Category Archives: Life Extension

The Indiana Pacers have an interesting decision coming up this season. T.J. Warren is entering the final year of his contract after missing basically the entire 2020-21 season with a foot injury. With his deal coming to an end, should the Pacers plan for life without him?

I love T.J. Warren and think he can be the best player on the team once he gets back to full health thanks to his ability to carry the offense. He was just hitting his stride in the bubble and carried that momentum into last season before an injury shut things down in a hurry. Now, the Pacers have to figure out the future with Warren, Brogdon, Sabonis, and Turner all set to make big money.

The Pacers have locked up Sabonis for three more seasons, finishing his deal at $21.3 million in 2023-24. Brogdon and Turner are both signed through the 2022-23 season at a high value, as is Caris LeVert. The four are combined to make roughly $79.3 million during the 2022-23 season before even accounting for an extension for T.J. Warren.

Warren, who is arguably the best offensive player on the team, deserves a big payday when he becomes available. The Pacers have to make a tough decision. Either they can pay him big money with his injury risk always being on the table or they can let him walk in order to keep the rest of the core together.

The biggest problem with the two-big lineup is that it essentially costs the Pacers $40 million at the center position in the starting lineup while neglecting other needs. Trading one of the centers now to open up space for a Warren extension and helping the rest of the roster right now should be considered.

Unfortunately, there has been no sign of the Pacers actively shopping either center in recent months, aside from broken down talks of sending Myles Turner to the Celtics for Gordon Hayward once again.

T.J. Warren is a vital piece for the Pacers moving forward. His absence last season was too much to overcome as the Pacers missed the playoffs and looked lost on defense far too often. If he does not return after this season, the Pacers will have to work very hard to replace his impact. Drafting a potential replacement in the 2021 NBA Draft has to be on their minds.

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Should the Indiana Pacers prepare for life without T.J. Warren? - 8 Points, 9 Seconds

The regional energy landscape has gone through layers of disruption to evolve into its current form. As the demand side of the equation evolved, a departure from the traditional way of powering the worlds energy needs was witnessed through an accelerated uptake of digital interventions and a marked shift towards cleaner options.

Companies across the industry spectrum adopted indigenous, technology-driven solutions for operational benefits and sustainability.

Painting a green pictureAmid larger economic recovery and regenerative strategies, a number of stakeholders are keen to build a future without the cloud of climatic cataclysm. Hydrogen is a resourceful fuel and can be used in several ways across the entire energy spectrum, but the traditional way of producing it entails substantial carbon emissions.

However, it does draw a crucial link between traditional and sustainable fuels and, in its low carbon form, could possibly signal the worlds transition to a sustainable energy future. Hence clean hydrogen has now secured a major spot within the futures energy drawing board. While blue hydrogen, in which carbon emissions are captured and stored, is one option, the cleanest alternative is green hydrogen, which is created when renewable energy is used to split water molecules via electrolysis.

For a sustainable future, we will need a mix of fuels and energy sources, depending on the application and environment, to ensure we can get to net zero quickly and cost effectively, opines Jonathan Carpenter, vice president of New Energy Services at Petrofac.

The Gulf has enormous renewable energy resources particularly solar that will be increasingly harnessed for domestic power generation and needs. Potentially, green hydrogen, green ammonia and green methanol can also be produced for export. However, this will be constrained by freshwater availability in the region and desalination plant deployments. As a result, the Gulf has the opportunity to remain a major energy exporter for the foreseeable future, while also providing clean, low cost and abundant energy domestically which can be a catalyst for further economic growth and development, he adds.

Stakeholders across local and regional countries have shown intent to pursue sustainable fuels. In May, UAE firm Beeah announced that it will be pursuing the regions first waste-to-hydrogen project, which includes a green hydrogen generation plant and a hydrogen vehicle fuelling station, in collaboration with UK-based Chinook Sciences. Earlier this year, Mubadala Investment Company, state-owned ADNOC and ADQ formed the Abu Dhabi Hydrogen Alliance to develop a roadmap to accelerate the countrys adoption and use of hydrogen in major sectors. Omans OQ too announced recently that, as part of an international consortium, it is developing one of the biggest green fuel projects in the world.

Saudi Arabia also has ambitious plans it aims to develop the worlds largest green hydrogen project after an agreement was signed between Air Products, ACWA Power and NEOM last year. The $5bn green hydrogen-based ammonia production facility will be located in NEOM and will produce green ammonia for export to global markets. Meanwhile, an Abu Dhabi Ports subsidiary also announced the formation of a green ammonia production facility, in which privately-owned Helios Industry plans to invest over $1bn. The plant will use solar power to electrolyse water and split molecules, and at peak capacity, release 40,000 tonnes of green hydrogen, which will be used to produce 200,000 tonnes of green ammonia.

While green hydrogen does inspire hope, the technology to produce it remains expensive. A study by Strategy&, part of the PwC network, reveals that green hydrogen is currently more expensive than traditional production processes, roughly twice as much as gray hydrogen. However, advances in electrolysis technology, decreasing costs of renewables, and increased economies of scale should significantly reduce its production cost and make it an economically viable solution.

Furthermore, GCC countries have several advantages, primarily highyield solar and wind resources, that can generate power at a very low levelised cost of energy. These will allow the GCC region to produce green hydrogen at scale and at low cost.

We expect that the total demand for green hydrogen could reach about 530 million tons (Mt) by 2050, displacing roughly 10.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent (37 per cent of pre-pandemic global oil production) in various sectors such as heating, transportation, power generation, chemicals, and primary steel manufacturing. This is part of a broader move towards decarbonisation that has sped up thanks to the Covid19 pandemic, which has slashed hydrocarbon demand. At that point, we expect that the yearly global export market for green hydrogen will be worth about $300bn, the study read.

Transnational alliances have also been formed to pursue low-carbon fuel forms and address climate change. In 2020, Saudi Aramco announced that the worlds first blue ammonia shipment was dispatched from Saudi Arabia to Japan. Ammonia releases zero carbon emissions when burned in thermal power plants and has the potential to make a significant contribution to an affordable and reliable low-carbon energy future, according to the energy giant.

Ammonia can also be used across multiple industrial applications. ADNOC revealed recently that it would advance a blue ammonia production facility in Ruwais to meet demands for low-carbon fuels. Blue ammonia is produced from nitrogen and blue hydrogen that is derived from natural gas feedstocks, with carbon emissions captured and stored.

Ammonia will allow large quantities of the energy captured from renewables, which is converted to hydrogen and then ammonia, to be transported cheaply and can be used to power ships but also replace natural gas or coal in power stations, effectively displacing these fossil fuels in the process. If needed, ammonia can also be converted back to hydrogen at the destination, if that is the preferred fuel source, adds Carpenter.

Going ahead, in the face of towering climatic and environmental implications, the search for sustainable energy sources continues unabated. The future of biofuels which are sourced from biomass also appears promising. Biofuels represent an important aspect of the roadmap for transport decarbonisation.

To meet our sustainable energy goals, we may also anticipate the need for increasing deployment of many kinds of biofuels. These include not only ethanol, biodiesel and biogas, but also other types of alcohols, such as methanol or butanol, as well as renewable diesel (HVO) and other so-called drop-in fuels that meet the fossil fuel quality standards a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) revealed.

However, the primary challenge for biofuels is the ability to produce at scale; presently, biofuels rely on feedstocks that are generally not as widely available in the volumes needed to make an effective substitute for fossil-derived fuels, opines Carpenter.

Expanding production will require significant land and water use that are not sustainable. Present biofuels production works best when it is focused on a localised supply chain of feedstock to produce biofuels to meet localised demand, as to limit emissions to enhance its sustainability. Freshwater availability also remains a key challenge for biofuels particularly in water-stressed regions like here in the Middle East.

This challenge is also driving innovation, with many technology companies looking to convert more abundant raw materials, or even waste, into biofuels to drive both increased scale and improved economics, he adds.

One such example is the Green Fuels project in Oman with Wakud, where their technology takes used cooking oil via a transesterification process to create biodiesel. Tyres, municipal waste, even sewage and animal slurry, can be converted into fuels, including aviation fuel, which will help to address one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise.

Advanced biofuels which make use of non-food and non-feed biomass, including waste materials and energy specific crops also offer opportunities to mitigate climate change, harness waste and energy crops, create new jobs, andstrengthen energy independence, the IRENA report states.

However, despite the advantages of a transition to producing and using 2G (second generation) biofuels, the emergence of the advanced biofuel industry has been sluggish due to numerous barriers such as high production costs, immature supply chains, dependence on government support schemes that are subject to political influences, and consequent uncertainty around market size, it said.

Digital diveAs technological advancements permeate industrial ecosystems, and as companies within the oil and gas sector increasingly integrate their physical systems with digital solutions, businesses can derive timely insights, respond to real-time queries, foster safety and scale operational efficiencies. Emerging technologies will not only equip companies to adapt to changing market conditions and help achieve their sustainability objectives, but also effectively alter how energy is supplied to the world.

There is a serious focus in the oil and gas industry to improve on sustainability, efficiency and reduce emissions/environment impact while maintaining health and safety levels. In this context, we see a focus on digitalisation solutions, seeing as they are a key enabler for critical aspects like predictive/preventive maintenance, workplace hazard reduction, remote operations, enhanced inspection, and operations ability, and overall asset life extension through higher reliability and reduced risk, opines Abhay Bhargava, senior director, Industrial Practice, Middle East and South Asia at Frost & Sullivan.

Key technologies and solutions being used across the oil and gas landscape include sensors, analytics, drones, cloud/edge computing, AR/VR and digital twins, blockchain, 3D printing/additives, connected fields, wearables, robotics and 5G.

However, the industry is dealing with and prioritising only those technologies that can support in advancing the automation of activities, which can result in higher efficiency of assets and extension of life, he adds.

Technologies such as a digital twin which is a virtual representation of assets/processes is a bridge between physical and digital worlds. Oil giant BP deploys APEX, a simulation and surveillance system that creates a virtual copy of all the companys production systems throughout the world. APEX delivered 30,000 barrels of additional oil and gas production per day during 2017 across BPs global portfolio, according to the companys website.

The benefits of digital twin technology go beyond simple convenience providing avenues of real-time monitoring, faster response times, better prediction of potential issues/ deviations to processes, and even the ability to control entire assets/processes remotely, says Bhargava.

Stakeholder collaborations and key initiatives that address factors impeding the development of sustainable fuels, as well as widespread adoption of digital solutions will underpin the worlds transition to a sustainable global energy system.

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GCC's energy space: What does the future hold? Gulfbusiness.com - Gulf Business

Texas and Oklahoma in the SEC? What would it mean for college football?

USA TODAY Network SEC reporters Nick Kelly and Nick Suss discuss the potential ramifications of adding Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC.

Nick Kelly and Nick Suss, The Tuscaloosa News

Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby thanked reporters last week for not asking about conference realignment at theleaguesmedia days in Arlington. I think I won five bucks on that, he joked.

Not to say it couldn't happen, he added, but it's not one of the things that keeps me up at night.

Bowlsby must be restless now. The Big 12 Conferences shelf life looks considerably shakier now that University of Texas and University of Oklahoma officials are exploring a move to the rival Southeastern Conference, a seismic shift that would rattle college athletics down to its core.

Its also complicated, a decision that would require serious backroom dealing, tacit state legislative approval and 11 affirmative votes from 14 current SEC schools with Texas A&M already likely to vote no.

Three Big 12 sources told the American-Statesman the major decisions could come quickly. The Big 12s television contract runs through the 2024-25 athletic year. The league has asked its members for a five-year extension, pushing that commitment out to at least 2030, one Big 12 source said.

More: Are Texas and Oklahoma trying to join the SEC? Officials say 'no comment' on possible discussions

Texas does not want to extend itself that far in this environment. Players can now get paid because of changes in name, image and likeness rules, and conference commissioners are discussing an expanded 12-team playoff format. With the proliferation of cord cutting, its unclear what the TV landscape will look like in 2025, much less in 2030.

Thus, Texas wants to step back and examine all options, one source said. The Longhorns are expected to send a letter to the Big 12 office next week saying they do not wish to extend their TV rights beyond 2025. A UT source called it "the first step" Thursday.

From there, UT officials believe they must send a letter to the SEC expressing interest in joining theconference. The SEC would then vote on whether to approve the Longhorns and take another vote on the Sooners for expansion.

Big 12 presidents and athletic directors were scheduled to meetat 5 p.m. Thursday, CBS Sports reported.

More: Big 12 TV partners decline early negotiations

For UT, this is about moving the NCAAs most financially lucrative athletic department into the most prestigious, most lucrative athletic conference in America. For Oklahoma, its about not getting left behind and about giving the SEC a 16th team, creating the nations first so-called superconference.

Ive been trying to tell people everybody wants to play in the SEC, man, Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz said Thursday at SEC media days in Hoover, Ala. If you can attract a couple of really good schools to come play, thats great.

After issuing a nondenial statement Wednesday, Texas officials have gone silent. Its believed this decision is being driven by three people working in tight-knit fashion: UT System Board of Regents Chairman Kevin Eltife, UT President Jay Hartzell and athletic director Chris Del Conte.

At the University of Texas, we have a proud tradition of competing at the highest levels amongst the elite programs in college football, Eltife said Jan. 2, when Steve Sarkisian was introduced as the new football coach. And in honor of that tradition, we never settle for anything short of excellence. We dont do things halfway.

All three worked in conjunction to bring Sarkisian and Texas Tech men's basketball coach Chris Beard to Austin this year. Del Conte did the interviews and legwork with Hartzells approval, and Eltife signed off on the multimillion-dollar financial ramifications of both coaching changes.

This type of harmony is a huge change from the previous decade, when UT regents were suing the president and fans loathed the athletic director. When were all rowing in the same direction, Del Conte has said numerous times, its a sight to behold.

For Del Conte,getting Texas into the SEC would be the biggest achievement of his professional life. The loquacious athletic director has not returned multiple calls or messages left by the Statesman. Other Texas administrators did not respond for comment Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Big 12 schools potentially getting left behind are scrambling.

We are gathering information and will monitor closely, Oklahoma State officials said in a statement late Wednesday. If true, we would be gravely disappointed.

Baylor graduate and state Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, tweeted Thursday: The lack of transparency by our flagship institution is wrong. Such a monumental economic and educational decision impacting the entire state must not be made in a bubble on the forty acres. Working on legislation requiring legislative approval for UT to bolt the BIG XII.

Messages left with Leachs office by the Statesman were not returned.

Financially, the SEC is in better shape than the Big 12. The SEC distributed $45.5 million to each of its 14 members from the 2019-20 fiscal year, the league announced in February. The Big 12 distributed $34.5 million to each of its 10 members for the 2020-21 fiscal year.

Then in May, the SEC distributed another $23 million to its members to help offset losses from the pandemic. The league was borrowing from revenue expected from its new ESPN deal, which will startin 2024.

Television contracts are a driving force in all these discussions, but not the end-all, be-all, one league source told the Statesman. The Big 12s TV contract runs through the 2024-25 athletic year, and UTs contract with the Longhorn Network extends to summer 2031.

Its believed that if Texas went to the SEC, the Longhorn Network would be wound down. Texas gets an extra $15 million annually from LHN that would have to be accounted for somewhere else in a new agreement with the SEC.

In 2012, Oklahoma struck a 10-year deal with Fox Sports for the Sooners third-tier TV rights worth approximately $40 million over the life of the deal. In the SEC, all members have signed their third-tier rights over to the league, which created the SEC Network.

The extra money Texas would get from going to the SEC would somewhat be secondary. The Longhorns are now losing competitive ground to the Aggies in recruiting as players view SEC competition as superior to the Big 12. Texas lost a recruit late Wednesday as four-star cornerback Jaylon Guilbeau from Port Arthur Memorial suddenly backed away from his commitment to UT's 2022 recruiting class.

Oklahoma has won six straight Big 12 football titles, but Texas has been competitive everywhere else. The Longhorns, who claimed three national team championships this spring, won the Learfield Directors Cup for the first time in school history during the 2020-21 athletic year. The Directors Cup goes to the most successful athletic program in the nation.

Texas would still keep its annual football grudge match against OU at the Cotton Bowl every year. But UT officials would gladly trade home games against Kansas and Kansas State for dates with Arkansas and LSU, for example.

How quickly all this would happenremains to be seen.

Im so nervous about the schedule we have coming up and all that, I havent paid much attention about it, Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said. I know were going to play Texas this year. We play them Sept. 11, and were very excited for that.

Contact Brian Davis by phone or text at 512-445-3957. Email bdavis@statesman.com or @BDavisAAS.

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Big 12s request to extend TV rights prompts Texas to look at all options, including SEC - Hookem.com

Were well into gardening season and you might have some questions. For answers, turn to Ask an Expert, an online question-and-answer tool from Oregon State Universitys Extension Service. OSU Extension faculty and Master Gardeners reply to queries within two business days, usually less. To ask a question, simply go to the OSU Extension website, type it in, and include the county where you live. Here are some questions asked by other gardeners. Whats yours?

Q: For a couple of years now, I get a couple of nice blooms from my dahlia at the beginning of the season. And then, on the other buds, they dry out and die before they open, like something is eating it inside.

A: That certainly looks like thrip damage. The eggs are deposited (tiny, tiny ones) on the buds and they eat the inside of the flower, turning it brown and it dies.

Thrips come around in late spring and summer so timing is about right. There are a number of things you can do to not only stop the buds from dying but disrupt the life cycle of thrips.

This may be the western flower thrip, tiny 1/20th of an inch long, they are yellow or brown and very hard to see even as adults.

The larva eat the developing flower petals and by the time the flower starts to open, the larva are gone.

Thrips like dry weather (which we have in abundance this year). Water thoroughly weekly down at least 2 inches and mist frequently.I dont usually recommend this but you can put a sprinkler on the plant to keep it moist.If the weather were anything but hot and windy, I would not recommend this as it is a great way to grow mold, but thats in our wet, foggy and cool weather with rainy periods.

No matter if the plant is in a pot or in the ground, keep the lawn mowed down or any weeds out of the area. Thrips will overwinter on these plants.

Spinosad is a spray that can be used and may penetrate down to the petals in a bud.Itwill kill the thrips.Spray all sides of the plant. Also, 100% pure Neem oil (found online) will kill them.You can alternate, but follow the directions carefully.Both are considered organic sprays and can be used on food plants as well.Getting the population down will help keep the new buds healthy.

Another pest, the broad or cyclamen mite also likes the dahlia buds but they usually attack in wet cool weather. In that case, you would spray with Neem. If the buds are slightly ready to open you can gently open a small area of thebud and spray a little of the Neem inside.Neem is a plant-based oil that helps with fungus as well as pests. Both of the sprays will kill ALL insects so do not spray on open blossoms or near bees and other pollinators.

Neem oil is usually effective for about 24 to 36 hours on the petals.Other flower pests will eat them and die.The bees are interested only in the pollen but it is almost impossible to spray a flower without getting the pollen.

You can also use yellow and/or blue sticky paper. You can find it online.Thrips seem to be attracted to blue sticky paper more than the yellow, but I use both.Another pest that eats dahlias like crazy are the striped and spotted cucumber beetles.They are attracted to the yellow color.

Neem oil likes to gel, so if that happens, put the spray bottle in warm water. It will liquify quickly.Always shake the bottle before spraying to make sure the oil is mixed with the water.

Here is a link about the life cycle of a thrip for your review. Sheryl Casteen, OSU Extension Master Gardener

Fallen pine treeOSU Extension Service

Q: A pine tree fell on my property. It separated where the trunk meets the root structure. Half of the core at the base is black. How do I analyze the standing pines to see if they are impacted? Is there a treatment available to eliminate this fungus? Washington County

A: That is a difficult question as diagnosis of root disease/rot in tree roots is notoriously difficult.In this case it appears that the tree was wounded, and the fungus came in to the tree causing the rot.One way to investigate the other trees is to check for wounding/callus tissue at the base of the tree.

If root disease is an issue for the other trees, it will likely show up in the crown.Trees with root disease tend to have thin foliage (not full crowns),yellowing foliage, maybetop dieback and lots of smaller-than-normal cones (stress crop) in the crown also. If your trees look healthy, they may be OK.Sometimes, the crown will look fine yet the tree somehow compensates, so it is not always for sure.

If the trees are a hazard, ie. if they are big enough to hurt someone, you should invite an arborist to check them out. David Shaw, OSU Extension forestry specialist

Winter squash can take 50-55 days to fruit set. File photo. (Gus Chan / The Plain Dealer) The Plain Dealer

Q: I planted five sweet meat pumpkins in May and for the last few weeks I have only seen male flowers. Should I be worried or are the female flowers coming soon? Im concerned that I wont have enough time for a pumpkin to mature before the weather turns cold. Marion County

A: Generally, it takes about 50 to 55 days after fruit set until harvest for winter squash. Some varieties take a little bit longer.So, there is still time to get harvestable fruit by end of September or early October if the plant starts producing flowers soon. Im guessing that the heatwave interrupted the normal flowering and now the plant has to catch up. So, cross your fingers anddont give up hope yet. Brooke Edmunds, OSU Extension horticulturist

Wood chip mulch would be an easier choice then most plants under a maple tree. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Q: Do you have any suggestions for low-growing, easy-care ground cover under a maple tree? Multnomah County

A: Maple tree ground covers are tricky because maples shed their leaves, which need to be raked up. Not raking will often kill a ground cover and raking over it becomes tricky without damaging the plant you have chosen.

A wood chip mulch is sometimes the easiest solution to the ground cover problem, especially for older trees with lots of leaves. It breaks down to give the tree more nutrients and keeps the roots moist and cooler than bare soil. You can get arborist chips for free in most areas.

Then there is the shade problem. You will want a plant that can tolerate shade but doesnt compete too much with the trees roots. Also, some maples actively discourage other plants from growing in their root areas (allelopathic) so not just any plant will work.

Some ideas include sweet woodruff, hostas, ferns, bleeding heart, rhododendron, wild geranium, violets, trillium and hardy cyclamen. Dont add soil to the area or you risk smothering your tree roots. Also realize that birds will add their own seeds to whatever you plant, so keeping the area weed free will be necessary to keep the tree healthy.

I guess that puts me back to the arborists chips. Rhonda Frick-Wright, OSU Extension Master Gardener

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Having trouble with thrips? Ask an expert - OregonLive

Picture Above: USF St. Petersburg Regional Chancellor Martin Tadlock was as surprised as anyone when President Steve Currall announced his retirement from the presidency on July 19. Now, Currall hopes Tadlock will extend his time as regional chancellor through June 30, 2022.

Martha Rhine | The Crows Nest

By Michael Alden

Regional Chancellor Martin Tadlock announced on Thursday he is negotiating with the USF administration to potentially extend his role into next year.

Speaking at the first in-person campus community forum in over a year on issues of campus stability, enrollment numbers and budget, Tadlock told those in attendance he may retain his current position beyond Dec. 31 to help search for candidates for several university positions.

President Currall has asked that I extend my time as regional chancellor through June 30, 2022, which will allow the time needed for a national search for a new regional chancellor and vice chancellor for academic affairs vice provost, Tadlock said. Im working with him on the details of that agreement.

Speaking with The Crows Nest, Tadlock affirmed that the extension is still under consideration and has not been finalized.

Its not a done deal. Its an ongoing conversation. Theres a lot of considerations related to personal and family concerns as well, he said. Then professionally, yes, I want to make sure this campus is in a good place. That is definitely a concern. Thats why Im considering staying until the end of June to help that happen.

President Steve Currall unexpectedly announced his retirement on Monday, effective Aug. 2. He cited health and family as reasons for his resignation. His two-year tenure as president will be the shortest in university history.

Tadlock said he was as surprised as anyone by the resignation and he received the same announcement as everyone else.

He wasnt surprised, however, that Currall asked him to extend his role as regional chancellor of the St. Petersburg campus.

Currall reached out to Tadlock after announcing his departure plans earlier this week.

We had actually mentioned that as a possibility a couple of months ago, Tadlock said.

He anticipates the negotiations will be resolved before Curralls departure.

Hes president until Aug. 2, Tadlock said. I would think whatever we finally arrive at in terms of a possible extension will be done before then.

Tadlock announced in January he would be stepping down from his position on Dec. 31 and return to teaching at the College of Education. He initially declined a one-year extension from July 2020 to July 2021 and opted instead for a six-month extension to give the university time to search for a successor.

He has been credited by faculty and students for his level-headed approach to university challenges such as consolidation and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tadlock sees the search to fill university positions as critical to maintaining campus stability.

We will be moving these searches forward and pursuing people who have experience, who understand this campus, this place and this city, he said. Coming into those roles will be important to the stability of this campus.

Whoever the next president may be, Tadlock assured they will have full support from the university.

The support of a president lies on people in the community, the board of trustees, and the vice presidents and leadership teams. The presidential position, in my opinion, is not an island unto itself, Tadlock said. The president works with a whole array of constituents. All of the administration officials they work with have a responsibility to help the president be successful. No one can do that job on their own.

Tadlock attempted to calm fears during Thursdays forum and reassure faculty and staff that the future of the St. Petersburg campus remains promising.

I know there is a lot of uncertainty with the departure of a president who chose to take a different direction for his life and career. Those things happen, Tadlock said. What matters here is what I tried to say earlier. Dont get down, dont get in the ditch. Stay above it.

USF is great. Its a nationally-ranked rising university with all the accolades, Tadlock said. Consolidation is a work in progress Well continue to work toward that model that we all want to see that will make this the kind of place we want to stay and be.

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Tadlock considering extension to his role in St. Petersburg The Crow's Nest at USF St. Petersburg - The Crow's Nest

Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah has a face that smiles at rest. When she is speaking, it is with a constant grin, one that only falters when she talks about some of the difficult circumstances she and other African women have gone through in their quest for sexual liberation. She speaks to me from her home city of Accra, Ghana, where she says no one is surprised that she has written a book about sex. As a blogger, author and self-described positive sex evangelist, she has been collecting and recording the sexual experiences of African women for more than a decade. Her new book, The Sex Lives of African Women, is an anthology of confessional accounts from across the African continent and the diaspora. The stories are sorted into three sections: self-discovery, freedom and healing. Each sex life is told in the subjects own words. The result is a book that takes the reader into the beds of polygamous marriages in Senegal, to furtive lesbian hookups in toilets in Cairo and polyamorous clubs in the United States, but without any sensationalism or essentialism. Her ambition, in the book as in life, is to create more space for African women to have open and honest conversations about sex and sexuality.

Sekyiamah was born in London to Ghanaian parents in a polygamous relationship, but grew up in Ghana. Her formative years in Accra were under a patriarchal, conservative, Catholic regime that instilled in her a fear of sex and all its potential dangers pregnancy, shame, becoming a fallen woman. I remember once my period didnt come, she recalls. I was in Catholic school at the time, and I would go to the convent every day and pray, because I thought that meant I was pregnant. From the moment she reached puberty she was told: Now you have your period, youre a woman, you cant let guys touch you. That was always in my head. Later, she was told: If you leave your marriage no one else is going to want you. If you have a child as a single woman men are going to think of you just as a sexual object and not a potential partner. Her mother would only speak to her about sex in cautionary ways. The idea of messing with boys was so scary to me. It kept me a virgin for years and years.

In her late teens, Sekyiamah moved to the UK to study and began reading feminist literature. She realised how much all that terror stopped her, and other women, from owning their bodies, their pleasure and, by extension, from taking up their place in the world. She moved back to Ghana and, in 2009, co-founded a blog, Adventures from the Bedrooms of African Women. I started sharing my own personal stories, my own experiences, and encouraging other women to share their own stories. So the blog became a collective space for African women, whether they were in the continent or in the diaspora, to just think aloud, share experiences, to learn from one another. The blog was a hit, and was deluged with submissions from African woman sharing their stories of love and erotica. It won prestigious awards in Ghana and earned Sekyiamah and her co-founder, Malaka Grant, international recognition. But after a while, she began to want to read, and write, something longer. She realised that people have no idea about the reality of African womens experiences when it comes to sex and sexuality. I feel like people always think of African women as repressed or constantly pregnant or they dont have sanitary towels or theyve been cut [genitally mutilated]. I was learning about the breadth of our experiences through the blog, and so I thought: I want to write a book about the experiences of African women.

She had to scale back her ambitions, which were Africa-wide. When I started, I wanted to interview African women from every country on the continent, and I gradually realised that wasnt realistic. She doubted the stories would ever see the light, anyway. Honestly, as somebody living in Ghana where we dont have a publishing industry, I thought: Will this book ever get published? I used to live with that fear. She submitted two interviews to an anthology in the hope that they would spark interest in the book. She neednt have worried. Even before the anthology came out, I got my book deal.

The interviews came about in a variety of ways. Sometimes she would find subjects through her travels, but she also issued a callout on social media for people living their best sex lives. The stories came from across sub-Saharan Africa and the African diaspora in the west, instalments of sexual awakening, frustration, and ultimately, a sort of freedom. What they share is an ease, uninhibitedness, sexual fluency and familiarity with the narrators bodies and sexual and romantic needs, often in situations that seem incongruent with sexual agency.

What emerges is a sort of intimate community of voices across more than 30 countries. The process of interviewing these women made me closer to them. The vast majority of them Im still connected with. It helped that Sekyiamah had written about her own experiences so honestly and frankly, as a Ghanaian bisexual woman whose own explorations included physical intimacy with other girls at school and polyamory, before marrying and then finding the strength to leave her husband. Now, she describes herself as a solo polyamorist, meaning someone who has multiple relationships but maintains an independent or single lifestyle. Some of the women were familiar with the stories I had been writing. They knew I was a feminist. They know Im not coming from a position where Im going to judge them and their choices.

Their motivations for telling their own intimate stories, albeit mostly anonymously, were often political. Some were feminists who felt it was important for the story to be out there, she says. Others just wanted to get negative experiences off their chests. There was a time when I was feeling a little bit depressed because a lot of people were telling me about child sexual abuse. And that was heavy stuff. The result is that what started as a celebration ended up being a much more sober affair.

Sexual assault is almost ubiquitous in the anthology. It is mentioned at times almost in passing, with an alarming casualness that is revealing of how resigned many African women are to its inevitability. But Sekyiamah believes there is a power in sharing these stories. Whatever African women have gone through, she says, we are definitely not anomalies, and it is terrible that so many women experience child sexual abuse and abuse of all sorts and forms. But also, people survive their abuse. And for me, the lesson that I took away was the importance of making space and time for healing, whatever that healing looks like. And it looks different for so many women. For some it was being an activist and speaking up about womens rights. For some it was: I am going to be celibate for a hundred days and then it becomes a thousand. For some it was a spiritual journey. For others it was actually sex itself [that] was healing, losing themselves in their bodies.

There were some people she interviewed who made her think: Oh my God, youve cracked the code! Youre living your best sex life. They had mostly stopped caring about what other people thought. Those were generally the kind of people that would be seen as living outside societal norms. They tended not to be heterosexual, they tended not to be monogamous, they tended to be queer folk, poly people. And I feel like theres something about just figuring out who you are and what will work for you, and trying to, in a sense, put all the noise of society out of your head. That was the thing that I took away. And its not a linear journey. Theres no formula to it, she believes. To some, it can be about confronting child sexual abuse, to others, it could be about moving on. I dont feel like everyone has to open up trauma and look at it and touch it.

Her intention was to de-cliche the sex lives of African women, and she feels that to a large extent I was able to achieve that. But in the process she also discovered her own stereotypical assumptions. For example, I used to think all women who had been cut could not have pleasurable sex. And I was interviewing this woman who had been cut who was describing this amazing sexual experience and my mind was blown. In my head, I was like, but you dont have a clitoris, and I was thinking, how can I ask this question? The woman reminded her that the clitoris goes up in your body. And I was embarrassed, because I know this rationally.

Sekyiamahs book has been compared to Three Women, Lisa Taddeos 2019 word-of-mouth hit following the sex lives of three American women. It is a comparison she is aware of but clearly, in the most good-humoured way possible, rejects. Look, I loved Three Women, she says, but insists that her book is definitely not The African Three Women. Theres no comparison. [Taddeo] does an in-depth dive with three women and I really wanted a breadth. What is important for us is that we have multiple experiences even in the same lifetime. I wanted to include that type of fluidity and I felt that I could only do that by showing a range.

Central to that range is the spectrum of romantic and sexual arrangements African woman have. Because of her upbringing, Sekyiamah feels that she has a perspective that isnt blinkered by expectations of monogamy. I wanted to show that there are different forms of relationships. Because even for me, as someone who is an outcome of a polygamous marriage, it was kind of a surprise to speak to a contemporary African woman who had chosen to enter into a polygamous marriage. We need to validate all the different ways in which people create families. I dont think the children of heterosexual marriages are happier than children of queer or polygamous marriages. I know this from my own life.

It is of course an impossible task, no matter how large the sample size, to capture the entire range and nuance of African womens sex lives. Sekyiamahs intention is less to complete an exhaustive chronicle, than it is to send a very specific message to a specific readership. I had an audience in mind, she says, firmly. Particularly, she had black women and African women in mind. Both on the continent and in the diaspora. I wanted them to know that there are other ways of being, and those ways of being are about what works for you.

In that sense, the stories have given her renewed hope and resolve in her own life. Despite being taught from a young age to fear her period, to fear pregnancy out of wedlock, divorce, single motherhood, she experienced all of them and is thriving. She lives with her 16-month-old daughter in Accra, surrounded by a strong feminist community, and feels her primary job as a feminist mum is to preserve her daughters fearless spirit. Any doubts or insecurities about the path she has chosen were eliminated in the process of interviewing women for her book. As a single woman in your 40s you kind of wonder, what is it going to be like for me in 20 or 30 years? So it was nice to meet the woman in her 70s who had fallen in love in her late 60s. Its possible. Theres time. You dont need to rush.

The Sex Lives of African Women by Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah (Dialogue, 18.99). To support the Guardian and the Observer buy a copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.

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Polygamy in Senegal, lesbian hookups in Cairo: inside the sex lives of African women - The Guardian

If youre clocking the recommended 7 to 8 hours of shut-eye per night, that adds up to around 50 hours per week of your life spent snoozingand thats a pretty significant amount of time for your body to spend in any position. While theres no one right sleeping position for everyone, if you have chronic pain, it is possible that youre sleeping in the wrong way, so to speak, and worsening the discomfort youre feeling during the daytime. To that end, the best sleeping positions for different types of pain typically revolve around aligning your body in a way that removes undue pressure from any associated nerves and joints, says rheumatologist and internist Jonathan M. Greer, MD.

Sleeping on the stomach is a big culprit when it comes to exacerbating neck and back pain, as it causes an unnatural extension of the spine. Jonathan M. Greer, MD

To start, Dr. Greers top recommendation across the board for anyone who suffers from any kind of back or neck pain is to remove stomach-sleeping from the equation. Sleeping on the stomach is a big culprit when it comes to exacerbating neck and back pain, he says, as it causes an unnatural extension of the spine. Not to mention, it can trigger numbness or tingling in the arms due to nerve compression, says physical-medicine and rehabilitation doctor Jaspal R. Singh, MD.

But before we get into the back and side sleeping positions that work best for different pain scenarios, a quick word about what exactly youre sleeping on, as that plays a big role in sleep comfort, too: You can let go of the common refrain about an ultra-firm mattress being best for those with back pain. In actuality, I recommend a medium-soft mattress for anyone with back pain, and for those who already have a hard mattress, adding a pillow top or egg-crate mattress topper to remove some of the pressure points that can happen otherwise, says Dr. Greer. Just be sure you dont go too soft, as you dont want to be sinking deep into the mattress either, adds Dr. Singh.

A similar goldilocks situation applies to your pillow (or multiple pillows), which can also affect your overall sleeping positionand whether it works with or against your body. This is particularly important when it comes to upper-back and neck pain, says Dr. Greer: A neck pillow or contour pillow that conforms to the shape of the neck helps extend the neck and prevent it from slipping into a compressed position while you sleep.

In both cases, however, its important to let comfort be your guide, according to Dr. Greer: I always say, if youre doing any kind of exercise or activity that creates or worsens some kind of pain, its a signal that you need to adjust," he says, "and that applies to your mattress, pillow, and sleeping position, as well.

And while were at it, dont forget about your daytime posture and alignment, too, adds Dr. Singh, which can, of course, trigger or exacerbate spine pain in just the same way that a bad sleeping position can. Its essential to maintain a good, ergonomic workstation and a highly mobile lifestyle, frequently changing positions, rather than sitting in one spot all day, in order to bring blood flow and nutrients to the spine, he says.

Lying flat on your back with your legs outstretched can cause unnatural extension of the spine leading to pain, says Dr. Greer. Instead, both he and Dr. Singh suggest lying on your side with your legs bent (toward your stomach, in the direction of a fetal position) with a pillow sandwiched between your knees. Supporting and aligning the hips in this way will take pressure off your spine, says Dr. Singh.

If, however, you strongly prefer to lie on your back, you can do so in a more spine-supportive way by propping a pillow beneath your lower legs (as noted for anyone with hip pain below). Another option: Consider an adjustable bed that bends upward a bit, so that youre not lying fully flat, but instead, a bit more upright. "Elevating the head above the feet, similar to how you would in a recliner, can remove some pressure from the lower part of the back, and help with snoring, too," says Dr. Singh.

As a precautionary note, if your back pain is regularly keeping you awake or persists longer than three weeks, its worth getting it evaluated by a medical professional, says Dr. Greer. And the same goes if youre experiencing recurring numbness or tingling radiating down a leg, which could be a sign of a pinched nerve.

Because lying on your side may worsen hip pain, its best to try sleeping on your back with your legs slightly propped up by way of a pillow placed under the knees. The bony prominence that sticks out of the hip called the greater trochanter has a sack of fluid on top called a bursa, says Dr. Greer, which can often get aggravated when you lie on one side all night, especially if youre on a hard mattressand that can cause inflammation called bursitis. Choosing a back-sleeping position can help you avoid that.

You can choose either your back or your sideits a matter of personal preference and comfort, in this casebut be sure to select your pillow carefully, as noted above. A pillow made specifically to conform to the necks natural shape will be your best bet. You dont want to go with multiple pillows under the neck or no pillow at all, as either option can cause unnatural extension, says Dr. Singh.

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Heres the Sleeping Position Thats Right for You Based on Your Aches and Pains - Well+Good

Story and photos by Steve Lenz

Photography is many things to me. Primarily it is storytelling. It is a way to take a slice of time, freeze it and share that moment with others.

Often those moments are obvious such as your child blowing out their birthday candles or the kiss in a wedding ceremony. Yet, there are fascinating dramatic moments going on all around us all the time that escape our gaze because of the scale they exist on.

Macro photography is one of the most fascinating forms of the hobby. It brings us into this small, overlooked world and shows us the incredible lives of the miniature. It gives us a window into the existential stories that all life shares.

A great stress relief for me is to grab my camera and explore the miniature universe and its stories: A fruit fly that looks like an alien visitor sunning itself on a leaf; A jumping spider waiting to ambush unsuspecting prey, catching them midflight; The smallest North American ant species all rising in unison across the valley to form clouds of mating queens and drones.

The camera equipment to capture this small world is readily available in a wide array of options. There are small macro adapters for cell phones, point and shoot cameras with specific macro features, and expensive professional camera lenses.

My preferred setup is a Canon 5D Mark 3 with a 100mm 2.8 macro lens, an extension tube, and an off-camera flash either handheld or mounted on a flexible bracket.

Techniques and equipment are as variable as the subjects you are photographing. Ive seen people modify empty Pringles cans into flash attachments or print color patterns on 8.5x11 sheets to use as backdrops. This DIY nature and spirit is one of the fun parts of macro photography and helps bring it within reach of anyone with a camera.

Possibly the most important technique is how one finds their subjects. I have always had a love for nature and science, a love for how all of this universe works and fits together in a fantastic functional puzzle of subatomic, molecular, cellular and organismic pieces. This love has driven a curiosity in me that leads to finding my subjects and wanting to understand how they live their lives, what we may have in common.

Find what you love and tell its story.

The rest is here:

Behind the Lenz: The art of small things in macro photography - Walla Walla Union-Bulletin

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