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What Every Healthcare Investor Needs to Understand About Drug PricingDavid Friend Follow |
"When it comes to Healthcare ....Pricing is what you pay....Value is what you don't get."
—Mashup with Warren Buffet and Yogi Berra
One of the most important factors in investing in healthcare going forward is truly understanding and accurately forecasting the potential earnings power of new products and services. The ability of investors to accurately determine the future prices of new products and services is absolutely critical towards accurately modeling the EBITDA, ROI, EPS, CAPEX and NPV of the companies they are targeting.
The rewards of correctly calculating these factors over time can be wonderfully life-changing in terms of one's portfolio. The cost of miscalculating these factors over time can be equally as devastating.
At the recent Harvard Business School Healthcare Alumni Conference, it was estimated that in the coming decade more than $10 trillion in wealth will be created as investors are drawn to new innovative healthcare products and services. Innovation in healthcare has blossomed with the science behind the Genomic Revolution and the realization that many human illnesses, particularly cancer, are analogous to software defect. Precision medicine and other new forms of treatment based on discoveries in molecular biology and computer science promise to revolutionize the way we care for patients.
However as rosy as this outlook appears, it was also predicted at Harvard that more than $4 trillion will be destroyed during the same time period. This will be the result of products and services made obsolete by these new disruptive discoveries at a pace never before seen.
To state the obvious, in order to create Alpha, investors will need to put their money on the winners and short or avoid the losers. A key determinant to winning will be the mastery of Pricing.
Why Pricing Matters
In the United States, the process by which the pricing of new products and services in healthcare occurs is a function of the regulatory environment that controls the pace of innovation and competition--both of which are a byproduct of complex state and federal political processes that regulate the healthcare industry. In the past, predicting pricing on future products and services was relatively easy because there was no requirement to take into the account the "clinical value" of the product or service produced. If the product was new or competition could be held to a minimum, forecasting pricing for investors could be rather straight forward with fairly predictable and steady results and cash flows
Over the last year or so, an increasing number of critical headlines have appeared regarding the way drug prices are established in the United States. This is not really surprising as many business models are dependent on some form of price and quality opacity for a significant portion of their profits. The only real surprise to this observer is that it's taken so long for this issue to appear on the front burner.
As a Healthcare investor, one cannot have failed to notice the almost daily stories regarding the pricing of innovative new medicines such as drugs to treat hepatitis C as well as stories about companies purchasing older medications and raising their prices dramatically. The former discussion really is about how society wants to reward the risks and cost of innovation going forward. The latter is about how much society wants to permit competition and the information transparency required to enable it.
Understanding the Future of Innovation and Competition
There is a disruptive revolution going on in the areas of innovation and competition. The disruption caused by Innovation is being driven by the scientific discoveries we previously mentioned.
The disruption occurring in Competition is being caused by legislation, the unsustainable increase in healthcare spending as a percentage of GDP, and the revolution in technology that is empowering consumers.
As a result, it is critical for investors to have a point of view on both of these factors. The days when new drugs can simply be priced without limitation is coming to an end. Emerging discussions focused on pricing new innovations by simply using "cost accounting" to develop new drugs ignores the extraordinary risks that financial capital is required to endure to produce them. Current estimates are that nine out of 10 drugs fail to reach the marketplace. While it is often mentioned that it can cost more than $1 billion to get a new drug to market, what investors often to fail to realize is that the costs often refers to nine drugs that failed at $100 million each as well as the one drug that succeeded for $100 million. Simply pricing the new drug based on its $100 million cost of development while ignoring the losses investors suffered will dramatically reduce the incentives for innovation. While I expect these cost-based discussions will receive a lot of attention and will need to be closely monitored to see if they get real traction, I don't believe they will be enacted. Having personally experienced the failure of wage and price controls in the early 1970s, I don't believe that our society will go back in that direction.
If we are to motivate investors who are expected to endure nine total investment failures for every success, society will need to balance the enormous investments required to produce new drugs with their attendant risk of failure against the potential value that new inventions bring to society. The nascent move towards pricing new medications based on the value they bring to patients and society is one that I believe every investor is going to need to come to grips with because slowly, but inevitably, I believe it will become the coin of the realm.
At the same time the use of competition to help moderate and establish drug prices will increasingly come to fruition as a policy tool and as an outcome of the consumer revolution. As consumers become responsible for paying for a larger percentage of their drug costs out of the their own wallets through a combination of increasing copayments, deductibles, tiered pricing arrangements and indication-specific pricing, we can expect consumers and those entities that negotiate for them such as pharmacy benefit managers, health plans and consumer focused ecommerce websites to continue to revolutionize the purchasing process in the same way that consumer empowerment has revolutionized the travel industry, the retail industry and the transportation industry.
How Politics as Usual Affects Drug Pricing
It should be no surprise that the healthcare industry will push back on competitive forces where it can through mergers and acquisitions, advertising as well as intense lobbying to help move the political process in its favor. Just look at the way Airbnb and Uber have mobilized its customers to act in the political arena to defeat political actions designed to limit their business. I believe the health industry will continue to raise prices on older products as it can, albeit more discreetly, both to boost cash flow for investors as well as to fund development of new innovations. I also expect the government to apply more scrutiny to transactions that reduce competition. The Federal Trade Commission already appears to be taking a more active stance with respect to mergers in the healthcare provider space.
As these forces of innovation and competition continue to disrupt the healthcare system, it will be more important than ever to understand how these forces will impact the pricing of the new products or services being considered for capital allocation. This is because the major driver of future wealth creation will be both the creation of new products and services AND the ability to set a price for them that rewards investment.
While stories about order of magnitude price increases for older drugs may make for interesting headlines in the short run, the days of unbridled price increases for drugs and services that are unrelated to the clinical value being created are clearly coming to an end. Business models built on this strategy of "buy and raise" are no longer as attractive to investors as they once were.
Investing in an Evolving Healthcare Market
In the future, investors will create Alpha through their focus on competition and innovation and understanding their impact on pricing. This focus will likely lead to three types of investment situations:
1. Products and services that are truly innovative and can produce superb clinical outcomes and have no meaningful clinical competition. These companies will command well-deserved premium pricing that will result in outstanding returns for shareholders.
2. Products and services that are made obsolete by innovation. These companies will rapidly lose pricing power with dismal returns for their shareholders.
3. Products and services that have traditionally relied on quality and information opacity or reduced competition. Without a truly innovative competitor, these companies will slowly lose pricing power until they are either obsoleted by an eventual innovator or find a stable price point that provides reasonable value for the clinical outcomes obtained. Such a scenario, which will likely be the most common of the three, will yield slightly below market matching returns for their shareholders.
In order to create Alpha, your healthcare portfolio will need to find and invest in several category one's in order to compensate for the inevitable category three's while avoiding category two's at all costs.
The health investing game is clearly becoming more difficult, potentially more lucrative and a lot more risky. An understanding of the forces that shape pricing will be required for all who wish to play going forward.
By Dr. David Friend, MD, MBA, the Chief Transformation Officer and Managing Director of BDO's Center for Healthcare Excellence & Innovation.
DISCLOSURE: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of equities.com. Readers should not consider statements made by the author as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. To read our full disclosure, please go to: http://www.equities.com/disclaimer.
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e-Service Plattform Innelandet
Researcher: Olov Forsgren
Partners: Municipality of Örnsköldsvik
Founding: Vinnova
The project takes the next step towards the Information Society 3.0, by developing e-services platform eSPINN, that provide equivalent services and service levels across the geographically large / small municipality in terms of population Örnsköldsvik. Citizens should have access to the same services regardless of where he / she lives in the community. The project builds on the results and methodology of the successfully completed / ongoing projects, municipal Vinnova Project ISSI as spin-off company Innelandet AB.
Last updated:
January 2, 2013
Source: DSV e-gov

subset: commoncrawl


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Snow Leopard eating users at home
On 8 October, CNET reported that some users' home directories suffered random munchie Snow Leopard (SL) attacks. Yup, the world's most advanced operating system is eating its way into the hard disks of a select user base. Apple are aware of this issue and are taking strides to correct the problem — which is reckoned to occur only in "extremely rare cases" — but a problem like this which did not exist in Leopard shouldn't plague even a small minority of Snow Leopard users. According to Apple's Discussion forum, affected Snow Leopard users have experienced random data wipes of the directory of most import: the home directory. iPhone users, too, are affected; the device's data too, is backed up in the home directory: users/Library/Application Support/Mobile Sync/Backup.
In one blow, SL can erase your most important data, along with all of your iDevice backups. Naturally, users should use a backup system such as Time Machine which comes standard in OSX 10.5-6, but there are other, cheaper, and in some cases, better options. One such is Carbon Copy Cloner which I prefer simply because it is bootable and therefore, great for trouble shooting. It is also Free.
If Apple can fix this issue, it will still be an uphill battle against the issue-plagued OS. In case you missed our other findings, SL has outted: optical drive failures (not an issue of Snow Leopard), and Battery failure (probably the fault of Snow Leopard).
Remember that the vast majority of users have reported no concerns, but even these few instances are marring what could/should have been a great launch to an important incremental upgrade to Apple's showy OS.[via The Register]


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Android users watch out: new research shows that in the second quarter of 2012 Android malware threats have increased three-fold
According to Kaspersky Labs, dodgy Android apps and the like have almost tripled in the second quarter of the year, which equates to 14,900 new bits of malicious code.
Out of this number, 49 per cent were 'multi-functional' Trojans, so when they get on to a phone or tablet they can suck up phone numbers and also download content on to a devicewithout the owner realising.
The other half of the malware was split between SMS Trojans and those that use backdoors to gain full control of devices.
Speaking about the worrying upsurge of malware, Yuri Namestnikov, Senior Malware Analyst at Kaspersky Lab, said: "In the near future, we expect not only more malware, but more effective and dangerous malware targeting Android.
"Judging from existing trends, we should expect that cybercriminals will soon shift to more personalised attacks.
"This is primarily about malware hunting for confidential data with which to steal money from users' credit cards."
After all that, we feel the need to end this article with a Crimewatch-style 'don't have nightmares' sign off.
Via SlashGear


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With something like $800 billion in the stimulus bill passed yesterday in the House of Representatives and maybe several trillion more to be decided later for bank bailouts (not to mention the TARP and other bailouts), who will get rich?
If history is any guide, lawmakers, their families and top executives across the country will get rich with your tax money….
By Stephen Dinan and S. A. Miller
The Washington Times
A top House Republican is demanding an investigation into whether the more than $2 billion for national parks in the House stimulus package is proper in light of the fact that the chief lobbyist for the National Parks Conservation Association is the son of House Appropriations Committee Chairman David R. Obey.
NPCA is a major player in advocating for national parks funding, and its senior vice president for government affairs is Craig Obey, son of the Wisconsin Democrat who has long been his party's top Appropriations Committee member.
The money included in the stimulus bill that passed Mr. Obey's committee – $2.25 billion – was about equal to the National Park Service's total yearly budget, and would be a staggering increase and almost three times the $802 million that the Senate Appropriations Committee approved for park spending in its stimulus bill.
Read the rest:


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Haiku Northwest has a Yahoo discussion group for news and announcements (open to everyone), plus a Facebook page. In addition, try out the following links for more information about haiku and other poetry.
Bellingham Haiku Group (our sister organization)
Commencement Bay Haiku (our sister organization
Port Townsend Haiku Group (our sister organization)
Pacifi-kana (British Columbia haiku group)
Eastside Nihon Matsuri Association (Aki Matsuri - Japanese Fall Festival)
Japan Fair (Japanese Summer Festival in Bellevue, Washington)
Frogpond (journal)
The Heron's Nest (journal)
Modern Haiku (journal)
Becoming a Haiku Poet (essay)
Forms in English Haiku (essay)
What Is a Haiku—And What Isn't? (essay)
Graceguts Essays (many additional haiku-related essays available here)


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What is an EA?
EA is the professional designation for an Enrolled Agent. After the Civil War, many citizens had problems settling claims with the government for horses and other property confiscated for use in the war effort. After many petitions and much pleading, Congress in 1884 endowed Enrolled Agents with the power of advocacy to prepare claims against the government and to seek equitable justice for the citizenry. For many years, the purpose of the Enrolled Agent was to act in this capacity.
In 1913, when the income tax was passed, the job of the Enrolled Agent was expanded to include claims for monetary relief for citizens whose taxes had become inequitable. As the income tax, estate, gift and other sources of tax collections became more complex, the role of the Enrolled Agent increased to include the preparation of the many tax forms that were required. Additionally, as audits became more prevalent, their role evolved into taxpayer advocacy, negotiating with the Internal Revenue Service on behalf of their clients.
In 1972, EAs united to form a national association to represent the needs and interests of EAs and the rights of taxpayers. That association is today called the National Association of Enrolled Agents. Through their national association and state affiliates, Enrolled Agents have successfully defended their rights to practice and furthered the passage of legislation and administrative rules that benefit both tax practitioners and ordinary citizens.
What is an Enrolled Agent?
An Enrolled Agent (EA) is an individual who had demonstrated technical competence in the field of taxation. Enrolled Agents, or EAs can represent taxpayer before all administrative levels of the Internal Revenue Service.
What does the term "Enrolled Agent" mean?
"Enrolled" means EAs are licensed by the federal government. "Agent" means EAs are authorized to appear in place of the taxpayer at the Internal Revenue Service. Only EAs, attorneys and CPAs may represent taxpayers before the IRS. The Enrolled Agent profession dates back to 1884 when, after questionable claims had been presented for Civil War losses, Congress acted to regulate persons who represented citizens in their dealings with the Treasury Department.
How can an Enrolled Agent help me?
EAs advise, represent and prepare tax returns for individuals, partnerships, corporations, estates, trusts and any entities with tax reporting requirements. EAs prepare millions of tax returns each year. Enrolled Agents expertise in the continually changing field of tax law enables them to effectively represent taxpayers audited by the IRS.
How does one become an Enrolled Agent?
The EA designation is earned in one of two ways: (1) an individual must pass a difficult two-day examination administered by the IRS which covers taxation of individuals, corporations, partnerships, estates and trusts, procedures and ethics. Next, successful candidates are subjected to rigorous background check conducted by the Internal Revenue Service: or (2) an individual may become an EA based on employment at the Internal Revenue Service for a minimum of five years in a job where he/she regularly applied and interpreted the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and regulations.
Are Enrolled Agents bound by any ethical standards?
EAs are required to abide by the provisions of U. S. Treasury Department Circular230. EAs found to be in violation of the provisions contained in Circular 230 may be suspended or disbarred.
Why should I choose an EA who is a member of the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA)?
NAEA is the professional society of Enrolled Agents. The principal concern of the association and its members is honest, intelligent, and ethical representation of the financial position of taxpayers before governmental agencies. Members of NAEA must fulfill continuing professional education requirements that exceed the IRSs required minimum. Continuing professional education must be reported every 3 years and NAEA members must complete a minimum 90 hours of education in the interpretation, application and administration of federal and state laws in order to maintain membership in the organization.


text: It's a polk-a-dot party over here on bubbly & Blooms today!!! Polk-a-dots are most definitely IN this year. When I saw this adorable blue baby doll dress I knew it was totally mine!! The best dress to throw on with some sandals and go!!! I wore this on vacation in Mexico and got so many compliments. I can picture you wearing it to brunch or to the winery with the girls, especially with this hat too!!!! The perfect play of polk-a-dots without it being too overwhelming!!


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"Mom, what do women Inuits do?" Sophie had started to think about her first big social studies project of the year. The other morning, she and I began to consult websites and bookmarked a few pages that, at quick glance, seemed to offer at least a modicum of useful facts. Not dissertation-worthy, mind you, but sufficient for a 5th grader's one-page paper. When we finished, it was almost time for her to catch the bus to school.
Tag Archives: Vesuvius
The 'S' Word in Our House is Not a 4-Letter Word
The 'S' word in our house is not 'shit.' Nope. We curse so frequently (yet another reason why we'll never win parenting of the year awards) that the girls are completely immune to all the expletives that regularly spew out of our mouths like torrents of Vesuvius lava onto Pompeii.
The 'S' word that causes groans, glares of disdain and sometimes tears is 'sports.' Dr. Seuss may not like green eggs and ham, but we do not like sports. Our kids do not have the benefit of role models when it comes to physical activity. My husband and I occasionally and reluctantly exercise to help minimize our chances of premature death and make us feel less guilty about our addiction to chocolate, but we don't exert ourselves with anything resembling enthusiasm.
Continue reading The 'S' Word in Our House is Not a 4-Letter Word


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I check Brian Harry's blog to keep my finger on the pulse of the challenges that surround upgrade and installation for the TFS community.
And even if I don't check, the comments seem to somehow always find their way into my inbox. In point of fact, the comment below recently appeared in my inbox, and it's a good question that deserves a more complete answer.
CTP4 (March) of VS/TFS 2012 Update 2 is available: New Comment
By BABRC
I'm reading the instructions found on this page: <msdn.microsoft.com/…/jj620925.aspx>
It's talking about the In-place upgrade path. Step 2 says to Uninstall Tfs. It says to use the Control Panel to completely uninstall TFS. The screen shows a 2010 server.
Then in a note after this step, it says:
"If you're upgrading TFS 2012, you don't have to uninstall the old version of TFS. You can skip this step."
This is very confusing. Do I need to uninstall or not?
Sorry for the confusion BABRC. Of course, the answer is "it depends."
- If you're upgrading from TFS 2010, then yes. You do have to uninstall the old version of TFS. If you don't, you'll get an error.
- If you're upgrading from TFS 2012, you don't have to uninstall. In fact, with the upcoming release of TFS 2012 update 2, we'll even preserve some of the settings from the previous TFS installation you're upgrading from. But we can only do this if you don't uninstall. So don't uninstall TFS 2012. During an in-place upgrade, skip the uninstall step.
What about if you're upgrading from TFS 2008? Ha ha, trick question! TFS 2008 didn't support 64-bit servers, but TFS 2012 only supports 64-bit servers. That means you can't do an in-place upgrade from TFS 2008. It's impossible. You must use different hardware.


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A device developed by the Affective Computing Group at the Media Lab has been named one of the 10 best inventions of 2011 by Popular Science magazine; it has also won a prize of $50,000 in a competition sponsored by the Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology, an organization created by doctors and engineers to develop new tools to meet clinical needs.
The hands-free heart monitor
Using low-cost video to measure vital signs.
Scott R Campbell
November 28, 2011


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New Windows Phone functionality may be harmful
September 5, 2014
September 5, 2014
Microsoft has added a new feature to its Windows Phone OS. Wi-Fi Sense contains several dangerous features. Firstly, it connects automatically to all available Wi-Fi networks, even insecure ones without any user interaction. It shares some personal data with the hotspots such as e-mail and telephone number. an lastly it allows user to share passwords to known Wi-Fi networks with his/her Skype contacts, Facebook friends and Outlook.com contacts. That means that anyone of this group would have access to even private or company Wi-Fi networks.


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Mental Health Wellness Tests
- Could You Benefit From Therapy? Quiz.
- The Three Minute Clinical Depression Test
- The Three Minute Clinical Anxiety Test
- The Three Minute Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Test
- The Fast And Easy Social Anxiety Test
Personality Disorder Tests
- Anti-Social (Sociopath) Personality Test
- Borderline Personality Disorder Test
- Codependency Quiz
- Narcissistic Personality Disorder Test
- Histrionic Personality Disorder Test
Relationship Tests
Substance Abuse Tests
- Alcoholism & Alcohol Dependency Test
- Prescription Substance Abuse Addiction Test
Our tests are designed to help identify specific issues and are in no way a diagnosis. The only way to get an official diagnosis is by visiting a doctor mental health professional. We hope that these tests help shed clarity on identifying symptoms or traits which help our audience to seek out help.


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Texas Power Brokers: Oil exports are top of mind for Corpus Christi port CEO
U.S. crude oil production is at historic highs, and more of the black gold is finding its way to tankers along the Texas Gulf Coast and into the global market.
At the beginning of 2018, Sean Strawbridge, 52, became CEO of the Port of Corpus Christi, one of the hot spots of U.S. oil exports. He's emerged as a leading proponent for investing in new crude oil docks and loading infrastructure to allow for higher volumes of U.S. oil to flow to destinations across the world.
U.S. oil exports have averaged 1.8 million barrels a day through August.
Under Strawbridge's leadership, the port is building its own crude oil export terminal on Harbor Island on land owned by the port two miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico. The project, which could cost about $1 billion, would allow for very large crude carriers, or VLCCs — among the largest oil tankers in the world — to dock and load their holds before sailing to far-flung markets.
The port and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are also widening and deepening the shipping channel, a $360-million project that has been decades in the making. The work will provide for two-way tanker traffic in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel and allow larger ships to access the port.
The San Antonio Express-News sat down with Strawbridge when he visited San Antonio in September. Here is an edited transcript of the interview:
Q: What has changed since the first crude oil export left the Port of Corpus Christi in Dec. 2015?
A: The level of activity in the industry and in Texas has grown significantly. What we have to do is make sure that we're elevating our game, that we're being more responsive in a shorter period of time, and … there's a lot of chatter out there. There's a lot of people that come and knock on my door, and claim they've got the next best mouse trap. We have to really take a good, hard look at who do we want to do business with. How do we want to do business with them? We don't want to put ourselves fully at risk. As a government agency, these are public funds. We want to make sure those funds are stable, that our bondholders … can feel confident about our revenue growth and our revenue trajectory.
Q: There's a race right now along the Texas Gulf Coast to build the first oil export terminal that can handle very large crude carriers, or VLCCs. Who do you think is going to win?
A: The market appears to be frothy, as I'll call it, with a lot of these announcements. And I'm sure for the investor community, it's difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff.
Quick facts about Port of Corpus Christi CEO Sean Strawbridge
What's you're morning routine? First thing I do in the morning is I like to read the news. That's my quiet time. I take the dog out and then I catch up on current events. The port business is such that international events can certainly affect our business and so it's important to stay as informed in current events globally as we can.
What's your favorite restaurant in Corpus Christi? Republic of Texas at the Omni Hotel in Corpus Christi
What books are you reading? Execution, by Larry Bossidy
What is your passion or hobby outside of work? I like to swim, and my wife and I travel extensively.
What was your first job with an actual paycheck? Cooking hamburgers and working the fryer at a fast-food burger joint called Zip's.
If you could choose to work in any industry doing anything, what do you think you would do? History teacher or longshoreman
We (the Port of Corpus Christi) have the good fortune of being very close to the continental shelf. Deep water is just a couple of miles from the entrance to the ship channel. And so for us to be able to go deeper and bring that deep water to the safe harbor, to the terminals, is much more economically feasible and realistic.
Q: You've raised concerns with Swiss commodity trader Trafigura's plans to build an offshore crude oil loading terminal near Corpus Christi. Why?
A: The great state of Texas has invested billions of dollars in its coastal infrastructure — in its ports, its harbors, its navigable channels. It's got 18 port authorities and six deep-draft ports. It's got a huge inter-coastal infrastructure. All of that has been done under the collaborative construct of state agencies and the local port authorities and local municipalities. What Trafigura is proposing is a circumvention of that conventional construct, which from our standpoint is very concerning. They have dusted off an obscure, arcane federal statute that was enacted at another time, back in the early '70s for another purpose.
What it does is it essentially puts all the oversight with the federal government. The reason why they (want to build) out in federal waters is not to get to deep water, because we're close to the shelf here. We can get deep water in state waters. It's to try and fast-track their permitting process using the statute that they believe is a loophole.
With their track record in environmental violations globally, we just think that we've got a better idea, and we're hopeful that Trafigura recognizes that and decides that they're not going to continue to pursue that. If they don't come to that decision on their own, I'm sure that Governor (Greg) Abbott will recognize those risks, and he wouldn't want to put the citizens of the great state of Texas … he wouldn't want to risk their livelihood. We learn that from the Deepwater Horizon (disaster). We don't want a repeat of that if we don't have to.
Q: The port has been working on a lot of projects — an ethane steam cracker joint venture between Exxon Mobil and SABIC, Cheniere Energy's liquid natural gas export facility, your own proposed crude oil export terminal on Harbor Island. What does all this development mean for the port?
A: You know, I like to say to the industry that, "Come to the Port Corpus Christi 'cause we are open for business." I am trying to, and I think my staff is doing a good job of really making us a shining example of government that works, at a time when we so rarely have an opportunity to say that.
Q: There has been resistance to some of these projects. Citizens in Portland have protested against the Exxon Mobil and SABIC joint venture while residents in Port Aransas have voiced their own concerns over the plans for Harbor Island. What's your reaction to the people who are concerned about these developments?
A: There's always going to be people who have concerns. So the important thing, as a Port Authority and a public agency, is transparency. At the end of the day, what we've got to do is make sure that there's no ambiguity about what our intentions are, about how we want to go about our developments, and how our customers are going to go about their operations. And we also have to keep an open mind. Minds are like parachutes, right? They work better when they're open.
So when there are voices of concern, that's different than voices of opposition. Voices of concern are people who really want to better understand before they can form an opinion. They want more facts. They want more information. Voices of opposition have already taken a position without knowing all the facts. There's always going to be voices of opposition in any development, particularly developments that are going to have to do with fossil fuels.
We're not going to change that constituency's core values. In fact, that's not what we're trying to do is change anybody's core values. We're trying to align our values and our commitment to doing things in a responsible, sustainable way with what the community wants. The commerce and environmental sustainability and stewardship — those are not mutually exclusive disciplines.
We've got to constantly earn the trust of the local and regional communities, and the best way to do that is give them a seat at the table, listen to what their concerns are, answer all the questions that we can possibly answer. If we don't have the information at that time, we certainly have a commitment to going and getting that information to them. But we have to recognize, again, there's going to be voices of opposition and voices of concern.
Q: What if concerned residents hear all the information and then become opponents?
A: With a certain constituency, they're not going to agree with everything that the port is doing. All we can do is continue to make that commitment for making sure that quality of life, and that ecosystem, is protected as well as continuing to drive economic prosperity.
Look, at the end of the day, without economic prosperity, nothing else happens. Somebody's got to pay for it. Here is a great opportunity for us to generate more revenues that we can then plow into more educational programs, more environmental restoration programs, more shoreline (barricade-building) programs, more social programs. There's a lot of things. Private industry isn't going to do that to the level that a port authority is, and that's really why you want the port involved.
Rye Druzin is a San Antonio-based staff writer covering Texas energy. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | firstname.lastname@example.com | Twitter: @druz_journo


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Last week while posting Allie Gory's story Allegorys I found the words flowed quicker than my fingers could type. A story within a story blossomed in seconds, concept conveyed. The thrill of victory set in. This week an agony of defeat lunged at me through the monitor.
At this moment in time, after three days of pondering, I still cannot write a parable.
But....this descending, spiraling into utter disappointment moment does not mean I cannot discuss one of the ultimate means of illustrating a concept.
Stay with me--don't leave. You may not think you can use parables in yor WIP or even write one. Don't limit yourself. Explore this great tool that Jesus used with me today.
While listening to the people gathered around Him, Jesus chose to use a short method of illustration to teach, answer, and explain concepts. Why did He do that?
The people called Him Rabbi, meaning teacher. I am His student. Therefore I want to learn how to tell or write a parable and have it ready--at my fingertips--to use at the right time.
Parables are short illustrations seeded with layers of meaning. The listeners/readers understanding depends on their level of knowledge regarding the point being made. One could be entertained with a delightful short story, another left pondering a new concept.
I pondered the parables Jesus told and wondered, what do these short stories have in common?
Key components to telling/writing a parable
*Short- Jesus' time on earth was limited. Every moment served a purpose. He did not come to be a great story teller, yet telling stories served a purpose in His ministry. By condensing His stories He helped the person/s with their current issue then He moved on to the next task.
*Simple- Jesus used parables to teach the general population. Every listening ear could understand the story in some way. He chose common settings and characters laced with a problem. As a result he didn't need to waste time with descriptions, backstory, or expansive dialogues. In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus simply starts, "A sower went out to sow." In a few short verses he tells what happened to the seeds.
This doesn't mean he couldn't carry on an intellectual conversation. He sparred intelligently with the Pharisees and Sadducees on numerous occassions and won every battle.
*People- Parables always have people as the main characters. Animals, plants, forces of nature, etc. are used in fables. Jesus used shepherds, farmers, kings, noblemen, fathers, women, etc.
*Clear- Some of Jesus' parables had several examples; others only used one situation. The parable of The Lost Sheep tells of a shepherd searching for the one lamb; the parable of The Lost Coin tells of a woman searching for one coin. Whereas The parable of The Good Samaritan tells of three men who walked by a wouded person and the parable of The Sower tells of three places seeds fell. Parables allow for variance to meet the need.
*Greatest Ingredient- The purpose of the parable is to nestle a truth within a story so that those who need to learn the concept can.
Here is a challenge for you. I will start a parable..you finish it. The endings will vary depending on your point of view of the truth.
A farmer appeared before his master one day. Pleased with the farmer's service the master rewared him with two bulls. The farmer examined the two bulls and placed the healthier one in a rich field of hearty grasses. He place the other bull.......
Rise up...take the challenge.
If you are interested here is a site that lists all of the parables Jesus told and their Scripture references:


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The seminar brings the Sustainable Development Goals, presented during the 2015 Social Good Summit, to a next level of action: designing for a sustainable future. Featering our very own Michiel Schwarz.
How can design get us from "thinking and talking" about the Goals to actually "making and doing"? Taking a sustainist perspective, Michiel Schwarz will show how new activist and community practices in design and sustainability are leading the way.
RSVP here


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Kingsbury Water Park in Warwickshire saw its worst flooding since the 1930s, with damage estimated at tens of thousands of pounds.
The park, which has 15 lakes in over 600 acres, was submerged in several feet of water after the bad weather.
A spokesman said the main entrance and the cafe are open as usual, but some activities are not possible due to the flood water.
People wanting to visit should telephone for current information.
Most Popular Now | 56,514 people are reading stories on the site right now.";


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Audio Hub
As global leaders prepare to convene in New York next week to debate the best way forward for the planet, Secretary-General António Guterres is urging them to "do what is necessary" to ensure that "we are able to solve the dramatic problems we face."
Back in June, Nigeria's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, was elected by acclamation to preside over the 74th session of the General Assembly, which kicks off in New York in just over a week.
In August, Michelle Bachelet, twice-elected President of Chile and the first head of UN Women, was confirmed as the new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, replacing Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein.
In June, the 193-member United Nations General Assembly, elected Ecuadorean Foreign Minister María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, the President of its 73rd session. Ms. Espinosa is only the fourth woman to hold that position in the history of the world body, and the first woman ever from the Latin America and the Caribbean region to preside over the Assembly.
Last May, the United Nations General Assembly elected Miroslav Lajčák, the Foreign Minister of Slovakia, President of its 72nd annual session, and he formally took up the job on 12 September.
Amidst a diminishing budget and rising casualties among 'blue helmets', peacekeeping remains "a very important tool" in the promotion of peace and stability, according to the United Nations peacekeeping chief.
Following the recent positive political developments on the Korean Peninsula, the top United Nations official in North Korea envisages a surge in global humanitarian support for the millions there who are fighting malnutrition and living in poverty.
Even though conflict – the major driver of the crisis in Sudan – is subsiding and there is improved access for relief workers, humanitarian assistance "is not the answer" to the challenges plaguing the country, the United Nations top relief official has said.
The ongoing conflict in South Sudan must be brought to an end to ease the humanitarian suffering of a steadily growing number of people in the country, the United Nations top relief official underscored after a recent visit there.
Sometimes sparks can fly in the crossroads between creativity and conflict. For this reason, the United Nations has an Ombudsman, who helps guide friction into productive solutions.


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Many people will always delight if they had a chance to look at the trendy statistic number which shows the impressive growth of tourist businesses in Asia in every recent year. Without realizing, tourism has brought a lot of good and bad things, the rich of natural resources and traditional cultures might already be sacrificed with the construction of 5 star hotels, luxury resorts, world class golf courses and tourist entertainment communities. The concept of "Ecotourism" is now spreading out widely in Asia, especially South East Asia, to provoke the prevention of these losses and urging to preserve the beauty of their natural and cultural heritage.
Despite its attractive and good-meaning philosophy, Ecotourism seems to be appropriated much in the same way as the word "Environmentally-friendly" travel during which tourists try their best to minimize environmental impact and ensure their spending and presence benefits the local community. This also implies that, 'going green' is not only related to the environment, but involves all areas of sustainability and social responsibility.
According to the International Tourism Partnership, achieving a green standard must include six key areas: environmental management, policy and framework, staff training and awareness, purchasing, people and communities and destination protection.
As travelers the world over realize that the responsibility to protect the environment is a shared one, they are adopting greener lifestyles and scrutinizing the hotels and destinations they choose to stay in. Here are the top recommendations for the "go green" hotels in Asia;
1. Banyan Tree Resort Phuket, Thailand
Transforming the site of an abandoned tin mine which was once described by the UN as a 'toxic wasteland' into the environmental showcase it is today proves just how powerful responsible tourism can be. Such is the legacy of the Banyan Tree group. Now as much of a wildlife sanctuary as it is a resort complex, the Banyan Tree Phuket is an inspiration to everyone. True champions of the principles of corporate social responsibility, guests are assured when they stay at Banyan Tree that part of their fees will be directed into conserving the environment and local community.
2. La Residence d'Angkor, Siem Reap,Cambodia
Designed to blend harmoniously with the environment, La Residence also possesses a strong commitment to sustainable tourism. Beyond their environmentally sound practices (which include treating water so that it can be released back into the river and keeping used oil for biofuel production) the hotel also donates regularly to local charities and invites guests to do the same. In particular, they support the Angkor Hospital for Children through the weekly screening of a video where guests have the opportunity to ask the hospital staff questions and can contribute either second-hand items or donate money to the cause.
3. Evason Hua Hin Resort & Six Senses Spa, Thailand
The iconic thatched huts of the Evason Hua Hin Resort are not misleading in terms of their eco-friendly nature. Drawing on biodegradable products and adopting practices that conserve energy and minimize waste, the resort also supports several local initiatives such as the Mangrove Forest Conservation, the Kervorkian Foundation (dedicated to assisting HIV+ babies and children) as well as providing employment opportunities to disabled individuals and hosting its own organic vegetable farm.
4. Nihiwatu, Sumba Island, Indonesia
There is no place on earth like Sumba Island. Here, the indigenous traditions and animist culture of the Sumbanese people remain completely in tact. And the resort has no intention of changing that. Located on 438 acres of tropical forest and rice terraces and surrounded by some of the world's most pristine beaches, Nihiwatu is a place to go and immerse yourself in nature. The resort is strongly committed to conserving its native surrounds and improving the quality of life of the Sumbanese people.
5. Anantara Resort & Spa Golden Triangle, Thailand
Nestled in the tropical jungle of Thailand's most Northern province, Anantara's Golden Triangle resort also plays a significant role in elephant conservation. As part of The Royal Thai Government's Thai Elephant Conservation Centre (TECC), this project is aimed at protecting elephants and keeping them in an environment similar to the traditional mahout camps which supported the once-thriving logging industry. With unique programs for guests that involve mahout training as well as elephant trekking and forest living skills, the conservation experience is a truly interactive one.
As part of the esteemed Oberoi Resorts and Hotels, this beautifully designed luxury resort is within 600 metres of the majestic Taj Mahal. But besides its unique architectural and landscape design, the Amar Vilas also upholds a commitment to philanthropic activities (including education and support for the mentally and physically challenged) in addition to conserving the local environment and cultural heritage.
7. Popa Mountain Resort, Bagan, Myanmar
Located in the forest woodlands on the side of Popa mountain, this resort has been sensitively designed to suit its surroundings. Guests are enclosed in the vibrant, yet peaceful terrain and there is ample opportunity to hike and visit the breathtaking Mt. Popa shrine. Using biodegradable products and adopting their own recycling practices to avoid environmental damage, this small resort can bring you back to nature in its purest form.
8. Suneva Fushi Resort & Six Senses Spa, Maldives
Just as all the Six Senses properties do, this resort has a comprehensive policy on its environmental and social responsibilities. Suneva Fushi in particular supports a myriad of Maldivian community initiatives including tree planting on Eydafushi Island, hosting eye camps where locals get free treatment from ophthalmologists, sponsoring the Maldivian Cultural Centre and many more.
9. Tanjung Sanctuary Hotel, Langkawi, Malaysia
True to its name and slogan, this resort literally is a sanctuary for those who "don't like big hotels" but have a passion for nature. The Tanjung Sanctuary Hotel does not list its specific policies on the environment, the resort's design and practices uphold the ideals of sustainable tourism. Importantly, they provide a unique insight into the local flora and fauna with specially designed educational tours for guests.
10. Alila Ubud and Manggis Resorts, Bali, Indonesia
These two resorts are in close proximity to each other and both recently achieved Green Globe certified status. Alila Ubud was awarded best practice results in waste recycling, managing to recycle 80% of its water consumption. Alila Manggis excelled in the reduction of water and electricity consumption as well as community contribution by employing 85% of its staff from within 20km of the resort site.
Remember that it is all our responsibilities to preserve the world's natural resources as much as we want to preserve fresh air for our pure breathing. Travel responsibly under the concept of "Ecotourism" or alike must always come together with or even before the casual joys and entertainments we leave behind on the course of our vacation trips.


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Packaging EJB 3 Applications
Overriding annotations with deployment descriptors
As we explained, you can mix and match deployment descriptors with annotations and use descriptors to override settings originally specified using annotations. Keep in mind that the more you mix the two, the more likely you are to make mistakes and create a debugging nightmare.
NOTE The basic rule to remember is that the name element in stateless, stateful, and message-driven annotations is the same as the ejb-name element in the descriptor. If you do not specify the name element with these annotations, the name of the bean class is understood to be the ejb-name element. This means that when you are overriding an annotation setting with your deployment descriptor, the ejb-name element must match the bean class name.
Suppose we have a stateless session bean that uses these annotations:
@Stateless (name = "BazaarAdmin") public class BazaarAdminBean implements BazaarAdmin { ... @TransactionAttribute (TransactionAttributeType.REQUIRES_NEW) public Item addItem() { } }
If you do not specify the name element, the container will use the name of BazaarAdminBean as the name of the bean class, and in order to override annotations you have to use that name in the deployment descriptor:
We used @TransactionAttribute to specify that the transaction attribute for a bean method be REQUIRES_NEW. If we want to override it to use REQUIRED,1 then we use the following descriptor:
Click here for a larger image.
Editor's Note: The bracketed numbers in the following paragraph refer to the callouts in the code snippet above.
In this example, we used the assembly-descriptor element to specify a transaction attribute [2]. In addition, the ejb-name element [1] in the assembly-descriptor matches the original name specified with the @Stateless annotation in the bean class.
Specifying default interceptor settings
Interceptors allow you to implement cross-cutting code in an elegant manner. An interceptor can be defined at the class or method level, or a default interceptor can be defined at the module level for all EJB classes in the EJB-JAR. We mentioned that default interceptors for an EJB module can only be defined in the deployment descriptor (ejb-jar.xml). Listing 4 shows how to specify default interceptors for an EJB module.
Listing 4 Default interceptor setting in ejb-jar.xml
Editor's Note: The bracketed numbers in the following paragraph refer to the callouts in listing 4.
The interceptor-binding [1] tag defines the binding of interceptors to a particular EJB with the ejb-name element. If we want to define the default interceptor or an interceptor binding for all EJBs in the EJB module, then we can specify * as the value for ejb-name [2]. We specify a class to use as the interceptor with the <interceptor-class> tag. As evident from the listing, you can specify multipleinterceptors in the same binding, and the order in which they are specified in the deployment descriptor determines the order of execution for the interceptor. In our example, CheckPermissionInterceptor will be executed prior to ActionBazaarDefaultInterceptor when any EJB method is executed.
Using vendor-specific annotations and descriptors
We've already explained that stateless session beans and MDBs may be pooled. In addition, you can configure passivation for stateful session beans, and you can set up the handling of poisonous messages for MDBs. However, we have not discussed configuration details for either of these scenarios. Unfortunately, these configurations are left to the vendors as proprietary features, and they can be supported with proprietary annotations, proprietary deployment descriptors, or both. Table 4 lists the name of the deployment descriptor file for some popular application servers.
Table 4 Vendor-specific deployment descriptors for popular application servers
|Application Server
|Vendor-Specific Deployment Descriptor
|BEA WebLogic
|IBM WebSphere
|Oracle Application Server
|Sun GlassFish
Many developers shun deployment descriptors as a matter of inconvenience. Application server vendors will continue to provide support for annotations that match deployment descriptor elements, as developers voice their preference for these features. Chances are that each vendor has a set of proprietary annotations to set configuration information with the code.
For example, you can use the oracle.j2ee.ejb.StatelessDeployment proprietary annotation to provide configuration information such as pooling and transaction management for stateless session beans. Look at the following code, which configures pooling with Oracle's proprietary annotation:
import oracle.j2ee.ejb.StatelessDeployment; @StatelessDeployment( minInstances = 100, maxInstances = 500, poolCacheTimeout = 120) @Stateless (name = "BazaarAdmin") public class BazaarAdminBean implements BazaarAdmin { }
As other Java EE vendors create their implementations of EJB 3, we anticipate that each vendor will devise its own subset of corresponding annotations as well.
You should review these proprietary annotations with caution for a couple of reasons. First, adding configuration information in the code is not a good idea, although application servers provide the ability to override this information with their proprietary deployment descriptors. This is not desirable because in order to make a change to the setting, the code must be edited and compiled, and in most organizations it must go through a significant quality assurance effort before being released to production. Another reason is that as the code is promoted across different environments (Development, Test, Production, etc.), the deployer may change the configuration to accommodate different servers and environmental configurations.
Second, this defeats the goal of portability of applications. Deployment descriptors serve as a guideline to the deployer to understand the contents, the applications, and the suggested configurations. Deployers manage the deployment to each environment by tweaking the configuration. We recommend using the proprietary deployment descriptors instead of using deployment annotations. If you're using Oracle, you could use the following element in Oracle's proprietary descriptor (orion-ejb-jar.xml) element as follows:
<session-deployment name = "BazaarAdmin" tx-retry-wait = "60" max-instances = "500" min-instances = "100" pool-cache-timeout = "120" location = "BazaarAdmin"> </session-deployment>
1. Keep in mind the impact of changing a transaction attribute from RequiresNew to Required, as shown in this example.
At the heart of Java EE applications lies the art of assembly and packaging enterprise applications. This article briefly introduced the concepts of class loading and code sources used by various application archives. We also explained how to package all of the EJB types, including persistence entities. You learned about the deployment descriptor of an EJB-JAR module, and how you can use descriptors to override settings specified in metadata annotations.
About the Authors
Debu Panda is a Lead Product Manager of the Oracle Application Server development team, where he drives development of the Java EE container. He has more than 15 years of experience in the IT industry and has published numerous articles on enterprise Java technologies in several magazines and has presented at many conferences. His J2EE-focused weblog can be found at debupanda.com.
Reza Rahman is an architect with Tripod Technologies, an IT solutions company focusing on Java EE in the Baltimore-NYC corridor. Reza has been working with Java as a language and Java EE as a platform since their inception in the mid-nineties. He has worked with both Enterprise Java Beans and open source tools like Spring and Hibernate, developing enterprise systems in the software, consulting, financial, Telecommunications, and manufacturing industries.
Derek Lane is the CTO of Semantra, Inc. He has worn various hats in his career including mentor, coach, architect, manager, developer, trainer, methodologist, and resident open source zealot. Lane is a contributor to projects of various shape and size as author, presenter, and technical reviewer. Lane is the founder of both the Oklahoma City Java User Group (OKCJUG) and the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas MicroJava User Group; and has been active as a member, presenter, and mentor for over a decade at various technology user groups across the Midwest and Southern U.S.
Source of This MaterialEJB 3 in Action
By Debu Panda, Reza Rahman, Derek Lane
Published: April 4, 2007, Paperback: 712 pages
Published by Manning Publications Co.
Retail price for softbound print book + PDF ebook
PDF ebook: $22.50
This material is from Chapter 11 of the book. Reprinted with the publisher's permission.
Page 4 of 4
This article was originally published on April 9, 2007
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In this case study, from the early 20th century, physician William Osler cured a small boy of whooping cough. In the days before antibiotics, whooping cough was commonly fatal. Dr. Osler made an emergency house call to the young boy, who was dying of whooping cough. Because he went to the boy's house straight from […]
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The Brent Spence Bridge carries Interstates 71 and 75 over the Ohio River between Covington, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio.
The Brent Spence Bridge was first envisioned in the 1950's as a high speed Ohio River crossing connecting Cincinnati to Kentucky. Several alignments were studied, including one parallel to the Cincinnati Southern Railroad Bridge in Ludlow.1 In April 1956, a site in at the mouth of Willow Creek in west Covington was chosen for a bridge site after Covington, Cincinnati and state highway officials came to an agreement on the location.9 The new bridge was projected to cost $12.57 million and take two years to construct. The United States Bureau of Public Roads gave final approval of the alignment, 800 feet wets of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Bridge, in October.
The high speed crossing envisioned included three lanes in each direction, a single or dual deck and a cantilever truss or suspension design.9 The duel deck cantilever truss bridge was later chosen with design work completed in 1959.7 Kentucky officials hoped that the new bridge would be open to traffic by 1960.
The first sketch of the new Ohio River Bridge was published in the July 9, 1960 edition of the Kentucky Post.9 Actual construction of the bridge began in January 1961 but was halted shortly after a water line was discovered at one of the pier locations. Pilings for the piers began again in February and the approach piers in Kentucky was completed by March. It was not until January 1962 that bids for the remainder of the approach superstructure were let. Meanwhile, the superstructure over the Ohio River was being erected.
On November 20, 1963, the Kentucky Post noted that the bridge would be named for retired northern Kentucky Congressman Brent Spence.9 The then-88-year-old Spence had served in Congress for 32 years and was a longtime Fort Thomas resident who was living in the Sinton Hotel in Cincinnati at the time.
The Brent Spence Bridge opened to traffic on November 25, 1963.1 9 18 It's opening came with little celebration or fanfare due to President Kennedy's assassination just three days prior.
In 1970, Interstate 71 was completed between Louisville and Interstate 75, and the highway was co-signed with Interstate 75 over the Ohio River.1 Tremendous suburban residential growth south and north of Cincinnati, coupled with multitudes of commercial and industrial development, led to rapid traffic growth on the Brent Spence Bridge. In 1986, the bridge approaches, which were two-lanes, were widened to three-lanes and the shoulder on the bridge was eliminated to provide four through-lanes to alleviate severe congestion leading up and on the span as part of the "Death Hill" reconstruction project.4 The traffic lanes were also narrowed from 12 feet to 11 feet.26
In early 1990, work to repaint the bridge began.6 By August, the first problem arose in the painting process. State environmental inspectors suspended the bridge sandblasting to remove the lead paint after an air pollution monitor in Covington detects high levels of lead. As a result, the state purchased special steel netting to catch paint from drifting into the city, which increased the cost of the repainting.4
The original estimate of $3.5 million 5 had increased to $5.9 million6 by the time the project was done in July 1991.4 Crews were then ordered by state environmental inspectors to excavate up to 32 tons of lead-contaminated sandblast debris that workers had buried along Interstate 75 a year prior. The sandblasted grit had been deposited in pits southwest of the Jefferson Avenue interchange and at Ninth Street and Willow Run. The state later paid a $20,000 fine for violating environmental regulations.
A 1995 report by American Consulting Engineers of Lexington, Kentucky concluded that the Brent Spence Bridge would need to be replaced by 2007.7 The report noted that the bridge was carrying heavier trucks than those that existed when the span opened 32 years prior, and that it the span was fast approaching the maximum 160,000 vehicles per day (vpd) that it could handle without total gridlock. The bridge was designed for 75,000vpd and carried 139,000vpd in 1991,7148,614vpd in 2003 8 and 150,000vpd in 2008.10 It also concluded that strengthening the bridge to handle future traffic would be too costly to justify.
Planners with the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments (OKI) also concluded in 1999 that the Brent Spence Bridge would last another 15 to 20 years based on the combination of heavy trucks and automobile traffic. Another contractor, Burgess & Niple, Limited, however, refuted that the bridge was not suffering from any ill effects.2 In addition, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) and the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) countered that the bridge could hold its current traffic load "indefinitely" as long as the crossing was properly maintained over the next 16 years.28
In addition to the high traffic load, the U.S. Department of Transportation released data that reported the Brent Spence Bridge crash rate between 1995 and 2003 was one of the highest of the nation's "functionally deficient" bridges.17 The span between those years averaged 22.8 wrecks per lane mile each year.
Pushing forward with the replacement project, on July 28, 2005, Congress authorized $45.6 million to study alternatives for a Brent Spence Bridge replacement or supplement.25 The project study area extended 2800 feet into Kentucky (to milepost 189) and 1,500 feet into Ohio (milepost 2) along Interstate 75.2
By April 2007, five alternatives were being considered, 19 20 24
- Alternative 1: A new bridge about 1,000 feet west of the Brent Spence Bridge with five lanes in each direction that would carry Interstate 75. The existing Brent Spence Bridge would be renovated and would carry Interstate 71 and local traffic. This option would displace about 102 single-family residences, 58 multi-family residences and 23 commercial properties in Northern Kentucky. Total displaced: 183.
- Alternative 2: A new bridge about 1,000feet west of the Brent Spence Bridge with seven lanes in each direction would carry Interstate 71 and Interstate 75 traffic. The existing Brent Spence Bridge would be renovated and handle local traffic. This option would displace about 102 single-family residences, 58 multi-family residences and 23 commercial properties in Northern Kentucky. Total displaced: 183.
- Alternative 3: A new bridge would be built adjacent to the Brent Spence Bridge with five lanes in each direction that would carry Interstate 75 traffic while a renovated Brent Spence Bridge would handle Interstate 71 and local traffic. This option would displace about 72 single-family residences, 32 multi-family residences and 19 commercial properties in Northern Kentucky. Total displaced: 123.
- Alternative 4: The Brent Spence Bridge would be torn down and a new dual deck bridge would be built to carry five lanes of Interstate 75 traffic in each direction on the top and three lanes in each direction on the bottom for Interstate 71 and local traffic. This alternative would displace about 82 single-family residences, 32 multi-family residences and 19 commercial properties in Northern Kentucky. Total displaced: 133.
- Alternative 5: Two new bridges would be built on either side of the Brent Spence Bridge, one with five lanes for northbound Interstate 75 traffic and the other with five lanes for southbound Interstate 75 traffic, with a rehabilitated Brent Spence Bridge carrying three lanes of Interstate 71 and local traffic in each direction. This alternative would displace about 72 single-family residences, 24 multi-family residences and 18 commercial properties in Northern Kentucky. Total displaced: 114.
The least expensive proposal was a hybrid of Alternate 3 and Alternate 5 that would require property acquisition valued between $25.8 million to $28.5 million. Alternate 2 was the most expensive that would require property acquisition valued between $45.3 million and $48.5 million.21 The impact to Covington would come to several historic neighborhoods with young professionals, life-long residents and a business district.19
The federal government stated that adequate funding did not exist to construct either a replacement Brent Spence Bridge or a supplement structure, and that tolls would be required.14 Even with heavy state contributions, the bridge would require tolling or other creative funding sources to complete the project. Northern Kentucky State Representative Arnold Simpson called the proposed toll an "urban bridge tax," citing the proposed tolling options for the Ohio River Bridges Project in Louisville, another "mega project." He was the only dissenting vote, as a House committee overwhelmingly passed a bill, 25-1, that would establish a statewide financing authority that could borrow money and levy tolls to pay for large infrastructure projects.16
A group of local officials from northern Kentucky and southwestern Ohio banded together under the moniker "Bridge Builders" after being urged to do so by U.S. Senators George Voinovich of Ohio and Jim Bunning of Kentucky.12 The goal was to accelerate the selection of a recommended preferred alternative of a new Brent Spence Bridge.
By December, the estimated cost of a new Brent Spence Bridge had risen to $3 billion 10 from $1 billion in 2005.27 The new estimates were adjusted for inflation over the life of the project set at nine years, whereas the old estimates were based on the value of the dollar when the estimates were made.23 The new estimates also took into account the project scope's increase, the skyrocketing cost of concrete and steel and the higher cost of fuel.
It was estimated that Kentucky and Ohio would need to chip in $600 million each, with the federal government covering the remainder. In addition, consensus by most greater Cincinnati and northern Kentucky leaders revealed that a Queensgate alignment was the least favored, and that tolling the span was out of the question.10 13 Covington leaders desired a span touching down between Fifth and Ninth streets, whereas Cincinnati leaders desired a footprint as minimal as possible.13 Officials feared that the toll booths would increase the project's cost and congest traffic, despite technological advances such as open-road, high-speed tolling.22 Other states and countries utilize cameras, satellite-tracking systems and photography that eliminate the need to stopping. If need a camera with Wi-Fi that can communicate with your home network wirelessly, which can be very handy for installation, and is also less susceptible to being disabled because it doesn't have wires that could be cut, click this link now. In addition, officials feared that it would force Greater Cincinnati motorists to bear a disproportionate share of the cost for the bridge.13
Officials also noted that while early discussions on the Brent Spence Bridge revolved around the replacement of the existing span, the existing span was in reasonably good condition and still had 60 years of life remaining.11 A new parallel span, constructed immediately west of the existing bridge, could slash the project's cost, expedite its construction and protect economic interests on both sides of the river. In addition, they stated that other alternate sites could undercut Cincinnati's plans for redevelopment in Queensgate, and leave Covington with no direct southbound access from the new bridge.11 30
According to a report released by the "Bridge Builders," a bridge leading through Covington would lead to a loss of $22.5 in property values and indirect economic loss.12 The replacement or parallel construction of the bridge would save the region $748 million in 2005 dollars, including $684 million in savings on shipping that would be derived from a reduction in traffic congestion. Motorists would see a time reduction valued at $51 million a year.
On March 2, 2009, the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce reported that the Brent Spence Bridge cold receive $800 million in the 2010 federal highway authorization legislation that would go towards the construction of a parallel span.29 31 The legislation is a process that occurs once every six years.31
On April 18, regional officials and transportation planners in Ohio and Kentucky stated that they were poised to recommend constructing a second span over the Ohio immediately west of the Brent Spence Bridge.30 Under the proposal, the Brent Spence would carry Interstate 71 and local traffic, would the new crossing would carry Interstate 75.
Two days later, the Brent Spence Bridge Advisory Committee, formed by transportation officials from Kentucky and Ohio, unveiled its final conceptual proposal that called for a new bridge just west of the existing Brent Spence.30 31The project would affect the former Harriet Beecher Stowe School building and Longworth Hall in Cincinnati.31
Under a best case scenario, a final alignment could be chosen by August 2009, although final analysis and environmental impact reports could take up to two years to complete.15 Some of the environmental reviews could be streamlined in some of the forthcoming studies regarding improvements to northern Kentucky's Interstate 71 and Interstate 75 corridor.31 Construction could begin within two to three years and take six years to complete.11 30 As of April, the project was only on step five of a fourteen-stage review process.30
In September, Mark Policinski, executive director of the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana (OKI) Regional Council of Governments, stated that both Kentucky and Ohio will need to raise $80 million each over the next six years to help pay for the $2 billion project.32 An $800 million federal highway authorization legislation would cover the final planning of the parallel span and initial construction costs, and the state matches would need to be provided over the six-year lifespan of the spending bill.
If federal funding is approved, construction would begin in 2015 and be complete after four to five years.32
"I'm not quite sure if people in this region understand how economically important (the bridge is) – how it really forms the spine of this region."
–Mark Policinski, executive director of the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments, September 24, 2010
On February 2, 2010, several renderings were unveiled that showed a new span over the Ohio River adjacent to the Brent Spence Bridge. The bridges were all double decked, and the designs included an arch bridge similar to Interstate 471 and two cable stayed designs with either 300- to 450-foot supporting towers.38 Planners stated that the new bridge should be distinctive to become a local landmark and have a visual relationship with the existing span.38
- Arch bridge design, with a 173-foot width, 274-foot height above water and a 1,000-foot main span. The base width is 209-feet. The top deck would carry six lanes for Interstate 75 southbound and northbound on two 64-foot decks, while the bottom deck southbound would carry local traffic on three lanes with a 70-foot deck and northbound Interstate 71 traffic on two lanes with a 70-foot deck.
On March 23, 2011, the Ohio Transportation Review Advisory Council (TRAC) recommended against providing $27.2 million in the 2011-2012 budget year towards a detailed design of the Brent Spence Bridge because the project leaders did not expect to need the money until at least July 1, 2012, or fiscal year 2013. In the interm, the project has the money to complete preliminary design work.34 In 2010, TRAC recommended that the $27.2 million be spent on a detailed design of the bridge. TRAC is a nine-member panel that evaluates spending on projects.
OKI reapplied for the $27.2 million in June for the 2013 fiscal year.34
Changes in Covington
With the alignment of the Brent Spence supplementary bridge all but set in stone, Covington, Kentucky officials reached out to the public in how to offset the loss of Goebel Park that the new highway is likely to take.35 The city held the first of two public meetings on October 24, 2010 that showed the amount of land that would be removed from Goebel Park in MainStrasse for the new bridge and approach. A visiting student that works for a property lawyers Melbourne office, told me that, by law, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet must provide compensation in Goebel Park for whatever it removes or modifies, either with additional land or new amenities.
The renderings showed that the basketball courts at the park would be removed, along with some walking paths and a right-of-way buffer between the park and the interstate.35
Tolls Floated
With federal funding all but non-existant, local political and business leaders from the Cincinnati region sought out ideas for jump starting construction of the now $2.3 billion bridge 36 over the Ohio River in a meeting held in July 2011.33 One of the major hurdles to the financing is how to match $450 million in federal funds with a local match that is required to move ahead with planning and construction. One of the proposals is to tack on a $20 driver's license fee to raise $40 million a year from an estimated two millon drivers in an eight county region surrounding the Brent Spence Bridge. The money would be used to back a bond issue that would cover Cincinnati's local match and help finance development of an electronic tolling system, such as EZ-Pass, which would charge drivers a nominal toll to cross the bridge.
Todd Portune, Hamilton County, Ohio Commissioner, agreed that the idea was worth exploring further. He sought state funding at a July 25 county Transportation Improvement District meeting to study local-match alternatives, such as tolling.33 Ohio's budget bill passed that summer allowed the state's 14 districts to request grants up to $250,000 for specific projects, such as studies.
One of the disadvantages to a toll over the new span is that some traffic will divert to local or other interstate spans to bypass the toll plaza.33 Such a proposal for the new crossing would need to be explored with other Ohio River bridges in the Cincinnati region.
Funding for the bridge has become paramount following a June 24 accident on the Brent Spence Bridge.33 The motorist, who had run out of gas during the morning rush hour, was knocked into the Ohio River by another motorist after he had gotten out of the vehicle. The bridge lacked emergency breakdown shoulders.


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S6.3 Aspects of loneliness in old age
S6.3 Aspects of loneliness in old age
Chair: Marie Ernsth Bravell
In many countries, there is a concern about loneliness in old age. Many believe that loneliness is particularly troublesome in old age and the situation is complicated as the prevalence of loneliness varies a lot depending measurement and sample. Loneliness in old age is associated with depression, reduced physical health and functional limitations. Prospectively loneliness show increased depressive symptomatology, impaired cognitive performance and increased risk for multiple disease outcomes. Loneliness also increase the risk for nursing home admittance and even mortality. In this symposium, we will show results from both qualitative and quantitative research. Bo Malmberg, Jönköping University, will present results on loneliness in different age groups 1983 to 2013 from a cross-sequential study of 20 to 80 years old. Marie Ernsth Bravell, Jönköping University, will together with colleagues from Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, present longitudinal data on risk factors of loneliness over a 23-year period. Axel Ågren, Linköping University, present a study examining the constructions of loneliness among older people in Swedish and Danish news-press. In another qualitative study, Elin Taube, Lund University, approach the experience of loneliness among frail older people. Finally, Galina Barysheva and Olga Nedopasova, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia, will present a study of differences in expert assessments concerning problems of loneliness among older adults.
S6.3.2 Relations of loneliness, chronic disease risk, self-rated health, perceived impairment in activity and use of care among older people cross-sectional and longitudinal
Marie Ernsth Bravell1, Andrea D. Foebel2, Nancy L. Pedersen2
1Jönköping University, Sweden, 2 Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
Introduction: Loneliness is not only an unwanted feeling but it may have consequences for health outcomes including chronic disease risk, self-rated health, perceived impairment in activity and use of care. This study examined how feelings of loneliness change over time and relate to health outcomes among older adults. Methods: This study included data spanning a 23-year period from Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging (SATSA) participants who were 55 years and older. Loneliness was measured by the question 'How often do you experience feelings of loneliness' and was dichotomized as never versus ever having feelings of loneliness. Outcomes of interest included number of chronic diseases, self-rated health, perceived impairment in activities and receipt of care. Generalized linear models were used to characterize changes in loneliness over time and 2 cross-sectional multivariate logistic regression models explored the relationship between loneliness and the outcomes. Results: Nearly half of respondents (45,8%) never felt lonely at baseline. At follow-up, significantly more persons experienced feelings of loneliness. At baseline, feelings of loneliness were related to chronic diseases, self-rated health, and perceived impairment in activity. Loneliness at follow-up was related to self-rated health and perceived impairment in activity.Conclusion: oneliness increased over time and demonstrated complex relations to the outcomes.
S6.3.3 Constructions of loneliness among older people in Swedish and Danish news-press
Axel Ågren
Linköpings University, Sweden
Sweden and Denmark are commonly described as "welfare models" with universal coverage facilitated by high taxation. Despite this, loneliness among older people is often depicted as a widespread phenomenon in both countries and the issue is intensely debated within news-press in both countries. Mass media has a substantial impact on how loneliness and older people are constructed and perceived. Constructions which has an influence on how older people understand and evaluate their own life situation and how older people are treated in society. Peplau and Perlman (1981) emphasize that societal contexts and norms has a significant role in shaping our understandings of loneliness. Studying these two countries is of particular interest as these countries, internationally, are perceived as similar, mainly regarding the organization of their welfare institutions. This study will, thus, acknowledge the complexities and variations which prevail even within societal contexts, which are understood as similar, in many respects. This study will, in sum, mainly address how loneliness among older is constructed and what similarities or differences exists regarding within Swedish and Danish news-press?
S6.3.4 Being in a Bubble: the experience of loneliness among frail older people
Elin Taube
Lund University
Frail older people may face challenges related to both loneliness and frailty as well as an interaction between these two factors. Insight regarding the experience of loneliness is useful for providing appropriate support. Frail older people (65+ years) who lived at home and had experienced various levels in intensity of loneliness were selected from an interventional study (N=12). Semi-structured interviews were performed and a qualitative content analysis design was applied. Results: An overall heme, Being in a Bubble, illustrates the experience of living in an ongoing world but being excluded because of social surroundings and the impossibility to regain losses. The theme Barriers was interpreted as the experience of facing physical, psychological and social barriers for overcoming losses. The experience of not succeeding in overcoming barriers resulted in the theme Hopelessness, revealing that loneliness was experienced as a constant state with no hope for cure. However, loneliness was also experienced as a positive co-existing state that offered independence, resulting in the theme Freedom. To enhance well-being it is suggested that future strategies should target the older persons' individual barriers and promote the positive co-existing dimension of loneliness.
S6.3.4 Problem of loneliness among older adults: Differences in expert assessment
Galina Barysheva, Olga P. Nedospasova
National Research Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia
Loneliness is one of the fundamental characteristics of human existence and in such existential meaning is a universal problem that has been debated by philosophers since the very appearance of philosophy. However, the current situation with the loneliness of the older adults is connected not only with the deep feelings of the separation of the «self» and with the "world", but more so, it is the result of socio-economic processes that take place in a post-industrial society. Two expert-scientific seminars on the theme "The problem of loneliness of the older adults" has been carried out. The first seminar involved older people while the second focused on the participation of social workers involved in the issue. The aim of the seminars was to determine recommendations to prevent and mitigate negative impact of loneliness on the social, economic and emotional well-being of older people. The two groups of experts identified the main factors and the degree of severity (stability) of loneliness of older adults. They determined the degree of satisfaction of the elderly with the intensity and quality of their social interactions. The experts also identified areas of social policy more determined by the level of social interactions. Together with Wellbeing Lab staff, recommendations on reducing the negative impact of loneliness on the social and economic well-being of older people were formulated.


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LORMAN, Miss. (AP) Ronnie Boggs led four players in double digits with 14 points to help Jacksonville State over Alcorn State 56-52 Saturday in nonconference play.
Tarvin Gaines scored 12 points, Brian Williams added 11 and Darion Rackley chipped in with 10 points for the Gamecocks (6-2).
Alcorn State (2-6) trailed 29-23 at halftime but rallied to tie the game at 43-all behind Anthony Evans' jumper with 5:15 left to play.
Boggs answered with a 3-pointer, then a jumper to put Jacksonville State ahead 48-43.
Evans connected from downtown with 52 seconds left to cut the lead to 53-52, but that was the closest the Braves would get as Jacksonville State made 3 of 4 free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Evans led Alcorn State with 14 points.
Jacksonville State has won its third straight game this season and improved to 4-1 all-time against the Braves.


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Introduction: How to Change a Tire
Here is how to change a car tire
Step 1:
First, make sure you have a car, without this you will not be able to change the tire
Step 2:
Second thing needed, is a car jack, this will lift up the vehicle so you can chaneg the tire.
Step 3:
you will also need a socket wrench, his will un tighten, and tighten the Lugnuts on the tire. the lugmuts are what hold the tire from falling off.
Step 4:
When taking off the tire, you un loosen the Lugnuts, counter clock wise. after taking all the lugnuts off you take off the tire.
Step 5:
When puttin a new tire on, make sure it is in the same position as the other tires. Put the Lugnuts into the places they go. when tighening the lugnuts, make sure you dont tighten the one you do just all the way, just make sure its on there. put on the lugnuts criss cross, which is like putting one in the top right, then the botom left, top left, bottom right, then the top. this makes sure they are all on. when all on then tighten the lugnuts all the way the same way you put them on. make sure you tighten them as much as you can.
Step 6:
and thats how you change a tire!
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4 Discussions
I just have to say it for people looking at this. For safety you always slightly loosen (1/4 turn) the lug nuts before jacking up the vehicle - also referred to as breaking. When the tire is in the air and the brakes are not engaged (like changing a front tire on a front wheel drive car) it is possible that trying to loosen the nuts while in the air will cause the vehicle to move substantially and could roll the jack (most likely a scissor jack) causing severe injury or death.
Wow, 6 steps to change a tire. Here's my 1 step plan - call AAA.
Are you allowed to use these pictures here? Some of them are copyrighted.
Maybe they don't have a car?


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Making Spanish fun isn't easy. That's why so many people have taken 2, 3, or 4 years of Spanish and only know how to say cerveza, baño, and a few assorted swear words. (If you don't know this stuff, see me after class…)
My good friend Bernie once said, "Fun aint free and it never goes on sale." Kinda brilliant. I mean… the line is brilliant and to a lesser degree, Bernie is too.
Boring is a commodity. Entertaining, inspirational, and educational… now that is always in demand. And to whom do I most closely associate entertaining and educational and inspirational and philosophical (OK – I added that one) Spanish language brilliance?
Corey Feldman.
Yeah, that's right. I wrote it.
In 1985's epic Goonies, he was part of one of the best ensemble casts of all-time. This tween adventure comedy displayed some towering dramatic competency. To wit:
- Rudy Ruettiger, the Hobbit linebacker
- The good-looking dude who married Diane Lane
- The Not-good-looking chic who's now on Fox's Raising Hope
- The Asian Kid, Data, aka Short Round in Indiana Jones
- Mama Fratelli, who Danny DeVito wanted to throw off a train once
- Ralph Cifaretto from The Sopranos
- Sloth, who was actually Disneyfied Animatronics
- And of course, One-Eyed Willie
I know…. Quite a cast. So many household names.
Back to Feldman. He drops some very helpful Español at the beginning of the film when he helps Mrs. Walsh translate for newly hired housekeeper Rosalita.
Pants and shirts are in the second. Jus… just throw them all into cardboard boxes. Forget the suitcases. (To Mouth) Clarke, can you translate that?
Why certainly, Mrs. Walsh.
(Whispering to herself, smiling and proud of Clarke) Oh, that's wonderful, simply wonderful.
(To Rosalita)
La Mota viene en primer cajona. La Coca y la Rapidez vienen en segundo.
La Heroina en el debajo. Siempre hay que separa las drogas.
Plenty of learning moments here. Mouth was simply telling pobrecita Rosalita the Marijuana goes in the top drawer, Cocaine and Speed in the second, and Heroin in the bottom. And then he tells her she always needs to separate the drugs. Oh, that little rascal Mouth!
Corey Feldman, foreshadowing life imitating art. And Goonies is nothing if not arte.
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