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General Purpose
Results Desired
Role of the Commission
Distinction Between Ethics and Professionalism
The Meaning of Professionalism
Issues and Topics
Examples of Formats for Courses
What This Training Should Not Be
Relation to Commission on Continuing Lawyer Competency (CCLC) and Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE)
Closing Thoughts
In 1989, the Supreme Court of Georgia took two significant steps to confront the concerns and further the aspirations of the profession. First, it created the Chief Justice's Commission on Professionalism (the "Commission") and gave it a primary charge of ensuring that the practice of law in this state remains a high calling, enlisted in the service not only of the client, but of the public good as well. This challenging mandate was supplemented by the Court's second step, that of amending the mandatory continuing legal education (CLE) rule to require all active Georgia lawyers to complete one hour of Professionalism CLE each year [Rule 8-104 (B)(3) of the Rules and Regulations for the Organization and Government of the State Bar of Georgia and Regulation (4) thereunder]. The Court designated the Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Georgia (ICLE) as the sole sponsor of professionalism training and made the rule effective January 1, 1990. On May 31, 1991, the Supreme Court changed the rule to allow sponsors in addition to ICLE to conduct professionalism events so long as the sponsor is approved by the Commission according to its policies and procedures and complies with the Professionalism CLE Guidelines.
The Commission recognizes the need to provide guidance to ICLE and any other proposed Professionalism CLE provider as to the Court's expectations regarding this training. In adopting these guidelines, the Commission intends that ICLE, other CLE sponsors, and individual trainers or speakers be clear as to the goals of this requirement and what the desired outcomes from this training are.
General Purpose
The general goal of the Professionalism CLE requirement is to create a forum in which lawyers, judges and legal educators can explore the meaning and aspirations of professionalism in contemporary legal practice and reflect upon the fundamental premises of lawyer professionalism -- competence, civility, integrity, and commitment to the rule of law, to justice, and to the public good. Building a community among the lawyers of this state is a specific goal of this requirement.
Results Desired
More than a one-time reminder of the problems of contemporary law practice, Professionalism CLE seeks to turn professionalism into a constant awareness for every Georgia lawyer. If successful, Professionalism CLE courses will inculcate a habit of talking with colleagues and engaging in dialogue that is essential to a healthy professional life. They also will encourage the habit of reflection (or the "stop and think" rule of morality). They will acquaint lawyers with the harsher realities of the profession, but also will equip them with a variety of strategies for coping with these realities. They will also deepen one's awareness of a lawyer's particular professional situation and can provide a sense of empowerment or control over a professional career rather than a passive acceptance of an untenable situation. They should expand the horizons of participants with respect to the richness and variety of the profession and the range of interests compatible with practice in the profession. And lastly, they can stimulate the imagination about the potential of a professional life.
Role of the Commission
The Commission should be viewed as a resource for information and materials on Professionalism by any sponsor, group, or person planning a CLE session on professionalism. The Commission encourages sponsors to tailor their Professionalism sessions to the issues relevant to the group to whom the sessions are presented. Once a format for the Professionalism session has been determined by the sponsor, the Commission may be contacted and asked to search its files to ascertain whether relevant materials are available for the session being planned. While the Commission itself cannot plan, implement, and conduct all of the nearly 1000 annual CLE Professionalism sessions which are offered by various sponsors, the Commission is willing to assist, to the extent it receives sufficient advance notice, in the planning of a CLE session on Professionalism.
At least three separate topics are tied up in what is generally referred to as legal ethics: the disciplinary rules and "the law of lawyering," the concept of professionalism and role differentiation, and the question of how to do justice. A fourth topic, legal malpractice avoidance, is also of concern since the same fact situation will oftentimes give rise to both ethics and malpractice considerations. All of these topics, of course, are interrelated. As the Preamble to the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct cautions:
In the nature of law practice conflicting responsibilities are encountered. Virtually all difficult ethical problems arise from conflict among a lawyer's responsibilities to clients, to the legal system, and to the lawyer's own interest in remaining an upright person. The Rules of Professional conduct prescribe terms for resolving such conflicts. Within the framework of these Rules, many difficult issues of professional discretion can arise. Such issues must be resolved through the exercise of sensitive professional and moral judgment guided by the basic principles underlying the Rules.1
Distinction Between Ethics and Professionalism
The Supreme Court has distinguished between ethics and professionalism, to the extent of creating separate one-hour CLE requirements for each. The best explanation of the distinction between ethics and professionalism that is offered by former Chief Justice Harold Clarke of the Georgia Supreme Court:
". . . the idea that ethics is a minimum standard which is required of all lawyers while professionalism is a higher standard expected of all lawyers."
Laws and the Rules of Professional Conduct establish minimal standards of consensus impropriety; they do not define the criteria for ethical behavior. In the traditional sense, persons are not "ethical" simply because they act lawfully or even within the bounds of an official code of ethics. People can be dishonest, unprincipled, untrustworthy, unfair, and uncaring without breaking the law or the code. Truly ethical people measure their conduct not by rules but by basic moral principles such as honesty, integrity and fairness.
The term "Ethics" is commonly understood in the CLE context to mean "the law of lawyering" and the rules by which lawyers must abide in order to remain in good standing before the bar. Legal Ethics CLE also includes malpractice avoidance. "Professionalism" harkens back to the traditional meaning of ethics discussed above. The Commission believes that lawyers should remember in counseling clients and determining their own behavior that the letter of the law is only a minimal threshold describing what is legally possible, while professionalism is meant to address the aspirations of the profession and how we as lawyers should behave. Ethics discussions tend to focus on misconduct -- the negative dimensions of lawyering. Professionalism discussions have an affirmative dimension -- a focus on conduct that preserves and strengthens the dignity, honor, and integrity of the legal system.
As former Chief Justice Benham of the Georgia Supreme Court says, "We should expect more of lawyers than mere compliance with legal and ethical requirements."
The Meaning of Professionalism
The three ancient learned professions were the law, medicine, and ministry. The word profession comes from the Latin professus, meaning to have affirmed publicly. As one legal scholar has explained, "The term evolved to describe occupations that required new entrants to take an oath professing their dedication to the ideals and practices associated with a learned calling."2 Many attempts have been made to define a profession in general and lawyer professionalism in particular. The most commonly cited is the definition developed by the late Dean Roscoe Pound of Harvard Law School:
The term refers to a group . . . pursuing a learned art as a common calling in the spirit of public service -- no less a public service because it may incidentally be a means of livelihood. Pursuit of the learned art in the spirit of a public service is the primary purpose.3
Teaching and Learning Professionalism, the 1996 Report of the Professionalism Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, expands the Pound definition and particularizes it for lawyers:
A professional lawyer is an expert in law pursuing a learned art in service to clients and in the spirit of public service; and engaging in these pursuits as part of a common calling to promote justice and public good.4
Retired Chief Justice Harold Clarke defined a professional as "a member of a group which provides an essential service in which the public has a vital interest and which requires of the performer extensive training and the exercise of qualitative judgment."5
Retired Chief Justice Norman Fletcher often explained his sense of professionalism as follows:
I have concluded that professionalism, in a legal sense, is to a great extent practicing the golden rule. It is not -- do my opponent in before my opponent does me in, -- but rather, it is do unto your fellow attorneys, the judges and society as you would have them do unto you.
Retired Justice Sandra Day O'Connor of the United States Supreme Court gave us this definition:
To me, the essence of professionalism is a commitment to develop one's skills to the fullest and to apply that responsibly to the problems at hand. Professionalism requires adherence to the highest ethical standards of conduct and a willingness to subordinate narrow self-interest in pursuit of the more fundamental goal of public service. Because of the tremendous power they wield in our system, lawyers must never forget that their duty to serve their clients fairly and skillfully takes priority over the personal accumulation of wealth. At the same time, lawyers must temper bold advocacy for their clients with a sense of responsibility to the larger legal system which strives, however imperfectly, to provide justice for all.6
The Commission believes that the ability to define professionalism in words is not as important as the pursuit of professionalism in our work. Thinking about professionalism and discussing the values it encompasses can provide guidance in the day-to-day practice of law. Professionalism is a wide umbrella of values encompassing competence, civility, legal ethics, integrity, commitment to the rule of law, to justice and to the public good. Professionalism calls us to be mindful of the lawyer's roles as officer of the court, advocate, counselor, negotiator, and problem solver. Professionalism asks us to commit to improvement of the law, the legal system, and access to that system. These are the values that make us a profession enlisted in the service not only of the client but of the public good as well. While none of us achieves perfection in serving these values, it is the consistent aspiration toward them that defines a professional. The Commission encourages thought not only about the lawyer-client relationship central to the practice of law but also about how the legal profession can shape us as people and a society.
Issues and Topics
In March of 1990, the Chief Justice's Commission adopted a Creed for Georgia Lawyers and an Aspirational Statement for the Profession. (Refer to Table of Contents.) These two documents should serve as the beginning points for professionalism discussions, not because they are to be imposed upon Georgia lawyers or bar associations, but because they serve as words of encouragement, assistance and guidance. These comprehensive statements should be utilized to frame discussions and remind lawyers about the basic tenets of our profession.
The kinds of issues implicit in the Lawyer's Creed and Aspirational Statement and which can be the subject of Professionalism CLE include:
Specific topics which can be the subjects of Professionalism CLE include:
Practice Management CLE includes, but is not limited to, those activities which (1) teach lawyers how to organize and manage their law practices so as to promote the efficient, economical and competent delivery of legal services; and (2) teach lawyers how to create and maintain good client relations consistent with existing ethical and professional guidelines so as to eliminate malpractice claims and bar grievances while improving service to the client and the public image of the profession.
A major goal of Professionalism CLE is to encourage introspection and dialogue about these issues. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish this in large, undifferentiated groups. The Commission encourages the designers of these events to provide for smaller, more intensive groups. These programs can involve the lawyer/student in the process of lawyering. By definition, they present the sorts of problems lawyers typically face, and they search for solutions or ways of thinking about these problems. In courses such as these, the interest of the lawyer/student usually rises in direct proportion to his or her personal engagement in the session.
Therefore, the Commission strongly encourages the designers of the sessions to explore more creative, introspective, interactive and simulation-based methods for presenting professionalism issues in the CLE course. Experiential training should be emphasized. Lawyers tend to learn best by example, so models of behavior and professional values should be identified and discussed. Above all, courses should be structured to confront the question, "How will you handle this situation when it occurs in your practice?" and the more confrontational the better. Practicing lawyers invariably respond better to realism in teaching, and professionalism issues can be made just as real as any other CLE-taught topic.
The Commission recognizes that it is possible and legitimate to define other training topics as encouraging professionalism. Training in a substantive area of the law enhances competency and, therefore, assists lawyers in meeting their professional responsibilities to their clients. Nevertheless, the Commission feels that, given the very limited and minimal requirement of one professionalism CLE hour per year and the aspirational goals envisioned by the Supreme Court, substantive training in particular practice areas are eligible only for general CLE credit and not for professionalism CLE credit. For example, learning how to write a legally enforceable contract would not be an appropriate topic for Professionalism CLE. Learning how to explain to your client what a legally enforceable contract is would be appropriate for Professionalism CLE.
Examples of Formats for Courses
A number of different designs for professionalism courses have been developed which have been well-received by the participants while meeting the goals set out by the Supreme Court.
The following formats have proven effective in eliciting active participation and fostering reflection in CLE professionalism courses:
1. The hypothetical format:
A panel is asked to respond to hypothetical situations which raise questions or concerns ranging from pure ethical issues to professionalism concerns. The panel is facilitated in its discussion by a lawyer whose job it is to push the discussion and point out inconsistencies or disagreements. The ethical issues can be addressed in terms of the Code of Professional Responsibility and the Standards of Conduct, but the professionalism concerns tend not to be subject to right/wrong answers. This format tends to work best with discrete groups (i.e., lawyers who work in the same practice area) where the hypotheticals can be drawn from the day-to-day practice of those particular lawyers.
[Hypotheticals developed by the Commission are available to planners of CLE events.]
2. Use of role play through videotapes:
A valuable training technique, especially when interaction with the audience is a goal, is to use role-plays to dramatize a particular issue or concern. There are now available several videotapes which were developed specifically to demonstrate through role plays various ethical and professionalism dilemmas. Videos produced by the American Bar Association, the University of Pennsylvania Center on Professionalism, and the Commission are particularly well-suited for these courses, and have been used successfully in both large and small group sessions. The use of role plays can be an effective technique for generating active and spirited audience participation in a discussion. Descriptions of the videotapes produced by the Commission are attached. A list containing more detailed descriptions of the videotape programs produced by the Commission and others is available from the Commission.
3. Use of non-role play videotapes:
The Commission and other organizations have developed videotapes on various professionalism topics, such as civility, clients, discovery, gender, service (For example, the Commission's Perspectives on Lawyer Professionalism, a 9-videotape series of interviews with Georgia lawyers and judges). Detailed descriptions of the programs produced by the Commission and others is available from the Commission. (Refer to Table of Contents.)
4. Town hall meeting:
Particularly conducive to discussions of professionalism for local bar associations, in-house CLE, office or firm retreats is the town hall meeting format. After introductory remarks about the need to explore professionalism in contemporary practice, the major portion of the meeting is devoted to discussions in small breakout groups of professionalism concerns in the particular practice setting. These discussions can be stimulated by oral questions or a written questionnaire. Responses to the questions provide data for the sponsoring organization to use as it deems appropriate. For example, some firms have responded to town meeting data highlighting the need for more feedback and guidance for associates by instituting mentoring programs.
5. ADR training:
Training in the processes of dispute resolution in addition to litigation, such as arbitration, mediation, and early neutral evaluation, qualify for professionalism CLE credit.
There are a variety of other designs and programs which are appropriate for in-house CLE programs, firm retreats, for specialized groups and for large groups. The goal of any design, however, should be to generate thought-provoking and introspective discussion among the participants about the meaning of professionalism in contemporary legal practice.
What This Training Should Not Be
The Lawyer's Creed and Aspirational Statement on Professionalism have been adopted by the Chief Justice's Commission as encouragement, guidance and assistance to individual lawyers, law firms, and local and circuit bar associations. They are specifically not intended:
The Commission's hope is that members of this profession will recognize the special obligations that attach to their calling and will also recognize their responsibility to serve others and not be limited to the pursuit of self interest. The Creed and Aspirational Statement cannot be imposed by edict, because moral integrity and unselfish dedication to the welfare of others cannot be legislated. Nevertheless, a public statement of principles of ethical and professional responsibility can provide guidance for newcomers and a reminder for experienced members of the bar about the basic ethical and professional tenets of our profession.
Relation to Commission of Continuing Lawyer Competency (CCLC) and Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE)
A. All rules, accreditation standards, and regulations of Commission on Continuing Lawyer Competency (CCLC) shall be observed.
B. The criteria for co-sponsorship should be observed by any group wishing to co-sponsor a session with ICLE. These criteria are available from ICLE (1-800-422-0893; 770-466-0886; 706-369-5664).
C. Written materials should be designed to stimulate discussions about the nature of the profession, the lawyer-client relationship, and the relationship between business and professional values. CCLC accreditation standards provide as follows:
Thorough, high quality, and carefully prepared written materials should be distributed to all attendees at or before the time the course is presented. It is recognized that written materials are not suitable or readily available for some types of subjects; the absence of written materials for distribution should, however, be the exception and not the rule.
D. Each attendee should be given an evaluation form to be completed and returned to the sponsor which not only evaluates the particular course and trainers, but offers ideas or suggestions to the Commission on how best to address professionalism concerns.
Closing Thoughts
Professionalism is about both principles and character. All lawyers would prefer that their practices be character-building rather than debasing. They want to be able to achieve a good life in the practice of law.
Professional behavior, however, is not simply a matter of character and principle; it is a matter of choice and decision-making. Thus, the issue is not all or nothing. It is not a question of being or not being ethical. It usually is not a question of right or wrong. It is a question of doing or not doing the ethical or professional thing. In our high pressure world, it may not be possible to act professionally all the time. It is, however, possible and important to act more professionally more often.
First-year law students of Karl N. Llewellyn, jurisprudential scholar who taught at Yale, Columbia, and the University of Chicago Law Schools, often cautioned his students:
The lawyer is a man of many conflicts. More than anyone else in our society, he must contend with competing claims on his time and loyalty. You must represent your client to the best of your ability, and yet never lose sight of the fact that you are an officer of the court with a special responsibility for the integrity of the legal system. You will often find, brethren and sistern, that those professional duties do not sit easily with one another. You will discover, too, that they get in the way of your other obligations -- to your conscience, your God, your family, your partners, your country, and all the other perfectly good claims on your energies and hearts. You will be pulled and tugged in a dozen directions at once. You must learn to handle those conflicts.7
Professionalism discussions are too often framed as simple issues of rule-following or rule-violation. But the real issue facing lawyers as professionals is developing the capacity for critical and reflective judgment and the ability to "handle those conflicts," described by Karl Llewellyn. The CLE sessions should strive to cultivate reflective judgment about the practice of law and to assess how well current practices are serving the legal profession and the system of justice in light of the best traditions of our practice.
1. GEORGIA RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT, Preamble [8], Part IV, Rules and Regulations for the Organization and Government of the State Bar of Georgia.
4. AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION SECTION OF LEGAL EDUCATION AND ADMISSIONS TO THE BAR, Teaching and Learning Professionalism, Report of the Professionalism Committee 6 (1996)
5. HAROLD G. CLARKE, Professionalism: Repaying the Debt, 25 Georgia Bar Journal 170 (1989)
6. COURT OF APPEALS OF MARYLAND PROFESSIONALISM COURSE FOR NEW ADMITTEES TO THE MARYLAND BAR, Professionalism Above and Beyond Ethics 15 (1992)


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22 September 2023
Five Stowers postdoctoral researchers awarded grants in 2023
Five postdoctoral researchers from four labs received prestigious awards to enhance their research and training.
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Stowers investigators reveal a developmental switch in targeting capacity of olfactory neurons.
KANSAS CITY, MO—The human nose expresses nearly 400 odorant receptors, which allow us to distinguish a large number of scents. In mice the number of odor receptors is closer to 1000. Each olfactory neuron displays only a single type of receptor and all neurons with the same receptors are connected to the same spot, a glomerulus, in the brain. This convergence, or wiring pattern, is often described as an olfactory map. The map is important because it serves as a code book for odorants that allows the brain to distinguish between food odors and the scent of a predator, among others.
Unlike photoreceptors in the retina or hair cells in the inner ear, which cannot be replaced once damaged, olfactory neurons have the unique capacity to regenerate throughout the life. More remarkably, the regenerated neurons must dispatch their axons on a path through the nasal epithelium to the brain through a distance a thousand times the length of the cell, where they make the proper connections. If regenerating neurons are mis-wired to different glomeruli, odor perception would be altered.
In the April 11, 2014 issue of Science, Associate Investigator C. Ron Yu, Ph.D. and colleagues at the Stowers Institute of Medical Research identify a developmental window during which olfactory neurons of newborn mice can form a proper wiring map. They show that if incorrect neuronal connections are maintained after this period, renewing cells will also be mis-wired.
Their results also hint at how the olfactory neurons connect to their targets. Although scientists can induce stem cells to become neurons, they know little about how to precisely steer them to make the proper connections. This work suggests additional targeting skills that stem cell-generated neurons need to acquire to repair the brain or spinal cord.
Previously, researchers thought that since olfactory neurons exhibited lifelong regeneration, they likewise retained the ability to re-establish correct connections. "We show that this is not the case," says Yu. In the report, his team uses a number of transgenic mouse lines to demonstrate that the first week after birth is a critical window of time during which incorrect projections can be restored to normal. "If mis-targeting does not get corrected within this period, cells still regenerate but many get locked onto the wrong tracks." Yu adds.
Neuronal wiring has intrigued Yu since he was a post-doc in the lab of Richard Axel, M.D., at Columbia University. Back then Yu created a genetically engineered mouse in which he could temporarily muffle the firing of olfactory neurons. He found that inactivating neurons caused them to connect to the wrong glomeruli. After joining the Stowers Institute in 2005, Yu began to wonder whether an incorrectly wired olfactory map could be restored in mice.
In this new work, Yu's team, led by first author Limei Ma, Ph.D., reports that if the silenced sensory neurons are reactivated within a week of a mouse's birth, erroneous olfactory neuron connections are restored. Beyond that critical period, however, neurons appeared to lose the capacity to make the right connections and in fact maintained connections to the wrong glomeruli.
"After the first week, we believe that newly generated neurons follow pre-existing tracks to their target," says Ma, Senior Research Specialist in the Yu lab. A key finding in the report supports this idea. The team provoked a temporary identity crisis in olfactory neurons by broadly mis-expressing an odorant receptor called M71 in cells where it would not normally be displayed. Surprisingly, only the neurons that normally express the M71 receptor targeted the "wrong" glomeruli, not the neurons that express different odorant receptors.
An interpretation of this experiment is that late-born olfactory neurons expressing a particular receptor recognize and follow a track laid down earlier by neurons expressing the very same receptor—even if the latter expressed that receptor due to experimental manipulation. "These olfactory neurons have identity tags," says Ma, referring to the receptors. "And they like to follow others displaying the same tag."
As yet, investigators have not identified the molecular basis for the targeting switch occurring at the end of one-week period. "We don't know what keeps these late stage cells from re-establishing the right connections," explains Ma. "Either the cues that guide them disappear or their axons encounter a physical barrier to the target."
Yu envisions the studies in the olfactory system will provide clues on how a regenerated neuron, either through a natural process in the case of the olfactory neuron, or by stem technology, find their target and make the right connection. "To repair a damaged spinal cord, you will need to ensure that newly generated motor neurons target the right muscle," says Yu. "The next goal is to identify the molecular cues that enable correct projections to be established."
The Yu paper is accompanied by a companion Science study led by Gilad Barnea, Ph.D., of Brown University, who reports a similar critical time period while employing a different approach. In addition to Ma, other contributors to the study include Yunming Wu, Qiang Qiu, Ph.D., Hayley Scheerer and Andrea Moran from Stowers.
The Stowers Institute for Medical Research funded the research.
About the Stowers Institute for Medical Research
The Stowers Institute for Medical Research is a non-profit, basic biomedical research organization dedicated to improving human health by studying the fundamental processes of life. Jim Stowers, founder of American Century Investments, and his wife, Virginia, opened the Institute in 2000. Since then, the Institute has spent over 900 million dollars in pursuit of its mission.
Currently, the Institute is home to nearly 550 researchers and support personnel; over 20 independent research programs; and more than a dozen technology-development and core facilities.
22 September 2023
Five postdoctoral researchers from four labs received prestigious awards to enhance their research and training.
Read Article
21 September 2023
Stowers scientists are discovering new dynamics for genetic elements during development
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20 September 2023
Q&A with Stowers Postdoc Thelma Chiremba: "My passion for biology, especially learning about development and how the human body works, led me to where I am today."
Read Article
19 September 2023
Stowers scientists explore how ribosome biogenesis regulates nucleolar structure during normal development and in the pathogenesis of disease in mice using models of ribosomopathies
Read Article

subset: commoncrawl


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"Guiding Principles of Personal and Family Welfare," Ensign, Sept. 1986, 3
First Presidency Message
Guiding Principles of Personal and Family Welfare
Fifty years ago this year, on Sunday, April 5, the prophets, seers, and revelators of the Church of God on earth at that time met in a very significant meeting. Presiding was President Heber J. Grant, with his counselors, President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., and President David O. McKay. Out of the meeting came a modern day application of eternal principles in what has come to be known as the welfare plan of the Church.
President McKay declared, "This organization [the Church] is established by divine revelation, and there is nothing else in all the world that can so effectively take care of its members." President Clark added that the Lord "has given us the spirituality. He has given us the actual command. … The eyes of the world are upon us." And then he added, "May the Lord bless [us], give us courage, give us wisdom, give us vision to carry out this great work." (In Henry D. Taylor, The Church Welfare Plan, unpublished ms., Salt Lake City: Henry D. Taylor, 1984, pp. 26–27.)
As I researched those watershed statements and the heaven-inspired counsel which came in that year of the creation of the Church welfare plan, I was impressed. As we prepare to move forward with a renewed emphasis on the eternal principles of Church welfare, I feel we should begin by reviewing those early teachings that they might give us the strength and resolve to move forward.
At October general conference during the same year, President Heber J. Grant read a statement from the First Presidency that explained the principles upon which the Church's welfare efforts were based. Included were these familiar words: "Our primary purpose was to set up, insofar as it might be possible, a system under which the curse of idleness would be done away with, the evils of a dole abolished, and independence, industry, thrift and self-respect be once more established amongst our people. The aim of the Church is to help the people to help themselves. Work is to be re-enthroned as the ruling principle of the lives of our Church membership." (In Conference Report, Oct. 1936, p. 3.)
Since those beginnings, we as a Church have continued to receive divine direction as circumstances have required. Programs and procedures used to implement welfare principles have been modified, and they likely will continue to change from time to time to meet changing needs. But the basic principles do not change. They will not change. They are revealed truths. Direct counsel has been given regarding the application of these revealed truths. I've topically arranged these guiding principles as follows: work, self-reliance, sound financial management, a year's supply, caring for the extended family, and wise use of Church resources.
Work is basic to all we do. God's first direction to Adam in the Garden of Eden as recorded in scripture was to dress the garden and take care of it. After the fall of Adam, God cursed the earth for Adam's sake saying, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground." (Gen. 3:19.) Today, many have forgotten the value of work. Some falsely believe that the highest goal in life is to achieve a condition in which one no longer needs to work.
Let us hearken to the counsel given by President Stephen L Richards in 1939: "We have always dignified work and reproved idleness. Our books, our sermons, our leaders, including particularly our present President, have glorified industry. The busy hive of the honeybee Deseret—has been our emblem. Work with faith is a cardinal point of our theological doctrine, and our future state—our heaven—is envisioned in terms of eternal progression through constant labor." (In Conference Report, Oct. 1939, p. 65.)
Self-reliance is a product of our work and under-girds all other welfare practices. It is an essential element in our spiritual as well as our temporal well-being. Regarding this principle, President Marion G. Romney has said: "Let us work for what we need. Let us be self-reliant and independent. Salvation can be obtained on no other principle. Salvation is an individual matter, and we must work out our own salvation in temporal as well as in spiritual things." (In Welfare Services Meeting Report, 2 Oct. 1976, p. 13.)
President Spencer W. Kimball further taught concerning self-reliance: "The responsibility for each person's social, emotional, spiritual, physical, or economic well-being rests first upon himself, second upon his family, and third upon the Church if he is a faithful member thereof.
"No true Latter-day Saint, while physically or emotionally able, will voluntarily shift the burden of his own or his family's well-being to someone else." (Ensign, Nov. 1977, p. 77.)
Perhaps no counsel has been repeated more often than how to manage wisely our income. Consumer debt in some nations of the world is at staggering levels. Too many in the Church have failed to avoid unnecessary debt. They have little, if any, financial reserve. The solution is to budget, to live within our means, and to save some for the future. Nowhere is the oppressive burden of debt more clearly taught than in the graphic counsel of President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
"It is the rule of our financial and economic life in all the world that interest is to be paid on borrowed money. May I say something about interest?
"Interest never sleeps nor sickens nor dies; it never goes to the hospital; it works on Sundays and holidays; it never takes a vacation; it never visits nor travels; it takes no pleasure; it is never laid off work nor discharged from employment; it never works on reduced hours. … Once in debt, interest is your companion every minute of the day and night; you cannot shun it or slip away from it; you cannot dismiss it; it yields neither to entreaties, demands, or orders; and whenever you get in its way or cross its course or fail to meet its demands, it crushes you." (In Conference Report, Apr. 1938, p. 103.)
There is another aspect of sound financial management, and it has to do with our budgeting and offering to the Lord a fast offering to bless those in need. We must cheerfully and gratefully apply this principle if we would perfect ourselves.
I remember as a young bishop receiving a telephone call from the hospital late one night wherein I was informed that a widow in my ward had passed away. I went to the hospital and there obtained the key to her apartment. A note had been left that this was the procedure I was to follow. As I entered her humble basement apartment, I turned on the light and went to the little table which was in the small living room. There on the table were two Alka Seltzer bottles with a note beneath them. The bottles were filled with quarters. This sweet little widow, Kathleen McKee, with no relatives surviving her, had written this note: "Bishop, here is my fast offering. I am square with the Lord."
I think we simply need ask one another, are we square with the Lord? Remember the principle of the true fast. Is it not to deal our bread to the hungry, to bring to our own house the poor who are outcast, to clothe the naked, to hide not ourself from our own flesh? (See Isa. 58:7.) An honest fast offering, a generous fast offering, will certainly be an indication to our Heavenly Father that we know and abide this particular law.
Recent surveys of Church members have shown a serious erosion in the number of families who have a year's supply of life's necessities. Most members plan to do it. Too few have begun. We must sense again the spirit of the persistent instruction given by Elder Harold B. Lee as he spoke to the members in 1943: "Again there came counsel in 1942. … 'We renew our counsel, said the leaders of the Church, and repeat our instruction: Let every Latter-day Saint that has land, produce some valuable essential foodstuff thereon and then preserve it.' … Let me ask you leaders who are here today: In 1937 did you store in your own basements and in your own private storehouses and granaries sufficient for a year's supply? You city dwellers, did you in 1942 heed what was said from this stand?" (In Conference Report, April 1943, p. 127.)
Undergirding this pointed call is the stirring appeal from our own living prophet, President Ezra Taft Benson, wherein he has given specific suggestions for putting these teachings into action:
"From the standpoint of food production, storage, handling, and the Lord's counsel, wheat should have high priority. … Water, of course, is essential. Other basics could include honey or sugar, legumes, milk products or substitutes, and salt or its equivalent. The revelation to produce and store food may be as essential to our temporal welfare today as boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah." (Ensign, Nov. 1980, p. 33.)
As has been said so often, the best storehouse system that the Church could devise would be for every family to store a year's supply of needed food, clothing, and, where possible, the other necessities of life.
In the early church, Paul wrote to Timothy, "If any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." (1 Tim. 5:8.) It is our sacred duty to care for our families, including our extended families. Often we see what might be called parent neglect. Too frequently, the emotional, social, and, in some instances, even the material essentials are not provided by children for their aged parents. This is displeasing to the Lord. It is difficult to understand how one mother can take care of seven children more easily than seven children can take care of one mother. President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., gave clear direction on this matter: "The prime responsibility for supporting an aged parent rests upon [the] family, not upon society. … The family which refuses to keep its own is not meeting its duty." (In Conference Report, April 1938, p. 107.)
President Stephen L Richards gave an inspired appeal as he rallied members with these sentiments: "How can sons and daughters who owe everything they have—their education, their ideals of life, their capacity to acquire independent living and their characters—to parents who have worked, sacrificed, prayed, wept, and striven for them to the exhaustion of their bodies and their energies be parties to a scheme which would make their fathers and mothers the objects of charity and cast the burden of their support on the community and stigmatize them with the loss of independence and self-respect. …
"I think my food would choke me if I knew that while I could procure bread my aged father or mother or near kin were on public relief." (In Conference Report, Oct. 1944, p. 138.)
The final principle which I wish to stress is the proper use of Church resources. The Lord's storehouse includes the time, talents, skills, compassion, consecrated material, and financial means of faithful Church members. These resources are available to the bishop in assisting those in need. Our bishops have the responsibility to learn how to use these resources properly.
May I suggest five basic guidelines: First, bishops are to seek out the poor as the Lord has commanded and administer to their needs. Do not suppose that someone else will do it. It is a bishop's priesthood duty. He may call on members to assist, but he is responsible.
Second, bishops should thoroughly analyze the circumstances surrounding each need for welfare assistance. He wisely calls on his Relief Society president to assist in the evaluation. He exercises discernment, sound judgment, balance, and compassion. Church resources represent a sacred trust which becomes even more sacred as the bishop properly applies these resources in blessing the lives of others.
Third, those receiving welfare assistance should work to the extent of their abilities for that which is received. There are many creative ways leaders can provide work opportunities. With help from their welfare services committees, bishops will want to provide that work which will enhance the recipient's efforts to become self-reliant.
Fourth, the assistance given by the bishop is temporary and partial. Remember, Church assistance is designed to help people help themselves. The rehabilitation of members is the responsibility of the individual and the family, aided by the priesthood quorum and Relief Society. We are attempting to develop independence, not dependence. The bishop seeks to build integrity, self-respect, dignity, and soundness of character in each person assisted, leading to complete self-sufficiency.
Fifth, we assist with basic life-sustaining goods and services, not the maintenance of current living standards. Individuals and families may need to alter their standards of living in doing all they can to meet their own needs. A church dole would be worse than a government dole because it would fail in the face of greater light. Church practices portray more honorable aims, more glorious potential.
Faithful compliance with these revealed welfare principles and practices have preserved lives in times of crises. An example is found in the response of Church members to the 1985 earthquake that devastated parts of Mexico City. Church members and leaders rose to the occasion, drawing on their own preparedness efforts to help themselves and others around them.
Another example occurred at the time of the Idaho Teton Dam disaster in the summer of 1976, when thousands of Latter-day Saints gave of their own reserves to those whose every belonging was swept away in the floodwaters. We remember also the massive effort of Church members following World War II when our own prophet-leader, President Benson, then a member of the Council of the Twelve, administered the distribution of more than seventy-five train-carloads of commodities to needy members in war-ravaged Europe. These outpourings of humanitarian service were made possible by the faithful adherence of Church members to the very principles we have just reviewed.
The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve have outlined that, commencing with the second half of this year, the Saturday evening session of stake conference involving all adult members will be devoted to teaching these doctrines and principles. Our forward progress in this great work is dependent upon a deeper understanding and a more thorough application of divinely revealed welfare principles. We have confidence that under the guidance of the Spirit, we can all come to a "unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God … unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." (Eph. 4:13.)
We want to be disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. May we be prepared as individuals and as families, may we teach, may we lift, may we build, may we motivate, may we be inspired as we seek to bring our lives into conformity with these gospel principles. I bear my witness that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, and that the program which we call the welfare plan of the Church came from God and is for the blessing and the exaltation of his people.
Ideas for Home Teachers
Some Points of Emphasis. You may wish to make these points in your home teaching discussion:
We are asked to give renewed emphasis to the eternal principles of Church welfare: work and self-reliance—both essential to our spiritual and temporal well-being; wise management of income, which involves budgeting and living within our means; storage of a year's supply; care of our families—including our extended families; and proper use of Church resources.
Faithful compliance with these revealed principles and practices will be a great blessing to families and to individuals.
Discussion Helps
1. Relate your feelings about the eternal principles and practices of Church welfare. Ask family members to share their feelings.
Are there scriptural verses or quotations in this article that the family might read aloud and discuss?
Would this discussion be better after a pre-visit chat with the head of the house? Is there a message from the quorum leader or bishop?


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Here, via the Washington Post, is a partial list of those whose pork was preserved by the "fiscal cliff" legislation that passed Congress:
Puerto Rican rum distillers
Hollywood studios (what a surprise)
Tribal lands coal
Electric scooter makers
The wind-energy industry
Wouldn't it have been nice if the House had passed an amended version of the Senate bill that eliminated the pork? Harry Reid's Senate would then have had to decide whether to send the nation over the dreaded cliff in the name of preserving pork.
No such amended bill could have passed the House. Most House Republicans would not have voted for it because of the tax increases. And House Democrats would not have supplied votes for an amended bill because Harry Reid had demanded no amendments.
It would have been nice, though.


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The countries of Folkmoot USA
New Zealand — Whitireia Performing Arts
Whitireia Performing Arts is affiliated with New Zealand College of Performing Arts. This school is an energetic setting that prides itself on high-quality performing art programs and performers.
Belgium — Die Rooselaer
The Die Rooselaer dance troupe was founded in 1965 by Dirk Deblaere and a few other folklore lovers. Two of the original founders are still part of the group today. Die Rooselaer is a group known for its traditional Belgium dance as well as music and flag-waving. The program consists of craftwork dances, society dances, dances for weddings and others. This group's goal is to keep Belgium culture alive though traditional dances as well as creating new dances to pass down to future generations. The group has hundreds of costumes that are authentic reproductions of historical garb. Die Rooselaer is known for using costumes from all over the region dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries. The group has organized 22 international festivals of its own.
France — La Poulido de Gemo
La Poulido de Gemo dancers hail from Provence, France. This folk group was created in February of 1982. Composed of over 100 members, the group carries on French tradition through dance, music and song. The meaning of Gemo in Provençal is "The pretty Gémenos." This group of performers shares a passion for Provencal culture. Performers of La Poulido De Gemo conduct research, go through training, conferences and workshops to recreate authentic Provencal traditions when they perform. The performances consist of precise footwork with very lively and upbeat music. Traditionally the women wear flowing skirts and tops that sway as they move, while the mean wear long top coats and dark trousers.
Indonesia — Kandarpa Gunita
Kandarpa Gunita is a dance group from Jakarta that formed in 2007. These musicians and dancers are students at the Trisakti University School of Medicine. The students travel around the globe conserving and introducing Indonesia's culture to the world. It performs a wide range of dances, all telling stories. Kandarpa Gunita is known for distinct rhythms, flowing movements and creative music. The group's repertoire includes fast-paced dances with colorful outfits and lots of movement. Indonesia is made up of a variety of ethnic, linguistic and religious groups, so the dances come from a variety of cultural influences. Indonesia's national motto is "Unity is Diversity." The name Kandarpa Gunita means "love culture," which is what the group hopes to inspire.
Related Items
Peru — Consandama Dance Company
The Consandama Dance Company from Lima, Peru, is led by Gisselle Eva Maguina Leon. The dresses worn by the performers represent their Peruvian culture. The women perform in hand-embroidered skirts with bright flowered backgrounds. The women's blouses are embroidered and lined with colorful sequins. The men usually wear neutral colored trousers and a vest that has been hand-embroidered. Both genders are known for the hats that they will be wearing. The hats tie in with each dance to illustrate the expression of the spirit of the farmer and the Peruvian laborer. The musicians use many traditional instruments including traditional bongo drums, snares, cymbals, rain sticks and others. Each dance tells a story that holds true to Peruvian heritage. Consandama won a gold medal in the Tender World folklore competition in Dijon, France, as well as Medal of Honor from the Congress of the Republic of Peru.
Philippines — Signing Kumintang ng Batangas
Signing Kumintang ng Batangas was formally established in 1992 by Vicente P. Cordero. This group is made up of high school students and alumni of Bauan High School in Bauan, Batangas. The group originates from a republic of 7,000 islands where the culture explodes with influences. Their performances are an outburst of color, shapes, spins and surprises. They have toured Asia, Europe and the United States, showing off their fans, ribbons, feathers and umbrellas as they tell a story. It is the group's goal to develop personality and self confidence among the group members. The pounding of drums and ringing of bells give insight into their Filipino culture. They also wish to preserve and share the Philippine heritage.
Puerto Rico — Ballet Folklorico Brumas del Torito
Ballet Folklorico Brumas del Torito is a group composed of over 40 dancers and musicians. The company was founded in 1976 in Corozal. The founding director and choreographer, Joaquin Nieves Caldero, created this dance group to work in partnership with an art institute to help young children and youth developed artistic skills that they can use in the future. Ballet Folklorico Brumas Del Torito has traveled to Central America, South America, Europe and the United States to share their Puerto Rican culture. The music and dance of Puerto Rico is said to be full of rhythm, spice and color. Emotions and personality are expressed through dance. Through research and creativity, the dancers try to leave a unique and authentic remembrance of the history of Puerto Rican folklore.
Serbia — Talija Folk Dance Troupe
Talija Folk Dance Troupe was established in Belgrade in 1998. This group consists of over 200 members that range from small children to the elderly. Talija members are dressed in traditional clothing and feature dances that originate from all parts of Serbia. As one of Serbia's leading professional ensembles, Talija has traveled around the world performing their native dances. It performs a wide range of dances, from fast-paced, high-stepping numbers to slower pieces that include intricate footwork.
Hawaii, USA — Halau O Po'ohala
Halau O Po'ohala is located in Waimea where it is associated with the Beamer- Solomon's Hula School. Their performances cultivate the Hawaiian dance legacy into the 21st century. Performances can include hula, music, dramatic visuals and family stories that go back though the five generations who have attended the Hula School. With 150 years of experience, Halau O Po'ohala keeps hula tradition alive by practicing these core values: aloha, love, lokahi and unity, believing this will prepare them in all aspect to perform. Halau O Po'ohala will not disappoint when it comes to appearance. This group keeps attention with their bightly colored costumes. Dancers dress in traditional grass skirts, but not always. Some performances are done in long flowing dresses for the women while men wear trousers and a colorful shirt. Flowers will almost always be incorporated into their attire as well.


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AVS Companion App
This document covers the branding, best practices, and customer experience that create a great Alexa companion app. A successful Alexa companion app should allow your customer to quickly and easily set up and configure Alexa, educate your customer about how to use Alexa, and drive engagement with Alexa.
- App Branding
- Setting up Alexa
- Customer education
- Sign out and Settings
- Alexa in App
- Logo and Brand
App Branding
Your companion app branding includes both the app name and tile. This is the first thing customers will see when they search for, download, or open your companion app.
If you are including the word "Alexa" in your app name or the Amazon Alexa logo in your app tile, you must follow the guidelines below.
App Naming
Appropriate app naming helps customers understand that Alexa is available in your app. When including the word "Alexa" in the app name, you must:
- Include the word "Alexa" in the overall name
- Not begin with the word "Alexa"
App Tile
App tiles give customers a way to visually identify any app as an Alexa companion app. When including the Amazon Alexa logo in the app tile:
- The app tile must contain the Amazon Alexa logo, protected in a white circle or square shape. The shape should have a drop shadow that is 30% Opacity, 0px X Offset, 1px Y Offset, and 3px Blur
- The background color can be partner specific
- High contrast (darker) works best for background colors and gradients
- Avoid white and light color background tones for maximum readability
- Use square or circle base shape options, depending on the platform your app is on.
What Not to Do
Keep in mind when designing the app tile that you must adhere to the Amazon Alexa brand guidelines, specifically the what not to do section. Here are additional use cases, specific to app tiles.
|Don't place logo without a white circle to protect it
|Don't use a white or light background
|Don't place the logo on a circle other than white
|Don't fill the inside of the logo with a color
App Font
Use the following font families for Alexa-related screens, features, and functionality:
- Amazon Ember Display
- Bookerly
- Noto Sans CJK
Bookerly is used mainly for Things to Try text, and Noto Sans CJK is supplied for Chinese, Japanese, and Korean language support. Amazon Ember Display and Bookerly are reserved for Alexa-related uses only.
Find the Amazon font files on the Amazon Developer Portal (requires login) under the Resources tab.
Setting up Alexa
Alexa setup consists of three steps: introduction, authentication, and customer education. The introduction and education steps should explain what Alexa is and does, highlighting the benefits of voice control. Setup should be integrated into the product OOBE flow so that the customer moves directly from product setup into Alexa setup.
For information on creating your setup flow, see the Setup and Authentication overview.
Customer education
The introduction and education stages of setting up Alexa, as well as the Alexa settings portion of your companion app, all provide opportunities to educate the customer about the benefits of using Alexa.
We recommend including screens in your app that educate the customer on:
- Features that are delightful and useful on your product
- How to use the product's buttons to wake Alexa
- For those products that are voice-initiated, how to turn the product's microphones off.
This reinforces the information provided in the user guide, ensuring new customers are educated on how to use your device.
Sign out and Settings
You must include an easy-to-find, easy-to-use way for customers to sign out. It can be integrated into the companion app's Alexa settings or may be a standalone screen within the app. If it is a standalone screen, we recommend using the Things to Try content so that customers are reminded of the benefits of staying signed in.
Alexa settings within your companion app will give your customer more control over their Alexa experience without having to use the Alexa app. The Alexa settings section should be labeled "Amazon Alexa" and if you use logos for each setting, use the Alexa brand asset provided by Amazon.
Your companion app should present all the Amazon settings that your product allows customers to change. Settings that can be made available in your companion app include:
- Alexa language selection and multilingual mode
- Time zone
- Enabling and disabling the start and stop listening sounds (only for products with prominent LEDs)
- Do Not Disturb
- Signing out.
Important: If your product enables multilingual mode, you must allow customers to choose their preferred languages, including specifying the primary language, in the Alexa settings in your companion app.
Using multilingual mode, Alexa is able to understand customer utterances in multiple languages and reply in the language the customer is currently using. Customers can choose which languages Alexa will understand, including designating a primary language which will determine the language of the on-device prompts. Alexa skills will also be available depending on whether they support the chosen primary language.
Find information about enabling multilingual mode in the locale combinations API page, which also has a list of which languages/locales are currently included.
Alexa in App
When integrating Alexa into your product, your product must have:
- Affordances to physically interact with Alexa
- Affordances to communicate Alexa states
This can be either on the device or in your companion app, however, it is strongly discouraged to put this in your companion app as it does not provide your customer with a great Alexa experience.
If your companion app is the way a customer physically interacts with Alexa, it must follow the following guidelines for both buttons and Alexa states.
Alexa States
A product should ideally display the Alexa states on the product and not in the companion app, as it is not a good customer experience. However, if you choose to display the Alexa states in the companion app, you must communicate state to customers either visually or with the sounds provided by Amazon. A great product experience communicates Alexa states with both, and they should be synchronized.
Your companion app needs to use audio cues to indicate when Alexa has started and stopped listening. Sounds communicate Alexa states and should use the sound file optimized for your speaker quality. Typically companion apps use the "medium" set, though there are three sets of sound files available.
See Attention System Sounds for more details.
Voice Chrome
Coupled with a VUI response, voice chrome visually communicates Alexa's various attention states to customers.
For specific guidance on colors and animations for each state, see Attention System Voice Chrome.
Logo and Brand
Consistent use of Amazon Alexa brand assets throughout your companion app will protect product integrity and help customers to instantly recognize references to Amazon Alexa, thereby allowing your app to be clearly understood. See AVS UX Logo and Brand Usage for more information.
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Last updated: Sep 05, 2023


text: Our range includes ABS and PP (plastic and chrome metal) pipe with dimension Ø32 and 40 mm. ABS pipe can be solvent welded and handles temperature of up to 70°C. Our bent plastic pipe is also of this quality. PP can handle significantly higher temperatures (+100°C) and is resistant to most chemicals. Our straight pipe lengths are available in both PP and ABS qualities.


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The Big Bang Theory Season 7 Episode 13 : The Occupation Recalibration
Latest The Big Bang Theory Episodes
Sheldon tries to relax after he is forced to take a vacation. Meanwhile, Leonard struggles to be supportive of Penny after she quits her job, and Bernadette seeks Stuart's help in replacing one of Howard's comic books.
Episode Guide
Season 01
Season 02
Season 03
Season 04
Season 05
Season 06
Season 07
Season 08
Season 09
Season 10
Season 11
Season 12


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The old comments are available in the new interface, but the new comments are not available in the old commenting system, if you decide to switch back. Blogger's comment feeds don't include the comments from the new interface, you can no longer manage comments from the Blogger dashboard and the new comments aren't included when you export your blog.
Here's the empty comment feed for a post that has a lot of comments:
When you switch to Google+ Comments, you outsource the comments to Google+, but Google+ doesn't have a section that lets you manage the comments and there's no way to export the new comments.


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Suppose we have a recursively enumerable set of polynomials $\mathcal{P}=\{ p_1({\bf x}), p_2({\bf x}), \ldots\}, p_i \in \mathbb{Z}[{\bf x}], {\bf x} = (x_1, \ldots, x_n)$. Let $V(\mathcal{P})$ denote the affine variety in $\mathbb{C}^n$ defined by $\mathcal{P}$. Is there an algorithm to compute $V(\mathcal{P})$? By the Nullstellensatz, we know that we need only use finitely many of the polynomials $p_i$ to cut out $V(\mathcal{P})$. We can recursively compute varieties cut out by $\{p_1, \ldots, p_k\}$, for example by computing a Grobner basis for the radical ideal of $(p_1,\ldots,p_k)$. But is there a way to compute $k$ such that $V(\mathcal{P})=V(p_1,\ldots,p_k)$?
Please let me know if this question needs clarification or if I'm not using the correct notation.
Addendum: This problem was motivated by this MO question. It would follow from:
If one has a finitely generated group $G$ with solvable word problem, for any $n$ can one compute the representation variety $G\to SL_n(\mathbb{C})$?
I view $G$ as being given as the homomorphic image of a free group $\\langle g_1,\ldots,g_k\\rangle$. Moreover, there is a Turing machine which takes as input any element $h\in \\langle g_1,\ldots,g_k\\rangle$ and tells if $h$ is trivial in $G$. The space of representations $\rho:G\to SL_n(\mathbb{C})$ is an affine variety, with $kn^2$ variables given by the entries of the matrices of $\rho(g_i)$. One can recursively generate polynomials which are the entries of the matrices $\rho(h)-I$ which cut out the representation variety (together with $det(\rho(g_i))-1$). So the algorithm should depend on how these polynomials are generated, if one wants to be able to compute the representation variety for each $n$. I suspect that the answer is no, although I'm not sure how to generalize Borcherds or Groves' answers to this context.
If one could compute the representation variety, then one could determine if $G$ has a homomorphism to a finite group.


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It looks like Chloe King may indeed have nine lives, or at least her show may have a second one. At today's ABC Family session of the Television Critics Association Press Tour, president Michael Riley said that a TV movie of cancelled The Nine Lives of Chloe King may be coming.
The Nine Lives of Chloe King was cancelled in September following a less-than-successful season of 10 episodes. Like many ongoing serials that end prematurely, Chloe King left viewers with lots of unanswered questions. In the final episode, Chloe (Skyler Samuels) lost another of her lives and was kissed by Brian (Grey Damon) — who then died (?) from the contact. Alek (Benjamin Stone) walked in on his brother Zane (Daniel Sharman) as he stood over Jasmine (Alyssa Diaz) and Valentina (Alicia Coppola) as they are dying from poison.
Interestingly, Riley prefers not to talk about the cable channel's decisions to cancel certain shows and that includes Chloe King. He said, "We never talk about cancelling shows at ABC Family. We always make sure we air all of our productions because for us, it's very much a long-term view. Honestly, we love all of our shows, and Chloe King is such a great example of just an amazing show. We loved the cast, we loved the writing in that show. For us, it was about making some decisions. We had to choose between what we thought was resonating stronger with the audience."
Riley continued, "We are actually on the verge of putting a movie into development. For us, we are always looking at the intellectual property that we're capitalizing on and making sure there is opportunity." He emphasized that the projects not a done deal yet however, saying, "We are just looking at it in development right now. The idea is very much to capitalize on the storytelling that's already been in place."
What do you think? Would you like to see a Chloe King movie? What other "cancelled" ABC Family shows should be given a second look?
Image courtesy ABC Family.


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TimTec offers the following pre-designed collections for research/high throughput screening:
• General screening - Diversity compound collections of various size pre-selected from available stock with maximum chemical diversity.
ActiProbe Series
Diversity Set 10K
MyriaScreen Diversity Collection
• Nature-Inspired Chemistry
Natural Products Library, NPL - pure natural compounds
Natural Derivatives Library, NDL - natural derivatives
Flavonoid Derivatives
Plant Extracts
• ActiTarg Series - Targeted libraries:
• Template-Based - Groups with common heterocyclic lattices:
5-Membered Aromatic Heterocycles
5-Membered Fused Aromatic Heterocycles
6-Membered Aromatic Heterocycles
6-Membered Fused Aromatic Heterocycles
• Privileged Structures - Compounds containing chemical motifs that are more frequently associated with higher biological activity
• FBL - Fragment-Based Library
• Activity-Aimed Sets based on molecular activity
ActiCom – Compounds with Known Activity
O-GlcNAc Transferase Inhibitors
Activators of Neutrophils
Inhibitors of Anthrax LF
Potent TNF-α Inducers
• Custom Compound Collections
Choose any number of samples from TimTec database of screening compounds based on your own criteria. Compounds from TimTec pre-designed libraries are also available for cherry-picking. ActiMol Stock library contains >100,000 compounds (1-2 weeks delivery time). Overseas stock inventory is >500,000 compounds (1-4 months delivery).
How to find the right library collection(s)?
Library collections selection guide
You are welcome to contact TimTec for a free consultation
New Arrivals
TimTec scientists closely monitor the direction of life-science research to ensure relevant chemical materials re-supply to match current trends in screening. New compound families are designed and synthesized on a regular basis.
Subscribe to TimTec Updates
Our compound collections offer greater diversity as we have balanced the combination of in-house synthesis and outside sourcing. Our researchers ensure a high diversity score from collection to collection. We prefer avoiding combinatorial chemistry approach in library design and all our molecules are hand-synthesized. Our compounds are stored in dry form and are freshly prepared in DMSO. TimTec offers a variety of screening collections to suit different in capacity and design/purpose assays. Chemical compounds in our library collections are available for re-supply from our US stock.
Quality Control and Compound Purity
TimTec determines structure and purity of all compounds by using NMR and mass spectrometry. Our compounds have an average purity of 95%, and the minimum purity is at least 90%. We randomly check the quality of our stock compounds on a regular basis to confirm stability and shelf life. 1H-NMR spectra are available upon request for all stock compounds.
Download featured databases of Screening Compounds and Building Blocks without registration.Please register for full access.
Phone: 302-292-8500 Fax: 302-292-8520


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Every gift to the College of Engineering makes a difference, whether by supporting the latest faculty research or the dreams of new students. You can choose to advance the college's excellence by giving to college-wide initiatives, to a specific department or program, to scholarships, to faculty initiatives or in support of college facilities.
College of Engineering
Development and External Relations
[email protected]
(530) 752-3849 (Phone)


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EDI VAN for 7-Eleven Suppliers
Are you a 7-Eleven supplier looking for an EDI Value-Added Network (VAN) solution? Congratulations! As part of your relationship with 7-Eleven you want to cut costs and increase revenue; BOLD VAN helps you do both. Connect to 7-Eleven and all of your EDI trading partners and save money. BOLD Van is the FIRST and ONLY VAN that lets you pay by the trading partner. There is no limit on the amount of data you exchange.
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Retail companies like 7-Eleven will typically use a Value-Added Network and/or AS2. For perhaps the first time ever, it is more economical to use BOLD VAN than AS2 because:
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7-Eleven EDI Transaction Sets
Below is a list of the 7-Eleven EDI transactions. All transaction codes used are a part of the ANSI ASC X12 EDI standards. This list may change, so please verify your EDI requirements for 7-Eleven or contact BOLD VAN and we'll help you!
- 810 – Invoice
- 820 – Remittance Advice
- 850 – Purchase Order
- 864 – Text Message
- 997 – Acknowledgement
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As long-time readers know, I get a large volume of research sent my way. I can't get to all of it every week, but I really do try. And today's Outside the Box, from a new (to me) source, hooked me from the first few paragraphs.
Correlation is not causation, as we all know. That brings us to the Fed, where many market observers are seeing causation when there might be other reasons for stock market movements. What if the victory lap Bernanke has taken due to stock market results is perhaps a little too early or out of place entirely? And what might that potentially say about future market performance and correlations?
Denis Ouellet wrote today's Outside the Box and graciously gave me permission to use it. I asked him a little about who he is. Turns out he lives in Montreal (but winters in Florida), is almost 60, and has retired after nearly 35 years in the investment business as an analyst and head of research for a brokerage company, an equity manager for various investment organizations (pension, mutual, and hedge funds], head of global equity investments at a major pension fund, and chairman of the equity investment committee of a major pension and mutual fund investment organization. Like me, he travels around the world and has lots of kids (just 5 in his case). His blog is New$ to Use.
I leave on Wednesday for Atlanta and will eventually end up in New York on Sunday to start a 36-hour marathon of meetings and interviews, plus a speech or two. On Tuesday morning I am with Tom Keene on Bloomberg at 7-7:30 AM.
Your always paying attention to earnings analyst,
John Mauldin, Editor
What If the Fed Has It All Wrong?
By Denis Ouellet
This is the fourth major intervention from the Fed since 2009, each one apparently inflating asset prices without having a definitive impact on the economy other than, most importantly, preventing a lethal debt deflation spiral.
The chart above is used extensively to illustrate the close relationship between QEs and equity prices. Hence, the investors' Pavlovian reaction to last week's FOMC announcement of an open ended and unlimited money printing program. Virtually every asset class rose, giving credence to Ben Bernanke's attempt to create a stimulating wealth effect.
What if the Fed has it all wrong?
Correlation does not imply causation. Could there be another reason for the spectacular rise in equity prices since 2009? Let's try earnings, just in case that intuitive, time-tested relationship might still be working:
If there were a direct link between QEs and corporate profits, it should be apparent in S&P 500 companies' revenues. Yet, Index sales have only grown 16.5% during the last 3.5 years — nothing close to the 60% jump in Fed assets. Given that the Fed is now totally focused on growing employment, I doubt that it would take credit for the spectacular jump in profit margins since 2009, since most of it emanated from cost cutting (mostly labor) and rising productivity.
Additionally, some recent facts point to weaker earnings ahead:
- Quarterly sales and earnings have peaked in the last 9-12 months.
- Corporate profit margins are at an all-time high.
It is therefore, dangerous to assume that margins will expand any further. From now on, corporations need to increase sales to grow their earnings. Unfortunately, demand is waning.
American wages — currently at a 50-year low as a percentage of GDP — are rising very slowly, so slowly that it is hampering consumer spending and the overall economy. At the time of previous QEs, also designed to create a wealth effect, wages were rising at a much faster clip than today. Furthermore, real wages were rising during 2009 and 2010, partly offsetting slow employment growth.
Today, employment growth remains below 1.5% YOY, a rate insufficient to reduce unemployment. Nominal wages are growing 1.2%, while inflation is 1.7% and threatens to accelerate, in large part due to the impact that the Fed's actions are having on commodity prices, particularly oil prices.
The U.S. economy got lucky in 2011 when gasoline prices dropped 18% to .20/gallon just in time for the back-to-school season and Christmas. Its luck extended into 2012, when the U.S. experienced an extraordinarily warm winter. Unless something extraordinary happens soon (SPR releases?), the exact opposite will happen. Gasoline prices have jumped 16% since July, adding to the squeeze just as we enter the most important shopping period of the year (chart below from gasbuddy.com):
The following chart plots the Fed's printing with commodity prices. Unlike the relationship with equity prices, it is difficult to find anything else than excess financial liquidity to explain the spectacular rise in commodity prices. Considering how world economies have been doing lately, why is it that commodity prices have not declined significantly?
The Fed's balance sheet is set to grow another 0 billion by the end of 2013 — the same amount it has increased since 2009 — a period during which commodity prices jumped 20%.
The Fed wants to grow employment faster, but jobs don't grow out of thin air. Corporations create jobs when they have the means, they see a need, and there is visibility to commit. Needless to say, the last two conditions are far from being met these days. The Fed can't offset negative U.S. politics, the European mess, or the Chinese slowdown.
Bringing mortgage rates further down might help the slowly recovering housing sector and restart construction employment, but low wages and rising inflation remain a problem, which might perversely be aggravated by the very actions the Fed is taking.
Wages are not about to accelerate but inflation and taxation are problematic. If the American consumer can't spend, who will provide the needed spark?
Higher P/E Ratios to the Rescue?
Earnings have stalled, corporations are cutting guidance, and analysts are busy revising their estimates downward. Q312 estimates have been cut 8% since March, and are now below Q2 earnings, which themselves came in much lower than originally expected. Q3 earnings are now projected to be lower YOY.
If so, trailing 12 months EPS peaked last quarter and will decline in Q3. The earnings tailwind has disappeared.
There have been eight periods since 1935 when equities have risen in the face of declining earnings (see Banking (Betting) On Bankers?). In all cases, inflation declined, along with earnings.
The dependable Rule of 20 says that "Fair trailing P/E = 20 minus inflation". Lower inflation begets lower P/Es. Fair P/E is thus 18.3 at the current 1.7% inflation level, 23% above the current 14.8x P/E, pointing to 1800 as fair value on the S&P 500 Index based on trailing EPS of .69. If this undervaluation is narrowed by the liquidity pumped out by the Fed, could it create enough wealth effect to push U.S. consumers into a spending spree, despite negative real labor income growth?
The problem with Bernanke's wealth effect thesis lies with the new reality in America. Lately, income and assets have been so significantly redistributed that only a tiny few actually feel a wealth effect from rising equity prices. Here are some sad facts:
- Last year, the top 20% of households took in 51.1% of all income in 2011, up from 50.2% in 2010 and the highest share since at least 1967, according to the Census Bureau. After the top, each quintile of income earners saw their share of income decrease, with the biggest drop among middle income earners. The middle fifth of households took in 14.3% of all income last year. (WSJ)
- In 2007, the top 20% of income earners had 53% of their financial holdings in stocks (directly and indirectly), down from 59% in 2001. Middle income earners had 38% of their financial assets in stocks in 2007, down spectacularly from 47% in 2001.
- Stock holdings have obviously declined since 2007:
- U.S. home values remain 30% below their 2006 peak level, and are unchanged from their 2003 levels.
- Total residential mortgage debt has only declined 7.5% since 2008. Some 1.5 million homes are in foreclosure, but 10.8 million homes remain in negative equity.
The "wealthy few" may feel wealthier if stocks advance, but they could nevertheless have much less after-tax income to spend when politicians finally address the looming fiscal cliff nestled within the rapidly growing mountain of debt.
Keep in mind that it is these wealthy people who run American corporations, keeping them lean and mean and flush with cash. They remember how profits literally disappeared in 18 months in 2007-08. They remember how financial markets totally froze in 2008. They see the humongous budget deficits and the debt piling on, and the not-so-distant day of reckoning. They realize that all the QEs can't offset inept and irresponsible politicians on either side of the Atlantic. Yet, they are the ones targeted by the so-called wealth effect!
Call that pushing on a golden string.
Meanwhile, the less affluent — the other 80%, some 250 million people — are little concerned by an eventual wealth effect but highly, directly and immediately impacted by the side effects of all these QEs, namely rising commodity prices and near zero interest rates. Consider that:
- 15% of the U.S. population lives in poverty.
- 44% of those 46.2 million poor Americans are in "deep poverty," which is half the poverty line defined as ,811 for a family of four.
- More than 45 million Americans are in the food stamps program — 15% of the population compared with the 7.9% participation from 1970-2000. Food-stamp enrollment has been rising at a rate of 400,000 per month over the past four years. Only last August, more people went on the food-stamp program (173,000) than those who managed to find a new job (96,000).
- More than 11 million Americans are collecting federal disability checks.
- 11.2% of the labor force is out of work if we include the 7 million people no longer seeking employment. This number (over 17 million workers) is unchanged since 2009.
- Full-time employment remains 1.4 million below its 2009 level. Needless to say, part-timers earn and spend considerably less.
- Most of the 43.5 million American retirees must cope with nominal interest rates near zero through 2015 when inflation is around 2.0%.
Call that pushing on a chafed string.
Betting on Bankers?
Now that U.S. and Europe central banks have delivered the financial heroine needed to compensate for inept and irresponsible politicians, should we jump back into equities?
Will professional investors drive equities higher?
The risk here is that, much like business people, investors stay cautious, given the numerous and highly complex difficulties the U.S. and the world are facing. They will also consider that, at the time of previous QE program launches, equity markets were similarly undervalued, but many economic trends were then more positive:
- Earnings were in a strong uptrend on rising margins
- Oil prices were much lower
- U.S. real wages were rising (not in 2011)
- The 2011-12 winter was one of the mildest on record in the U.S.
- Europe was not in recession
- China was still growing strongly
Interestingly, equities undervaluation, as measured by the Rule of 20, narrowed from 40% to 0 during QE1, from 23% to 7% during QE2, and from 19% to 14% during Operation Twist (see the black line in chart below). The recent rally has narrowed the undervaluation from 27% to 19%. It would be very surprising if we got near fair value anytime soon. If 10% undervaluation (average of QE2 and OT) is the best we can hope for, the resulting 16.5 P/E (90% of 20 minus 1.7% inflation) brings the S&P 500 to 1625, just about 10% above current levels.
That assumes that inflation stays constant at 1.7% YOY. However, gasoline prices are +7% YOY in September after rising 1.8% in August.. If they remain unchanged until year-end, gas prices will be +18% YOY in December. Not only would that considerably disrupt Christmas sales, it would also help raise inflation (gasoline is 5.5% of the CPI, energy is 9.7%). If inflation rises to 2.0%, a 10% undervaluation would get the S&P 500 Index to 1565, a mere 6% above current levels.
If the Fed has it all wrong, simply pushing on golden or chafed strings, and the only effect of QE3 is to boost inflation, only God(ot) knows what will happen.
While the Fed waits for the wealth effect to take effect, the European Central Bank is also waiting for its own Godot following Draghi's magic with the ECB rules and regulations. Super Mario's "whatever it takes" promise is powerful, but not without pitfalls:
- When, if ever, will the Eurozone achieve the necessary banking and fiscal unions?
- Will Spain and Italy surrender before it is too late?
- Will ever more austerity finally work?
- When will the debt spiral stop?
- How much longer will the Germans put up with the situation, accepting that the ECB ruins its balance sheet taking unlimited risk on behalf of the German taxpayers, risking their fiscal sovereignty to save the "reckless Southerners"?
- How much longer will the hordes of unemployed young Europeans put up with the situation?
Bankers have indeed delivered. In truth, however, they are merely experimenting with totally unproven ways and means, hoping to gain enough time until more responsible politicians emerge. Given the significant risk still facing us until Godot arrives, investors should await more evidence that either earnings resume their uptrend or some kind of miracle(s) happen.
Equity holdings should be trimmed to conservative levels. Sustainable income should be favored. Cash earns essentially nothing, but is safe for now. Gold remains attractive for many, many obvious reasons.
Outside the Box is a free weekly economic e-letter by best-selling author and renowned financial expert, John Mauldin. You can learn more and get your free subscription by visiting https://www.mauldineconomics.com.


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By Anthony Izaguirre
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service is considering closing post offices across the country, sparking concerns ahead of an anticipated surge of mail-in ballots in the 2020 elections, U.S. Sen Joe Manchin and a union leader said Wednesday.
Manchin said he has received numerous reports from post offices and colleagues about service cuts or looming closures in West Virginia and elsewhere, prompting him to send a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy asking for an explanation.
The possible cutbacks come as DeJoy, a major donor to President Donald Trump who took control of the agency last month, moves to eliminate overtime for hundreds of thousands of postal workers, potentially causing a delay in mail deliveries. A recent document from the Postal Service, obtained by The Associated Press, described the need for an "operational pivot" to make the cash-strapped agency financially stable.
"It's just asinine to think that you can shut something down or throttle it back in terms of the pandemic when basically the lifeline for voting and democracy is going to be in the hands of the Postal Service," Manchin, a Democrat, told reporters Wednesday.
He said at least two post offices in West Virginia had been scheduled to close next month but that the agency had "slowed" its plans.
A spokesman for the Postal Service referred questions to a prior statement from DeJoy, which said the agency "has experienced over a decade of financial losses, with no end in sight, and we face an impending liquidity crisis." The statement goes on to say that "it is critical that the Postal Service take a fresh look at our operations and make necessary adjustments."
Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, which represents more than 200,000 postal workers and retirees, said there's "definitely buzz" about closures although he said he was not aware of specific details. A spokesman for the union said rank-and-file postal employees have been told by managers that their offices are being targeted for potential cutbacks.
"The logical conclusion is that he's going to try to close some post offices," Dimondstein said of the postmaster general's belt-tightening strategies.
The coronavirus pandemic has created further strain on Postal Service finances. The service reported a $4.5 billion loss for the quarter ending in March, before the full effects of the shutdown sank in.
Manchin's letter noted that the coronavirus relief package passed by Congress in March included authorization for the agency to borrow up to $10 billion from the U.S. Treasury. The money was intended to help the Postal Service maintain essential services during the pandemic.
"Unfortunately, not only has little to none of that funding been utilized, you are now proposing the very cuts that we sought to avoid with that emergency line of credit," Manchin said in his letter.
Later Wednesday, Treasury announced it had reached agreement with the Postal Service on the terms of any future borrowing but also said the service was able to fund its operations at this time without using a loan.
The Associated Press produced this coverage with support from Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Source: AP News