moves), Total harmonic distortion and noise (THD+N) (a measurement of the distortion and noise introduced to the signal by the DAC), Dynamic range (a measurement of the difference between the largest and smallest signals the DAC can reproduce expressed in decibels), and Phase distortion and jitter.

question: What does the article say about gaming?


text:
Her eyes are the most gorgeous thing you can ever imagine. Blue, sparkling and full of life...for now.

I never could tell her what I did for a living. They would end me if I did. As far as she knows, I am a Pharmaceutical Sales Representative, and I travel...a lot. She doesn't ask questions and hasn't complained once about me not always being there. She is perfect.

My heart sank when I opened the yellow envelope my employer sent me. Her name was the only one listed.

I have no choice but to do it. It's my job, and if I don't they will. My name would be the next one in an envelope. Early "retirement."

My story:

I am a retired Army Special Forces Medic. I was tops in my class and was deployed in Afghanistan with the 75th Ranger Regiment on 3 different occasions. The last one ended in me with a bullet in my leg and a terror in my brain. When I came home I was "unemployable" because of my severe case of PTSD. I went down on my luck and was on the verge of ending my life with a deadly mixture of alcohol and pain meds (prescribed for life). When I was at my wit's end I met my employers. They saved my life. I owe them everything.

They brought me under their care and provided me with everything I needed to shake my habits and get my mind back on the right track. When I had my habits and flashbacks under control, they offered me a job. It is a job that I shouldn't even be telling you exists. Because officially, it doesn't.

I am a hitman for the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL). My job is simple in concept: I am to terminate selected "lucky" winners of big payout jackpots. Namely, the ones who choose to have the annuity payments and have no clear next of kin that, by law, the payments can be transferred to. You see, these annuity payments are easily transferred to a clear next of kin (a son/daughter, wife/husband, brother/sister, or mother/father). They can be transferred to non-family members as well, but it is a very expensive line of red tape and usually ends up being too long and expensive of a process for it to be worth it. The MUSL would then basically not have to pay any more of the winnings. Thus saving (and earning) them millions upon millions of dollars.

That's where I come in. My Army Ranger training and medical knowledge made me the perfect candidate. With the perfect cover story.

Ever noticed how some of these lottery winners just...disappear? They are not on their own private island living the dream. We ended them.

Her Story:

Sarah is a humble girl with an amazing heart. She was orphaned at a very young age when she lost her parents and brother in a horrific drinking and driving accident. Their sedan was t-boned by a large SUV who ran a red light and slammed into their car. Her safety car seat saved her life.

She grew up an orphan. No aunts, uncles or grandparents left alive to care for her. Bounced around in foster homes until she became old enough to emancipate herself. She was truly alone in the world. Until she met me.

We immediately bonded over our past traumas and were understanding of the baggage that came with it. I told myself never to fall for anyone, but it was unavoidable. Next thing I knew, we were in love.

\--------------

The last time I was away "selling drugs" (her words for it) she bought a Powerball ticket on a whim. She won. $246 million. I guess it was time luck finally caught up with her.

I will never forget how she sounded on the phone. She had no one else to share her joy with and immediately called me. She told me how our lives were "going to change forever" and I wouldn't have to travel for work anymore. "We can finally be together without interruption!"

She was only right about one thing: our lives were definitely going to change forever.

title: [RF] Unfortunate Fortune (Part 1)

question: What does the text say about Sarah?

answer: She's an orphan after losing her parents and brother in a car accident, a large SUV t-boning their sedan when she was a child. She doesn't have any extended family either and mostly grew up in foster homes. She was largely alone until she met the narrator, and they fell in love. Sarah bought a lottery ticket when the narrator was away the last time, and she won $246 million. However, the narrator is a hitman working for a group that kills lottery winners without a clear next-of-kin. Thus, her future prospects are bleak since the narrator knows he will be killed if he doesn't kill her.

question: What does the story say about the group the narrator works for?

answer: They are known as the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL). They are responsible for pulling the narrator out of his suicidal state due to PTSD upon his return from his deployment in Afghanistan. The narrator owes them everything and works for them as a hitman. His apparent job of being a drug sales representative, army training, and medical knowledge make him the perfect killer. The MUSL kills lottery winners without a clear next-of-kin which nets them millions of dollars every year. Their final target is the narrator's girlfriend, who unfortunately fulfills their criteria.

question: What does the text say about the expected value of a lottery ticket?


text:
BRIAN H. MURDOCH (born 1930) is an Irish mathematician who served for 33 years as Erasmus Smith's Professor of Mathematics at Trinity College Dublin (TCD). He is an analyst with expertise in potential functions and random walks.[1]

Career

Brian Hughes Murdoch was born in 1930 in Dublin, and obtained a BA in mathematics in 1951 from TCD, where he was also a Scholar. In 1955, he got his PhD at Princeton under William Feller, for a thesis on “Preharmonic Functions.”[2] After a couple of years teaching at Hull University in Kingston upon Hull and Queens University Belfast, he returned to TCD, where he taught for another 35 years. He was elected Fellow of TCD in 1965, and the following year he was appointed Erasmus Smith's Professor of Mathematics at TCD, a position he held until 1989. In 1988 he became a Senior Fellow.

A Quaker, he is a cousin of the author Iris Murdoch.[3]

Selected papers

-   Murdoch, B. H. Simple tests for recurrence or transience of infinite sets in random walks on groups. _Illinois J. Math._ 12 1968 439–450
-   Murdoch, B. H. Wiener's tests for atomic Markov chains. _Illinois J. Math._ 12 1968 35–56.
-   Murdoch, B. H. μ-distributed sequences. _Proc. Roy. Irish Acad._ Sect. A 64 (1966), 143–161 (1966).
-   Murdoch, B. H. Rates of growth of preharmonic functions. _J. London Math. Soc._ 40 (1965), 605–618.
-   Murdoch, B. H. Some theorems on preharmonic functions. _J. London Math. Soc._ 40 (1965), 407–417.
-   Murdoch, B. H. A note on well-distributed sequences. _Canadian J. Math._ 17 (1965), 808–810.
-   Murdoch, B. H. A theorem on harmonic functions. _J. London Math. Soc._ 39 (1964), 581–588.
-   Murdoch, Brian Hughes PREHARMONIC FUNCTIONS. Thesis (Ph.D.)–_Princeton University._ 1954.
-   Allen, A. C.; Murdoch, B. H. A note on preharmonic functions. _Proc. Amer. Math. Soc._ 4 (1953), 842–852.

[1] An Irishman's Diary The Irish Times, January 5, 1985

[2] Brian Hughes Murdoch at the Mathematics Genealogy Project

[3] Iris Murdoch: A Life By Peter J. Conradi, W. W. Norton & Company (2001), p. 6

title: Brian H. Murdoch

question: When was Murdoch born?

answer: 1930

question: Where did Murdoch obtain his PhD?

answer: Princeton

question: What was the title of Murdoch's PhD thesis?

answer: "Preharmonic Functions"

question: What religion is Murdoch?

answer: Quaker

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Brian H. Murdoch is an Irish mathematician who served for 33 years as Erasmus Smith's Professor of Mathematics at Trinity College Dublin. His PhD thesis was titled "Preharmonic Functions."