Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

By Kevin Green, Midtown Alliance President and CEO

Just two weeks ago, few people had even heard the term social distancing. Yet in a very quick turn of events, we now find this as our temporary new normal. Since cities are made to bring people together and to seed social interaction, our current reality is a hard condition to wrap your mind around, but its here and its necessary. As we pull together as a community to get through this weird global episode, we can be assured that this too shall pass. Once consigned to a chapter in history, it also seems reasonable that many of us will have new appreciation for returning to normal and being able to come together, mix and gather as a community and a society things many of us may have taken for granted a week ago.

When our city is back to normal as it will surely be and hopefully soon we know that public infrastructure is what knits our city together. Without a network of streets, sidewalks, crosswalks, benches, bike racks, signals and signs, there is no city. Although well all be adapting to changing conditions in the near future, our work to create an excellent urban experience continues.

Our urban infrastructure in Midtown has evolved over the last 150 years with one incremental solution built on another by well-intentioned planners and engineers. The sum total of all these changes adds up to our current infrastructure, which may be far from ideal and efficient for current needs. This has led to retrofitting, like turning one-way streets back into two-way, bringing back on-street parking and rethinking space on our streets dedicated exclusively to cars.

Increasingly, designing for the future means incorporating more flexibility, and offering people an abundance of quality choices for how they get around and what they do. It also means proceeding with a sense of urgency.

Authored by the community in the late 1990s, our original Blueprint Midtown master plan is one plan that got executed. The Blueprint set out the vision for what Midtown wanted to become: a mixed-use destination, where buildings meet the sidewalks in a way that enhances the public realm and supports walking as a primary choice for how to get around.That identity has been integral to almost every land use and transportation decision in Midtown ever since.

It only makes sense that the approach to infrastructure projects we take on needs to match the multi-purpose identity of the buildings that get built alongside it.

Roughly 60% of our 2020 budget is dedicated to public improvement projects, ranging from new traffic signals and open space to an expanded network of bike lanes. We want to deliver projects that offer people more options for how they can use a given space or corridor. People who spend time in Midtown want options. Here are some creative examples of infrastructure improvements that Atlanta residents, workers and visitors can look forward to using in Midtown in the near term:

Making a Brand New Street: 15th Street Extension

Improving existing roadways is something we get a chance to do fairly often, but its a rare opportunity to build an entirely new street. With a big assist from the Georgia Department of Transportation, the City of Atlanta and private partners, Midtown Alliance will create a new street grid connection between West Peachtree and Williams Streets that offers people a range of travel options. This new corridor will deliver wide sidewalks, crosswalks, a dedicated bike lane in both directions, and two motor vehicle lanes in each direction that can help alleviate some of the pressure on 14th Street during peak periods. Construction is slated to begin in 2021.

How Six On-Street Parking Spaces Can Become a Mini-Park

Some 95% of respondents to our 2019 Midtown Community Survey said they wanted to see more parks and smaller plazas throughout the district. Were actively looking for different ways to create these spaces, including by reimagining the public right-of-way. One such opportunity is the intersection at Peachtree Street and Peachtree Place, which draws a lot of foot traffic because it features retailers and feeds into the Midtown MARTA station a block away. The Commercial Row Commons project would trade out a handful of on-street parking spaces and rebuild a street median to create a multi-use plaza that would support local retailers, provide a venue for public programming and events in collaboration with the Atlanta History Center, and realign the intersection to make it safer for pedestrians and drivers alike. Construction is projected to begin later this year.

Developers Designing Publicly-Accessible Spaces into their Projects

Midtowns Development Review Committee advocates for developers to build high-quality projects that maximize the potential of their land, fit the districts character and meet its needs for the next century. One recent win came with the design for Midtown Union, a transformative mixed-use project with office, residential and retail space, as well as a boutique hotel. The project will extend Arts Center Way between West Peachtree and Spring Streets, adding a private road that will feature green space, retail space and pedestrian walkways that connect Midtown Union to the Midtown Arts District and the Arts Center MARTA station. Many more developers have the opportunity in front of them to think about how these types of features can create an increased return on their investment, expressed both financially and socially.

Tell us what you think.

Working with our partners at the City of Atlanta and State of Georgia, we have more than 20 additional projects that will be advancing in 2020. Our staff wants to know what you think about these projects. Please accept this invitation to make suggestions about our work, and where you see other opportunities to incorporate multi-use, multi-function design into our projects. Email us at [emailprotected], and for background reading check out our monthly updates on capital projects found here.

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The New Way to Think About Streets and Plazas: Multi-Purpose, Multi-Functional - SaportaReport

@jlo is designing footwear in her spare time. Jennifer Lopez's footwear range, being launched at @DSW stores and DSW.com today, includes sky-high sandals, sexy stilettos, boots, booties and sneakers.The shoe thing for me goes deep, it goes deeper than I love shoes,' Lopez said in an interview.When I was a little girl, I used to look to my idols and wish I could have their jacket or their outfit or their jewelry or their shoes, and it was always so expensive and we could never do that. At DSW, we can do that with quality and high fashion, she said. Her JLO Jennifer collection retails from $59 to $189.On the heels of Hustlers, her Super Bowl halftime performance and her role on World of Dance, where shes executive producer and a judge, along with being the face this season of Coach, Versace and Guess, Lopez was asked about any new projects and how shes dealing with the coronavirus outbreak.Its such a scary, tricky rime right now. Im going to be working from home the next few weeks, working on scripts and branding. In the meantime, trying to make lemonade out of lemons, and enjoy the time with the kids and just trying to stay positive and do all we can as a family to help in this situation and quarantine and set the right example, she said.Tap the link in bio for more of our interview with @jlo.Report: @lisajlockwood #wwdfashion#jlo#shoes#dsw

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LVMH Sets Plans for Cheval Blanc Hotel on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills - WWD

Yesterday, Tom Hanks shared with the world that he and his wife, Rita Wilson, had tested positive for the coronavirus. Of course, people started paying attention, because while most Americans don't yet personally know anyone affected by the global pandemic, everyone knows Tom Hanks. As an icon of Hollywood, Hanks is not only one of the most likable movie stars, he's also considered a role model for millions of Americans.

Hanks's measured response to his diagnosis is also a model for businesses of every size trying to keep going during this crisis.

Specifically, Hanks mentions his approach to what happens next. "Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?" Hanks shared on social media. That'sa brilliant reminder that in a world where there are far more circumstances than what you can control, the best thing you can dois slow down the panic and focus on the next thing you need to do for yourself, your family, and your colleagues.

Binge-buying toilet paper and hand sanitizer donothing except point out the fact that, as Americans, we're probably not as good at washing our hands as we should be. Panicking about circumstances you can't control does nothing except create more panic.

Instead, create a plan. And when I say plan, I meanfocus on what you need to do today for your team and your business. Set them up for success so that they're able to be productive tomorrow. Then, tomorrow, do the same thing. Anything more than that isn't realistic when you have no idea what your business will face in three days or weeks or months.

Your goal is to keep things moving in the right direction even as the world feels like its lost its way. Things won't be the same, and your business might not be the same, but there is another side.Don't freak out. Make a plan.

Or, in the event that remote work isn't an option, determine how you will communicate what you expect of them directly and transparently.Even when you can't plan far into the future, a little honesty and humility goa long way. By the way, figuring out how to keep your team on your payroll might be costly, but if you're able, there are few better investments you can make than people. Fortunately, it looks like there will soon be help on this front as well.

As the wise manSolomononce said,Gam zeh ya'avor, or"This, too, shall pass." Your job, as a leader, is--one day at a time--to be sure you're in the best position possible when it does.

Published on: Mar 12, 2020

The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

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Tom Hanks Tested Positive for Coronavirus. His 12-Word-Response Is a Lesson in Handling a Crisis - Inc.

Anybody who thought candidate Donald TrumpDonald John TrumpThe Hill's Morning Report - Biden commits to female VP; CDC says no events of 50+ people for 8 weeks This week: Senate balances surveillance fight with growing coronavirus concerns Juan Williams: Trump must be held to account over coronavirus MORE might scale back his war with the press once he got elected was sorely mistaken. Even with the pressures and daily challenges of the White House, Trump seems never to miss an opportunity to bash his media antagonists. From press sprays to rallies, media bashing is part of Trumps schtick. His devoted followers love it and expect it. The press doesnt like the savage critique, but most reporters recognize Trump anti-media rants are now baked into the relationship.

But the Trump machine has now taken things in a new direction, and the repercussions are much more serious.

The Trump 2020 campaign apparatus has filed defamation lawsuits against three major news organizations. The outlets CNN, New York Times, and Washington Post are being sued over commentaries published in the last year. Each of the commentary topics, as one might have guessed, dealt with Russian interference in the 2016 election and the Trump campaigns supposed connection to it.

Trumps criticism of the press hurts reporters feelings and may play a factor in the press low credibility ratings. It is one thing for media outlets to battle Trump in the public opinion arena, but taking the brawl into the courtroom is a new and dangerous escalation against the media.

There is little doubt this new anti-press strategy is designed to make news organizations pause and ponder before engaging in criticism of Trump. This is the classic example of the chilling effect. No news outlet wants to pay for lawyers and show up in court, even for lawsuits they suspect are frivolous. Libel lawyers are expensive, whether in the courtroom or in the newsroom, where they might now need to hang out so as to screen/pre-approve all copy with potential criticism of the Trump administration.

In addition to Trump, other politicians are now lining up to sue the press. Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is moving forward with a suit against the New York Times. Congressman Devin NunesDevin Gerald NunesNunes urges Americans to 'stop panicking': 'It's a great time to just go out' if you're healthy Sunday shows preview: Lawmakers gear up for another week fighting the coronavirus, seek to curb fallout Trump escalates fight against press with libel lawsuits MORE (R-Calif.) has sued CNN and a reporter for Esquire. Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, a Democrat, just had his defamation suit against CBS dismissed, but promises an appeal.

Odds are the Trump campaign cant win in court and could evensee these suits dismissed outright. A public figure (and what figure could be more public than the president?) has to get over a high bar to win a defamation suit. The standards were established in a 1964 landmark Supreme Court decision in the case of New York Times v. Sullivan. The plaintiff must not only prove the piece of journalism was false and defamatory, but also that it was published recklessly and with malicious intent to do damage to the pubic figures reputation. Assessing a reporters maliciousness is mind-reading most courts are hesitant to do. Further, courts figure that politicians have avenues to battle back rhetorically and to set the record straight. And nobody has more direct access to these avenues than the president.

Public figures must be subject to careful scrutiny and criticism from the citizens free press surrogates. Todays Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice John Roberts, has a well-earned reputation for supporting robust and rowdy free expression under the First Amendment.

But the press outlets involved arent so holy either. The journalistic pieces that prompted these defamation lawsuits were labeled as commentary/opinion. Each, however, seems to blend in an assumption about Trump-Russia connections in the election. Thats the rub. Opinions based on incorrect evidence might not get full protection in court. Labeling a column as opinion is not a free pass to push a potential falsehood. And the Trump campaign presents the Mueller report as proof there was no conspiracy with Russia during the election.

This all brings to mind a lyric from the 1960s protest song by Buffalo Springfield, Nobodys right if everybodys wrong. On one side, according to Trump's critics, is a thin-skinned president who doesnt like negative press coverage and runs to court with cage-rattling lawsuits. And then, according to the Trump campaign and other media critics, there are press outlets so determined to smear Trump with Russian collusion that their opinion writers out-kick their coverage.

Whatever gets decided on these lawsuits in lower courts, it would be helpful if the losing side pushed appeals all the way to the Supreme Court. Public figures and the press alike could use up-to-date clarification of what constitutes defamation in the year 2020. Much has changed in the public affairs landscape since the Sullivan decision over half a century ago.

Justice Clarence Thomas last year publicly called for the Court to take up a defamation case that would reconsider the standards established in the Sullivan decision. These Trump lawsuits could be the prompt the Court needs. It is time for the Court to provide more precise guidance on how to maintain free-wheeling public commentary while protecting high profile figures from being analyzed/criticized without a foundation in real evidence.

Jeffrey McCall is a media critic and professor of communication at DePauw University. He has worked as a radio news director, a newspaper reporter and as a political media consultant. Follow him on Twitter@Prof_McCall.

Original post:
Trump steps up intensity in battle with media | TheHill - The Hill

Local historian and genealogist, Brian Mitchell, has written a book called 'Derry: A City Invincible'. In the coming weeks, we will be publishing extracts from the book. In this first article, Brian outlines the forces of nature which created our local landscape.

Lough Foyle and the Foyle Basin reflect hundreds of millions of years of earth movements and moulding.Encompassed within the Antrim Plateau which culminates in the sheer cliffs of Binevenagh in the north; the rounded peat-covered summits and deeply dissected flanks of the Sperrins in the south; and the rugged series of hills and mountain ranges of the Donegal Highlands to the west, the Lough Foyle basin is a geological time scale.The Donegal Highlands and Sperrin Mountains represent the western end of a thick belt of sedimentary rocks, deposited in a sea trough, which stretched from what is now Ireland to Scandinavia.About 800 million years ago, under the weight of accumulating sediments of sand (sandstone) and black muds (shale), the trough began to subside.Then 500 million years ago this rock sequence, now 15 miles thick, was intensely folded, heated, crystalised and uplifted into rugged mountain ranges aligned north-east to south-west.This period of Caledonian mountain building reflected the collision of moving plates on which the earths crust is welded.These plates are constantly being regenerated by volcanic activity at mid-ocean ridges, spreading out and finally being consumed at ocean trenches, generating earthquakes and chains of volcanoes in the process.By the Carboniferous period, 325 to 370 million years ago, the old mountains of the Caledonian period had been worn away to lie beneath the waves.A warm, shallow sea, similar to the Caribbean today covered Ireland which now lay across the equator. In this sea, limey muds (limestone), sand and muds were deposited.What is now Lough Foyle represents a downfold or syncline of the ancient Caledonian rocks which became filled with sandstones and shales of Carboniferous age.Lough Foyle today submerges this basin of Carboniferous sandstone.Throughout this period the Foyle Basin was in the middle of a vast super-continent called Pangaea, destined to fragment into Africa, the Americas, Eurasia, Australia and Antarctica. Its surface changed continuously.

IntersectedAt various times the Foyle Basin was intersected by sea-filled troughs, submerged by shallow shifting seas, crossed by mountain ranges and subjected to climatic conditions ranging from desert heat to equatorial rain and arctic cold.About 150 million years ago Pangaea began to break up and drift apart. Eighty million years ago the North Atlantic Ocean began to form, as America and Greenland were pushed apart. By 60 million years ago the Atlantic was beginning to open right next to Ireland, as the British Isles separated from Greenland.This split was heralded with intense volcanic activity, as basalt lavas flooded out to form the Antrim Plateau, whose western limit now overlooks the Roe Valley and Magilligan.At the same time, the earth movements which formed the Alps (as Africa collided with Eurasia) caused the downfaulting and sinking of Lough Foyle along existing north-east to south-west structural lines.The River Foyle, in following the axis of this downfold, also flowed in a north-east direction. The Donegal Highlands and Sperrins, long eroded, were uplifted once again.By seven million years ago the Foyle Basin, owing to extensive erosion and drainage development, was beginning to look as it does today.If the general structure was now established, it was the quaternary ice advances, commencing about 2 million years ago and ending 12,000 years ago, which sculptured much of the present detail in the landscape.In fact, much of the detail results from the final retreat of the ice.During the Ice Age the Foyle Basin experienced climatic fluctuations which caused an alternation of glacial periods, during which the Donegal Highlands and Sperrins were submerged by considerable thicknesses of ice sheets, and interglacials during which temperatures were as high or higher than today.

During the last phase of the Ice Age the Irish ice sheet entered the Foyle Basin through the Glenshane Pass and down the Foyle Valley, while an ice sheet from Scotland advanced to the mouth of the Foyle.A variety of drift material was deposited, by both the ice sheets and by their meltwaters as the ice sheets decayed, to clothe and soften the landscape.Towards the close of the Ice Age a large glacier persisted in the Foyle Valley after the northern slopes of the Sperrins had become ice-free.The River Faughan, dammed by this glacier, became a massive lake.Likewise, the River Roe, in the stretch from Dungiven to Limavady, became a great lake in front of the southern limit of the Scottish ice. In these lakes extensive thicknesses of sand and gravel were deposited.Glacial drainage channels were carved out, acting as overflow channels for the ice-dammed lakes. The River Faughan was forced to turn northwards along the eastern margin of the valley glacier.As the Foyle glacier downwasted and retreated southwards its meltwaters carried large quantities of sand and gravel, which were deposited as extensive outwash terraces along the shores of Lough Foyle.

On the lower reaches of the Faughan, at Ardlough, kettle holes were left behind as masses of ice, buried under the outwash deposits, melted.With the ice gone, this outwash material became a 50 feet terrace along the shore of Lough Foyle, as the land level rose in adjustment to its lighter, ice-free load.The island of Derry owes its isolation to the Foyle glacier, as meltwaters flowing beneath it carved out the deep channel to the west of the hill.Culmore Point and Magilligan Point had their origins in post-glacial times.They are both sand spits. The latter is an enormous flat triangle of river-borne alluvium and wind-blown sand.When man first reached the Foyle Basin, perhaps in about 6000 BC, this was the landscape which confronted him.Only one piece of detail is missing.He would have found a land forested everywhere.As the climate improved, with the retreat of the ice, forests of willow and birch, followed by hazel, pine, alder, oak, elm and ash replaced the sparse alpine flora.This is the landscape which man in the Derry area had to deal with.Compared to the geological forces which created the Foyle Basin, man seems rather puny and very inexperienced.Man has been around these parts for 8,000 years which, in geological terms, is just a blink of the eye.

Link:
Local History: The landscape which shaped the Derry that we know today - Derry Now

It would have been in Scituate. Now it's virtually everywhere.

The 2020 Gardening Green Expo an annual event that spotlights organic and environmentally friendly growing choices for backyard gardeners was canceled after its organizers learned of government recommendations against holding large events.

In previous years the expo had drawn some 450 visitors. Citing concerns over the novel coronavirus, the events three sponsors the North and South Rivers Watershed Association, WaterSmart South Shore, and Kennedys Country Gardens (the planned venue) agreed to turn the live March 28 expo into a virtual event.

However, watershed association staff said, all the components of the event (aside from the crowd), including video talks by the scheduled speakers will become available http://www.nsrwa.org. Until then, virtual visitors can watch videos of last years presentations.

These resources offer a rich opportunity to learn about green gardening, said the groups communications director, Lori Wolfe, who raises monarch butterflies on milkweed leaves in her home.

I bring the eggs in, Wolfe said. They hatch. . . . Then I feed them leaves.

Acquiring seeds and growing milkweed are among the many environmentally strengthening garden choices promoted by the expo. This years videotaped speakers will include Kennedys Susan Leigh Anthony speaking on native and pollinator plants. Other experts urge the advantages of growing native plants, including entomologist Blake Dinius on native bees and Katie Banks Hone on re-landscaping.

Cape Cod preservationist Kristin Andres will address landscape choices for a changing climate, and Jon Belber of Cohassets Holly Hill Farm speaks on beneficial ecosystems.

Green gardening equipment rain barrels for water conservation and composters to turn kitchen scraps into fertilizer can be ordered from the website. And a $35 watershed association membership deal offers new members a $25 Kennedy Gardens gift card, plus a free map for finding nearby land preservers.

That map is an excellent source for finding green spaces to explore while avoiding crowds. Wolfe recommended Wompatuck State Park in Hingham. Ecologist Sara Grady pointed to the John Little Conservation Area near the North River in Marshfield.

Robert Knox can be reached at rc.knox2@gmail.com.

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Make a virtual visit to the 2020 Gardening Green Expo - The Boston Globe

NEIL Doncaster, the SPFL chief executive, has described the coronavirus crisis as arguably the most challenging period in Scottish football history and pledged that future decisions will be made in the very best interests of the game as a whole.

The prospect of Celtic being declared Ladbrokes Premiership champions and Hearts being relegated based on their league placings on Friday when the SFA/SPFL Joint Response Group took the decision to suspend professional and grassroots football indefinitely has angered many clubs and fans.

Stewart Robertson, the Rangers managing director, yesterday issued a statement warning that finishing a season with a significant number of games to play would impact upon the integrity of sport in Scotland.

The joint response group provided an update on the ongoing crisis yesterday and revealed that decisions on the William Hill Scottish Cup semi-finals next month and Euro 2020 play-off semi-final against Israel at Hampden next week would be made following the UEFA conference call today.

The statement also contained a lengthy Q&A which addressed many of the concerns which their member clubs had raised with them including the prospect of the leagues not being completed and stressed that finishing the 2019/20 campaign in its entirety was their preferred option.

The statement read: The joint response group is engaged in a contingency planning phase that will assess all possible options for the remaining season and beyond. It would be inappropriate and unhelpful to speculate on any future decisions to be taken by competition organisers.

We will, however, commit to updating clubs, supporters and other key stakeholders when appropriate in this fast-moving landscape."

The statement continued: The preference remains that season 2019/20 will be played to completion. However, Scottish football has been suspended until further notice and the joint response group will continue to discuss the developments regarding the virus on a daily basis.

The Scottish FA will take guidance from governments, the UK Chief Medical Officers, the Scottish FA medical consultant, Dr John MacLean, and information provided by the World Health Organisation.

The Scottish FA will only lift the suspension when it is deemed safe to do so from the perspective of public health, but also the safety of all stakeholders including supporters, players, match officials and staff.

A UEFA conference call (involving all 55 associations, the European Clubs Association, the European Leagues and FIFPro, the world players union) will take place tomorrow.

"A decision on the William Hill Scottish Cup semi-finals and UEFA Nations League play-off against Israel will be made by the Scottish FA board after that conference call.

Doncaster said: The significant challenges being faced by people all over the country have put sport firmly in perspective. However, we have a responsibility to deal with the many difficult issues caused by this outbreak and are working hard with the Scottish FA, with our clubs, and with government departments to arrive at the best possible outcome for our game.

We are very conscious of the desire of all 42 Ladbrokes SPFL clubs and their fans to know, as soon as possible, of our plans for the league, but everyone recognises we are facing what is arguably the most challenging time in our sports history.

There are undoubtedly going to be further challenges ahead, but everyone involved is pulling together as one and we will continue to make decisions in the very best interests of the game as a whole.

SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell said: The focus of the Scottish FA remains the public health, the emergency services and the health and safety of players, match officials, and staff across the game.

Many thousands of fans are looking forward to the William Hill Scottish Cup semi-finals and the UEFA Nations League play-off against Israel.

We understand that they, and all fans of Scottish football, will want urgent clarity about those games. We expect to be in a position after tomorrows UEFA conference call, to make a further announcement.

The Tunnocks Caramel Wafer Cup final, due to be played between Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Raith Rovers at McDiarmid Park on Saturday, March 28, has been postponed.

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Neil Doncaster: Decisions will be made in the very best interests of the game as a whole - HeraldScotland

Universal Pictures says it will be making films including the upcoming "Trolls: World Tour" available for in-home rentals the same day they're released in theaters amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The latest "Trolls" movie from DreamWorks is poised to hit theaters in the United States on April 10. But in a Monday announcement, NBCUniversal and Universal Pictures said it would also be available on-demand the same day it premieres.

Current circumstances, the companies said in a news release, "have made it more challenging to view our films."

The children's flick, along with other titles, will be available for 48-hour rental periods for $19.99.

Other films that are already out, including "The Hunt," which debuted in theaters last week, "The Invisible Man" and "Emma," will be available on-demand earlier than they traditionally are released, beginning Friday.

"Rather than delaying these films or releasing them into a challenged distribution landscape, we wanted to provide an option for people to view these titles in the home that is both accessible and affordable, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell said in a statement.

We hope and believe that people will still go to the movies in theaters where available, but we understand that for people in different areas of the world that is increasingly becoming less possible," Shell said.

The White House on Monday released new guidelines for curbing the spread of the virus, including avoiding gathering in public places or meeting in groups of 10 or more.

Multiple major film releases including the latest flicks in the James Bond and Fast and Furious franchises have been delayed amid the pandemic.

AMC Theatres said last week that it would reduce viewing capacity by 50 percent in order to increase the level of "social distancing" while moviegoers watch films.

Several states, including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, among others, announced Monday that they would close all entertainment venues starting that night in an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

More than 3,800 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed across the U.S., according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Continued here:
'Trolls: World Tour,' 'Emma' and other Universal movies available on-demand early amid coronavirus | TheHill - The Hill

Paul Ashton, head of biology, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk

WRITTEN on the final, frozen day of 1900, Thomas Hardys poem The Darkling Thrush describes a harsh, ice-blasted landscape devoid of life. Hardys depiction of a time when frost was spectre-gray evokes a winter that is beginning to exist only in memory.

The winter of 2019-2020 was fundamentally different from anything experienced in the northern hemisphere over a century ago. With its record warmth and heavy rain, this winter was fundamentally different from those of only a decade ago.

The extremes of this winter, if a one-off event, would have a small effect on wildlife in the long term. But such weather isnt a single event. It characterises what is likely to be the norm for future British winters. Its the winter that climate change science has long been predicting, where frost is a rarity and regular storms bring abundant rain. These are winters that we need to become familiar with and one that is already changing British wildlife.

Plants have evolved a variety of approaches for coping with the rigours of a cold British winter. Grasses typically ride it out above ground and simply tick over. This is why lawns stay green over winter but dont need cutting. These plants will benefit from the changed climate. You might even find that your lawn starts to need a winter cut.

For some plants, the recent winter never got cold enough to stop flowering. The 2020 New Year Plant Hunt organised by the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland found a high number of autumn-flowering species that had simply carried on flowering into the new year. Other winners are the rushes. Like grasses, they maintain their above-ground form and can thrive in waterlogged soils. The biblical deluges of February 2020 will have been no problem for them.

An alternative strategy taken by many plants is to let leaves die back and spend winter below the ground as seeds or bulbs. Bulb plants respond to the onset of warmth with rapid growth the extensive early carpets of wild garlic leaves are testament to this.

But it isnt good news for all plants. Those that spend winter as seeds usually need some cold treatment to trigger germination. The relative warmth may mean that this cue was absent, ensuring some plants fail to sprout in spring. Those that do germinate may find their seedlings crowded out by plants that survived winter above ground and are already flourishing.

Plants on high ground also rely on the cold. These are some of Britains rarest species, including Snowdon lily and purple saxifrage. Theyve evolved to tolerate cold, usually through releasing a type of anti-freeze in their leaves. This comes at a cost to their metabolism, slowing their development. In times of extreme cold, this cost is justified as they survive while competitors dont. In warmer winters, the faster-growing competitors are at an advantage. My own research into upland meadows, one of Britains rarest and most biodiverse habitats, has shown significant losses of cold-adapted species like ladys mantle.

The recent winter weather fulfilled another scientific prediction increasingly fierce and frequent storms will open opportunities for new species to colonise. Storm surges and winds have battered sand dunes and salt marshes in recent years. Some of the gaps theyve created in salt marshes have been filled by one of Britains newest species, salt marsh sedge (Carex salina). First recorded from a single remote Scottish site in 2004, its now common on a handful of other sites across Scotland and its likely to spread further in the future.

The method by which plants have adapted to endure winter is likely to determine how successful they are in the future. The same is true for animals. Many soil invertebrates, such as earthworms, will benefit from milder weather and multiply, no longer struggling through frozen soil. This in turn will benefit the animals that are active all year round and feed on these, such as badgers and resident birds, like the blackbird. Thats providing the rain abates long enough to allow the birds to feed.

Many animals reduce their activity in winter as their metabolism slows down. This allows fat reserves accrued in summer and autumn to be drawn upon slowly. A rise in temperature for cold-blooded animals, such as insects, means that their metabolic rates increase and their fat reserves deplete quicker potentially meaning some cannot last the winter. For insects such as butterflies, wasps and bees, warmer, wetter winters may make them more prone to fungal attack.

Few British mammals undergo true hibernation in the way that bears do. Multiple sightings across Russia, Finland and the US suggest that many bears emerged to what they thought was spring in February a month earlier than usual.

Some British mammals, such as bats and hedgehogs, slow down their metabolism and only become active again if temperatures rise above a critical point. Typically this temperature rise occurs in spring and is a sign that winter is ending. But when these carnivorous mammals emerge in winter, its likely to be when their insect prey is absent, risking their precious fat reserves and potentially causing starvation.

Even for those species that do undergo true hibernation, such as dormice, the unseasonable warmth sees this come to a premature end.

While Hardys poem maintains its power in the joy illimited of the thrushs song, should he be writing it today, it would describe a land decidedly warmer, wetter and greener than any hed recognise.

Continue reading here:
How British wildlife greeted the warmest winter on record - Metro Newspaper UK

Leaders from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are set to testify on Capitol Hill Tuesday morning. The hearing itself is officially about the presidents 2021 budget request for the agency. But in the month or so since President Donald Trump sent that budget to Congress, the COVID-19 outbreak has completely changed the public health landscape.

The budget proposal for the CDC cut funding to the agency by about 16%. Now with an $8 billion funding package that was just signed into law, Jay Shambaugh at the Brookings Institution says youre seeing continued activity to try to make sure anything that needs to be funded from a public health standpoint is funded.

Right now, thanks to low interest rates, the government can borrow money cheaply, according to Desmond Lachman at the American Enterprise Institute.

It takes time to spend that kind of money efficiently, Lachman said. So I wouldnt expect an increase in the very near future.

Shambaugh said the money is good in the short term, but the conversation is different now.

But now theres a much broader conversation in Congress about an appropriate kind of fiscal response that stretches beyond the immediate funding the public health agencies as well, he said.

Such responses include tax cuts or paid sick leave that may address other consequences of the outbreak.

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CDC set to testify on Capitol Hill on its budget, as it responds to COVID-19 - Marketplace