‘Healthy’ buildings can improve workers’ performance
Improving lighting, ventilation, and heat in office buildings can boost workers’ performance and productivity and can even help them sleep better at night—which is why developers, architects, and businesses are becoming increasingly interested in “healthy” buildings.In a March 10, 2017 article in the Boston Globe, Joseph Allen of Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health said that working in an office with higher air quality and better ventilation can raise employees’ cognitive function scores, and that shifting to more blue-enriched light that mimics sunlight can lead to better sleep quality.“We spend 90 percent of our time indoors, yet we spend almost all of our time thinking about outdoor air pollution,” said Allen, assistant professor of exposure assessment science in Harvard Chan’s Department of Environmental Health and director of the three-year-old Healthy Buildings program at the Center for Health and the Global Environment. “What we’re doing here is quantifying what people intuitively know. When you’re stuck in a conference room that’s too hot, there’s no ventilation, you don’t perform as well.” Read Full Story
WindhamCountyVermontIndependent Media wasawarded $10,000 to support The Commons, a monthly community newspaperand the Media Mentoring Project, a participatory journalism program. The MentorConnector was awarded$10,000 to support its mission to increase adult-youth mentoring matches. CentralVermont Adult Basic Educationwas awarded $10,000 to provide community-based basic education and literacyinstruction to students aged 50 years and older in Washington, Orange, andLamoille Counties. Food Works was awarded $10,000 to support its GoodFood-Good Medicine program that connects local farms with underservedcommunities. CommonGround Center wasawarded $3,750 to host the second annual Camp Kaleidoscope, a retreat forfamilies living with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Mobius, TheMentoring Movement wasawarded $9,000 to establish community-based mentoring programs through the SaraHolbrook Center and the Boys and Girls Club in Burlington’s North End. VermontHumanities Council wasawarded $10,000 to purchase books and hire facilitators for six new communitybook and discussion groups that emphasize historical and modern perspectives onsocial and racial equity, community identity, and war. Peace andJustice Center wasawarded $10,000 to support its initiative to analyze and build awareness aboutthe intersections between racial bias and economic justice in Vermont. BenningtonCountyOak HillChildren’s Center wasawarded $5,500 to support professional development for staff leading to fullaccreditation of the Center. VermontInstitute of Natural Sciencewas awarded $1,000 for operational support. The Vermont Community Foundation helps Vermont-focusedphilanthropists, organizations, and businesses cultivate their love of givingto the community. The VCF is a statewide public charity with more than500 individual funds, each of which contributes to building healthy andvital Vermont communities. It also offers planned giving, nonprofit endowmentmanagement, and other services that help charitable partners achieve theirmissions. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.vermontcf.org(link is external)or call 802-388-3355.# # # SnellingCenter for Governmentwas awarded $10,000 to help strengthen its Vermont School Leadership Project. More Than $241,000 Awarded to Nonprofits to Promote CivicEngagement; Diversity and Equity; and EducationMIDDLEBURY, VT- $241,959 was awarded to 31 organizations across the state as part of theVermont Community Foundation’s Successful Communities grant round, whichmakes awards to organizations that support civic engagement; diversity and equity;and education. R.U.1.2.?Community Center wasawarded $10,000 to support its Vermont Diversity Health Project. Friends of BurlingtonGardens, Inc. wasawarded $10,000 to support a mini-grant and technical assistance program thatwill help establish 10 new community garden sites across Vermont. StatewideBrattleboroCommunity Justice Centerwas awarded $6,200 to support its Returning Prisoner Simulation workshops. Reach Outand Read Vermont wasawarded $3,000 to support a literacy program that reaches children throughpediatric practices. VermontWomen’s History Projectwas awarded $1,000 for operational support. ChittendenCommunity Televisionwas awarded $10,000 to support the Center for Media & Democracy’sskill-building workshops and events for nonprofits. ChittendenCountyCenter forCommunity and Neighborhoodswas awarded $10,000 to support its new Inclusive Community Initiative. Joseph’sHouse was awarded$2,800 to bring together new American refugees and immigrants with theirneighbors. SpecialOlympics Vermont wasawarded $10,000 to support its multi-year initiative to shift the statewidestructure to a regional, community-based model and provide year-round trainingand competitive events. OutrightVermont was awarded$10,000 to support the statewide Vermont Youth StandOUT Campaign. ToxicsAction Center wasawarded $10,000 to support the Building Vibrant Communities Campaign toincrease the capacity of three ad-hoc citizens groups to address environmentalissues associated with gravel quarries in Moretown, Rochester, andChester. WashingtonCountyCenter forWhole Communities wasawarded $10,000 to support ValleyFutures.net, a network for civic engagementaround land development and conservation issues in Vermont’s Mad RiverValley. OrangeCountyWhite RiverCraft Center wasawarded $10,000 to hire a part-time program and community outreach coordinator. The followingorganizations received grants: Children’sLiteracy Foundation wasawarded $4,750 to provide new, high-quality children’s books to the library atthe Burlington King Street Youth Center and the children in the program. FletcherFree Library wasawarded $4,000 to support the establishment of two book clubs for teens thatwill include speakers and the purchase ofbooks. LamoilleCountyLamoilleArea Recreation Centerwas awarded $6,000 to help create a new computer learning lab, which willprovide education opportunities for all ages. RutlandCountyKids on theMove was awarded $6,096to offer a summer camp style program with intense physical, occupational, andspeech therapy to five special needs children ages four to five. VermontFreedom to Marry Task Forcewas awarded $10,000 to support public education activities about the issues surroundingthe freedom to marry for all Vermonters. WindsorCountyUpper ValleyTrails Alliance wasawarded $10,000 in operational support to strengthen and expand communityengagement and financial support in the service area between Ryegate andSpringfield. The DREAMProgram, Inc. was awarded$8,863 to provide 20 summer DREAM camp scholarships for children of refugee andimmigrant families. 
Sign up for our COVID-19 newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest coronavirus news throughout New York New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo was on Long Island Saturday to endorse Democrat Tom Suozzi for Nassau County Executive. (Rashed Mian/Long Island Press)New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo endorsed Nassau County executive hopeful Tom Suozzi and other Long Island Democrats at a rally Saturday in Albertson that drew local officials from both counties and charged the party’s supporters.With just one week left before Election Day, the governor urged the crowd of at least a hundred to stand behind Island Democrats, to burst to cheers and applause.Suozzi, standing alongside Cuomo at a podium within a Veterans of Foreign Wars post, pumped his fist in the air and pointed and winked at supporters as Democrats one-by-one took thanked the governor and appealed to voters.“I am proud to be a New York Democrat and I’m proud to support New York Democrats,” Cuomo said.Cuomo led the charge but didn’t criticize Suozzi’s Republican opponent Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, with whom he’s worked closely with since Superstorm Sandy, nor did he reference Suozzi’s previous eight years as Nassau’s top-elected official. He instead highlighted what he said were the party’s achievements since he took office.“The New York Democratic party has charted a different course for this state,” Cuomo yelled to the crowd, many holding “Cuomo stands with Suozzi” signs. “We said that you can grow the economy and you can grow the spirit of community. We said that we believe we can make this state work economically, and we can make this state the capital of social progress in this nation again and we did.”Tom Suozzi supporters gathered in Albertson Saturday to see New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo support Democrats across LI. (Rashed Mian/Long Island Press)Suozzi touted recent endorsements from former President Bill Clinton, The New York Times, and Newsday. Suozzi, however, did not mention being hired by Newsday’s parent company, Cablevision, after Mangano unseated him in 2009. Cablevision has donated more than $200,000 to Suozzi’s campaign, and $11,000 to Mangano.“It means so much to me personally that he’s here today to not only endorse me but to endorse all the democrats that are here,” Suozzi said of Cuomo. “This man is one of the greatest leaders in the country today.”Suozzi characterized the Nov. 5 election as crucial to the future of Nassau County, emphasizing the need to invest in young people and to build bustling downtowns around train stations to keep younger generations in the county.The former two-term Nassau County Executive also went on the offensive, responding to criticism from Mangano for raising taxes while in office.“You know what? It’s true,” Suozzi said, adding that it was “part of a plan to bailout this county” after his first ascension to the position in 2002.Mangano this week secured the endorsement of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, the Nassau County Fire Marshals Benevolent Association and Court Officers Benevolent Association of Nassau County.
Sign up for our COVID-19 newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest coronavirus news throughout New York Federal prosecutors filed a lawsuit Thursday against an Islip Terrace doctor, accusing him of prescribing addictive painkillers to patients for no medical purpose and disregarding toxicology reports that came back positive for opioids he didn’t prescribe.Between January 2011 and June 2013, Lawrence Womack, 48, allegedly wrote 241 prescriptions for oxycodone, methadone and fentanyl—all potent pain medications, authorities claimed in the civil suit. The prescriptions were handed out despite their being no medical need, according to the suit.Medical professionals who conduct such practices “place the lives of their patients at risk and contribute to the scourge of prescription drug abuse in our communities,” Loretta Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement.The suit also alleges that Womack allegedly conducted toxicology screens on patients “and many of them tested positive for illicit substances, including cocaine and heroin.”“In addition,” the suit continues, “many patients tested positive for opioids such as methadone, hyrdocodone and morphine, even though such opioids had not been prescribed by the defendant.”Despite the positive tests, Womack continued to prescribe patients painkillers, the suit alleges.Authorities also claimed that Womack conducted breast examinations of some patients in exchange for either continued prescriptions or additional amounts of opioids, or both.Womack could not be reached for comment. Attorney information did not appear on court documents.Lynch’s spokeswoman didn’t immediately respond to a question asking why a civil suit was filed instead of criminal charges.
Congress seems closer than ever to getting patent reform legislation through, according to the editorial board of The New York Times. In an editorial posted Wednesday, the board addressed The Protecting American Talent and Entrepreneurship Act (PATENT Act), which was introduced last week.CUNA is currently studying the legislation, which has bipartisan support. It is intended to reduce frivolous lawsuits by patent assertion entities, who often send vaguely worded demand letters to businesses alleging patent infringements.“The Senate bill would allow the manufacturers of products like computer equipment to step in and fight claims on behalf of their customers,” the editorial reads. “This should cut down on lawsuits because some patent owners sue or threaten to sue the users of technology, rather than large technology companies like Cisco Systems and Microsoft, because small businesses are more likely to settle than engage in a costly legal battle.”Another provision in the bill would allow judges to order the loser in a patent case to pay the legal fees of the winner if the case cannot be defined as objectively reasonable. Currently fees can only be awarded in exceptional cases. continue reading » 3SHARESShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr
Credit union-supported candidates in Kentucky, New York and Virginia saw successes in Tuesday’s primary elections, with 100% of credit union candidates winning races that have been called as of Wednesday afternoon.State credit union Leagues and CUNA’s political action committee, the Credit Union Legislative Action Council (CULAC) supported the candidates, each of whom is a dedicated credit union supporter.Tuesday’s election results bring the number of successful credit union candidates around the country to 231 out of 235 races. continue reading » ShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr
Rahm, speaking at his press conference on the day of his 26th birthday on Tuesday, said: “I can’t lie, I’m feeling pretty confident.“Even my last start, the ZoZo Championship, I hit it about as good as I can hit it tee to green really in the tournament, especially on Sunday and the weekend.“Happy where I’m at, and I think the best way I can explain it [is] I’m simply happy outside the golf course, I’m happy within the limits now of this pandemic, and I’m also happy on the golf course, and I’ve been putting in the work and golfing well. Hopefully, something special happens this weekend.” – Advertisement – 
“And especially this year, being a little bit sad that Sergio is not going to be able to be part of this. My heart goes out to him. I know he had some bad times with Covid losing family members, and now he’s got it, with symptoms, as well, apparently. Knowing how special this week is for him, hoping a speedy recovery for him. – Advertisement – Jon Rahm, who is aiming to land his first major, wants to emulate his Spanish idols and become the fourth player from his country to win The Masters – Advertisement – 
Get Sky Sports Golf for £10 a month All four days of The Masters exclusively live. Get our £10 golf offer. Find out more here. Rahm is bidding to become the fourth Spanish winner of The Masters following Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal – who both won it twice – and Sergio Garcia, who is absent this year after testing positive for coronavirus.“It’s a special event for everybody who comes and competes at the Masters, and I would say there’s such Spanish history of champions here, with three great champions and three idols of mine, that I would love to be able to add my name to that list,” said Rahm. 
Categories: Letters to the Editor, Opinion Why does Dr. Lozman not have the full support of the Jewish community in his efforts? With $1.4 million and support for the idea of a Holocaust memorial sure to raise more, surely something grander could be achieved.A Holocaust Memorial and education facility simply belongs elsewhere — an already public park or museum or similar non-residential space.Does the town board really want to throw away 20-plus years of work and careful preservation of the Troy-Schenectady corridor in Niskayuna and set a precedent for other non-residential development? I ask all residents of Niskayuna to consider this: What would you rather live next to in 10 years, a 24/7 gas station, a strip mall or an old historic farmhouse on several acres of land? Residents, please contact the town board. Do you want to pay the “highest taxes in the region” not to have your voice heard and let outsiders influence our elected officials?Carolina WierzbowskiNiskayunaMore from The Daily Gazette:EDITORIAL: Thruway tax unfair to working motoristsEDITORIAL: Urgent: Today is the last day to complete the censusEDITORIAL: Beware of voter intimidationNiskayuna girls’ cross country wins over BethlehemFoss: Should main downtown branch of the Schenectady County Public Library reopen? A special-use permit to allow non-residential development along Troy-Schenectady Rd in a low-density residential zoned area is the sole issue before the town board regarding the Holocaust memorial. It’s not whether the memorial has a nice design or if/how the Holocaust should be remembered or even what percentage of town residents are of Jewish faith/heritage. None of that matters. Would the average person take a school bus of children to an open-air facility with inadequate bathroom facilities, no potable water and no safe means of egress onto a major highway to see a couple non-interactive kiosks and a rail car with photos/facts about the Holocaust? Of course not. Is that what the average person would consider a “religious education facility”? Of course not. 
INTRO: Organised in conjunction with UITP’s Stuttgart congress, the City Transport ’97 exhibition takes place on June 2-5A wide range of products and services for urban and regional operators will be on display at City Transport ’97 in Stuttgart’s Messegelände exhibition and congress centre. The Transfloor range from Altro Floors has been developed specifically for the transport industry and features a high degree of wear, slip and impact resistance. Rolling stock for Pågatågen services in Sweden has recently been fitted with Transfloor. The Automatic Systems stand will present a new range of AFC gates equipped with contactless smart card readers for a throughput in excess of 60 passengers per min, alongside a turnstile with additional full-height anti-fraud door for SNCF and a gate with disabled access for the Stockholm metro. Exhibits from Dassault AT will include the TVM 200 ticket vending machine for RATP (below), desktop and self-standing versions of the ATB2 ticket printer, and the AGX 300 contactless turnstile with anti-fraud barrier. Deuta Werke will display its latest developments for rail vehicles, including microwave doppler speed sensors, modular event recorders with flash PC-card memory and multifunctional speed displays (top). The LVT/S diesel railcar for regional services will be presented by DWA at City Transport. This 21 tonne twin-axle air-conditioned design with a low-floor section 627mm above the rail seats 64 passengers, and is powered by a 265 kW engine for a maximum speed of 100 km/h. Erlau will be exhibiting its vehicle luggage rack systems, and for stations the Allegro range of seating and the Pedalo bicycle stand (right). Recent developments from Faiveley on show at City Transport include an electric sliding plug door system with telescopic support for LRVs, a compact roof-mounted cab air-conditioning unit and the Visio-PACS passenger-counting system. Sliding plug doors and electric door actuators will be amongst the IFE products on display, in addition to fire-resistant doors for metro cars, wheelchair ramps and windows. Kraiburg will show the PedeSTRAIL system of semi-elastic rubber panels for pedestrian level crossings in stations, depots and workshops. Manufactured from recycled rubber with a skid-resistant surface, the panels feature a narrow flange groove for greater wheelchair and buggy safety. To train personnel on DT8 LRVs, Krauss-Maffei Wehrtechnik has developed a dynamic driving simulator for UITP Congress host Stuttgarter Straßenbahn (left). As well as a full-scale cab with simulated noise and computer-generated projection of Line U1 in various light and weather conditions, the system includes a section of passenger compartment with doors for practising procedures at stops. The OK-DOT destination display from Meister is a lightweight design whose neon tubes can be changed without dismantling the display unit. Good contrast makes for improved legibility in all light conditions. Nya Perspektiv Design provides design services for the public transport sector, backed by international experience of the automotive industry. Plasser & Theurer will present its ZW range of self-loading tampers and ballast profilers, developed for use on urban and regional systems. The Sütrak range of products includes dot-matrix destination displays and air-conditioning units, which have been supplied for DWA double-deck railbuses and Bombardier Eurorail’s Talent railcar. Inverter specialist Transtechnik will be displaying a 77 kVA unit fitted in metro cars for Guangzhou, and a lightweight design for LRVs ordered by Üstra of Hannover. Exhibitors on the BEAMA stand include A K Fans, AB Connectors and BR Business Systems, presenting its vehicle tracking and asset management systems outside Great Britain for the first time. In addition to visual display equipment from Ferrograph, passenger information and vehicle location systems from Hanover Displays will be on show. Seating fabrics by John Holdsworth & Co, which celebrates its 175th anniversary this year, rubber-metal bonded suspension and anti-vibration components from Metalastik and Parker Hannifin pneumatic automation products will also feature. Powernetics will display its range of power systems, including uninterruptible power supplies, DC-DC converters, battery chargers, static inverters and frequency changers. Seating by Rescroft will also feature. Silentbloc rubber and rubber-to-metal bonded products on show will include primary and auxiliary suspension mountings, radius control link assemblies and anti-roll bar systems. Vehicle engineering consultancy The Engineering Link and Westinghouse Brakes will also be present. o
Lawrenceburg, In. — Newly installed Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis will celebrate a milestone with a Lawrenceburg parish this year. Archbishop Charles Thompson will attend the 175th anniversary mass at the St. Lawrence church Sunday, August 13 at 11 a.m.At 56, Thompson is the youngest archbishop in the country. He was appointed by Pope Francis in June and formally installed in July. Thompson and St. Lawrence priest, father Peter Gallagher studied theology together in St. Meinrad, Indiana.The celebration will include a cookout and ice cream social. Parishioners should consider bringing a covered dish.A reservation only 175th anniversary parish dinner will be held Sunday, August 20.