text: today it was suddenly pouring down rain before i walked to my bus on my way to work. i grabbed the closest umbrella i could find, it's a zebra print compact model, folds down to fit into your pocket, probably intended for concealed travel. i quickly put on my red members only jacket and inserted some cheap earbuds i constantly seem to lose as i ventured out into the familiar unknown. i quietly walk while listening to driving music while the sky pours forth his liquid vengeance. it is peaceful here in transit between a thin layer of stretched fabric, soaked pavement, and some driving music. would it be wrong to add to this moist theme and relieve the final pressure holding me back from complete bliss? i could attempt to compete with nature and do a little watering of mine own, if only for a brief moment. im halfway through now and my shoes are making fat sex noises as i walk because of the many aquatic lawns i had to traverse. i finally make it to the bus stop and of all things i see there is a waterlogged wet paint sign on the obviously newly painted bench. or should i say half painted bench, as the new parts and old were clearly visible. the irony of the sign could only be appreciated for a moment before i found myself on a bus headed to sell people unhealthy food for outrageous prices. i guess we all have a little mcdonald in us all though mine is of the sweet shortbread variety. as i sit next to a woman that seems content to take two seats, or at least one and a half seats, i tap out this story on the glass surface of an advanced mechanical radio transmitter. some neo soul has come on over my headphones and now my thoughts scatter like so many roaches in a well light room. so for now i say goodbye until inspiration strikes and i crave an audience for work i will never finish.

title: i peed

question: Who is the narrator?

answer: An unnamed fast food worker

question: What does the narrator listen to?

answer: Driving music, followed by neo soul

question: Where does the narrator pee?

answer: Somewhere outside along the way from his house to the bus stop

question: Describe the narrator's umbrella.

answer: It is a zebra print umbrella that folds down small enough to fit into a pocket

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator leaves his house and walks to a bus stop to go to work on a rainy day. He listens to music and pees somewhere along the way to the bus. He gets on the bus, observes a woman taking up more than one seat, and then zones out to neo soul music on his headphones.


split: train

text:
Technology intermediaries are an important actor of the innovation system. According to Howells[1] their role is to act as brokers or third parties in order to build the bridges between the various participations within the open system.

Definition

Innovation intermediaries focus their efforts on building bridges and closing gaps between the key actors of an innovation system which include enterprises, universities and public research organizations.[2]

Firms are becoming more open when it comes to collaborations outside the boundaries of a firm. Though the shift to open innovation is no guarantee for a firm's success. Many companies are not able to take advantage out of the opened innovation process for different reasons. Outsourcing those activities to technology intermediaries might be a potentially useful solution.[3]

Technology intermediaries or “tech intermediaries” are created to help firms to take advantage of technological developments. They help firms through their specialization in various R&D activities and R&D related activities to build up absorptive capacity. They can do so by helping to build the ability to scan the market for emerging technologies as well as the ability to absorb the technology and perform corresponding R&D activities. They are working as some kind of competence poles and are established to initiate innovation in specific sectors. Furthermore, they are acting as intermediaries between creators and diffusers of knowledge.[4]

Technology intermediaries are examined by different authors and therefore various denominations like “technological communities”, “bridging organizations”, “open innovation intermediaries” or “intermediaries” are existing.[5][6]Bessant, J., Rush, H., 1995. Building bridges for innovation: The role of consultants in technology

transfer. Research Policy, 24(1), pp. 97–114. [7][8] They introduce various relations between the different actors of the innovation system. They are considered “instrumental in closing gaps between the principal actors”.[9]

There are many types of technology intermediaries existing, which are very different in their nature and perform various functions. The performed activities are ranged from the diffusion and technology transfer to innovation management and the establishment of systems and methods, but also technology services that are provided to companies.[10] The variety of intermediaries ranges from specialized government agencies and energy-service firms, electric power utilities to university liaison departments or regional technology centers. But also non-governmental organizations, research and technology organizations and cross-national networks can act as technology intermediary.[11]

In many European countries, technology intermediaries emerge as forms of collective technology centers. They are financed mostly both by industry as well as by the public sector. Examples are the “collective research centers” in Belgium or the “Centers Techniques Industries” in France.[12] Belgium's “collective research centers” were established in 1947 after the Second World War. Policy makers wanted to use them to boost scientific and technological research in specific fields of the economy. The intermediaries are privately held by the member companies. Because of their long-term direction and their existence for 30 to 60 years, they are considered to be useful for their members and obtained an appropriate position. The following chapters take the “collective research centers” as an example for technology intermediaries that have been examined extensively by André Spithoven and his colleagues in their scientific works. According to Spithoven et al. (2011) their operations to build absorptive capacity can be generalized to other technology intermediaries.[13][14]

Importance for Technology Intermediaries in the Open Innovation Context

Regarding the use of knowledge, one can distinguish between two rough activities of companies within the frame of open innovation, namely inbound open innovation and outbound open innovation.[15]

Inbound open innovation is also often referred to as “Outside-in Process”, meaning that know-how of external sources, such as suppliers or consumers, gets transferred through the boundaries into the firm to improve the pace and quality of its innovation process. If used properly, this may allow for long-lasting innovativeness and competitive advantage. Therefore, companies shift “from innovation initiatives that are centered on internal resources to those that are centered on external networks“.[16] We therefore face a shift “[…] from innovation that is firm-centric one that is networking-centric.”[17]

_Inbound Open Innovation and Importance of Absorptive Capacity_

In fact, the effective and efficient usage of external knowledge is more complex than obvious on first glance. External knowledge does not percolate smoothly through the boundaries of the firm.[18] More likely, knowledge that is stemming from external sources has to be, first of all, identified to be relevant, then brought into appropriate context and in the end actually be used. In fact, whether the firm is able to take advantage of inbound open innovation depends largely on absorptive capacity.[19] According to Cohen and Levinthal,[20] the concept of absorptive capacity is critical to the innovativeness of a firm. It is a three-step capability consisting of the following: Firstly, the ability to recognize new knowledge and technologies outside the own firm boundaries and to recognize their relevant value for own purposes. Secondly the ability to assimilate them and, finally, the ability to apply them to commercial ends. In short: Absorptive capacity is the ability to appropriate external knowledge. Understanding absorptive capacity, therefore, is the key to understanding the concept of inbound open innovation. Even if there are different views existing, the definition of Cohen and Levinthal can be taken as a frame for the concept of absorptive capacity.[21][22]

According to Spithoven et al. (2011), absorptive capacity at the firm-level can be generated in various ways. Three main ways for an organization to do so, are:

1.  Investing in in-house R&D
2.  By-product of manufacturing operations
3.  sending personnel to advanced technical training

A critical factor, therefore, is the communication at the inter-organizational level.[23]

_Activities of Technology Intermediaries_

Understanding that absorptive capacity does not necessarily have to take place within merely the firm-level, but can happen at the inter-organizational level, raises the question of the type of roles technology intermediaries may play. The following three main interrelated activities of collective research centers have been named by their CEOs to increase innovative capacity of the network members:[24]

1.  Technology intermediaries act as knowledge intelligence units. As research centers are highly innovative and collective by nature, monitoring external technological developments through, for instance, technology watch activities and technology road-mapping is one of their main tasks. Acting in a gatekeeping or pushing manner they identify and monitor the relevant technology and knowledge. This relates to the already mentioned feature of recognizing new and valuable knowledge and technologies in the context of absorptive capacity
2.  They act as knowledge agencies. Members can suggest in a proactive way research projects to the research centers. On demand of their members, the intermediaries tackle encountered problems and, furthermore, implement technologies. Besides doing the research, intermediaries also often provide members with necessary contact to engage in R&D collaboration with other third parties. This second activity belongs to the assimilation and transformation capability of absorptive capacity.
3.  They act as repository of knowledge. This activity is directed to the dissemination of information among the network of members. By deploying tools, such as technical libraries, and making them available for their network, they enhance the assimilation capabilities of the members. This allows the organization of absorptive capacity at a collective level.[25]

The large fraction of R&D-related activities within research centers, in comparison to the proportion of pure R&D-activities, proofs the importance of their roles. Their activities do not substitute in house R&D of the member firms, but are directed at complementing them with otherwise too expensive R&D-related activities. Furthermore, collective research centers specifically absorb knowledge that does not transfer easily from science to industry. Their own high R&D activity intensity enables them to absorb very specialized knowledge and transfer it to their members in ways that lead to easier applicable information.[26]

Howells points out various functions of intermediaries. These include to foresight, doing diagnostic work and scan information but also process information and knowledge. They may act as a gatekeeper or broker as well. A further part of their functions may be to take care of testing, regulation and validation, do the accreditation process and furthermore protect the results. Besides they may deal with the commercialization and the evaluation of potential outcomes. Of course it depends on the respective intermediary, if they are involved or not involved in specific functions.[27]

The role of Technology Intermediaries for SMEs in traditional and low tech sectors

The respective environment of technology intermediaries is the industry in which they operate. Technology transfer intermediaries can help overcome the barriers to commercialization by mediating between inventors, developers and marketers. According to Spithoven, similarities between and differences across sectors and industries are existing because of differences in the ability to build absorptive capacity.[28] Many studies examined the concepts of open innovation and absorptive capacity in large enterprises with a high level of R&D.[29] If absorptive capacity within a firm is developed by the before mentioned activities, how can companies, that are lacking the resources to execute those activities in the appropriate manner, participate successfully in the inbound open innovation process?

This becomes especially relevant for companies operating in the traditional sector as it generally meets the following characteristics:

-   Presence of SMEs
-   Limited research and development intensity
-   Limited innovative capacity
-   Number and qualification of employees below critical mass necessary to engage in open innovation through absorptive capacity.[30]

Those characteristics easily reveal the inherent problem: Firms of traditional sectors, generally speaking, lack the resources to participate sufficiently in activities that enhance or develop absorptive capacity. SMEs in low tech sectors are confronted with a rather similar problem, namely a low level of absorptive capacity because of their limited R&D and innovation capacity.[31] Moreover, “innovation in SMEs is hampered by lack of financial resources, scant opportunities to recruit specialized workers, and small innovation portfolios so that risks associated with innovation cannot be spread. SMEs need to heavily draw on their networks to find missing innovation resources, and due to their smallness, they will be confronted with the boundaries of their organizations rather sooner than later”.[32] These are crucial issues for their innovativeness and future competitiveness regarding their participation in the open innovation process.[33]

Hence, for this type of industry, technology intermediaries are potential ways to overcome the lack of business, financing and marketing expertise. They can help SMEs in traditional and low tech sectors in improving their ability to scan the market for technology and furthermore to absorb the acquired knowledge and technology.[34] For instance, the “collective research centers” of Belgium are doing knowledge absorption and diffusion in their role as technology intermediaries. The member companies are lacking qualified personnel and the necessary technological information to absorb knowledge. Therefore, one of the main activities of the collective research centers is building R&D capacity and offering technology transfer services. “Through these activities, they help members build absorptive capacity, that will enable them to scan the market for technology and absorb technology from the environment.” [35]

[1]

[2] Spithoven, A., Knockaert, M., 2012. Technology intermediaries in low tech sectors: The case of collective research centres in Belgium. Innovation, 14(3), pp. 375-387.

[3] Spithoven, A., Clarysse, B. and Knockaert, M., 2011. Building absorptive capacity to organise inbound open innovation in traditional industries. Technovation, 31(1), pp.10-21.

[4]

[5] Howells, J., 2006. Intermediation and the role of intermediaries in innovation. Research Policy, 35(5), pp. 715–728.

[6]

[7] Rappa, M. A., Debackere, K., 1992. Technological communities and the diffusion of knowledge. R&D Management, 22(3), pp. 209–220.

[8] Sapsed, J., Grantham, A., DeFillippi, R., 2007. A bridge over troubled waters: Bridging organisations and entrepreneurial opportunities in emerging sectors. Research Policy, 36(9), pp. 1314–1334.

[9]

[10]

[11] Metz, B., Turkson J. K., 2000. Methodological and Technological Issues in Technology Transfer, Business & Economics, 21, pp. 54–67.

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16] Nambisan, S., Sawhney, M., 2011. Orchestration process in network-centric innovation. Evidence from the field. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 25(3), pp. 40-57.

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20] Cohen, W.M., Levinthal, D.A., 1990. Absorptive capacity: a new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly 35, pp. 128–152.

[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

[27]

[28]

[29]

[30]

[31]

[32] Van de Vrande V., J. P. J. de Jong, W. Vanhaverberke, & M. de Rochemont. 2009. Open innovation in SMEs: Trends, motives and managerial challenges, Technovation, 29, pp. 423-437.

[33]

[34]

[35]

title: Technology Intermediaries

question: What are SMEs?

answer: subject matter experts

question: What is absorptive capacity?

answer: Absorptive capacity is the ability to appropriate external knowledge

question: What does R&D stand for?

answer: research and development

question: Who is André Spithoven?

answer: the article does not answer this question

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Technology intermediaries work to augment the absorptive capacity of firms both within the tech industry and without it, scouring the market for new innovations and bolstering the capacity of businesses to adapt to the ever-changing technological landscape.


text:
[Jules Bastide] JULES BASTIDE (22 November 1800, Paris, France2 March 1879) was a French politician.

Lawyer and revolutionary

Bastide studied law for a time, and was afterward engaged in business as a timber merchant. In 1821, he became a member of the French _la Charbonnerie_, modelled on that of the Italian Carbonari, and took a prominent part in the Revolution of 1830. After the July Days uprising, he received an artillery command in the National Guard. For his part in the riots in Paris (5 June 1832) on the occasion of the funeral of General Maximilien Lamarque, Bastide was sentenced to death, but he escaped to London.[1]

Journalist and statesman

On his return to Paris in 1834, he was acquitted. He occupied himself with journalism, and he contributed to the _National_, a republican journal of which he became editor in 1836. In 1847, he founded the _Revue Nationale_ as a collaborative venture with Philippe Buchez, whose ideas had thoroughly infected Bastide. After the Revolution of February 1848 Bastide's intimate knowledge of foreign affairs gained for him a ministerial post in the provisional government, and, after the creation of the Executive Commission, he was made Minister of Foreign Affairs. At the close of 1848, he resigned his portfolio, and, after the _coup d'état_ of December 1851, retired to private life.[2]

Writings

His writings include:

-   _De l'éducation publique en France_ (1847)
-   _Histoire de l'assemblée législative_ (1847)
-   _La République française et l'Italie en 1848_ (1858)
-   _Histoire des guerres religieuses en France_ (1859)[3]

[1]

[2]

[3]

title: Jules Bastide

question: How might Bastide's life have been different if he had chosen not to participate in the riots in Paris?

answer: He would not have been sentenced to death and would not have had to flee to London.

question: Why did Jules Bastide return to Paris in 1834?

answer: Because Paris was his home and presumably he knew he was going to be acquitted.

question: Why does Bastide not have many publications in the 1850s and beyond?

answer: Because he retired to private life in 1851.

question: How did Philippe Buchez affect Bastide's career?

answer: Philippe Buchez teamed up with Bastide to found the Revue Nationale.


text:
[Brain Decodes]

_November 03, 2016_

_By Shilo Rea / 412-268-6094
_

An international research team led by Carnegie Mellon University has found that when the brain "reads" or decodes a sentence in English or Portuguese, its neural activation patterns are the same.

Published in NeuroImage, the study is the first to show that different languages have similar neural signatures for describing events and scenes. By using a machine-learning algorithm, the research team was able to understand the relationship between sentence meaning and brain activation patterns in English and then recognize sentence meaning based on activation patterns in Portuguese. The findings can be used to improve machine translation, brain decoding across languages and, potentially, second language instruction.

"This tells us that, for the most part, the language we happen to learn to speak does not change the organization of the brain," said Marcel Just, the D.O. Hebb University Professor of Psychology and pioneer in using brain imaging and machine-learning techniques to identify how the brain deciphers thoughts and concepts.

"Semantic information is represented in the same place in the brain and the same pattern of intensities for everyone. Knowing this means that brain to brain or brain to computer interfaces can probably be the same for speakers of all languages," Just said.

For the study, 15 native Portuguese speakers — eight were bilingual in Portuguese and English — read 60 sentences in Portuguese while in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanner. A CMU-developed computational model was able to predict which sentences the participants were reading in Portuguese, based only on activation patterns.

The computational model uses a set of 42 concept-level semantic features and six markers of the concepts’ roles in the sentence, such as agent or action, to identify brain activation patterns in English.

With 67 percent accuracy, the model predicted which sentences were read in Portuguese. The resulting brain images showed that the activation patterns for the 60 sentences were in the same brain locations and at similar intensity levels for both English and Portuguese sentences.

Additionally, the results revealed the activation patterns could be grouped into four semantic categories, depending on the sentence’s focus: people, places, actions and feelings. The groupings were very similar across languages, reinforcing the organization of information in the brain is the same regardless of the language in which it is expressed.

"The cross-language prediction model captured the conceptual gist of the described event or state in the sentences, rather than depending on particular language idiosyncrasies. It demonstrated a meta-language prediction capability from neural signals across people, languages and bilingual status," said Ying Yang, a postdoctoral associate in psychology at CMU and first author of the study.

Discovering that the brain decodes sentences the same in different languages is one of the many brain research breakthroughs to happen at Carnegie Mellon. CMU has created some of the first cognitive tutors, helped to develop the Jeopardy-winning Watson, founded a groundbreaking doctoral program in neural computation, and is the birthplace of artificial intelligence and cognitive psychology. Building on its strengths in biology, computer science, psychology, statistics and engineering, CMU launched BrainHub, an initiative that focuses on how the structure and activity of the brain give rise to complex behaviors.

In addition to Just and Yang, the research team included CMU’s Jing Wang and Vladimir Cherkassky and Cyntia Bailer of the Federal University of Santa Catarina in Brazil.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), via the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), funded this research.

Related Articles:

-   Scientists Discover How the Brain Repurposes Itself To Learn Scientific Concepts
-   Teaching Science to the Brain: Scientists Discover How the Brain Learns the Way Things Work
-   Researchers Discover Brain Representations of Social Thoughts Accurately Predict Autism Diagnosis
-   Researchers Identify Emotions Based on Brain Activity
-   Computer Model Reveals How Brain Represents Meaning

_The above image compares the neural activation patterns between images from the participants’ brains when reading "O eleitor foi ao protesto" (observed) and the computational model’s prediction for "The voter went to the protest" (predicted)._

question: What does the study led by Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) show?

answer: The brain "reads" or decodes sentences the same, regardless of language.

question: What does Hebb University Professor of Psychology, Marcel Just, say about the study?

answer: He says the language people speak does not change the organization of the brain because semantic information is represented at the same pace in the brain and the same pattern intensifies for everyone.

question: What did the 15 Portuguese speakers do for the study?

answer: They read 60 sentences in Portuguese while in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanner.

question: How accurate was the CMU-developed computational model in predicting which sentences were read in Portuguese?

answer: 67%

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: An international team led by Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) found that the brain "reads" or decodes sentences the same, regardless of language. Different languages have similar neural signatures for describing events and scenes. The research team used a machine-learning algorithm developed by CMU to be able to understand the relationship between sentence meaning and brain activation patterns in English and Portuguese. The results also revealed the activation patterns could be grouped into four semantic categories depending on the sentence's focus on people, places, actions, and feelings.


text:
Recently, I came across the Goldman Sachs reading list. Yes, that would be the list of books that Goldman Sachs, banking firm of our nightmares, recommends that you read. Now, “you” is probably a strong word here; most of these are technical texts (though several Michael Lewis titles appear under the disclaimer “The following popular works are, of course, exaggerated depictions of the darker side of the industry. However, they do provide some of the flavor of life on ‘The Street.'”), and this is probably meant for incoming employees. But I can’t see a list of books without wanting to make my own list of books, and so I will see this Goldman Sachs reading list and counter with my own. This shall be all-fiction (because they obviously need the diversity) and rather pointed, but is aimed at making all you bankers better people. Enjoy.

_AMERICAN PSYCHO_, BRET EASTON ELLIS

You guys probably know this already, but this is how the rest of us see you: Wall Street denizen by day, insane serial killer by night. If it’s all in your head, it’s not really any better. If only Patrick Bateman had just quit his job and given himself a break. Food for thought.

_UNION ATLANTIC_, ADAM HASLETT

This is in many ways the first great novel about the financial crisis—although perhaps not intentionally, as Haslett says he finished it the same week Lehmann Brothers went down. It follows an unpleasant and self-absorbed young banker in a land dispute with a fierce history teacher—during the hours he’s not engaged in rotten financial practices. The novel does give some insight into how the real-world crisis happened—one individual move after one individual move until something enormous has happened. Which doesn’t actually mean that anybody is (or should be) off the hook.

_SIDDHARTHA_, HERMANN HESSE

Not trying to get all preachy or anything, but Buddhism just might be the opposite of banking. This novel will give anyone insight into how satisfying giving up materialism can be (and how empty money can make you). If you don’t actually give up materialism, fine—it’s America, after all—but it’s something worth thinking about.

_COSMOPOLIS_, DON DELILLO

A day in the life (and in the car) of a young, egotistical, multi-billionaire asset manager. He goes out in his mega-fancy limo looking for a haircut and finds death, violence, sex, failure, and sure, ultimately a haircut and also his own possible unhinging.

_THE SWEETEST FIG_, CHRIS VAN ALLSBURG

No excuses about being too busy to read the books on my list—this one’s a picture book. It tells the story of a mean dentist who tries to become the richest man on earth. I won’t give away the ending.

_THE COLOUR_, ROSE TREMAIN

A historical novel set during the mid-19th-century gold rush in New Zealand, in which a man becomes so obsessed with gold he abandons his wife and mother to join the scrabbling, panning masses. Ultimately, his wife follows him, and finds him, and also finds that the gold has changed everything, and also finds something of her own. All this to say: gold madness is no fun, you guys.

_THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY_, OSCAR WILDE

Not precisely about money, but certainly about greed of a certain kind—and a reminder that no matter how much you try to hide your evil deeds away and put off payment for your sins, they’ll catch up to you one day.

_AMERICANAH_, CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE

Okay, so this one doesn’t have anything to do with greed, or banking, or Wall Street. It’s just that it’s my feeling that certain investment bankers might do well to remember that there are a lot of different ways to experience America, and no one is inherently better than any other. Nothing shakes up your preconceptions than spending 600-odd pages with a voice wildly different from yours.

_THE GREAT GATSBY_, F. SCOTT FITZGERALD

Well, obviously. The Great American Novel that tells us in no uncertain terms: money will not make you happy. It solves nothing. In fact, it will destroy you.

_THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS_, ROBERT HEINLEIN

Because TANSTAAFL.

question: Why did the author put this list of books together?

answer: Goldman Sachs published a reading list for their employees. The author cannot see a list of books without making one of their own.

question: Which was the first great novel about the financial crisis and why?

answer: Union Atlantic by Adam Haslett although it was finished the same week Lehmann Brothers went down. The novel gives insight into hoe the real-world crisis happened - one individual move after one individual move until something enormous happened.

question: What, in the author's opinion, is the opposite of banking?

answer: Buddhism just might be the opposite of banking.

question: Which book is a picture book?

answer: The sweetest fig by Chris van Allsburg.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The author came across a Goldman Sachs reading list and decide to put together one of their own. The aim of the list is diversity and the list certainly delivers on all topics from Buddhism to picture books.


text:
Alex was born.

By the time he was 18 months old, Alex had taught himself how to read. At three years old he was playing piano and by four he was composing symphonies, études and concertos. By all measures, Alex Miner was a genius. He began studying mathematics after a particular day playing with blocks and learning Latin. He simultaneously learned the word *scientia* and, while stacking red blocks upon yellow blocks, realized that ideas could be stacked too. From that moment on, he began to consume math day and night, stopping only occasionally to eat and, when mulling over a particularly complex problem, to lay at the foot of his parent’s bed and stare at the ceiling.

In his small room in rural Nebraska, he pushed his mind to the furthest limits of known math and physics, and once he had learned everything there was to be taught, he invented. He was prone to wild fits of anger, dowsed by deep crevesas of depression and meloncoly. He won awards for his discoveries, as well as money. He won three million dollars alone for Millennium Prize problems, by solving the Riemann hypothesis, the Poincaré conjecture and the Hodge conjecture within a single year. There were even rumors of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences approaching the Nobel Foundation regarding a Nobel Prize in mathematics for his work. Without care for fame or fortune, or any of those things the child mind does not bother itself with, Alex twisted and turned down the rabbit hole of understanding, and anyone who knows rabbit holes knows there is not enough room to turn or look back.

Of all the interests this life has to offer, Alex only cared for two of them; Mathematics and numismatics. He was as fascinated by coins from all the old civilizations of the world as he was by geometric postulates. The imperial coinage of the Roman Empire depicting Brutus and Marc Antony, Celtic coins differentiated by tribe and region, the latter Byzantine coins of Alexius IV and Constantine XI, and old English hammered coins all struck him with great beauty and mystery.

When Alex was nine, he came to a problem he could not solve. The problem was not an old problem, since the language needed to ask it was created by Alex himself, but it was generally considered a hard problem by the mathematics community. This was the first time he had come to a puzzle in which he could not instantly solve, let alone solve at all. Day after day he lay at the foot of his parents bed, eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, daydreaming of numbers.

When Alex was ten, doctors found the first tumor. He was undergoing some routine checkups at the local hospital, and a few men from the university wanted to do a brain scan for their research. These types of scans were not uncommon, ever since his work in the field of quantum physics got the attention of academia, Alex was obliged to let doctors and specialists take photos of his miraculous brain. Top neuroscientists and cognitive researchers would fly into Lincoln Airport to meet with him, always leaving with a look of excitement on their faces as they went to begin their study of his head. At first it was just a small black smudge on the xrays, but the tumor grew and multiplied rapidly. More tumors grew over the course of a few months, and as his eleventh birthday grew near, Alex’s frontal lobe was irreversibly full of black smudges on grainy white photo paper.

His physical brain was of no concern to him though. As long as his mind worked long enough to solve this problem, the problem that had made him set up a bed of blankets and pillows at the foot of his parents bed, he would be happy. While not in the blanket bed, Alex researched old coins and talked about collecting on a website he found called The New Mismatists. He let his concerns and thoughts slip away while he lost himself in Greek and Roman provincial coins, talking to other collectors and amateurs about this nuance or that. He started his own site shortly after and called it Charta Numus.

While Alex’s website thrived with coin collectors and enthusiasts, his health began to fail. His energy was gone and he could barely bring himself to get out of bed in the morning.

“I need to go into space.” He said one morning at the breakfast table.

“Why do you need to go into space dear?” Asked his mother.

“I’ve come to the end of my research, I can only do the last part in space.”

“Space is quite a long ways away, and you need your rest.”

“I’ve already decided, and I’m going in three months.”

His father spoke up, “Son, you can’t just go to space, it takes a lot of training to get ready for something like that. Besides, it is very expensive, I think it costs more money than you have.”

“I have a plan, don’t worry.” Alex said.

His parents looked at eachother, then back to their dinner.

Alex worked furiously. He sent emails to scientists, engineers and doctors around the globe. A community of supporters sprung up on his website Charta Numus, donating to his project by sending him a dollar if he in turn would think of them when he was out there. After three months, he was ready.

---

“I’m going into space tomorrow.” Alex said to his parents at the dinner table.

The looked at each other incredulously. “Honey, are you sure about this?” His mom asked.

“Yes, I’m sure, I have to do it. There are fringe elements of dissent regarding the Miner Henley Mandelbrot proposition. However, both Bromley’s camp and Drell’s camp have come around on the specific plausibilities. There is virtually no substantial counter-arguments left. I...” He stopped.

“Mom, the Russians are sending someone up to do this next week, and china is going to do it next weekend. I know I probably won’t make it back, but I want to do this more than anything I've ever wanted. I have a list of doctors here you can ask anything, I can make the launch and return flight. Dad, no one has ever done this experiment before, and this is my last chance to, I have to go.”

His mom cried, his father did the dishes, and Alex spend his last night on earth in a pillow fort at the end of his parents bed, thinking about earth.

The launch was more terrifying than people had told him it would be. There was a beauty in the terror though, to let go of all the fear and experience the magnificent roar of the rockets just feet away outside of the capsule. Once outside of the atmosphere and Earth’s gravitational hug, his body lifted up out of the seat and he was alone in the black sea of space. He thought for a good while sitting in his restraints. He was completely alone.

“Alex, this is control, do you copy?”

“Kennedy, this is Alex.”

“We’ve got someone on the line for you, they say they’re from Nebraska, do you want to take it?”

“Of course.”

“They are on now.”

“Honey?” The voice of his mom came with static over the intercom.

“Hi mom, I don’t have much time but I wanted to tell you I solved that problem I couldn’t figure out.” Alex said.

“Oh that is wonderful dear, I’m so proud of you, we are both so proud of you. Your father is here, would you like to speak to him?”

“Yeah , I love you mom.”

“Son?” His father's voice came through faintly.

“Hi dad, I figured it out.”

“I’m so proud of you son, I can’t wait to see it.”

“You will, but I won't be able to show it to you, I love you dad.” Alex said.

The conversation lasted a little while longer, then Alex was alone again.

The ship automatically re-entered the atmosphere at its set time, and the recovery crew fished Alex’s capsule out of the sea. His final thoughts were recorded in his journal, where he had sprawling notes and numbers. At the end of the journal was a paragraph long theorem that was circled and noted ‘This is it’. On the very last page there was a drawing of a coin and a note below it saying, “I’m thinking of all of you right now, charta numus.” Charta Numus, paper coin.

title: Charta Numus (Paper Coin)

question: What could Alex do when he was 18 months old?

answer: By the time he was 18 months, Alex could read.

question: What problems did he solve?

answer: Alex solved the Millenium Prize Problems, by solving the Riemann hypothesis, the Poincare conjecture, and the Hodge conjecture.

question: What did Alex care about the most?

answer: Alex cared about Mathematics and numismatics.

question: Does Alex make it back to Earth?

answer: Yes.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer:
Alex is a prodigy. He is very fond of Mathematics and numismatics. When he was ten, doctors found a tumor. His health began to fail soon after but Alex was determined to go to space to complete his research.

He finally does go to space and comes back to Earth with his final thoughts scribbled in his journal, he had completed his research.


text:
[OY-DVZ Transavia PL-12 Airtruk c/n 1238 build 1972 seen here in Danmark July 14 1983at glider club Svævethy]

TRANSAVIA CORPORATION was an Australian aircraft manufacturer active between 1965 and 1985.

Formation

Transavia Corporation was formed in 1965, as a subsidiary of Transfield to produce agricultural aircraft.

The initial design of the Airtruck had been done in New Zealand by Luigi Pellarini in 1956 as the single Kingsford Smith PL-7 tanker aircraft. This used parts from T-6 Texan aircraft and a Cheetah engine. Two further more refined PL-11 Airtruck aircraft were built in New Zealand during the early 1960s by Bennett Aviation, later Waitomo Aircraft.[1]

The design was taken over by Transavia Corporation in 1965 and the company refined the aircraft's specification as the Transavia PL-12 Airtruk.

Aircraft designs

[Transavia PL-12 Airtruks of Hazair at Albury Airport in March 1988] The PL-12 had an unconventional but practical layout for its intended agricultural top-dressing role. The basic layout was inherited from the PL-11. This was a mid-wing monoplane, but with a small lower “wing” that carried the wing bracing struts and the two main wheels of the tricycle undercarriage. Slender booms carried the two separate tailplanes on top of the fin/rudder units. The two booms were not joined together at the aircraft's rear.[2]

The cockpit was located on top of a stubby fuselage, giving good visibility for low-level flying and the chemical hopper was situated below the pilot with a loading aperture just behind the cockpit. A cargo carrying utility version was also built. Power for early production was from a Continental IO-520-D 300 h.p. engine.

Further refinements in design in 1981 brought the PL-12-300 “Skyfarmer” with strengthened upper fuselage and a larger cockpit with roll-over truss. The final derivative was the PL-12-400 with a Lycoming I0-720 400 h.p. engine, larger dorsal fin and lower sesquiplane “wings”. Total Airtruk production by Transavia was 118 aircraft. Examples are still in active operation.[3]

[1] Simpson, 2001, p. 552

[2] Simpson, 2005, p. 300

[3] Simpson, 2005, p. 301

title: Transavia Corporation

question: What was the Transavia Corporation?

answer: An Australian aircraft manufacturer.

question: When was the Transavia Corporation formed?

answer: 1965

question: Why did the Transavia Corporation cease operations?

answer: That information can't be found.

question: Describe the PL-12.

answer: The PL-12 was a mid-wing monoplane with a small lower wing that carried the wing bracing struts. It had slender booms to carry two separate tailplanes. The cockpit was located atop a stubby fuselage.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The Transavia Corporation was an Australian aircraft manufacturer that operated from 1965 to 1985. Their designs include the Transavia PL-23 Airtruk.


text:
I sat down on the bench, wiped the sweat off my brow, and set down my shovel and pail. July heat is merciless. I considered calling it a day; I wanted to go inside for some lemonade and a *Salade Nicoise* but the garden is never finished until Oiga has been watered.

I got Oiga many years ago at a flea market, a little field maple sapling I thought would add some charm to the corner of our garden. At that time I had just removed the cracked concrete in that corner, stained by bleach and paint, and had finally put in a new planter with fresh soil. I don't typically...name my plants, but Oiga grew to be somewhat of an anomaly. After two years of growth, a knot in Oiga's trunk left me with an uneasy feeling of pareidolia. The face that had twisted into place grew soft and flexible, until Oiga whimpered his first word, "fall". I was watering the morning glories along the fence when I heard it; the deep, dark, creaking voice caught me completely off guard. I went to go investigate the noise, and I shrieked when in the trunk there stood a face, yawning as if waking up from a long cat nap. I fainted.

My husband saw me collapse and brought me inside. Thankfully the soil in that corner softened the blow, and I was only out for a few minutes.

"Did you see it?"

"Yes."

"The face? The face in the tree I bought for the garden, *you saw it?*"

"Yes, I saw it."

"So I'm not crazy?"

"No, just a little lightheaded. Have some tea."

I gently pulled the mug toward my lips.

"I heard him. He said 'fall' just before I collapsed."

He looked away before gathering his thoughts.

"Do you know when my birthday is?"

"What? What are you talking about?"

"The tree, it said something else while you were out. Do you know when my birthday is?"

"Of course, it's..."

His birthday was in two days. He was turning thirty and...I had completely forgot.

"What did the tree say?"

"It said, 'don't expect anything.'"

We stared at each other for a minute in utter confusion.

That was years ago. Eventually we got used to Oiga's presence. We had company over a few times, and each time Oiga would predict something...bad. Something unfortunate. First we stopped having barbeques. Then people just stopped coming over for dinner altogether. No one wanted to hear it. Thankfully, Oiga's gruesome mug faced the corner of the garden. He had to yell to be heard. Even still, never once did Oiga predict good news. Scientists came to our home a few times to observe the tree, but they never found anything biologically unusual. And now I'm looking over to Oiga contemplatively, thinking just what to do with this particularly unusual field maple. I looked over at the axe by the screen door.

I noiselessly got up, grabbed the axe, and slowly walked toward this cursed tree.

"Inside."

I stopped.

"You should go inside."

"What if I don't want to go inside Oiga?"

"It wouldn't make any difference to me."

"Really?"

I tossed the axe from hand to hand.

"I know you have an axe. You should know that I know that by now."

"You want to tell me why I shouldn't use it?"

"Depending on when you get inside, either you'll feel grateful or regretful."

"Tell me why I shouldn't swing this axe, Oiga."

"Because it'll hurt. But also because you'll be out here for a while doing it, and I'm telling you, *go inside.*"

"Why don't you tell me why you would never predict anything positive."

Oiga was silent for a moment.

"Good things take time. Happy marriages, getting an education, rebuilding a nation, it all takes time. And there are so many variables the longer things take. They're wonderful things, but they aren't like tragedy. The bad, it happens all at once. Swiftly, abruptly, bombs drop. People die, bridges fall. They're awful, but they happen."

"What are you saying?"

"Start looking ahead. Forget about the past, and stop worrying about the future. Good things take time. If anything good is going to happen, it won't happen all at once. Conversely, there isn't much time left; you need to go inside."

For reasons I still can't explain to you, I set down the axe. Oiga was smart enough to know that this was just delaying the inevitable. He knew I was ready to chop him down. And yet, I trusted him enough to know that if I needed to go inside, I should probably do it. I turned around, opened the screen door, closed the sliding glass door and looked out at the garden.

It started...raining. The July heat turned to a muggy overcast almost immediately. It was drizzling. I was confused, but then in minutes, the rain picked up. Winds whipped Oiga's branches violently. I called my husband. He said he was only five minutes from home, and that the radio turned to an emergency broadcast...a flash flood warning.

He came in the door soaking wet; I was still standing by the screen door. Two feet of water rushing through the garden. The flowers were dead. The herb garden was uprooted and devastated. The planters split open and destroyed. And Oiga, still facing the corner of the garden, was waiting for the water to rise.

title: Oiga.

question: Summarize a surprise in the plot.

answer: The narrator has a field maple in the corner of the garden and after two years of growth, it began to speak. Its first word was heard by the narrator and the event caused her to faint. The narrator's husband saw her fall and brought her inside, confirming that the tree really was talking. The tree had predicted to him that the narrator would forget to get him a gift for his upcoming birthday.

question: Summarize what the story says about good.

answer: The story refers to good in two ways: good news and good things. Oiga, the talking maple tree, never predicts good news. Oiga reminds the narrator that good things take time, like happy relationships and rebuilding things, and juxtaposed the time good things take with what is often the immediacy of tragedy.

question: What does the story say about rain?

answer: Rain in the story was unexpected and picked up quickly. The narrator's husband calls when he's close to home and says the radio gave a flash flood warning. The narrator notes that two feet of water are moving through the garden, which destroys most of the plants and threatens to harm Oiga, the maple tree, as well.

question: What does the story say about the narrator's career?


text:
ANGELIKA PLATEN (born in 1942 in Heidelberg) is a German photographer known for her artist portraits.[1]

Biography

Angelika Platen studied Art History and Romance & Oriental Studies at the Free University of Berlin.[2] She then specialized in Photography at the School of Fine Arts in Hamburg.

In 1968, she established herself as an independent photographer and photojournalist. She displayed her photographs for the first time in 1969 in an exhibition entitled “Artists are also humans”.

From 1972 to 1975, she managed the Günter Sachs Gallery in Hamburg. During this period, she photographed more than sixty artists. Her passion for artist’s portraits was born.

Exhibitions

-   1998: Modern Art Museum, Frankfurt
-   2001: Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, « Platen Artists »; Museum of Arts and Crafts, Hamburg
-   2003: Museum Fries, Leeuwarden – « Platen Artists »
-   2004: Modern Art Gallery, Bologne
-   2005: Haus am Lützowplatz, Berlin, « Sigmar Polke – Mitten in der Luft »
-   2006: Suermondt -Ludwig Museum, Aachen, Große Sprünge; City Gallery, Prag
-   2008: Exhibition at the Art Library in Berlin - « Unsterblich! Das Foto des Künstlers » Catalog published by the editing company of the Berlin State Museums

Bibliography

-   « Platen Artists », 1999–Edited by Stemmle, 1998, .
-   « Sigmar Polke – Mitten in der Luft », 2003–Edited by Bad Münstereifel
-   « Künstler/Artists », 2010 – Edited by Hatje Cantz, .

[1]

[2]

title: Angelika Platen

question: Who is Angelika Platen?

answer: Angelika Platen is an independent German photographer and photojournalist.

question: What was she known for?

answer: Her photographs.

question: When did she retire?

answer: Information can't be found.

question: When did she have her first showcase?

answer: She first showcased her photographs in 1969 in an exhibition entitled "Artists are also humans."

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Angelika Platen is an independent German photographer and photojournalist who first showcased her photographs in 1969. She has since displayed her work in seven more museum exhibitions.


text:
A sweeping lawsuit filed in Kern County, Calif., late last week alleges that African-American and Latino high school students suffer discrimination from disciplinary practices that remove them at disproportionate rates from regular school and place them in inferior alternative settings.

The Center for Public Integrity in 2011 reported that Kern County, in the Golden State’s Central Valley, had the highest rate of student expulsion in California, not just on a per capita basis, but actually numerically higher than populous Los Angeles County.

In 2013, the Center and KQED radio reported that Kern County kids, among them Hispanic children of farmworkers, were removed from regular school for minor reasons and placed in alternative schools so far from home — as much as 40 miles away — that many kids dropped out or were told to perform independent study at home.

Hundreds of expelled kids, including English-as-second-language learners, were placed on independent study while officially enrolled full-time on alternative campuses, records showed. Because Kern resident Mario Ramirez was unable to get his daughter to a distant alternative school, he sent the 14-year-old to Mexico just to get her in a classroom for a few months during a year-long expulsion.

The lawsuit filed Thursday names Ramirez and other kids and parents featured in Center stories as plaintiffs; the suit alleges that in spite of parents’ meetings in recent months with the local school board to urge changes, officials “have failed to take any effective action to require that Kern High School District develop and implement discipline and school assignment plans that ameliorate the rampant racial and ethnic disparities in the district.”

Black and Latino students “routinely assigned” to independent study receive “only minimal interaction with school personnel and other students,” according to the suit, and fall behind academically.

The suit was filed in Kern County Superior Court in the Kern city of Bakersfield, which is north of Los Angeles in an area of oil drilling and some of the world’s most productive agribusiness fields.

Groups filing the suit demanding adoption of alternative discipline and student transfer practices include California Rural Legal Assistance, or CRLA, a nonprofit that has represented Kern kids in school disputes; the nonprofit Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, or MALDEF; the nonprofit Greater Bakersfield Legal Assistance, Inc.; the Dolores Huerta Foundation, a Kern County group that organizes parents; Faith in Action Kern County, a multi-faith group that also works with families; and the Equal Justice Society, a nonprofit concerned with racial equity that is based in Oakland.

The suit was filed against the 35,000-pupil Kern High School District, California’s second largest high school district. Its student body is 62 percent Latino and 6 percent black. The suit also names as defendants the district’s trustees; the Kern County Office of Education, which runs alternative campuses; and the California Department of Education.

Lisa Krch, the district’s public information and communications manager, said the Kern High School District “cannot comment on pending litigation.”

In September 2013, Mike Zulfa, the district’s associate superintendent of human resources, told the Center that the district “continues to examine our practices and look for ways to improve. By providing professional development, having honest conversations about our practices, and trying to meet the needs of our students and the community, the district has shown improvement in our expulsion rate over the past three years.”

But the suit accuses the Kern High School District of failing to comply with new state discipline policies and adopt alternative practices designed to diffuse problems without resorting to kicking kids out.

The suit also accuses the district of labeling students that its regular campuses kick out as “involuntary” or “voluntary transfers” instead of expulsions that must be reported to state and federal databases.

The suit notes that the district — under scrutiny after media reports — did cut its expulsions from 2,040 in 2011 to 256 students in 2013. But the groups argue that enrollment has not declined at alternative schools because of continuing transfers of students that parents — many of them limited English speakers — agree to authorize without fully understanding other options.

The district, the suit alleges, “has implemented a ‘waiver’ system, under which students and parents are convinced through intimidation, coerced or tricked into waiving the due process protections accompanying formal discipline and accepting immediate placement in alternative schools.”

The suit also argues that stark ethnic disparities persist among kids officially expelled from Kern’s high schools.

During the 2012-2013 school year, according to the suit, 67 percent of black students who were expelled were kicked out for infractions that did not include physical injury, possession of drugs or weapons. Only 42 percent of white students expelled were removed for similarly less serious infractions.

Eva Paterson, president of the Equal Justice Society, attributed the disproportionate rate of harsh discipline levied against Latino and black students on “implicit biases of students of color.” The U.S. Department of Education has urged schools to examine discipline policies and the impact on children who are ethnic minorities or suffer from disabilities.

Kern’s rate of suspension of students — the path leaving to eventual transfer out of regular school — was three times the state of California’s average in 2013, the suit also says.

Martha Gomez, a MALDEF staff attorney, said: “Kern High School District hurts itself and the state of California by making Latino and African-American students second-class citizens in the educational system.”

Sahar Durali, a CRLA staff attorney in the Kern farm town of Delano, said parents and various organizations have met with Kern education officials this past year to request that they improve teacher training and alternative discipline practices that are being embraced by other California districts.

“The district has the money to do this,” Durali said. She noted that the district is receiving nearly $18 million in supplemental money as part of a statewide funding program to help disadvantaged kids.

On Sept. 9, Brenda Lewis, the district’s assistant superintendent for instruction, told KBAK news station in Bakersfield that a number of schools are trying “positive behavioral” intervention methods.

One of the plaintiffs in the suit is Patricia Crawford, an African-American Bakersfield mother the Center interviewed in 2011, after her daughter was expelled in 2010 for a fight in a gym witnesses agreed she didn’t start. Crawford’s daughter was later cleared, but for weeks, her mother said, her daughter fell behind as teachers declined requests for homework to do at home.

Although the girl was fully exonerated, the suit notes, she was placed on probation when admitted back into to her school and forbidden from participating in volleyball, a sport at which she excelled. The suit alleges that the girl, who has since graduated, “was identified in her school records as a problem student” and that her record “impacted school administrators’ and teachers’ treatment of her.”

Another set of parents and student interviewed by the Center are also plaintiffs in the suit. Antonio M., as the student is identified, was expelled from Arvin High School in Kern County for an alleged fight he denied being involved in. Antonio’s parents, who do not read English, said they were given paperwork in English they thought authorized a five-day suspension. In reality, according to the suit, the parents signed a waiver to an expulsion hearing.

The boy was transferred to an alternative school 30 miles away. When the parents said they had no way to get the boy there, “school personnel suggested that Antonio take the bus, which requires three transfers, or in the alternative, ride a bicycle.”

After a year without any schooling, “Antonio’s educational path has been delayed, and continues to be undermined,” the suit alleges.

question: How does the lack of education in the use of the English language affect discrimination in the school?

answer: The expulsion statistics and treatment of school administrators and faculty of the students clearly show a very strong correlation to the influence of discrimination, at the same time, students and parents without a strong educational background in the use of the English language are more vulnerable to discriminative practices as this in itself is an acceptable reason as to why a student would be falling behind academically.


text:
[US states in the Northern Jurisdiction]

The SUPREME COUNCIL, SCOTTISH RITE, NORTHERN JURISDICTION, based in Lexington, Massachusetts, oversees the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry in fifteen states: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wisconsin and Vermont.[1] Formed in 1813, the Northern Jurisdiction is divided into “Valleys” (as opposed to the Southern Jurisdiction, which divides itself into “Orients”).[2] Each Valley has up to four subordinate bodies, and each body confers a set of degrees.

Organization

In the Northern Jurisdiction, the Supreme Council consists of no more than 66 members. All members of the Supreme Council are designated Sovereign Grand Inspectors General, but the head of the Rite in each Valley of the Northern Jurisdiction is called a “Deputy of the Supreme Council.” The Northern Council meets yearly.

In the Northern Jurisdiction, there is a 46-month requirement for eligibility to receive the 33rd degree, and while there is a Meritorious Service Award (as well as a Distinguished Service Award), they are not required intermediate steps towards the 33°.

A recipient of the 33rd Degree is an honorary member of the Supreme Council and is therefore called an “Inspector General Honorary.” However, those who are appointed Deputies of the Supreme Council that are later elected to membership on the Supreme Council are then designated “Sovereign Grand Inspectors General.” In the Northern Jurisdiction a recipient of the 33rd Degree is an honorary member of the Supreme Council, and all members are referred to as a “Sovereign Grand Inspectors General.”

Degree structure

Members of the Northern Jurisdiction are required to have achieved the third degree of Masonry (Master Mason) in their local lodges before they can apply to join the Scottish Rite. The Northern Jurisdiction offers 29 additional degrees, with a final 33rd degree conferred as an honor for service to the fraternity and society. However, taking these additional degrees does not give one higher “rank” in Masonry. While the higher numbering might imply a hierarchy, the additional degrees are considered “appendant degrees”. They represent a lateral movement in Masonic education rather than an upward movement, and are degrees of instruction rather than rank.[3]

In 2004, the Northern Jurisdiction rewrote and reorganized its degrees.[4] Further changes have occurred in 2006.[5] As of 2016 the degrees offered by the Northern Jurisdiction are:

+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Degree                            | Northern Jurisdiction[6]          |
+===================================+===================================+
| 4°                                | Builder                           |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 5°                                | Perfect Master                    |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 6°                                | Master of the Brazen Serpent      |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 7°                                | Provost and Judge                 |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 8°                                | Intendant of the Building         |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 9°                                | Master of the Temple              |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 10°                               | Master Elect[7]                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 11°                               | Sublime Master Elected            |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 12°                               | Master of Mercy                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 13°                               | Master of the Ninth Arch          |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 14°                               | Grand Elect Mason                 |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 15°                               | Knight of the East, or            |
|                                   | Knight of the Sword               |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 16°                               | Prince of Jerusalem               |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 17°                               | Knight of the East and West       |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 18°                               | Knight of the Rose Croix de       |
|                                   | Heredom                           |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 19°                               | Brother of the Trail              |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 20°                               | Master ad Vitam                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 21°                               | Patriarch Noachite                |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 22°                               | Prince of Libanus                 |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 23°                               | Knight of Valor                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 24°                               | Brother of the Forest             |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 25°                               | Master of Achievement             |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 26°                               | Friend and Brother Eternal[8]     |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 27°                               | Knight of Jerusalem               |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 28°                               | Knight of the Sun, or             |
|                                   | Prince Adept                      |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 29°                               | Knight of Saint Andrew            |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 30°                               | Grand Inspector                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 31°                               | Knight Aspirant                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 32°                               | Sublime Prince of the Royal       |
|                                   | Secret                            |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| 33°                               | Sovereign Grand Inspector General |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
|  |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+

History

Although most of the thirty-three degrees of the Scottish Rite existed in parts of previous degree systems,[9] the Scottish Rite did not come into being until the formation of the Mother Supreme Council at Charleston, South Carolina, in May 1801.

On May 1, 1813, an officer from the Supreme Council at Charleston initiated several New York Masons into the Thirty-third Degree and organized a Supreme Council for the “Northern Masonic District and Jurisdiction”. On May 21, 1814 this Supreme Council reopened and proceeded to “nominate, elect, appoint, install and proclaim in due, legal and ample form” the elected officers “as forming the _second_ Grand and Supreme Council...”. Finally, the charter of this organization (written January 7, 1815) added, “We think the _Ratification_ ought to be dated 21st day May 5 815."[10]

Officially, the Supreme Council, 33°, N.M.J. dates itself from May 15, 1867. This was the date of the “Union of 1867”, when it merged with the competing Cerneau “Supreme Council” in New York. The current Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the United States, was thus formed.[11]

[1] Website of the Northern Jurisdiction

[2] Valleys of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction

[3] Scottish Rite, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction website: Frequently asked questions - “Are Scottish Rite degrees higher than those of a Master Mason?”

[4] _Freemasons for Dummies_, Christopher Hodapp, , Hungry Minds Inc, U.S., 2005. pp. 224-225

[5] The Northern Light Magazine, November 2006; p. 6 “Ritual Changes.”

[6] _Freemasons for Dummies_, Christopher Hodapp, , Hungry Minds Inc, U.S., 2005. pp. 226-227

[7] Formerly “Master Elect of Fifteen.” _The Northern Light Magazine, November 2006_

[8] Formerly “Prince of Mercy.” _The Northern Light Magazine, November 2006_

[9] de Hoyos, Arturo, “Development of the Scottish Rite Rituals”, in _Scottish Rite Ritual, Monitor and Guide_ 2d ed. (Washington, D.C.: Supreme Council, 33°, S.J., 2009), pp. 109-118.

[10]

[11] de Hoyos, Arturo, “The Union of 1867” in _Heredom_ (Washington, D.C.: Scottish Rite Research Society, 1995), vol. 5:7-45.

title: Supreme Council, Scottish Rite, Northern Jurisdiction, USA

question: Which (legislative institution; group) oversees the Scottish Rite of Masonry in fifteen states?

answer: The Supreme Council Scottish Rite, Northern Jurisdiction.

question: How many states do they preside over?

answer: 15.

question: What is the maximum number of members in the Supreme Council?

answer: 66.

question: What degree of Masonry are members of the Northern Jurisdiction expected to have received before applying to join the Scottish Rite?

answer: Third degree Masonry (Master Mason).

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: The Supreme Council, Scottish Rite, Northern Jurisdiction, USA,  based in Lexington, Massachusetts, oversees the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry in fifteen states. It was formed in 1813. There are no more than 66 members allowed on the Supreme Council. In order to become a member of the Northern Jurisdiction, one must have achieved the third degree of Masonry (Master Mason).


text:
The WOMEN'S 200 METRES event at the 1985 IAAF World Indoor Games was held at the Palais Omnisports Paris-Bercy on 18 January.

Medalists

+-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+
| GOLD                  | SILVER                | BRONZE                |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+
| Marita Koch           | Marie-Christine       | Kim Robertson         |
| __                    | Cazier                | __                    |
|                       | __                    |                       |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+

Results

Heats

First 3 of each heat qualified directly (Q) for the final.[1]

  Rank   Heat   Name                     Nationality   Time    Notes
  ------ ------ ------------------------ ------------- ------- -------
  1      2      Marita Koch                            23.53   Q
  2      2      Marie-Christine Cazier                 23.74   Q
  3      1      Fabienne Ficher                        23.86   Q
  4      1      Kim Robertson                          23.91   Q
  5      1      Mary Bolden                            24.25   Q
  6      2      Semra Aksu                             24.56   Q
  7      2      Alejandra Flores                       25.54   NR
  8      1      María Báez                             26.47   NR

Final

[2]

  Rank   Lane   Name                     Nationality   Time    Notes
  ------ ------ ------------------------ ------------- ------- -------
         2      Marita Koch                            23.09
         5      Marie-Christine Cazier                 23.33   NR
         4      Kim Robertson                          23.69   AR
  4      3      Fabienne Ficher                        23.75
  5      6      Mary Bolden                            23.89
  6      1      Semra Aksu                             24.97

[1] Heats results (archived)

[2] Final results (archived)

title: 1985 IAAF World Indoor Games – Women's 200 metres

question: Who won each medal?

answer:
Gold: Marita Koch
Silver: Marie-Christine Cazier
Bronze: Kim Robertson

question: What was Marita Koch's time?

answer: 23.09 seconds, it was not a new record for her.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Stats for the competitors in the Women's 200 meters at the IAAF World Indoor Games.


text:
LIAM O'CONNOR (born 20 June 1993) is an Australian cricketer. He was previously contracted with the Western Warriors, Western Australia's state team, but initially he did not play any first-class or List A matches for the state. Since 2016, he has played for the Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League, being brought into the squad for BBL{{!}}06 as an injury replacement, winning the tournament with the team in BBL{{!}}07. In 2019, he made his first-class and List A debuts for Western Australia.

Cricket career

O'Connor first started to gain attention in the 2014–15 season playing grade cricket in Perth for Bayswater-Morley District Cricket Club. In 15 games in the premier division he took 29 wickets, enough to earn himself a rookie contract with the Western Warriors, Western Australia's state team, for the 2015–16 season.[1] Though he came close to a Sheffield Shield debut, he did not get into the state team and instead played for Western Australia Under-23s in the Futures League. He was the team's leading wicket taker with 28 wickets from just six games.[2] As a result of his strong form he was upgraded to a full contract with the state for the 2016–17 season.[3]

Despite now being on a full contract with Western Australia, O'Connor still did not make his debut for Western Australia in either first-class or List A cricket.[4] Shortly before the 2016–17 Big Bash League season he did not have a contract with any of the eight franchises, but Adelaide Strikers spinner Jon Holland was injured and unable to compete in the tournament, so the Strikers needed to find a replacement player. Strikers captain Brad Hodge had previously coached Western Australian wicket-keeper Josh Inglis in a tour match, so Inglis suggested that O'Connor would be a good bowler to sign. The Strikers signed him for the season, and he ended up playing every game in the first half of the tournament.[5] His standout performance came when he took the wickets of Moises Henriques and Sean Abbott in the New Year's Eve match to achieve bowling figures of 2/12 in a win.[6]

As a result of his strong performances, O'Connor was re-signed by the Strikers for BBL{{!}}07,[7] but he was not offered another contract with Western Australia.[8] Throughout the tournament he was unable to play because Strikers' international player Rashid Khan was the team's main spinner, being the leading wicket-taker of the tournament. O'Connor played his only match of BBL|07 in the final against the Hobart Hurricanes, while Khan was on international duty with Afghanistan. He was the second-most economical bowler on the day with figures of 0/27, only two boundaries hit off of his bowling. The Strikers won the match and the tournament. Before returning to Perth at the end of the tournament he went to Brisbane to help the Papua New Guinea spinners in the team's training camp ahead of the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier.[9]

He made his first-class debut for Western Australia in the 2018–19 Sheffield Shield season on 23 February 2019.[10] He made his List A debut on 31 October 2019, for Western Australia in the 2019–20 Marsh One-Day Cup.[11]

Personal life

O'Connor works as an insurance broker for Robinson Insurance Broking, playing cricket part-time.[12]

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title: Liam O'Connor (cricketer)

question: Who is Liam O'Connor?

answer: Liam O'Connor is an Australian cricketer.

question: What is cricket?

answer: Cricket is a sport, but the article doesn't detail the game.

question: When did O'Connor's cricket career begin?

answer: He first started to gain attention in the 2014-15 season. It seems he signed with Strikers, one of the eight franchises, midseason 2016-17.

question: When did O'Connor make his first-class debut?

answer: He made his first class debut in the 2018-2019 season.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Liam O'Connor is an Australian cricketer. He first started to gain attention in the 2014-15 season. It seems he signed with Strikers, one of the eight franchises, midseason 2016-17; he made his first class debut in the 2018-2019 season.


text:
(Image via Netflix)

Netflix has been experiencing such strong growth—much of it through expanding into new markets—that its CEO Reed Hastings can wear whatever he wants when he’s delivering quarterly earnings reports. But Netflix’s expansion into China is proving more complicated than expected, placing Hastings’ silly-sweater campaign under threat.

Originally Netflix planned to repeat the business model it used to set up shop across Southeast Asia, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand in China, an obvious strategic move on par with trying to dump its DVD business or creating original content. But China has remained elusive, leading the media provider to revise plans and suggesting it might partner with a local entity like Wasu Media. Or, put another way, China might prefer Netflix to fork over a sizable share of profits to a native company.

Netflix CFO David Wells acknowledges the challenges, saying, “We hope to be able to launch the service there next year, and we’ll continue to treat it sort of as its own territory.” And seeing as Netflix is eyeing a price hike for 2016, China may simply want to cultivate its own streaming services and maybe not even bother to mail back its copy of _Dunston Checks In_.

CEO/_Bojack Horseman_ superfan Hastings emphasizes the larger picture of total world domination. “We hope to open the entire rest of the world in 2016,” Hastings said. “I suppose [opening in China is] possible. But in the rest of the world, we’re pretty confident that we’ll open. And then we’ll have to see how successful we are in Poland.” So, as long as Netflix is busy invading Poland, it seems China is safe.

question: Who is Reed Hastings?

answer: He is the CEO of Netflix

question: Why is Netflix experiencing strong growth?

answer: By expanding into new markets like Southeast Asia, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

question: Which country is Netflix experiencing problems entering?

answer: China

question: How does Netflix plan to go around its expansion plans in China?

answer: The company may partner with a local entity like Wasu Media.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: Media streaming giant Netflix has been experiencing strong growth as it continues to expand into new markets such as Southeast Asia, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. The company has hit a roadblock in entering China and may have to partner with a local entity like Wasu Media to gain a foothold there. However, having a local partner may force Netflix to give up a sizable amount of revenue to the native company. Another wrinkle is that China may simply want to cultivate its own streaming services and not bother with Netflix at all.


text:
“RADIO WALL OF SOUND” is a song by the British rock band Slade, released in 1991 as the first single from the band's compilation album _Wall of Hits_. It was written and produced by bassist Jim Lea. The song reached No. 21 in the UK, remaining in the charts for five weeks. It was the band's last hit single, discounting later chartings of “Merry Xmas Everybody”.[1]

Background

After their contract with RCA expired in 1987, Slade decided to take an eighteen-month break. Although the band announced their intentions to record a new album,[2] these plans did not materialise. Later in 1991, the band's former label Polydor approached them with the idea of recording two new singles to promote a new compilation album _Wall of Hits_. The two singles, “Radio Wall of Sound” and “Universe”, were soon completed, with “Radio Wall of Sound” being released in October 1991. It reached No. 21 in the UK, earning the band their twenty-fourth Top 40 single and their first Top 40 hit since 1984.[3] It was voted the “Single of the Week” by listeners on Simon Mayo's BBC Radio 1 show.[4] As part of the deal with Polydor, if both “Radio Wall of Sound” and the follow-up single “Universe” were successful, a new studio album would be recorded. However, “Universe” failed to chart over Christmas and the band would split up in 1992.[5][6]

“Radio Wall of Sound” was originally a solo song of Lea's, who had completed much of the recording before it became a Slade song. He had first mentioned the song in a 1990 fan club interview: “It sounds just like Slade, even my brother Frank says it sounds like Slade.”[7] In 1991, when Holder attempted to record his vocals, the band realised that Lea's existing recording was not in his key. As a result, Lea performed the lead vocal, with Holder joining in during the chorus. To provide the DJ voice-over parts in the song, the band approached the broadcaster/presenter Mike Read.[8] Recalling the song in his autobiography _Seize the Day_, Read said: “They felt that the song needed a punchy American-style DJ delivery to give it some pace, so they asked if I'd pop up to the studio in north London.”[9]

Describing the song as a “more commercial, good instant rock track”, Holder said of the single's performance in a 1992 fan club interview: “It wouldn't have needed that many sales to have reached that position, not a vast amount. The initial shipping out to the shops was around 30,000 copies, I think, which is a good pre-order figure, good enough to go Top 40 first week out. The problem was sustaining the momentum after using up all the available TV's there was nowhere else to go. We couldn't get on Wogan, which would have helped, so really that was all the TV possible.”[10] In a 2000 interview with _Mojo_, Lea recalled of the song: "Our last hit was “Radio Wall of Sound”, which I wrote and sang. The others thought it was a load of shit. Towards the end the records were completely my songs. I'd taken control and it didn't feel like a band any more. All the fun had gone out of it, so I started getting into the property business, and took a psychology course at college."

Release

“Radio Wall of Sound” was released by Polydor Records on 7" vinyl, CD and cassette in the UK and across Europe. In the UK, the single was also released on 12" vinyl.[11][12] The B-side, “Lay Your Love on the Line”, was exclusive to the single and would later appear on the band's 2007 compilation _B-Sides_. It was written by guitarist Dave Hill and ex-Wizzard keyboardist Bill Hunt. On the 12" and CD formats of the single, the band's 1973 hit “Cum On Feel the Noize” was also included as a second B-side.

Promotion

A music video was filmed to promote the single, which was directed by William Clark and filmed in September 1991.[13][14] The video was set on the roof-top of a radio station and featured an appearance from Read. Towards the end of the video, the radio tower on the roof of the building explodes. In the UK, the band performed the song on _Top of The Pops_ and _Motormouth_.[15]

Critical reception

Upon release, John Millard of _News of the World_ commented: "Slade are still very, very noisy. October's hit “Radio Wall of Sound”, was a less-than-gentle reminder of Slade's raucous, stomping heyday in the Seventies."[16] In the 2013 book _Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop_, author Bob Stanley described the song as a “stellar moment” in the band's latter day career.[17]

Formats

7" Single

1.  “Radio Wall of Sound” - 3:47
2.  “Lay Your Love on the Line” - 3:09

Cassette Single

1.  “Radio Wall of Sound” - 3:47
2.  “Lay Your Love on the Line” - 3:09

12" Single

1.  “Radio Wall of Sound” - 3:47
2.  “Lay Your Love on the Line” - 3:09
3.  “Cum On Feel The Noize” - 4:31

CD Single

1.  “Radio Wall of Sound” - 3:47
2.  “Lay Your Love on the Line” - 3:09
3.  “Cum On Feel The Noize” - 4:31

Cover versions

-   In 2001, English vocalist/musician Mick White recorded a version of the track for the tribute album _Slade Remade_.[18]

Chart performance

+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Chart (1991)                      | Peak                              |
|                                   | position                          |
+===================================+===================================+
| Belgian Singles Chart[19]         | 21                                |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Dutch Singles Chart[20]           | 22                                |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Irish Singles Chart[21]           | 30                                |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| UK Singles Chart[22]              | 21                                |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+

Personnel

Slade

-   Noddy Holder - vocals
-   Jim Lea - lead vocals, bass, producer
-   Dave Hill - lead guitar
-   Don Powell - drums

Additional personnel

-   Mike Read - DJ voice
-   The Leisure Process - design

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[13] http://www.sladefanclub.com/uploads/7/6/6/0/7660950/7801471_orig.jpg

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title: Radio Wall of Sound

question: What is the Radio Wall of Sound?

answer: A song by the British rock band Slade.

question: When was Radio Wall of Sound released?

answer: 1991.

question: What album was Radio Wall of Sound on?

answer: Wall of Hits.

question: What place on the chart did Radio Wall of Sound reach?

answer: No. 21.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This article is about Radio Wall of Sound, a song by British rock band Slade from 1991.


text:
_YOU ARE GOD_ () is a 2012 Polish biography film directed by Leszek Dawid.[1] It is the story of Polish hip-hop group Paktofonika.

The film premiered at the 2012 Gdynia Film Fesitval.[2]

Cast

-   Marcin Kowalczyk as Magik
-   Dawid Ogrodnik as Rahim
-   Tomasz Schuchardt as Fokus
-   Arkadiusz Jakubik as Gustaw Zarzycki
-   as Justyna Luszcz

-   Marcin Dorociński as Manager
-   as Magik's father

-   as Magik's mother

-   as Magda

[1]

[2]

title: You Are God

question: What was the budget of this film?

answer: Not answered.

question: When was the film released?

answer: The film premiered at the 2012 Gdynia Film Festival.

question: Who directed the film?

answer: The film was directed by Leszek Dawid.

question: Who plays the character of Magik?

answer: Magik is played by Marcin Kowalczyk.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: This article is about the film "You Are God" a Polish biography film directed by Leszek Dawid. It premiered at the 2012 Gdynia Film Festival.