#Advisory Council

[tenth-sentence]

"I demand the right to represent my people," Tasslehoff said proudly, "and take my place on the advisory council."

"DragonLance Chronicles: Dragons of Winter Night" - Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

[vicforberger]

Lab test subjects as employees

In late 2022 and early 2023, a few folks started contacting me about being disqualified or having to repay unemployment benefits they received during the Covid-19 pandemic because of their participation in lab testing studies. Then at the July 2023 Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council meeting, a coalition of lab testing companies and Rep. Gundrum asked the council to support a change in the…

[thesarahfiles]

On October 31, 2013, Sarah joined the newly appointed Advisory Council for the Challenger Center.

[nicholascnelson1]

Nicholas C Nelson - Pest Control Industry

At the age of 32, Nicholas C Nelson  established his own pest control company, Guaranteed Pest Control & Fertilization. Since a young age, he had learned the ins and outs of pest control from his grandfather and uncle. From the age of eighteen until starting his own business, Mr. Nelson worked for his uncle at Coral Springs Pest Control in Broward County, Florida. Mr. Nelson is a prominent figure in his community.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has signed a bill that is aimed at fighting homelessness.

Called “Home IL,” it will bring state agencies, nonprofit organizations and other advocates together. The bill focuses on an equity-based approach, which includes the voices and contributions of those who have experience homelessness.

It codifies the collaboration to move Illinois to “functional zero” homelessness by bolstering the safety net, targeting high-risk populations, expanding affordable housing, securing financial stability for unhoused individuals and closing the mortality gap.

“Every person deserves access to safe shelter and the dignity that comes with housing,” Pritzker said. “This is a first-of-its-kind multi-agency cooperative effort — bringing together state agencies, nonprofit organizations, advocates, and people with lived experience to prevent and end homelessness. I’m grateful for their dedication and believe that together, we can prevent and end homelessness once and for all.”

Rockford has already taken strides in this aspect. In 2017, it became the first community to reach “functional zero” levels among veterans and the chronically homeless.

Illinois’ Interagency Task Force and Community Advisory Council works across 17 state departments and agencies, as well as over 100 processes, programs and policies, to develop a comprehensive plan to combat homelessness.

The goal of the plan is to prevent shelter entry or ensure that shelter stays are limited and lead to quick transitions into stable living situations.

Pritzker has also committed about $360 million for the initiative in his FY24 budget. These investments include:

• $118 million to support unhoused populations seeking shelter and services, including $40.7 million in the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program.

• $50 million in Rapid ReHousing services for 2,000 households, including short-term rental assistance and targeted support for up to two years.

• $40 million in Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) Capital funds to develop 90+ new PSH units providing long term rental assistance and case management.

• $37 million in Emergency Shelter capital funds to create more than 460 non-congregate shelter units.

• $35 million for supportive housing services, homeless youth services, street outreach, medical respite, re-entry services, access to counsel, and other shelter diversion supports.

• $21.8 million to provide homelessness prevention services to approximately 6,000 more families.

• $30 million for court-based rental assistance.

• $15 million to fund Home Illinois Innovations Pilots.

• $12.5 million to create 500 new scattered site PSH units.

“People experiencing the trauma of housing instability are our neighbors and community members who deserve to be treated with humanity and dignity. With this cooperative effort, Illinois is ensuring our state agencies can continue to collaborate, and that stakeholders are at the table with us, to support our most vulnerable in living healthy, well, and with dignity.” Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton said. “Our state is making it clear that we will continue to work together so we can all move forward, and we will focus on holistic strategies that bring us closer to ending homelessness in our state.”

[itsmissing]

design comm for a bargain mage

[dolores-slay]

Freaky deaky that I have been with Dragon Age since I was 16-17 years old and we waited 10 years for this game never being sure it it's even coming, only to have fandom influencers who got to play it for some unclear reason saying they will spoil the game's story as if that's a normal thing to do and telling US to get off social media if we don't want to see it. What is going. on.

[arlathen]

if it's gonna be october can we go after the 12th. it's away games the rest of the month after that.

[baronetcoins]

Context: it is 8 gazillion degrees outside (95 f)

[sith-shenanigans]

it continues to delight me that Krovos dresses less fancily as a Dark Councilor than she did as a lord

no more robes. she’s going to wear a jumpsuit because nobody can call her on it

[xtruss]

A bulldozer works to maintain Chicago's underground. More frequent and intense storms pose danger to aging infrastructure like these tunnels. Photograph By Keith Ladzinski, National Geographic Image Collection

Here’s What Worries Engineers The Most About U.S. Infrastructure

Water and sewer systems built in the mid-19th century weren't meant to handle the demands of modern cities, and many bridges and levees have aged well past their intended lifespan.

— By Alissa Greenberg | July 17, 2023

Christine Kirchhoff’s family were preparing to move into a new house when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston in 2017. Then the massive storm dumped 50 inches of rain on the area in just a few days, leaving two nearby reservoirs so full that their operators were forced to open the floodgates. Kirchhoff’s family had to be evacuated by boat. Both their original and new houses were inundated.

As an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Pennsylvania State University, Kirchhoff spent a lot of time thinking about water even before it swallowed her family’s livelihood. She is part of the legion of professionals behind the complex, often invisible systems that support American life: dams, roads, the electric grid, and much more.

For the last 25 years, the American Society of Civil Engineers has been sounding the alarm on the state of that infrastructure across the country. In their most recent assessment, for example, transit scored a D- and hazardous waste a D+. It’s an expensive problem to ignore. The ASCE estimates current infrastructure conditions cost the average family $3,300 a year. “Everyone is paying whether they know it or not,” Kirchhoff says.

Train derailments, highway and bridge collapses, and dam failures have become increasingly common. But which areas are civil engineers most concerned could cause imminent catastrophe, and what can we do about it? Kirchhoff and other infrastructure experts weigh in.

Water Contamination Crises are Already Here

The engineers we talked to agreed: our water systems are in trouble. Both those that protect us from water as a hazard (stormwater, dams, levees, bridges) and those that help us manage water as a resource (drinking water, wastewater, inland waterways) are in grim shape.

Streets were flooded after Hurricane Harvey hit Houston in 2017. Photograph By Ilana Pancih-Linsmam, The New York Times/Redux

The United States’ 2.2-million-mile drinking water and 800,000-mile sewer system was developed in part in response to the widespread waterborne diseases of the mid nineteenth century, Kirchhoff says. Maintenance has lagged woefully behind since then; some older areas, including some cities in the northeast, still use century-old wooden pipes. And many more of our pipes nationwide are still made of lead.

A water system designed for yesterday’s climate and to filter yesterday’s contaminants is especially problematic in a world of increasing demand, fiercer and more frequent storms, and “forever” chemicals. The result: boil orders, water main breaks, and sewer overflow, plus 15 percent of our water treatment plants working at or over capacity. These issues, combined with the toxicity of lead pipes, lead to water crises like the one that continues to plague Flint, Michigan.

Amlan Mukherjee, the director of sustainability focusing on infrastructure at WAP Sustainability Consulting, recommends focusing on these pipes—swapping lead for PVC or other materials and fixing the leaks that spill some 6 billion gallons of treated water a day—as one high priority fix.

Our coastline is also dotted with facilities storing hazardous oil and other chemical waste cocooned in donut-shaped earthen structures, adds Bilal Ayyub, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Maryland at College Park—structures that, he notes, could be made of concrete. Because of soil’s vulnerabilities, he worries that dramatic rainfall or a storm surge could destroy these structures, resulting in a release of toxic chemicals “bigger than the Exxon Valdez spill by orders of magnitude.”

His worst-case scenario has already happened at least once, when floodwaters from Hurricane Harvey ate through the earthen container at the San Jacinto River Waste Pits, releasing noxious waste into a nearby river.

Physical Collapse is Happening Now

Meanwhile, the number of high-hazard-potential dams in the United States now tops 15,000. Many were built during or before the WWII era and have been widely neglected since then. And when it comes to bridges, “there are cautionary tales all over,” says Maria Lehman, president of ASCE and vice chair of the Biden Administration’s National Infrastructure Advisory Council. “Every county in the country has a list of bridges that, if they had money, they would replace tomorrow.”

Our 617,000 bridges include not just those spanning mighty rivers but also every highway overpass and minor link across a stream—and close to one tenth of them are significantly compromised. “If you have to think in terms of catastrophe, we’re already there,” Mukherjee says. In 2007, the collapse of an I-35W bridge in Minnesota killed 13 people and injured 145. More recently, a six-lane bridge over the Mississippi was closed for three months in 2021, disrupting interstate travel and shipping because an inspector missed a significant crack. Americans drive 178 million trips on structurally deficient bridges each day.

Every day, millions of Americans travel across bridges and overpasses, like the Marquette Interchange in Milwaukee, that may be structurally deficient. Photograph By Keith Ladzinski, National Geographic Image Collection

Yet the US spends only 1.5-2.5 percent of its GDP on infrastructure, proportionately less than half of what the European Union spends, Lehman says. This long-term lack of funding has run out the clock on many solutions. Many of our bridges were built to last 30-50 years, but nearly half are at least half a century old. The average age of our levees is also 50; our dams average 57.

Now, extreme weather is intensifying just as structures fail. We’ve already seen consequences in the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, for example, when collapsing levees inundated 80 percent of New Orleans, killing hundreds, or in the failure of an under-inspected dam in Edenville, Michigan, which flooded the region and destroyed thousands of homes in 2020. The trend is set to continue: after Superstorm Sandy engulfed New York City transit, Ayyub helped study similar risks in Washington, D.C and Shanghai. His models showed widespread flooding that could swamp D.C. metro stations and in severe cases even reach “the backyard of the White House.”

The Future of U.S. Infrastructure

Mukherjee is optimistic about the use of new technology to solve some of these issues, though adoption has been slow. Drones can provide human inspectors with up-close views of areas they can’t reach themselves and reduce chance of human error; a drone on an unrelated project captured footage of the Mississippi bridge crack two years before its discovery.

Ayyub has also worked with North American freight railroads to find weak links using computer modeling, combing through thousands of stations to “identify exactly which point if it fails will have the biggest impact,” he says. Why not do the same with our power grid and waterways?

One piece of good news: in 2021, Congress passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides $1.2 trillion over five years for the ailing systems that help American society run, the largest federal investment in US history. It was a major victory. “Every president for the last eight presidents said we should spend a lot of money—like a trillion dollars—on infrastructure, and none of them delivered,” Lehman says.

Unless it is renewed regularly, though, this funding will barely stop the bleeding. And meanwhile, across the country, families like Kirchhoff’s (who after a difficult year were able to rebuild both the destroyed houses) struggle to recover from a relentless march of disasters, many of them preventable. It’s time for the US to learn the lessons drawn from of a century of neglect, Lehman argues, and begin maintaining the systems that makes so much of American life possible while they’re still in working condition.

“If you have a leak in your roof, you go up there, find it, replace the shingles, put on a little tar” she says. “If you let it go, it’s not going to be a little fix: it’s going to be a replacement.”

[gwydionmisha]

Tallahassee Mayor Nixes LGBTQ+ Advisory Council Meeting During Pride Month

[azeutreciathewicked]

There are so many local advisory boards that have spots to be filled by members of the community. Seriously. Those are one place to start. Precinct officer positions also always need filling. Those are key to mobilizing voters in the community. If you want to support a third party, start there.

School boards, utilities district, and other low level elected positions are so important as we are finding out. Get on those, support good candidates for those.

I would say vote if you can tomorrow and then no matter who wins, get involved in your local community.

[sw5w]

Do You Have Any Idea Who Was Behind This Attack?

STAR WARS EPISODE II: Attack of the Clones 00:05:37

[experiencespermile]

How the Mobility Industry Transformation Will Redefine Passenger Experience and Connectivity in 2025

As we look toward 2025, the mobility industry is on the cusp of significant transformation, reshaping not only how we travel but also the experiences and connections we forge on the road. Traditionally, vehicles have been a means of transport—getting from one point to another. However, thanks to emerging technologies and evolving consumer expectations, they are increasingly becoming personalized spaces of connectivity, comfort, and even entertainment. This paradigm shift, encapsulated by the "Experience-per-Mile" (EPM) movement, is about to redefine what it means to be on the move.

In this blog, we’ll explore how these changes in the mobility industry will redefine the passenger experience and connectivity, with a look at the technologies and trends driving this transformation in 2025 and beyond.

1. The Rise of Experience-Per-Mile (EPM): A New Standard for Mobility

The Experience-per-Mile (EPM) concept is reshaping how companies approach vehicle design, putting an emphasis on delivering value throughout the journey. Instead of just focusing on technical performance, automakers and mobility providers are now centering their strategies around the in-car experience, aiming to create personalized, enjoyable, and meaningful interactions for every passenger.

In 2025, the EPM standard will likely become a major differentiator among brands, with experiences tailored to diverse demographics—from business commuters to leisure travelers. Here are a few ways EPM will impact the industry:

In-Car Personalization: Through advanced data analytics, vehicles can adjust settings like climate control, seating, lighting, and even music preferences based on the individual profiles of passengers.

Dynamic Entertainment: Passengers can enjoy tailored entertainment, from streaming services to immersive virtual reality experiences, making journeys feel shorter and more enjoyable.

2. Enhanced Connectivity and the 5G Revolution

Seamless connectivity is at the heart of the mobility transformation. As 5G networks expand globally, vehicles will have faster, more reliable access to data, allowing for real-time updates and richer interactions. In 2025, we can expect to see:

Real-Time Data Exchange: With high-speed connectivity, cars will be able to communicate with each other, as well as with infrastructure, to optimize routes, enhance safety, and reduce traffic congestion.

Enhanced Infotainment Options: Passengers can enjoy content at high quality, without lags or interruptions, enhancing entertainment on the go.

In-Car Office Solutions: With the rise of remote work, connectivity will allow professionals to turn their vehicles into mobile offices, equipped for virtual meetings, file sharing, and collaboration.

3. Autonomous Vehicles: Expanding the Role of In-Car Experiences

While full autonomy remains a work-in-progress, semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicles will become more common by 2025. With cars increasingly taking over driving tasks, passengers will have more freedom to focus on other activities. This opens up new opportunities for redefining in-car experiences, such as:

Relaxation Zones: Passengers can unwind with features like reclining seats, massage functions, and mood lighting.

Health and Wellness: Some vehicles are likely to offer wellness features, including air purification, aroma diffusion, and even on-the-go diagnostics, such as heart rate monitoring.

Multifunctional Spaces: Autonomous vehicles will enable cars to serve as versatile spaces that can shift between work, relaxation, and entertainment modes, tailored to the needs of each passenger.

4. Artificial Intelligence and Predictive Learning for a Tailored Experience

AI is becoming integral to transforming the mobility experience. By 2025, artificial intelligence will enable vehicles to adapt to the preferences and needs of passengers, providing an intuitive, interactive experience. Some notable applications of AI in redefining passenger experience include:

Predictive Preferences: AI will anticipate passenger needs based on past interactions, such as adjusting seat positions, temperature, or suggesting entertainment options.

Voice Assistants and Natural Language Processing: Advanced AI voice assistants will offer hands-free control over in-car features and provide real-time information, from traffic updates to location-based recommendations.

Enhanced Safety Systems: AI will continually monitor driver and passenger behavior, alerting for signs of fatigue or distraction and even suggesting breaks if needed.

5. Eco-Friendly Solutions for a Sustainable Mobility Experience

As consumers become more environmentally conscious, sustainability will play an essential role in the mobility transformation. In 2025, many vehicles will incorporate eco-friendly technologies and features that reduce carbon footprints and promote green practices:

Electric and Hybrid Vehicles: Electrification will continue to dominate, with more EVs and hybrids hitting the road. Many will offer features to optimize energy usage, like regenerative braking.

Recyclable Materials: Interior design will incorporate more sustainable materials, such as recycled or biodegradable upholstery, further reducing environmental impact.

Sustainable Connectivity: Technologies such as smart navigation and eco-routing will help optimize fuel consumption and reduce emissions, making each journey more environmentally friendly.

6. Mobility as a Service (MaaS): Redefining Ownership and Access

The rise of Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is transforming traditional car ownership models, allowing users to pay for access to transportation when they need it. By 2025, we’ll see more MaaS solutions integrated with EPM, creating a seamless and enjoyable journey experience without the need for ownership. Key trends include:

Subscription-Based Access: Consumers can access a fleet of vehicles through subscriptions, enjoying various types of cars based on their needs—whether for commuting, leisure, or weekend trips.

Integration with Public Transport: MaaS will continue to connect with public transportation options, offering seamless transfers and providing users with the best routes for time and cost savings.

On-Demand Vehicles: Passengers will have the ability to summon a vehicle equipped with personalized EPM settings, creating a consistent and enjoyable experience every time.

Conclusion

The transformation of the mobility industry promises to deliver an exciting, dynamic experience for passengers by 2025. With the Experience-per-Mile (EPM) approach, enhanced connectivity, autonomous features, and AI-driven personalization, journeys will be more enjoyable, productive, and sustainable. Vehicles will no longer be just a way to get around. Still, they will evolve into spaces for relaxation, work, entertainment, and well-being, adapting to the lifestyle and preferences of each passenger.

As we enter this era, the EPM movement is set to create a new benchmark in the mobility industry, turning every mile traveled into an opportunity for enrichment and connection. The future of mobility is not just about reaching destinations but about transforming each mile into an experience worth having.

[wealthnsociety]

High Net Worth Financial Advisor: How to Guide Wealth to Success

Managing wealth is a very complex process, and if you are one of the High Net Worth Investors, then navigating such a challenging process is quite complex. In such a scenario, a High Net Worth Financial Advisor comes into picture. These are neither financial planners nor wealth managers; they act as a strategic partner, well-aware of the distinct needs and goals of high net worth clients.

A High Net Worth Financial Advisor specializes in delivering tailored financial strategies aligned to the client's specific objectives. This may include investment management, tax planning, estate planning, and retirement strategies-all of these strategies concentrated on preserving and growing wealth. This differs from a standard financial advisor, as they have an intimate knowledge of the complex financial landscape that the High Net Worth Investor must pass through, with tax implications and investment opportunities at every turn.

The most important advantage of a High Net Worth Financial Advisor is their ability to personalize investment strategies. This can comprise private equity and hedge funds, among various other alternative investments that are generally out of the reach of the average investor. Such access avails high net worth investors with diversification and the ability to increase their potential returns.

In addition, a High Net Worth Financial Advisor is deeply interested in risk management. A high net worth individual has complexities in financial situations that expose them to various risks. The adviser performs in-depth risk analysis that might accredit the degree of exposure the client is subjected to and develop strategies that promote mitigating the possible loss. This proactive approach is therefore very vital in protecting assets and establishing long-term stability in finance.

A High Net Worth Financial Advisor builds a trust and communication-based relationship with the clients. The advisor spends time getting to understand the values, priorities, and aspirations of their clients. Regular and frequent meetings by the way of updates are essential so that strategies stay in line with not just changing goals but also market conditions. This aspect of personalization sets apart these from the less-specialized advisors.

Therefore, High Net Worth Investors face most specific challenges in wealth management such as multi-generational family, and issues of philanthropy. A thorough financial advisor will be able to guide clients on the formation of family governance structures, charitable foundations, and all other decisions related to the passing on of wealth. In this regard, it ensures full sustainability of wealth and the legacy conveyed.

This highly experienced High Net Worth Financial Advisor can, of course, make the difference for such luxury clients who need to achieve the optimum management and realization of their wealth. A High Net Worth Financial Advisor, with customized strategy for each client, effective risk management, and in-depth financial planning, serves as a bridge between a High Net Worth Investor and the attainment of his goals. With the endless shift in the world of finance, cooperation with a specialized advisor is sure to provide ways and models for understanding and conquering all these complexities.