MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Mainfin Bank –
What was the dispute between the bank and the borrower that was being considered by the court?
The decision on the inadmissibility of imposing services was made by the Supreme Court in the context of a civil dispute between a bank and a resident of the Sverdlovsk region. The citizen had previously taken out a loan, but the bank imposed insurance on him and refused to terminate the contract during the “cooling-off period”. The borrower managed to restore his rights with the help of the financial ombudsman – the bank did not agree with this decision and went to court.
The Supreme Court found that the bank had violated the requirements of the law by including a clause in the terms of the loan agreement requiring the borrower to purchase an insurance policy from a specific company. At the same time, the client did not check the box about consent to connect the protection, although he agreed to the proposed terms of the loan. The highest court overturned the decisions of the lower courts and sent the case back for a retrial on the merits.
What restrictions apply to creditors when connecting additional services?
The Supreme Court’s decision on the dispute that arose imposes a number of restrictions on banks when provided to borrowers credits and connecting them to additional services. Thus, the court recalled that:
the bank’s duty is to provide the client with a choice: to agree or refuse imposed services; the lender does not have the right to put notes on consent or include clauses in the terms that provide for the mandatory connection of additional services; it is prohibited to create conditions within which the borrower’s unambiguous consent to the purchase of individual services is assumed.
“A bank that fails to comply with these requirements violates the rights of the borrower and the norms of the law, since the imposition of insurance and other services is unacceptable,” the Supreme Court panel noted.
Thus, the court prohibited banks from including in loan agreements the obligation to purchase insurance – the borrower must independently agree to take out the protection.
15:50 10/15/2024
Source:
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Religious hate crimes in England and Wales are at record levels. New Home Office statistics reveal that although hate crime overall saw an annual decrease of 5% in the year to March 2024, there was a 25% increase in religious hate crimes.
Hate crimes against Jewish people more than doubled from the previous year, making up 33% of religion-based hate crime in the new figures. Those against Muslims rose by 13%, making up 38% of the total.
There was a sharp increase in reported incidents against both Jewish and Muslim people after the Israel-Hamas conflict began in October 2023. While the total number of offences has since declined, it is still higher than before the conflict began.
These figures reflect police-recorded hate crime, but other organisations also track these incidents. The organisation Tell Mama, which tracks anti-Muslim hate, recorded a 335% increase in cases in the months after October 7 2023 compared to the year before. And the Community Security Trust tracked a 147% rise in anti-Jewish hate in 2023 compared to 2022. Of these incidents, 66% were on or after October 7.
The October 7 attacks are an example of a trigger event that usually precedes a spike in hate crime. These events can “galvanise tensions and sentiments against the suspected perpetrators and groups associated with them”.
Trigger events can be one-off events or last only a short period of time, but the continuing high levels of hate crime that the UK has seen over the past year is still likely due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East.
These trends had been increasing worldwide, and not only since the latest conflict. A UN report in 2021 found that Islamophobia had reached “epidemic proportions”. Additionally, as my colleagues and I have found in our research, such racism is also experienced by a diverse range of ethnic groups and not only Muslims. A rise in antisemitism has been recorded around the world too.
Unreported hate
Not only are the latest statistics in the UK alarming, they are only the tip of the iceberg. As my work on the inquiry into Islamophobia in Scotland found, many incidents go unreported.
We found that many did not report incidents due to concerns about institutional racism in the police and a lack of confidence in policing and in the criminal justice system. Added to this were worries about not having enough evidence, the incident not being “serious enough”, and fear of reprisal. Some even felt that it happened so often that there was “no point” in reporting it.
Anti-Jewish hatred has risen in the UK since October 7 2023. Shutterstock
The long-term impacts of hate crime are deeply concerning. Victims who experience constant discrimination are likely to experience poor health outcomes and premature ageing.
The rising numbers also promote a culture of fear that can discourage members of ethnic or religious minority groups from participating fully in society.
My colleagues and I have found in our research that Islamophobia and prejudice has stopped some Muslims from participating in politics and going out to socialise.
Encouragingly, however, others chose to become more active in their communities in order to challenge stereotypes about Muslims.
Making prejudice mainstream
In addition to the trigger event of the Israel-Hamas war, there are a number of factors that contribute to rising hate crime, particularly against Muslims.
First is the prevalence of organisations and individuals, including media outlets, online influencers, far-right think-tanks and political figures who promote anti-Muslim messaging and hatred.
The rise of far-right politics around the world plays a role. The election of Donald Trump, as well as
recent electoral gains by Marine Le Pen in France, the Freedom Party in Austria and Reform UK show how such politics are seeping into the mainstream.
But even supposedly centrist politicians spread narratives that contribute to Islamophobia and racism. For example, former prime minister David Cameron decried the failure of multiculturalism and this message was repeated by Suella Braverman when she was home secretary.
This perpetuates the idea that it is not possible for different ethnic and religious groups to live in harmony. I would argue this provides an ideal platform for the promotion of Islamophobia.
Mainstream media outlets and social media also shape the narratives that contribute to a culture of fear around Muslims. High profile acts of religious hatred, such as the atrocities committed by Anders Breivik in Oslo in 2011 or by Brenton Tarrant in Christchurch in 2019, tend to be put down to a “lone wolf” or to be regarded as “fringe incidents”, rather than part of a wider problem to be addressed. Both Breivik and Tarrant promoted white supremacy and were explicitly anti-Muslim.
The spread of inaccurate information on social media has stirred up Islamophobia, antisemitism and racism, and led to violence against migrants. This was seen in the far-right riots in summer 2024 following the fatal stabbing of three young girls in Southport, near Liverpool.
According to a report by the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a false name and disinformation suggesting the attacker was Muslim reached around 1.7 billion people across several platforms.
The long history of Islamophobia in Britain can be traced back to the response to the 9/11 terror attacks and the “war on terror”. The UK’s counter-terrorism programme Prevent has made life intolerable for Muslims by promoting the idea that all Muslims are potential terrorists and a threat to security.
The obsession with this approach persists internationally despite the existence of several alternatives, yet it urgently needs to be replaced alongside the thinking that supports it.
The result of all this is that Islamophobia has flourished in the UK without being called out by those in power. This must be challenged if we want to see a reduction in racially and religiously motivated hate crime.
Peter Hopkins receives funding from the Leverhulme Trust.
The blue blood of threatened horseshoe crabs contains a chemical essential for testing the safety of vaccines. So these ancient creatures are highly sought after by pharmaceutical companies worldwide, contributing to declines in their populations.
Advances in technology now allow the rapid sequencing and sharing of genetic data, bringing huge benefits (and profits) for biotechnology and medicine. However, it also opens the door to “biopiracy”: the unethical or unlawful appropriation of biological resources, typically from countries or Indigenous communities in developing countries.
Even if genetic information is obtained and used appropriately and within the law, important ethical, legal and financial questions still arise: who owns the genetic data derived from nature, and how can we ensure fair sharing of the benefits derived from their use?
A key debate at Cop16, the upcoming UN biodiversity conference, will be how best to channel funding into protecting valuable biological resources. If done properly, people can benefit from the genetic information that nature contains, while ensuring that those conserving these resources, particularly Indigenous people, are properly compensated financially for their efforts.
Our recent paper argues that rules of fair allocation, which have been around since the time of Aristotle, offer a potential way forward.
Genetic information extracted from living organisms can now be easily digitised and shared across borders. This practice, often referred to as digital sequence information (DSI), plays a pivotal role in advancing research in fields such as medicine, agriculture and environmental science.
For example, the genome of the COVID-19 virus was digitally sequenced and shared globally, enabling researchers worldwide to use that DSI to develop vaccines quickly.
Yet, this leads to ethical and legal challenges. The genetic codes of plants and animals from all over the world are stored in international databases, often without proper acknowledgement or compensation to the countries or communities where these sequences originated.
Countries with rich biodiversity, particularly in developing countries, have raised concerns that their genetic resources are being used – and in some cases monetised and commercialised – without approval or fair compensation. Indigenous peoples and local communities have similar concerns.
So, who owns genetic data? It depends.
The ownership of genetic data derived from plants and animals has become a grey area. In theory, countries have sovereignty over their biodiversity, as stipulated in an international agreement adopted in 2010 called the Nagoya protocol. This mandates that countries sharing their biological resources should be compensated through access and benefit-sharing agreements.
Genetic codes of rare plants aren’t currently owned by their country of origin. Polonio Video/Shutterstock
However, the concept of DSI has complicated these agreements. When genetic data is transformed into a digital format and stored in databases, it is not always clear whether the original country still holds any rights over that data.
Should the digital sequence information of a rare Amazonian plant, for example, belong to the country where it was found, or is it now part of a global commons available to any researcher or commercial entity? Currently, there is no universal agreement on DSI, and with companies and research institutions using genetic data freely, this opens the door to the next wave of biopiracy
Biopiracy has been a historical problem, long before digital data entered the picture. For decades, pharmaceutical and agricultural companies have sourced plant and animal materials from the Amazon rainforest or African savannas. They patented products based on those materials and profited without compensating source countries or Indigenous peoples and local communities who may have used these species for generations.
Now this issue extends beyond physical specimens. The real treasure lies in the genetic information itself. When genetic data is digitised and shared globally, it becomes challenging to trace its origins and hold companies accountable for unauthorised use.
In the absence of benefit-sharing mechanisms (formal ways to share the monetary and non-monetary benefits of using biodiversity with those who bear the costs of conserving it), companies can patent discoveries derived from DSI, with profits flowing to corporations and research institutions in developed countries.
Meanwhile, low-to-middle-income nations that are home to these resources and the communities that protect them do not benefit. We argue this is unjust and contributes towards the continued undervaluation and therefore degradation of biodiversity.
A new genetic code
At Cop16, a potential solution is up for a negotiation: a global system governing the exchange of DSI, including a multilateral fund into which companies which benefit from DSI would contribute.
This fund would be used to pay for action to conserve biodiversity, with a specific priority given to funding for Indigenous peoples and local communities, women and youth. As well as providing compensation for stewardship of the biodiverse ecosystems that contain these genetic resources, funding can be used for training and capacity-building (such as genetic research), which could start to compensate for longstanding inequalities of opportunity that are built into today’s research and commercialisation systems.
Many questions remain as to how this fund would work. That will be negotiated at Cop16. One particular challenge is determining how to implement mechanisms to distribute this fund that are fair, enforceable, and do not overburden countries or companies.
Proposed solutions are grounded in rules of fair allocation. Pharmaceutical companies using DSI could contribute in proportion to their profits or revenues. Beneficiaries could receive payment or other benefits according to criteria such as the levels of biodiversity conserved, threats to biodiversity and financial need.
This multilateral fund could be a major contributor to conservation finance, and one which is directed at those who actually conserve biodiversity on the ground. It has been described as a potentially “historic breakthrough” by the executive secretary of the convention on biological diversity.
But there are still major hurdles to overcome. Big pharma companies are resistant due to the potential financial implications. There has been limited engagement from the conservation community, perhaps because fair sharing of the benefits from genetic materials appears much less immediately pressing than the conservation of wild species and their habitats.
If successful, this could represent a major step towards generating the finance that is desperately needed to support nature conservation. It would set a precedent for similar mechanisms to ensure that those benefiting from using nature pay for the cost of conserving or restoring it – just like bycatch taxes in commercial fisheries or pollution taxes on large agribusinesses.
We believe that this proposal could be revolutionary if it succeeds in channelling large amounts of biodiversity finance to where it is most needed in a fair and equitable way. Genetic data should not only be seen as a resource that generates new drugs and technologies, but as a shared asset of humanity, with the rights and sovereignty of nature’s stewards properly respected and valued.
Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?
Eleanor Jane Milner-Gulland receives funding from UKRI, Research England Development Fund, Login5 Foundation, IKI, Defra, USFWS, Leverhulme Trust and the Leventis Foundation. She is a member of the UK government’s Defra Biodiversity Evidence Committee, chairs the Darwin Expert Committee, a member of IUCN-SSC, and the Nature Positive Initiative.
Dale Squires was supported by an Oxford Martin School Visiting Fellowship.
Hollie Booth receives funding from the UK Darwin Initiative. As well as University of Oxford she is affiliated with The Biodiversity Consultancy and Kebersamaan Untuk Lautan.
Source: US Department of Health and Human Services – 3
This recall involves removing certain devices from where they are used or sold.The FDA has identified this recall as the most serious type. This device may cause serious injury or death if you continue to use it.
Affected Product
Pump Model
Unique Device Identifier (UDI-DI)
Software Revision
Z-800
00814371020006
6.1.01 and 6.1.07z
Z-800W
00814371020020
3.1.32 and 3.1.64z
Z-800F
00814371020013
4.1.02 and 4.1.08z
Z-800WF
00814371020037
5.1.01 and 5.1.08z
What to Do
Do not use affected infusion pumps.
On September 13, 2024, Zyno Medical LLC sent all affected customers an Urgent Medical Device Correction letter recommending the following actions:
Stop using affected devices.
Follow instructions to return these devices for software update.
Complete the Zyno Medical Z-800, Z-800F, Z-800W, and Z-800WF Infusion Pump – Air-in-Line Software Issue – Response Verification Form which includes the following activities:
Checking inventory for affected products.
Verifying serial numbers.
Confirming product location.
Reporting any transferred product.
Signing and dating the completed form.
Make sure this notice reaches everyone who needs to be informed, including those at other locations if the devices have been transferred.
A representative from Zyno Medical’s partner company, Intuvie LLC, will contact customers to coordinate instructions for exchanging devices.
Reason for Recall
Zyno Medical is recalling certain Zyno Medical Z-800, Z-800F, Z-800W, and Z-800WF infusion pumps due to a defect in the air-in-line software algorithm that may allow a 1.0 mL air bubble to be passed on to a patient.
The use of affected product may cause serious adverse health consequences, including air entering the blood vessels (vascular air embolism), fast and irregular heartbeat (tachyarrhythmia), heart attack (myocardial infarction), stroke, seizure, and death.
There have been two reported injuries. There have been no reports of death.
Device Use
Zyno Medical Z800 Infusion Systems are intended to provide infusion through the blood vessels (intravenous) of nutrition or essential (parenteral) fluids, blood, and blood products under the direction or supervision of a health care professional.
Contact Information
Customers in the U.S. with questions about this recall should contact their Zyno Medical local business partner or email feedback@intuvie.com.
Additional FDA Resources (listed in order of most to least recent):
Unique Device Identifier (UDI)
The unique device identifier (UDI) helps identify individual medical devices sold in the United States from manufacturing through distribution to patient use. The UDI allows for more accurate reporting, reviewing, and analyzing of adverse event reports so that devices can be identified, and problems potentially corrected more quickly.
How do I report a problem?
Health care professionals and consumers may report adverse reactions or quality problems they experienced using these devices to MedWatch: The FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program.
We’ve all found ourselves trying to avoid the swarms of midges that are so common in late summer. But as you try to avoid them, what you may not know is that they are equally keen to avoid each other.
It’s strange behaviour for creatures that typically move around together. But physicist Andrew Reynolds from research centre Rothamsted Research recently investigated swarms of the non-biting midge Chironomus riparius, and found something very strange happening.
While they may move around in swarms, they do so in a way that ensures they keep their distance from each other. And it might be why, paradoxically, they are so successful at breeding.
Swarming, where animals form large and dense groups, is common in a lot of animals. A lot of us are familiar with the murmuration of starlings at sunset as they dance in the setting sun, for example. In water, animals form shoals, pods and schools. They may vary in their cohesiveness and the species that they contain, but are all essentially different types of swarms.
It helps animals evade predators and gives them safety in numbers. Large numbers of animals in these aggregations make it difficult for predators to single out a target. This is known as the selfish herd effect where animals seek positions towards the centre of a herd, shoal or flock where there’s less risk of being attacked.
Animals sometimes behave differently as part of a bigger system where the animal is interacting with it’s nearest neighbour. Fish for example align themselves and match speed with their nearest neighbour to shoal together and avoid collisions. Birds operate in a similar way.
Social insects such as ants often swarm in the summer, in mate-finding nuptial flights. Locusts defoliate large patches of land before moving on. Some researchers suggest that this social aggregation behaviour is linked to elevated serotonin the locusts get from close contact.
However, in the midge C. riparius we see something different.
Reynold’s research showed that these midges maintain maximum distance from one another. In the lab based models of these midges he studied, the midges are almost, by equal measure attracted to the centre of a swarm, but also away from each other.
Birds in a flock move in the same direction, staying close to one another (positive correlation). But C. riparius midges position themselves apart, so if one moves left, others tend to move right for example (maximal anticorrelation).
The swarms of C. riparus are predominantly for reproductive purposes and they are made up of males. Midges maximise their potential to find a mate by collecting at the same time, in the same place. You could argue that’s how bars and pubs work for humans.
When a female enters the swarm however, and is pursued by a male, the swarm maintains cohesion. The other members of the swarm are still drawn towards her. But this force of attraction is weaker than the negative “impulse” for the males to stay away from each other.
Staying evenly spaced means there is less competition between males. Which means that, as a group, they spend less energy and have more overall mating success.
The repellent effect also has other advantages. When midges are spaced apart in an organised and distributed way, the swarm can collectively respond to disruptions, such as changes in weather or predators, without losing its structure. Because each midge’s relative position to each other is defined by the maximal anticorrelation, a disturbance to one part of the swarm can quickly be compensated by the whole group.
We might learn a thing or two from the midge. In social situations, let’s take a step back, wait our turn, and give each other some space. Don’t interrupt your friend in conversation, don’t barge in at the self-service checkouts in the supermarket… and certainly don’t flirt with your friend’s partner.
Alex Dittrich does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Schroders Capital’s Real Estate Impact Fund (SCREIF) has received a £50 million investment from Homes England, the government’s housing and regeneration agency, underlining the key role this market-leading investment strategy has in addressing social inequality in the UK
The investment was today confirmed as part of a package of key measures announced by the UK’s Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (sponsor of Homes England) and HM Treasury, following a roundtable hosted by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, as part of the UK Government’s programme of activities to support its high-profile International Investment Summit.
The Summit has been focused on driving investment and growth across the UK, with up to 300 industry leaders attending alongside the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds.
SCREIF is a real estate focused strategy with the dual aims of delivering a positive social and environmental impact in addition to securing appropriate risk adjusted returns for investors. Last month, the strategy became only the second real estate fund in the UK to receive approval from the Financial Conduct Authority to use the ‘Sustainability Impact’ label under SDR.
With a residential-led approach, the fund is predominantly focused on addressing the UK’s housing crisis, specifically, the shortage of social and affordable accommodation and the regeneration of town centres. The fund aims to ensure that its investments are made in accessible and resilient locations, with access to green space, public transport, schools and GPs.
The investment from Homes England will increase the ability of the fund to grow and invest more widely across the UK and secure further allocations from pension funds, insurers and foundations.
Chris Santer, Schroders Impact Fund Manager, Schroders Capital’s Real Estate team, said:
This investment by Homes England is a clear indication of the absolutely vital role this fund is looking to play in the UK by delivering real and tangible change. Our homes, and the built environment around us, impact our daily lives. We believe this allocation from the public sector will be catalytic in unlocking further institutional investments, boosting broader confidence and interest in this key sector meaning the fund can enable more communities to thrive across the UK.
Peter Denton, Homes England Chief Executive, said:
This is a brilliant example of how public and private sector organisations can get behind a clear and common aim – namely supporting social justice and thriving communities. Our commitment aims to help spark deep and diverse market investment from a range of institutions. Fundamentally, this is about coming together to accelerate regeneration and the creation of affordable, high-quality homes within sustainable, thriving places that people, especially those in more deprived areas, want, need and deserve.
Schroders Capital provides investors with access to a broad range of private market investment opportunities, portfolio building blocks and customised private market strategies. Its team focuses on delivering best-in-class, risk-adjusted returns and executing investments through a combination of direct investment capabilities and broader solutions in all private market asset classes, through comingled funds and customised private market mandates.
The team aims to achieve sustainable returns through a rigorous approach and in alignment with a culture characterised by performance, collaboration and integrity.
With $97.3 billion (£77.0 billion; €90.8 billion)* assets under management, Schroders Capital offers a diversified range of investment strategies, including real estate, private equity, secondaries, venture capital, infrastructure, securitised products and asset-based finance, private debt, insurance-linked securities and BlueOrchard (Impact Specialists).
*Assets under management as at 30 June 2024 (including non-fee earning dry powder and in-house cross holdings)
Schroders plc
Schroders is a global investment manager which provides active asset management, wealth management and investment solutions, with £773.7 billion (€912.6 billion; $978.1 billion) of assets under management at 30 June 2024. As a UK listed FTSE100 company, Schroders has a market capitalisation of circa £6 billion and over 6,000 employees across 38 locations. Established in 1804, Schroders remains true to its roots as a family-founded business. The Schroder family continues to be a significant shareholder, holding approximately 44% of the issued share capital.
Schroders’ success can be attributed to its diversified business model, spanning different asset classes, client types and geographies. The company offers innovative products and solutions through four core business divisions: Public Markets, Solutions, Wealth Management, and Schroders Capital, which focuses on private markets, including private equity, renewable infrastructure investing, private debt & credit alternatives, and real estate.
Schroders aims to provide excellent investment performance to clients through active management. This means directing capital towards resilient businesses with sustainable business models, consistently with the investment goals of its clients. Schroders serves a diverse client base that includes pension schemes, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, foundations, high net worth individuals, family offices, as well as end clients through partnerships with distributors, financial advisers, and online platforms.
About Homes England
Homes England is the government’s homes and regeneration agency. It drives the creation of more high-quality homes and thriving places so that everyone has a place to live and thrive. The Agency’s team work in partnership with thousands of public and private bodies including local authorities, home builders, developers, affordable housing providers, commercial real estate companies and financial institutions to make this happen. For more information visit: Homes England – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Issued by Schroder Investment Management Limited. Registration No 1893220 England. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. For regular updates by e-mail please register online at http://www.schroders.com for our alerting service.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Andrew Dix, Senior Lecturer in American Literature and Film, Loughborough University
The vampire story dwells among the undead of literary and cinematic genres, ever available for reanimation. This year alone has seen the publication of more than 30 vampire novels in the US (from Rachel Harrison’s So Thirsty to K. M. Enright’s Mistress of Lies), alongside the release of several vampire movies, including Abigail (with Nosferatu, rebooting the silent German classic, due at Christmas).
Now comes Salem’s Lot. Written and directed by Gary Dauberman, it’s the first feature-film adaptation of the 1975 novel in which Stephen King set himself the thought experiment of transposing Bram Stoker’s Dracula to contemporary New England. The book has been adapted twice before, in 1979 and 2004, but each time as a TV miniseries.
The new Salem’s Lot begins with a series of maps that trace how the master vampire, concealed in a chest, has reached Maine. The film’s own passage, stalled for years by the calculations of marketers and schedulers, has been equally arduous. It arrives now rather belatedly and without blockbuster flourish. While UK King fans can enjoy it on the big screen, it is consumable in most other locations only via the streaming service Max.
The trailer for Salem’s Lot.
Literary and film scholar Robert Stam offers a profusion of terms to describe the work undertaken by screen adaptations. They may, for example, “rewrite”, “transmute” or even “critique” their source-texts. Indicating a gentler kind of process, however, Stam also allows that an adaptation can offer an “incarnation” or “performance” of the material it is adapting. Performing Salem’s Lot in this sense, responding in audio-visual form to King’s prompts and refusing major reinventions, appears to be Dauberman’s goal.
King is a successor not only to Stoker and other horror writers such as H. P. Lovecraft, but to the late-19th century “local colorists” in New England, who attentively documented the sights and sounds of their region. On the page, Salem’s Lot is visually abundant. The new adaptation attempts to be similarly conscientious.
Dauberman takes care in matters of colour and lighting. A church’s doors, shut against the vampiric menace, glow a vivid red. Two boys walk through a wood silhouetted at sunset, their bodies ominously already lacking substance against a sky that is turning from pink to black. There are other visual pleasures, too, representing a shift away from Hooper’s version, where the shots are rougher-edged and decidedly non-pictorial.
The cast of this Salem’s Lot is likeable and struggles gamely, in the face of regular jump scares, to solicit audience engagement. Unlike Hammer’s Dracula adaptations, say, in which the monster has all the charisma, this is something of a democratic vampire film and devolves interest to members of the opposing force.
A pleasing modification is also made to the overbearing whiteness of King’s narrative world, with two of the pluckiest vampire hunters reimagined as African American.
Beyond the scare
But if this latest adaptation of Salem’s Lot is easy enough on the eye, intellectually it is shallow. This matters, because the best vampire fictions prompt us not merely to be terrified, but to start interpreting – they generate meanings as well as scares.
What, precisely, is signified by their monstrous protagonists? As expert in Victorian literature, Nina Auerbach, wrote in her still valuable book Our Vampires, Ourselves (1995): “No fear is only personal: it must steep itself in its political and ideological ambience, without which our solitary terrors have no contagious resonance.”
Writing his novel in 1975, as the progressive dreams of the 1960s faded, King found in the vampire an apt image of power and cruelty in America. In his own words, from the afterword to Salem’s Lot: “I saw a metaphor for everything that was wrong with the society around me, where the rich got richer and the poor got welfare … if they were lucky.” When vampires strike in the book, there is therefore the sense of a nation at risk, not merely a few families or a handful of individuals.
The new adaptation, by contrast, represses rather than invites such interpretive effort on our part. It carries across the novel’s mid-1970s setting, but is interested more in accurate period detailing – the right model of car, the appropriate hairstyle – than in substantive historical exploration. It also doesn’t use the category of the vampire movie to say something insightful about our own time: the post-COVID moment, for example, or the era of Donald Trump (a figure with rich vampiric possibilities).
Dauberman’s version of Salem’s Lot is certainly respectful of its source-text (unsurprising, perhaps, with King himself listed among its executive producers). And it functions perfectly well as a showcase for the varied skills of props designer, prosthetic artist and special effects engineer. But, as a work of cultural and social inquiry, this latest vampire story is disappointingly de-fanged.
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Andrew Dix does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Music is woven into the fabric of our everyday lives. Whether it’s lifting our spirits, pushing us to run faster or soothing us to sleep, we can all recognise its power. So it’s no wonder it is increasingly being used in medical treatment.
As well as proving very useful in cancer treatment, managing chronic pain and even helping the brain recover after a stroke, researchers have also been making great strides in using music to help patients with dementia.
Music therapy in the form of playing, singing or listening to music can also have a positive effect on cognitive function – particularly for older adults either with dementia or memory issues.
So why does music appear to have such a powerful effect for people with dementia?
Music and the brain
About a decade ago, researchers discovered that when people listened to music, multiple areas of the brain were involved in processing it. These included the limbic (which processes emotions and memory), cognitive (involved with perception, learning and reaction) and motor areas (responsible for voluntary movement). This challenged preconceptions that music was processed more narrowly in the brain – and helped explain why it has such a unique neurological impact.
Not only that, research has shown that music might help regenerate the brain and its connections. Many causes of dementia centre around cell death in the brain, raising the possibility that music could help people with dementia by mending or strengthening damaged neural connections and cells.
It’s not just any music that has a regenerative effect on the brain, though. Familiar and favourite music has been shown to have the biggest impact on the way we feel, and is closely linked with memory and emotions. This is because listening to our favourite songs releases feel-good hormones that give us a sense of pleasure. Curated music playlists of favourite music could be the key in helping us deal with the stress of everyday life.
This is relevant to Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia because researchers have discovered that parts of the brain linked with musical memories are less affected by these conditions than other areas of the brain. This explains why memories and experiences that are linked to favourite music are often preserved for people with such conditions.
Listening to music can also help manage their experiences of distress, agitation and “sundowning” – where a person is more confused in the afternoon and evening.
In a small study conducted by us and our colleagues at the Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research, we showed just how great of an effect listening to music can have for people with dementia. We found that when people with dementia repeatedly listened to their favourite music, their heart rate and movements changed in direct response.
This showed that people’s physical responses were affected by musical features like rhythm and arrangement. Their heart rate also changed when they sang along to music, or when they began reminiscing about old memories or stories while listening to a song or thinking about the music. These changes are important because they show how music affects movement, emotions and memory recall.
Studies have also shown that during and after listening to music, people with dementia experienced less agitation, aggression and anxiety, and their general mood was improved. They even needed less medication when they had regular music sessions.
Other researchers have even begun testing the effects of music training programmes to support cognition for people with dementia. Results have been promising so far – with adults in the study showing improved executive functioning (problem solving, emotion regulation and attention) compared to those who took part in just physical exercise.
So, music is likely to continue to be a useful medical treatment for people with dementia. But based on what we know so far, it’s important that it comes from the patient’s own music collection – and is used alongside other management techniques such as using drugs that can slow the progression of dementia or help manage symptoms to support self-care and wellbeing.
Dr. Rebecca Atkinson is affliated with Chiltern Music Therapy, non-profit organisation.
Ming-Hung Hsu receives funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research and Innovate UK.
The Reserve Bank of India issued Directions under Section 35A read with Section 56 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 to National Urban Co-operative Bank Ltd., Pratapgarh vide Directive CO.DOS.SED.No.S369/45-11-001/2024-25 dated April 15, 2024, for a period of six months up to the close of business on October 15, 2024.The Reserve Bank of India is satisfied that in the public interest, it is necessary to further extend the period of operation of the Directive beyond the close of business on October 15, 2024.
2. Accordingly, the Reserve Bank of India, in exercise of the powers vested in it under sub-section (1) of Section 35A read with Section 56 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, hereby extends the Directive for a further period of three months from the close of business on October 15, 2024 to the close of business on January 15, 2025, subject to review.
3. All other terms and conditions of the Directive under reference shall remain unchanged.
Full report on the Cross-cutting lessons from the implementation of new treatment decision algorithms for pulmonary tuberculosis in children: results from the TB-ALGO-PED study.
This report, from MSF’s TACTiC project and the Access Campaign, summarises key findings from the implementation of paediatric tuberculosis treatment decision algorithms across five study sites and highlights potential lessons for future implementation efforts.
Cross-cutting lessons from the implementation of new treatment decision algorithms for pulmonary tuberculosis in children: results from the TB-ALGO-PED studypdf — 860.7 KBDownload
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, October 15, 2024/APO Group/ —
Entire international tech ecosystem descended on Dubai to mark the start of GITEX GLOBAL 2024 (www.GITEX.com) – the world’s largest and best-rated tech event
Innovative showcases and GITEX Editions & European Innovation Council pavilion launches also star on “Tech Investor Day”
“AI Super Tuesday” next up at GITEX GLOBAL 2024
International audiences enjoyed a memorable first day at GITEX GLOBAL 2024(http://apo-opa.co/4h8HyRu) on Monday as the world’s largest and best-rated tech event kicked off in sensational fashion – setting the stage for an unforgettable week of breakthrough tech showcases.
Taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) from 14-18 October, GITEX GLOBAL presents a record-breaking edition in its 44th year. It welcomes over 6,500 exhibitors, 1,800 startups, 1,200 investors alongside governments from more than 180 countries – the highest-ever international participation at GITEX GLOBAL – comprising enterprises, experts, investors, startups, academia, researchers, and the entire global tech ecosystem.
Eagerly awaited exhibitions and events take centre stage
Across a capacity-crowd venue, international audiences became acquainted with a wide variety of incredible innovations on Day 1 of GITEX GLOBAL 2024. UAE technology group G42 presented its Intelligence Grid immersive experience, enabling visitors to discover how AI can power every aspect of future life as a ‘super utility’. Lenovo showcased its new range of hardware and cloud solution equipped with transformative AI capabilities of the future, while e& showcased some the world’s most mindblowing protypes in all of tech. One of the highlights was the XPeng AeroHT eVTOL Flying Car – enabling audiences to discover how such innovations represent a historic opportunity to revolutionise aviation and personal transportation.
With five incredible themes across five unmissable days this year, “Tech Investment Day” was first up with World Future Economy Digital Leaders Summit(http://apo-opa.co/4dLQ9qC) amongst the many shows that drew huge crowds and received widespread audience acclaim.
In a special briefing, His Excellency (H.E.) Abdullah Bin Touq Al Marri, Cabinet Member & UAE Minister of Economy, addressed attendees during ‘Rise of the New Economy: AI & Emerging Industries’. This session delved into the UAE’s strategic initiatives fostering innovation, enhancing competitiveness, and positioning the country as a global leader in the new economy.
With the UAE’s non-oil sector accounting for 74% of national gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, H.E. Al Marri reaffirmed the Ministry of Economy’s ambitious plans for the years ahead, insisting: “We are in the business of breaking records. We’ve already achieved a non-oil sector that accounts for 74% of GDP – this record has never happened before in our country’s history. The UAE’s environment and ecosystem attracts people from around the globe – and the target now is to reach 80% by 2030 and become an R&D hub for the world.”
With several leadership sessions held throughout the Monday schedule, H.E. Faisal Al Bannai, Advisor to the UAE President & Secretary General of the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), shared key insights and perspectives during ‘AI Leadership: Steering Societal Transformation’. AI socio-economic implications were discussed alongside global AI leadership, models, governance, and regulation.
Elsewhere on a historic opening day to celebrate GITEX GLOBAL’s record-extending 44th edition, new industry-defining programmes were also launched – including GITEX Editions, an exclusive platform for late-stage advanced tech companies and a premier hub for unicorns, soonicorns and rhinos.
GITEX Editions connects 59 top global unicorns and was attended by H.E. Omar Sultan Al Olama, UAE Minister of State for AI, Digital Economy & Remote Work Applications, also addressed attendees between another applauded leadership session – ‘The UAE As The Sandbox For Pragmatic Ai Regulation And Policy Development’.
The year’s most impactful discussions surrounding AI’s future in society and industry were also attending by high numbers of visitors. While discussing the most transformative AI case studies across government, enterprise, and startups, the need to balance AI’s potential with creativity and human intuition was examined in various sessions, including ‘Regulating Tech: The Intersection of Tech, Crime and Law’.
Didier Jacobs,Head of ICT & Chief AI Officer at Europol, stressed that heightened collaboration and cooperation are needed to overcome challenges and solve international crime, adding: “Cybercrime knows no borders. There are many technologies that can be misused for hacking, extortion, sabotage, illegal transactions, and so on. What’s needed are solutions – a blend of increased human collaboration and technology deployment is essential.”
As this week marks the largest-ever European participation at GITEX GLOBAL with 38 European countries exhibiting alongside 1,000-plus SMEs and 450-plus startups, the European Innovation Council pavilion was officially launched to commemorate the milestone.
With debuting exhibitors from countries including Austria, Portugal, Latvia, Serbia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Switzerland in attendance, Trixie LohMirmand, Executive Vice President of DWTC, the organiser of GITEX GLOBAL, opened the brand-new site. This casts a unique spotlight on Europe’s AI, tech, and innovation advancements alongside the cross-continental collaboration efforts currently taking shape across the continent.
What next at GITEX GLOBAL 2024?
GITEX GLOBAL 2024 continues Tuesday as “Super AI Tuesday” showcases how AI is transforming business strategies, revolutionising industries, and creating new growth opportunities across the globe. Up until Friday (October 18), attendees can also explore the latest tech sector services and solutions being rolled out across Central Asia, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.
GITEX GLOBAL is seamlessly connecting with world’s largest network of tech events with its stellar list including GITEX EUROPE Berlin, GITEX ASIA Singapore, GITEX AFRICA Morocco, and GITEX NIGERIA. These events are fostering collaboration and driving innovation to shape the tech landscape of tomorrow.
More information on GITEX GLOBAL and to purchase passes, please visit http://www.GITEX.com
CPMI publishes two reports offering insights into enhancing cross-border payments by facilitating the interlinking and interoperability of payment systems.
Report on the interlinking of fast payment systems aims to support private and public stakeholders when deciding on the governance and oversight of these arrangements.
Report on greater harmonisation of the use of application programming interfaces (APIs) sets out 10 key recommendations.
The BIS Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI) today published two reports to the G20 that offer key insights and recommendations on the interlinking and interoperability of payment systems to enhance cross-border payments.
Linking fast payment systems across borders: governance and oversight
Currently, fast payment systems (FPS) are designed and used mainly for domestic retail payments. Interlinking them across different jurisdictions could expand the end user experience of low-cost, fast, easy to access and transparent payments to the cross-border dimension.
Opportunities to foster cross-border FPS interlinking have grown with the proliferation of FPS globally and with trends towards greater interoperability at the technical level. The growing use of application programming interfaces (APIs) and the adoption of the ISO 20022 financial messaging standard have opened up new possibilities to facilitate payment system interlinking.
However, agreeing on workable governance and oversight arrangements is challenging due to the multi-jurisdictional, cross-border and/or cross-currency nature of these arrangements.
Building on an earlier CPMI report that lays out the benefits and challenges of FPS interlinking and the role of APIs,1Linking fast payment systems across borders: governance and oversight discusses design choices and the risk implications of these arrangements, sets out the key decisions for governance and outlines recommendations for their oversight.
Promoting the harmonisation of application programming interfaces to enhance cross-border payments: recommendations and toolkit
APIs are increasingly used throughout the global financial system for various payment functions, enhancing the efficiency of payment data exchange. However, API technical standards are currently fragmented, hindering the potential of APIs in cross-border payments and leading to increased time and expenses, as well as higher risks of errors.
Promoting the harmonisation of application programming interfaces to enhance cross-border payments: recommendations and toolkit presents 10 recommendations directed at a broad array of stakeholders. The recommendations were formulated in collaboration with industry through a CPMI-led panel of experts to promote greater harmonisation of APIs in cross-border payments.
The recommendations do not propose a single universal API standard for cross-border payments, nor do they prescribe specific technologies or standards. Rather, they aim to steer API standards in a more harmonised direction by promoting facilitative processes, adoption of best practice design and international data standards, enhancements to the developer experience, and a focus on pre-validation APIs.
The CPMI will continue its engagement with stakeholders to disseminate the findings of the two reports, facilitate their practical implementation and promote the interlinking of FPS for cross-border payments and harmonisation of APIs.
1CPMI, Interlinking payment systems and the role of application programming interfaces: a framework for cross-border payments,report to the G20, July 2022.
This year is particularly momentous as we commemorate four decades of takaful since the enactment of the Takaful Act 1984. From a modest beginning, the size of takaful contribution has expanded nearly three times compared to a decade ago. Players have become more diverse and products have expanded to address different needs of households and businesses. The industry has also demonstrated resilience against challenging economic and financial conditions, while continuing to scale up and improving efficiency in delivering financial protection. This progress is imperative to respond to the higher expectations that stakeholders have on the industry to better serve the protection needs of society. Ahead of us, challenges remain significant – climate risk, ageing nation, cost of living pressures, advancement of technologies – all of which requires the industry to continue to innovate and be responsive to these needs. The adoption of VBIT principles is crucial to better align and guide the industry’s efforts to catalyse growth while contributing meaningfully to society.
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
I am certainly pleased to be here, to see progress in the Value-Based Intermediation Takaful (VBIT) journey that began five years ago in 2019. I am delighted to be part of this important occasion and witness the collective commitment by industry players to foster a more ethical and impactful approach to takaful.
Advancing value-based with clear demonstration of impactful outcomes
As today’s conference is focused on Shariah values and measurements, I would like to highlight three imperatives that should guide industry’s efforts to implement the VBIT framework:
First, is the diversity and inclusivity of protection solutions, with alignment to national strategies and aspirations;
Second, is improvements to quality of services and conduct that reflects the fundamental values of Shariah; and
Third, is impact reporting guided by clear outcomes.
Diversity and inclusivity of protection solutions
Ladies and gentlemen,
We acknowledge the ongoing exemplary efforts by takaful operators to improve financial well-being and inclusion. For example, expansion in the range of microtakaful products catering to the underprivileged segments, has been flourishing in the recent years. In 2023, these affordable and accessible protections have provided coverage to almost 970,000 individuals.
We are also pleased to observe developments within the industry that support Bank Negara Malaysia’s Financial Sector Blueprint 2022-2026 vision to mainstream social finance, which now has use cases in the takaful sector. Before this, it is predominantly use cases in the banking sector. The innovative offerings of social blended takaful products enables a confluence of private and social funds where participants have the option to use their takaful benefits to contribute towards creation of a sustainable community.1
We hope to see more synergistic collaborations where philanthropic capital blends with commercial funding to develop impactful protection solutions. These efforts would ensure continuous protection for vulnerable segments, including micro-entrepreneurs, gig workers, and the ageing population.
Limited access to insurance and takaful for climate adaptation and resilience poses a significant challenge for Malaysian businesses, particularly SMEs. This limitation hinders their ability to effectively manage flood risks-Malaysia’s most frequent natural disaster- and slows recovery efforts, as insurance payouts are a crucial source of funding. Furthermore, common obstacles such as lengthy payout processes, inadequate product offerings, and insufficient coverage exacerbate the problem.2
At our end, Bank Negara Malaysia remains committed to providing an enabling environment for the industry to test and introduce innovations. Industry players are urged to embrace the aspirations of the recently issued Exposure Draft on Broader Application of Ta`awun in Takaful. This provides a facilitative framework for industry players to explore new takaful models in promoting social cohesion and wealth distribution. For areas that may require regulatory flexibility, we welcome interest in tapping the Financial Technology Regulatory Sandbox. This allows innovations to be piloted and refined, thus accelerating the integration of VBIT in product solutioning. You may be interested to note that the Sandbox now incorporates a Green Lane. This accelerated track offers a simpler and quicker path for financial institutions with a strong track record in risk management to test innovative solutions that are facing regulatory impediments.
For industry players aspiring to drive greater market competition via digitalisation, the formal application window to carry digital takaful business will be open on 2 January 2025 until 31 December 2026. We welcome prior consultation for those interested.
Improvements to quality of services and conduct
Efforts to diversify products and solutions must be paired with improvements in service quality and responsible conduct by market players and their intermediaries. The Customer Satisfaction Survey 2022 for the takaful and insurance industry revealed that while 74% of customers provided positive feedback on their experience, 23% expressed concerns, particularly on inefficiencies in claims processes and poor response from industry players and agents when reached for assistance.3 In Malaysia, the motor, medical and health segments have seen progress on this front through the roll out of digital roadside assistance solutions and the work to establish a central medical claims data platform, respectively. Malaysia’s experience in these two sectors illustrates that there is much to benefit from leveraging on technology.
With technology, not only will the end-to-end experience of consumers – from securing access to takaful cover to the claims and settlement process – be elevated, but digital takaful solutions can go a long way towards increasing consumer trust on the value of takaful protection, enhancing product affordability through better risk pricing and expediting purchasing and claims experiences.
Advancing impact reporting
The VBIT value proposition through exemplary industry practice, is best showcased through meaningful disclosure, and this brings me to my next point, our aspirations for the Maqasid Shariah Scorecard (MSS), that will be launched today.
I am encouraged to witness the industry’s efforts in developing the MSS, which I believe supports the Bank’s call for better impact creation through meaningful disclosures. While the scorecard is a measurement tool to demonstrate and validate VBIT based on Maqasid al-Shariah, it ultimately seeks to drive positive change in behaviour and measure broader outcomes to the community served by the takaful industry.
Globally, impact-based reporting has grown in importance as more stakeholders demand for greater transparency in assessing performance beyond financial reporting. Impact reporting is most commonly demonstrated in the climate and sustainability space, where such reporting serves to demonstrate how companies and financial institutions support the broader ESG goals and SDG agenda.
So given its pivotal role in the operationalisation of VBIT, it is crucial for the MSS to be well executed with clear alignment to operators’ business plans and operations. The successful implementation of MSS will facilitate ambitions for it to play a larger and deeper role, with the goal of elevating MSS as the benchmark reference for impact reporting, domestically and globally. As the next step, we urge the industry to consider what needs to be done for the MSS to be effectively implemented, commencing with strategies to ensure firm understanding of its objectives and measurement methodology by each industry player.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Before I conclude, may I remind ourselves that in implementing VBIT and MSS, the issues of skills and professionalism must be addressed. It is, therefore, critical for the industry to diligently build up expertise, thereby unlocking the full potential of its contribution towards amplifying social and economic impact. We commend efforts such as the VBIT Training Module launched today and hope that MTA and members continue to exert energy to address talent gaps towards building a highly capable and adaptable workforce.
I trust the industry will maintain the momentum to continue accelerating the development of the takaful and retakaful industry through VBIT. May we all be guided by Surah An- Najm, verses 39 and 40, which mean: “And that man shall have nothing but what he strives for, and that his effort will soon be seen.”
With that, I wish you a successful conference ahead. Thank you.
The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Quebec Lieutenant, will announce developments in the government’s efforts to address the national housing crisis and build more homes, faster.
October 15, 2024
Québec, Quebec – The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Quebec Lieutenant, will announce developments in the government’s efforts to address the national housing crisis and build more homes, faster.
There will be a media availability following the announcement.
Please note that all details are subject to change and all times are local.
Date: October 16, 2024 Time: 10:00 AM Location: Québec, Quebec
Notes for media
Media wishing to attend this announcement are asked to confirm their participation by sending their full name and the name of the media organization they represent to Public Services and Procurement Canada Media Relations team to media@pwgsc-tpsgc.gc.ca by October 15, at 5:00 pm.
Please include “RSVP for October 16, 2024 Quebec Press Conference” in the subject line of the email.
Event location details will be shared once media are registered.
Media attending the event are asked to arrive no later than 9:45 am.
Contacts
For information (media only):
Guillaume Bertrand Acting Director of Communications Office of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos 418-564-9571 guillaume.bertrand@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca
Liverpool has scored a unique treble at a major international climate change awards ceremony.
Liverpool City Council’s Urban GreenUP project, which was recently shortlisted for a world Green City Award, won big at the CIRIA 2024 Big Biodiversity Awards.
Held in London, the city’s innovative nature-based solution programme secured awards in the following categories:
CIRIA Innovation Award
CIRIA Habitat Creation Project of the Year Award
CIRIA Biodiversity Overall Winner
The EU-funded programme, which has introduced urban raingardens, green walls and pollinators posts around the city centre as well as a number of floating islands in the city’s docks and parks, was also Highly Commended in the ‘Living Green for Climate Change’ category at the World Green City Awards 2024 held in Utrecht.
The accolades follow hot on the heels of the programme scooping a golden pineapple trophy for its Climate Resilience submission at the 2024 Festival of Place.
The title comes in recognition of Liverpool’s impressive commitment to innovation and smart regulation to rapidly decarbonise the live music and TV/Film production sectors – both vital parts of the city’s economy – following several years of developmental work by ACT 1.5, an artist-led research and action effort, and climate scientists from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research.
Liverpool’s Urban GreenUP programme involves a collaboration between the Council, the Mersey Forest and the University of Liverpool. It has set a number of goals to mitigate climate change impact on the city, such as enhancing air quality, reducing flooding risks, improving water management, and increasing urban sustainability.
With just over a week to go until River of Light returns, Liverpool City Council unveils plans to make the popular event even more accessible, inclusive and engaging.
Building on the success of last year, the FREE event will once again offer Quiet Hour sessions to accommodate visitors with additional sensory needs. These special sessions will run from 4-5pm on Sunday 27 and Monday 28 October, and the same times on Sunday 3 and Monday 4 November. During these hours, the 12 featured installations will have reduced soundscapes or will operate entirely without sound. Where possible, lighting will also be softened, creating a calmer environment for those with sensory sensitivities.
This year’s light festival runs from Friday 25 October to Tuesday 5 November, taking place at the same time as Diwali – the Hindu festival of lights. To mark the cultural celebration, on Friday 1 November visitors can enjoy a programme curated by Indian arts organisation, MILAP, featuring performances by the popular Bombay Baja Brass Band and Piano with Bhav between 5-8pm– all taking place near the Rangoli Mirrored Cosmos installation by award-winning artist MURUGIAH.
The young people’s engagement programme, developed by the City Council’s Culture Liverpool team returns this year and connects young people with three of the event’s featured artists, offering creative, hands-on workshops that encourage artistic expression and learning.
Families attending Granby Children’s Centre and Family Hub will have the opportunity to work with MURUGIAH, who will guide participants through the creation of Mandalas – repetitive geometric designs which represent harmony and balance.
Students at St John Bosco Arts College will have a masterclass in sign-making from locally commissioned artist Liz Harry, learning the art of communication through visual design.
Pupils at Holy Family Catholic Primary School will collaborate with Rachel Darnell and Jorge Fernandez from Australia’s Amigo & Amigo, designing and crafting their very own gnomes – inspired by their 2024 River of Light installation, No Place Like Gnome.
Working with the City Council’s Children and Young People’s team, there will also be a guided tour for young people who are part of the Positive Pathways scheme, aimed at those who could otherwise be at risk of being involved with anti-social behaviour.
The theme for this year’s outdoor trail and the engagement programme is Play, tying into Liverpool’s ongoing pledge to become a recognised UNICEF UK Child Friendly City. The initiative highlights the importance of children’s rights to play, recreation, rest, and leisure, as outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. #ChildFriendlyLpool
River of Light will be part-funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund with the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority as the lead authority. Avanti is the official travel partner for the event.
Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Harry Doyle, said:
“We’re thrilled to bring back the quiet hours this year after receiving such positive feedback from visitors in 2023. It brought in a new audience who hadn’t experienced the trail previously, and thanks to some adaptations to the light and sound, they felt part of this massively popular event.
“It’s also great to see the return of the workshops – they’re so unique, and the youngsters and the artists always get a huge amount out of the sessions. Encouraging children to express themselves through art and creativity is an incredibly powerful tool that will hopefully inspire future artists.
“Celebrating Diwali as part of the River of Light is a fantastic way to embrace cultural diversity and unity and we’re delighted to be working with Milap on this. Bringing together communities through art, music, and tradition, fostering a real sense of belonging and is certain to be a highlight of the festival.”
Alok Nayak, Milap’s CEO and Artistic Director, said:
“We are excited to be part of River of Light 2024, an event that unites art, culture, and community. At Milap, we believe in the power of the arts to inspire, educate, and bring people together.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the richness of Indian arts, while contributing to Liverpool’s dynamic cultural landscape. Diwali, the festival of light, is beautifully reflected in Liverpool’s own light festival, making our collaboration with Culture Liverpool to bring MURUGIAH’s ‘Rangoli Mirrored Cosmos’ to the city even more meaningful.
“Rangoli patterns are recreated in homes, in designs and works of art worldwide, and this concept will come to life on Liverpool’s waterfront through MURUGIAHS’s unique reimagining. We’re eager to share this experience with the public and celebrate the positive impact of creativity and diversity!”
Denise Wright, Liverpool City Council’s Family Learning Co-ordinator for Children Centre’s and Family Hubs, said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for families with young children to work with a world-renowned artist at one of our main Family Hub sites. The River of Light’s theme of PLAY this year is great for engaging families in rich creative and cultural experiences in their own communities and for connecting families to a major interactive and cultural event in the city.”
Foster with North East was launched last year with the aim of recruiting more foster carers across the North East by offering dedicated support and a specialised recruitment hub working alongside all 12 local authorities in the region.
Since then more than 850 people have come forward to enquire about becoming a foster carers, many of whom are in the process of being approved as foster carers.
A direct response to the call for more foster carers, Foster with North East has also been a trailblazer for the Department for Education’s pathfinder project, leading to a further nine spin off schemes now operating in other parts of the country.
The hub acts as the first port of call for prospective foster carers offering a warm welcome, directing enquiries to their local authority, and providing support throughout the application process.
It seeks to recruit foster carers from a range of different backgrounds and circumstances in the region to improve the experience of foster carers and offer the best outcomes for children in care.
While nationally the average length of time from application to approval for anyone applying to be a foster carer is 6 months, Foster with North East have managed to condense this to 4.8 months. And there are plans to do this even quicker.
The percentage of initial enquiries to Foster with North East from prospective foster carers which ultimately convert into successful applications (regardless of subsequent outcome), is also much higher at 23.1 per cent than the national rate of 12 per cent..
Newly approved foster carers Vicky and Phil Metcalfe are some of the first to be approved as foster carers since the launch of Foster with North East.
Speaking about their experiences at the one year on celebration, Vicky said: “Fostering is something I thought about doing for years. Eventually last year I spoke to my husband and said I wanted to do it. We applied, and now here we are celebrating our approval alongside other new carers from the region.
“Fostering has always been in my mind. I’ve got a son of my own and I just kept thinking that there are kids out there that need that love and care and if I ever needed someone to look after my son, I’d want to know there was somebody out there that would do this for us. We’ve a lot of love to give and to us it was a no brainier to look at fostering.
“The whole application process with Foster with North East was really smooth, and our social worker was really lovely, she kept us informed and we felt very comfortable talking to her.
“The training also included meeting young people who are care experienced and gave us really good insight. It helped us to better understand their side of things. A lot of what they said was also very positive and really showed how much difference you can make.
“Our was son was on board with our plans to foster from the minute we told him. He’s been absolutely brilliant and has welcomed our first child to our home too recently who is fantastic – we couldn’t have asked for a more loving little boy, he’s got the best smile, and he loves to learn, he’s very creative and it’s lovely to see him getting along so well with our son.
“For anyone thinking about fostering, I’d say that if it’s in the back of your mind go for it. I’ve only been doing it a short time, but I’m all in, this is me now.”
In its first year:
The collaboration between the 12 local authorities has brought together fostering teams, marketing experts and fostering families to support and drive recruitment of new carers.
Information sessions, events and pop-up stalls fostering a strong network of support have been held across the region.
Foster with North East has provided extensive training, equipping applicants with the tools they need to thrive as foster carers.
As the heart of the work lies in the stories of the children and families, Foster with North East has captured the joys of fostering directly from foster carers through several heartwarming video case studies to showcase the real-life transformative power of fostering.
Daniel Kenny, Hub (Service) Lead for Foster with North East, said: “Foster with North East was created to tackle the decline in foster carers in the region and it’s been fantastic to see the progress and collaborative work over the last 12 months.
“This has included building and strengthening connections across the region to reach as many people as possible with our fostering message, and ensure we are offering the best service possible to those looking to become foster carers.
“We’ve had great support from our local authorities and positive feedback from newly approved carers at our celebration event, with some sharing their experiences on camera to shed light on the impact of our hub. The day highlighted everyone’s commitment to improving the lives of children in care, and it was wonderful to share such an important milestone with all those who have been part of our journey and be able to recognise the new foster carers as they embark on their fostering career.
“We know there’s still a long way to go, as we need even more people from all walks of life to provide the safe homes for children and young people in care whether that’s for one night, a week, for a few months at a time or long-term.
“But we’re really excited about continuing our work to grow the number of foster carers in the North East fostering for their local authority and ensure every child has a safe and stable home. As more regional hubs are being launched across England, we’re also looking forward to sharing our stories of hope throughout the country and supporting the other hubs.”
Anyone interested in fostering in the North East, can visit the Foster with North East website here to find out more and make an enquiry.
Foster with North East is a collaborative partnership between 12 local authorities from across the North East of England. For the first time every, fostering services all across the region are joining forces to recruit much-needed prospective foster carers for vulnerable children and young people.
Anyone considering fostering in the region will benefit from a united, single support hub. The hub provides additional support for prospective foster carers and is supported by the Department for Education.
The 12 local authorities involved in Foster with North East are:
Salford City Council has pledged to support the planting of 8,000 trees by 2028, as part of their commitment to fighting climate change.
The council will work with the Greater Manchester community forest and charity, City of Trees, to identify planting sites for street trees and new woodland areas, and work together to plant the trees over the next four years.
They will also work with developers in the planning process to plant new trees as part of new developments.
Trees have a host of benefits, from improving air quality by taking up pollutants and helping to reduce flood risk by intercepting water in their leaves and roots, to releasing chemicals which strengthen people’s immune, hormonal and nervous systems.
Importantly, they absorb carbon dioxide, helping us in the fight against climate change. A single, fully-grown tree can absorb up to 22kg of carbon every year.
Cllr Jane Hamilton, Executive Support Member for Climate Change, Low Carbon and Green Agenda at Salford City Council said “the council declared a climate emergency in 2019 in recognition of the need for more urgent action to combat climate breakdown and ensure the city is as resilient as possible. Responding to climate change is one of the key priorities in our corporate plan, This is our Salford, which aims to create a fairer, greener, healthier and more inclusive city for all.
“Our pledge to plant 8,000 trees by 2028 is just one of the practical steps we are taking to protect current and future generations from the impacts of climate change.”
Kevin Wigley from City of Trees said “We have the funding for trees and woods, and so finding suitable locations for them to be planted is a priority of ours. We’re pleased to be working with Salford City Council to identify the best place for the new trees to be planted so their benefits can be enjoyed by residents for generations to come.
“We would encourage any other landowners in Salford to get in touch about planting woodlands on their land. Each wooded area contributes to creating a greener, more climate-resilient Salford.”
To find out more about how Salford is responding to climate change visit Greener Salford.
Jersey Fire and Rescue Service (JFRS) will once again be supporting Jersey Electricity’s (JE) annual electric blanket safety testing on Thursday 17th October and Friday 18th October 2024.
No need to book, simply take your electric blanket along on:
Thursday 17th October to Western Fire Station, between 10am and 3pm
Or,
Friday 18th October 2023 to Fire Headquarters, Rouge Bouillon, between 10am and 3pm.
The free safety test will be completed by Jersey Electricity’s electrical engineers.
If it can’t be tested on the spot while you wait, they will tell you what time you can collect it if it passes the test.
If your blanket fails the safety test, Jersey Electricity will keep and dispose of it. You will receive a Powerhouse 10% discount voucher, which can be redeemed against the purchase of a new one.
JFRS recommend that all electric blankets over 10 years old should be replaced. For this reason, JE staff will not test any blankets over 10 years old but will provide a Powerhouse 10% discount voucher in return for your old electric blanket.
A Community Fire Safety Officer will also be on hand throughout the testing to offer advice on fire safety in the home.
Here are some simple tips to stay safe when using electric blankets:
Regular Inspections: Examine your electric blanket for any signs of wear, fraying, or damage before use.
Follow Manufacturer Instructions: Adhere to the manufacturer’s instructions regarding usage, washing, and storage of electric blankets.
Avoid Overheating: Never leave an electric blanket turned on for an extended period, and switch it off before getting into bed.
No Pets or Heavy Objects: Keep pets and heavy objects off the electric blanket to prevent damage.
Replace Old Blankets: If your electric blanket is more than ten years old or shows signs of wear, consider replacing it with a newer model.
A team of Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and university scientists has released two new oat germplasm lines to shore up the cereal crop’s defenses against its most devastating fungal disease, known as “crown rust.”
The team specifically created the oat lines so that they can be crossed with elite commercial varieties to fortify them with new genetic sources of resistance to crown rust, which is caused by the fungus Puccinia coronata f. sp. avenae. Crown rust is a plague of oat worldwide and can inflict grain yield losses of up to 50 percent in unprotected crops.
The team announced its development of the resistant oat germplasm lines—dubbed CDL-111 and CDL-167—in the May 2024 issue of the Journal of Plant Registration, culminating more than 25 years of germplasm screening, plant genetic mapping, selective breeding and evaluation in greenhouse and field trials.
“Currently, the majority of the oat varieties with rust resistance carry a gene or two for resistance (often referred to as seedling resistance) to a specific isolate of crown rust,” said Shahryar Kianian, a co-author on the journal paper and research leader of the ARS Cereal Diseases Laboratory in St. Paul, Minnesota.
However, the crown rust fungus is a genetically diverse pathogen and highly adept at evolving into virulent new forms, called races. This can happen so quickly that the average productive life of an oat variety with seedling resistance is between three and five years, necessitating the use of chemical fungicides in conventional production systems.
Unchecked, the fungus infects the lower leaves and sometimes the sheafs of vulnerable oat plants, forming round- to oval-shaped pustules packed with masses of orangish spores that can be carried away by wind or rain. Damage to leaves can diminish photosynthesis and disrupt the movement of sugars from the leaves to developing grain, shriveling it and reducing feed value.
. ARS and university scientists have released two new lines of oat to better fortify this important grain crop’s defense against the fungus that causes “crown rust” disease.
To even the odds in the oat plant’s favor, the team resorted to a plant breeding strategy called “gene stacking” (or “pyramiding”). A key part of that strategy involved making a series of crosses between a cultivated oat variety and wild relatives, one known as lopsided oat, which carry genes for “adult plant resistance.”
“Adult plant resistance, sometimes referred to as ‘slow rusting,’ provides the oat plant some immunity—but not complete immunity,” Kianian said. “In this case, the selection pressure on the pathogen to change is reduced, and the plant is not damaged much so that it can still produce and yield grain for the growers.”
All told, the team stacked offspring plants derived from crosses with three genes for adult plant resistance to crown rust. They then subjected the offspring plants to a trial by fire, of sorts, starting in 2020. In essence, this involved growing them in nursery plots of common buckthorn, a secondary host for crown rust and known source of outbreaks. In the plots, under intense pressure from the disease, two lines of offspring plants consistently fared better than the others, namely, CDL-111 and CDL-167.
The sturdy oat lines have since been propagated for their seed, which is available for use in variety development programs under a material transfer agreement with ARS, Kianian said. This is to ensure the effectiveness of the gene-stacking strategy if the oat lines are crossed with commercial varieties—regardless of whether they already possess seedling resistance to crown rust.
By adhering to this requirement, plant breeders can arm elite oat varieties adapted to particular production regions with a one-two punch against the crown rust fungus—a “jab” via seedling resistance and a “right hook” with adult plant resistance.
“For this, we are also providing molecular markers linked to the three genes that can be used in selecting the lines that carry them,” added Kianian, who collaborated with Eric Nazareno and Kevin Smith—both with the University of Minnesota—Melanie Caffe (South Dakota State University), Roger Caspers (ARS), Howard Rines (ARS, deceased) and Marty Carson (ARS, deceased). Carson started some of the oat work 20 years ago, continuing much of it after retirement, Kianian noted.
The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in U.S. agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact.
Residents in Norton without a nearby bus service are being encouraged to make the most of a new service.
Stoke-on-Trent City Council has been working closely with local bus operators to reintroduce a bus service for residents in the area.
Now the number 42 service is officially up and running after the city council struck a deal with Stantons of Stoke.
The weekday service, which goes from Ball Green to Hanley via Norton Lane, Milton Crossroads and Abbotts Square in Abbey Hulton, will run on a temporary basis ahead of a more formal tender process.
Councillor Finlay Gordon-McCusker said: “We have listened to residents, and I am so pleased that we have been able to start the long-awaited bus service along Ford Green Road which residents are so desperate for. The number 42 service will mean residents can easily visit the local shops, the crematorium and the city centre – something they have not been able to do for a long time.
“The contract for the number 42 is currently only until early next year but it will give us a chance to establish if this service will be viable going forward. We have tried our best to include the areas around Norton which are not currently very well served to give this service the best chance of survival, and we would really encourage residents to make use of this new bus route.”
The service is being delivered through the city council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) which is being funded by £31.6 million of funding from the Department for Transport (DfT).
The plan has so far seen the launch of the council’s flagship Affordable Fares scheme which offers discounted bus tickets for adults and young people, the introduction of a number of new bus routes and enhanced services across the city.
It also comes ahead of the launch of the city council’s new Transport Prospectus which will outline the council’s proposed vision for transport in Stoke-on-Trent through to 2040.
Keith Stanton, managing director at Stantons of Stoke, said: “We are keen to work closely with Stoke-on-Trent City Council, who are making all this possible.
“With funding via the Bus Service Improvement Plan we are able to re-establish areas with a bus link, which brings so much with regards to connectivity and inclusion that other areas take for granted.
“We look forward to future opportunities and we will ensure that the travelling public are provided with a reliable, affordable service.”
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
​​The Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, today (October 15) met with the Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the Sichuan Provincial People’s Government, Ms Zhang Tao, to exchange views on enhancing youth development and exchanges and on district governance work between Sichuan and Hong Kong. The Commissioner for Youth, Mr Eric Chan, also joined the meeting.
​Miss Mak welcomed the delegation led by Ms Zhang. Miss Mak said that Hong Kong and Sichuan have had a close relationship and much to learn from one another. To enhance Hong Kong youth’s understanding of the country, the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) has been actively taking forward various exchange and internship programmes. Some of them cover Sichuan (e.g. the Youth Internship Programme at Wolong Region of Giant Panda National Park under the Thematic Youth Internship Programmes to the Mainland) and receive staunch support from the Sichuan authorities, providing diversified exchange and internship opportunities for Hong Kong youth. With regard to district governance, the HKSAR Government has been striving to provide quality service and build a better community through the District Councils (DCs) and District Services and Community Care Teams, which is consistent with Sichuan’s objective. Miss Mak said that HYAB had arranged a series of training and study programmes for DC members, including arranging DC members to go by batches to Zhejiang Province and Shanghai to learn about the country’s principles on grassroot governance and undertake site visits to learn their experiences in undertaking grassroot governance work, so as to continuously enhance DC members’ capabilities in discharging their duties; and that the work in this regard would continue in future.
​Miss Mak looks forward to deepening the cooperation on youth development and exploring mutual exchange on district governance work with Sichuan, and to contribute to the country’s development needs.
GAITHERSBURG, Md. — The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has awarded $15 million for a center of excellence to support U.S. engagement in international standardization for critical and emerging technologies (CETs) essential to U.S. competitiveness and national security. The new Standardization Center of Excellence will be led by global standards organization ASTM International, with multiple partners from across the standards development ecosystem.
“Broad U.S. participation in the international standards process is vital to ensuring global market access for our products and services in the highly competitive and rapidly evolving technologies and that the resulting standards are based on sound science,” said NIST Associate Director for Laboratory Programs Charles Romine. “This first-of-its-kind public-private partnership will help us advance international standardization for the critical and emerging technologies that are changing our lives every day, such as artificial intelligence, quantum technology and biotechnology.”
NIST supports the development of standards by identifying areas where they are needed, convening stakeholders and providing technical and scientific guidance and expertise to help stakeholder groups reach a consensus. Broad U.S. participation in the international standards process will support global market access for American products and services. The Standardization Center of Excellence will focus on four broad areas:
Pre-standardization engagement to encourage and ensure private sector-driven participation, especially by underrepresented groups such as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in international standardization efforts.
Workforce capacity building to create a pipeline of professionals, especially early- to mid-career professionals, who can engage in and lead international standards development efforts.
A collaborative pilot program with NIST to accelerate the development of industry-driven standards where needed for selected CETs.
Creation of an information and data sharing hub to serve as a central resource for all stakeholders involved in standardization, with information and tools that are tailored to meet the specific needs and priorities of particular CETs.
The center’s efforts will align with the U.S. Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (USG NSSCET) and its Implementation Roadmap. The center will also support and complement the broader goals of the United States Standards Strategy published by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), with the goal of ensuring that the U.S. remains a global leader in standardization efforts.
ASTM International is joined by several initial partners that bring experience in marshaling global expertise for standards development, standards education and workforce development, standards optimization and more. The partners involved include several other standards developing organizations:
NIST will provide funding for the center through a cooperative agreement over a five-year period and will actively engage with the center and its stakeholders, providing technical expertise and leadership. Future funding awards will be subject to the availability of funds.
CHARLESTON, WV – The Herbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs (HHOMA), in partnership with the Filipino American Association of West Virginia, is excited to announce the first Filipino Heritage Festival on Saturday, October 19th, from 1-6 p.m. at the State Capitol Complex.
“In celebration of Filipino American History Month, HHOMA is proud to co-host the first-ever Filipino American Festival in West Virginia,” HHOMA Director Jill Upson said. “Bring your entire family to witness history being made as we celebrate our culture, heritage, and community. Don’t miss this exciting event!”
This collaboration between HHOMA and the Filipino-American Association of West Virginia will feature dance performances, authentic Filipino cuisine, food vendors, and fun activities for all ages. This event is free of charge and open to the public.
Festival goers are invited to bring their families and friends and immerse themselves in the rich traditions and spirits of the Filipino-American community.
Vendors include: • Filipino-American Association of WV • Filipino-American Charleston • Filipino-American Parkersburg • Filipino-American Huntington • Filipino-American Beckley • Filipino-American Clarksburg • Filipino-American Morgantown • Philippines Pride Creation
Food Trucks include: • BG’z LA Street Taco • A Taste of the Philippines (Mona’s Eggrolls) • Coal Miners Diners Additional • Hickory House • A Family Affairs LLP • Crunchy Fruit Queen • Nell’s Thrifty Boutique • Knochet Sherlock • Prichard’s Produce • Star Dreamers Production • Will Express Cargo LLC • Thelma Lansang, Realtor
Source: US Department of Health and Human Services – 2
News Release
Tuesday, October 15, 2024
NIH-funded brain mapping study uncovers which cell types may be harmed first.
Alzheimer’s disease may damage the brain in two distinct phases, based on new research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) using sophisticated brain mapping tools. According to researchers who discovered this new view, the first, early phase happens slowly and silently — before people experience memory problems — harming just a few vulnerable cell types. In contrast, the second, late phase causes damage that is more widely destructive and coincides with the appearance of symptoms and the rapid accumulation of plaques, tangles, and other Alzheimer’s hallmarks.
“One of the challenges to diagnosing and treating Alzheimer’s is that much of the damage to the brain happens well before symptoms occur. The ability to detect these early changes means that, for the first time, we can see what is happening to a person’s brain during the earliest periods of the disease,” said Richard J. Hodes, M.D., director, NIH National Institute on Aging. “The results fundamentally alter scientists’ understanding of how Alzheimer’s harms the brain and will guide the development of new treatments for this devastating disorder.”
Scientists analyzed the brains of 84 people, and the results, published in Nature Neuroscience, suggest that damage to one type of cell, called an inhibitory neuron, during the early phase may trigger the neural circuit problems that underlie the disease. Additionally, the study confirmed previous findings about how Alzheimer’s damages the brain and identified many new changes that may happen during the disease.
Specifically, the scientists used advanced genetic analysis tools to study the cells of the middle temporal gyrus, a part of the brain that controls language, memory and vision. The gyrus has been shown to be vulnerable to many of the changes traditionally seen during Alzheimer’s. It is also a part of the brain that researchers have thoroughly mapped for control donors. By comparing control donor data with that from people who had Alzheimer’s, the scientists created a genetic and cellular timeline of what happens throughout the disease.
Traditionally, studies have suggested that the damage caused by Alzheimer’s happens in several stages characterized by increasing levels of cell death, inflammation and the accumulation of proteins in the form of plaques and tangles. In contrast, this study suggests that the disease changes the brain in two “epochs” — or phases — with many of the traditionally studied changes happening rapidly during the second phase. This coincides with the appearance of memory problems and other symptoms.
The results also suggest that the earliest changes happen gradually and “quietly” in the first phase before any symptoms appear. These changes include slow accumulation of plaques, activation of the brain’s immune system, damage to the cellular insulation that helps neurons send signals and the death of cells called somatostatin (SST) inhibitory neurons.
The last finding was surprising to the researchers. Traditionally, scientists have thought that Alzheimer’s primarily damages excitatory neurons, which send activating neural signals to other cells. Inhibitory neurons send calming signals to other cells. The paper’s authors hypothesized how loss of SST inhibitory neurons might trigger the changes to the brain’s neural circuitry that underlie the disease.
Recently, a separate NIH-funded brain mapping study by researchers at MIT found that a gene called REELIN may be associated with the vulnerability of some neurons to Alzheimer’s. It also showed that star-shaped brain cells called astrocytes may provide resilience to or resist the harm caused by the disease.
Researchers analyzed brains that are part of the Seattle Alzheimer’s Disease Brain Cell Atlas (SEA-AD), which is designed to create a highly detailed map of the brain damage that occurs during the disease. The project was led by Mariano I. Gabitto, Ph.D., and Kyle J. Travaglini, Ph.D., from the Allen Institute, Seattle. The scientists used tools — developed as part of the NIH’s Brain Research Through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies® (BRAIN) Initiative – Cell Census Network (BICCN) — to study more than 3.4 million brain cells from donors who died at various stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Tissue samples were obtained from the Adult Changes in Thought study and the University of Washington Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.
“This research demonstrates how powerful new technologies provided by the NIH’s BRAIN Initiative are changing the way we understand diseases like Alzheimer’s. With these tools, scientists were able to detect the earliest cellular changes to the brain to create a more complete picture of what happens over the entire course of the disease,” said John Ngai, Ph.D., director of The BRAIN Initiative®. “The new knowledge provided by this study may help scientists and drug developers around the world develop diagnostics and treatments targeted to specific stages of Alzheimer’s and other dementias.”
This study was funded by NIH grants: U19AG060909, P30AG066509, U19AG066567, U01AG006781. Additional funding was provided by the Nancy and Buster Alvord Endowment. The Rush University Alzheimer’s Disease Center, Chicago, Il, shared donor metadata from the Religious Orders Memory/Memory and Aging Project.
Researchers can obtain data from the SEA-AD study by going to the study’s website: https://portal.brain-map.org/explore/seattle-alzheimers-disease
About the National Institute on Aging (NIA): NIA leads the U.S. federal government effort to conduct and support research on aging and the health and well-being of older people. Learn more about age-related cognitive change and neurodegenerative diseases via NIA’s Alzheimer’s and related Dementias Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center website. Visit the main NIA website for information about a range of aging topics, in English and Spanish, and stay connected.
The BRAIN Initiative, a multidisciplinary collaboration across 10 NIH Institutes and Centers, is uniquely positioned for cross-cutting discoveries in neuroscience to revolutionize our understanding of the human brain. By accelerating the development and application of innovative neurotechnologies, The BRAIN Initiative® is enabling researchers to understand the brain at unprecedented levels of detail in both health and disease, improving how we treat, prevent, and cure brain disorders. The BRAIN Initiative involves a multidisciplinary network of federal and non-federal partners whose missions and current research portfolios complement the goals of The BRAIN Initiative.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov.
NIH…Turning Discovery Into Health®
Reference
Gabitto, M. I.; Travaglini, K. J.; et al. Integrated multimodal cell atlas of Alzheimer’s disease.Nature Neuroscience. 2024 October 15 doi: 10.1038/s41593-024-01774-5
Say the words, “UConn Hartford,” and what comes to mind? The stately former Hartford Times building that has served as the flagship university’s downtown campus since its much-hailed renovation and opening in 2017?
While the main campus is the principal nexus of UConn’s presence in Connecticut’s capital city, it’s but one of a growing number of locations, programs, and initiatives underway that deepen the University’s ties with Hartford.
In fact, UConn’s presence in Hartford continues to grow, including plans to offer 200 beds of student housing in the bustling downtown Pratt Street district, the recent opening of a nearby research center, the growth of local internships and a planned co-op program, and other initiatives.
UConn is working with local and state leaders, the city and regional business community, alumni, and others on the “UConn IN Hartford” initiative, which seeks to provide students a community-centered experience in the capital city while they pursue their academics at UConn.
Gov. Ned Lamont hears about UConn’s future in Hartford (Ashley Stimpson/UConn Foundation)
Scores of those supporters gathered recently to learn more about the university’s plans and to tour 64 Pratt St., which will be transformed from its former use as a law office into apartment-style units for about 200 UConn Hartford students.
Lexington Partners will work with Shelbourne Properties and LAZ Investments to jointly develop the apartments, and UConn will lease the space and run it as student housing starting in fall 2026 with on-site resident advisers and a hall director.
It’s part of a broader vision shared by UConn, state and local leaders, and others to position Hartford as a “college town,” in which students are a major part of Hartford’s culture, economy, and future.
“These dorms will be a huge boost to our capital city, bringing 200 more UConn students downtown who will reflect the diversity and incredible strength of our state, and who are going to make a name for themselves and change the world in so many different ways,” Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said at the recent reception.
Hartford’s diversity is evident at the UConn campus, where the majority of students are either the first generation in their family to attend college, are students of color, or both.
About 86% received some form of financial aid last year, and about 58% received federal Pell Grants, which are awarded to the neediest students.
In a 2023 survey, about 70% of UConn Hartford undergraduates said that they would be interested in student housing nearby, but since most said they lived with their parents, the rent would need to be affordable to make it a viable option.
To expand access to the Pratt Street housing opportunity, the UConn Foundation has launched the new Hartford Residential Scholars Enhancement Fund, which will harness community contributions to provide stipends for qualifying students who want to live in the apartments, but couldn’t otherwise afford it.
The housing option and the initiative to help qualifying students with the costs are closely aligned with goals in the UConn Strategic Plan, which prioritizes holistic student success, access, affordability, and the strength of UConn’s regional campuses as integral to their host communities.
Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam says UConn’s plans will be a major boost for the city (Ashley Stimpson/UConn Foundation)
For UConn Hartford students, the student housing will provide the dual benefit of living in the vibrant downtown setting while having the kinds of supports and community-centered experiences that dorm life offers.
“Our job as a public university is to create access and opportunities for our students to learn and grow, and in turn they give back to the communities they come from. Right here, UConn Hartford provides a beacon of hope, opportunity, and transformation for our students,” said Mark Overmyer-Velázquez, UConn Hartford’s campus dean and chief administrative officer.
UConn Hartford is a federally designated Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution and, with about 20% of its population identifying as Hispanic, it is on the threshold of reaching Hispanic Serving Institution status as an emerging HSI. It also has a rich history of engagement with the city in service, academics, and research.
UConn Hartford students can take classes in more than 36 academic departments and can pursue 10 undergraduate programs and advanced degrees fully in Hartford through the School of Business, Neag School of Education, School of Public Policy, and School of Social Work. They may also elect to transfer to Storrs with the credits they have earned.
“They have the ability to do all of that at the scale of a small liberal arts college, with all of the rich benefits that UConn offers as a Research 1 university,” Overmyer-Velázquez said.
UConn’s presence in Hartford also includes the School of Law in the West End; the main campus at 10 Prospect St. and the nearby School of Social Work at 38 Prospect St.; UConn Health’s Health Disparities Institute at 241 Main St.; and the Graduate Business Learning Center, Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation’s BUILD Hartford course, both at Constitution Plaza.
The newest UConn presence in Hartford is a big one: The University recently opened its new Community Intersections & Innovation Space for research and academic uses at 229 Trumbull St, also known as Hartford 21 (H21), very close to the student housing location.
UConn is leasing space in that office building to house lecture halls, academic centers, classrooms, and faculty offices, providing opportunities to partner on support for community engagement, and on research projects and research grants.
UConn President Radenka Maric talks with stakeholders about UConn’s future in Hartford (Ashley Stimpson/UConn Foundation)
UConn moved its campus from West Hartford to its current location in 2017, and has worked since then to position it as a centerpiece of a thriving capital city by bringing people downtown to learn, live, and support the regional economy.
The University has also significantly bolstered the wrap-around student services available UConn Hartford and other regional campuses. They include increasing medical and mental health care, adding Husky Harvest food pantries, helping students establish and expand clubs, boosting on-site career services, and other academic and social programs to help build a sense of community and support student success.
Connecticut State House of Representatives Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford (’07 LAW), noted at the recent reception that after the pandemic, many companies vacated their city office spaces as more employees worked remotely. Student housing like UConn’s planned units are a critical evolution in the vitality of those communities, he said.
“This is such a big deal because of what it’s going to lead to,” Ritter said. “This is going to be what UConn is about: UConn changes the lives of young people and communities that it impacts.”
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, Oct. 15 — A seminar was held on Tuesday in Beijing to promote the study and implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture.
Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attended the seminar and delivered remarks.
It is imperative to thoroughly study and implement the thought, strive for the prosperity of the culture and art sector, and achieve new heights, according to attendees of the event.
They called for efforts to fully tap into the contemporary value of fine traditional Chinese culture and draw on inspirations from fine cultures of other countries.
The Party’s leadership over the culture and art work must be upheld, and the Party’s principles and policies concerning the work must be implemented faithfully, they said.
Tie Ning, vice chairperson of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, presided over the seminar.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 15 — Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here on Tuesday that China is ready to work with Tajikistan, focusing on the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, to tap the potential of cooperation in various fields and expand cooperation in emerging industries in a bid to inject more impetus into common development.
Li made the remarks during his meeting with Tajik Prime Minister Kokhir Rasulzoda on the sidelines of the 23rd Meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 15 — Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here on Tuesday that China is ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to consolidate mutual support, remain reliable and dependable partners in each other’s development and revitalization, and further advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.
Li made the remarks during his meeting with Kyrgyz Prime Minister Akylbek Zhaparov on the sidelines of the 23rd Meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
NANNING, Oct. 15 — The China-Vietnam Detian-Ban Gioc Waterfall cross-border tourism cooperation zone, with the Chinese part in Chongzuo, a border city in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, went into operation on Tuesday.
As China’s first cross-border tourism cooperation zone, the Chinese part of the zone spans approximately 2 square kilometers. The zone began trial operations in September 2023.
The Detian-Ban Gioc Waterfall is the biggest cross-border waterfall in Asia. Within the cooperation zone, tourists enjoy facilitated customs clearance services, according to local border inspection authorities in Guangxi.
The official launch of the cross-border tourism cooperation zone is expected to yield valuable insights for the high-level opening up and collaboration between the two countries, said Hu Fan, vice chairman of Guangxi.