BoT unfazed by board chief delay
The successful implementation of macro control policies in 2024 also reflected the government's commitment to inclusive and sustainable development. Efforts to reduce poverty, enhance social welfare, and protect the environment were integrated into the overall economic agenda, ensuring that growth was not only robust but also equitable and environmentally friendly.As the A-share market continues to attract attention and generate buzz among investors, analysts are closely monitoring developments to assess the long-term implications of this surge in trading volume. With increased liquidity and activity in the market, opportunities for growth and expansion abound, offering investors the potential for substantial returns on their investments.
NBA teams should ’emulate’ one key aspect of Celtics’ success, Pistons coach saysThe impact of lower interbank deposit rates goes beyond individual investors. Financial institutions that rely on these rates for liquidity management and funding are also facing challenges. The decrease in yields on money market funds has forced these institutions to explore alternative sources of funding, which can have implications for their overall financial health.
Transforming America's Healthcare System: A Historic Movement for Medicaid Reform and Universal Justice 12-02-2024 11:36 PM CET | Associations & Organizations Press release from: ABNewswire Unveiling Truth, Driving Accountability, and Creating a Vision for Transparency and Human Dignity Image: https://www.abnewswire.com/uploads/d826fe3236bb16054d3f02362a587342.png The Dawn of a Movement America is at a defining moment in history-a crossroads where the ideals of fairness, transparency, and justice meet the realities of a fractured healthcare system. This movement is not just about fixing Medicaid or addressing healthcare inequities; it's about redefining the core values that unite us as Americans. At the heart of this transformation lies a grassroots initiative led by brain injury survivors, their families, and advocates. These extraordinary individuals have dared to pose the bold question that disrupts the status quo: What if Medicaid could thrive, delivering dignity, transparency, and life-changing care to everyone who needs it? Fueled by courage and relentless determination, this coalition is rewriting the rules of healthcare reform. They're uncovering systemic flaws, holding institutions accountable, and crafting a blueprint for a transparent, accessible, and just Medicaid system that ensures no American is left behind. David Medeiros: A Leader Among Equals At the helm of this revolutionary movement is David Medeiros, a traumatic brain injury survivor, founder of ABI Resources, and a steadfast advocate for truth and integrity. David's life journey-one of resilience, hope, and action-has transformed him into a leader who embodies the collective spirit of this movement. David often says, "I'm not the hero. The real heroes are the people who inspire me every day-the survivors, families, and advocates who never give up." His leadership philosophy, "I am, you are, we are one force for the greatest good," reflects the core ethos of this movement: the undeniable strength of unity and the power of truth to drive justice. Exposing the Hidden Truth Medicaid serves as a vital safety net for over 90 million Americans, including seniors, individuals with disabilities, and low-income families. But the system is under immense strain, plagued by inefficiencies, secrecy, and inequities that leave too many underserved. Through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) investigations and relentless advocacy, David Medeiros and ABI Resources have uncovered systemic issues that demand immediate attention: Misallocation of Funds: Billions of taxpayer dollars are directed to administrative overhead, siphoning resources from vulnerable populations. ADA Noncompliance: Healthcare facilities and public programs routinely fail to meet standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), perpetuating barriers for people with disabilities. Whistleblower Retaliation: Individuals who expose systemic flaws face threats, career setbacks, and silencing-obstructing vital reforms. David Medeiros explains, "These challenges are not isolated-they're symptoms of a deeper systemic problem. But with transparency, accountability, and a united effort, we can turn the tide for future generations." The Heroes Behind the Movement This movement is built on the courage of unsung heroes-people who have lived through the struggles, felt the pain, and refused to give up. Who Are These Heroes? Brain Injury Survivors: Champions of resilience who are using their experiences to drive systemic change. Families: Loved ones who fight tirelessly to ensure dignity and care for those in need. Home Teams and Advocates: Professionals and supporters who provide the logistical, emotional, and moral foundation of this movement. Together, they are redefining what it means to advocate for justice, standing as a collective force to protect those most vulnerable. Transformative Solutions This is not just about identifying problems; it's about implementing actionable solutions that ensure Medicaid becomes a system built on fairness, efficiency, and compassion. 1. Medicaid Transparency Independent Oversight Committees: Establishing bipartisan boards to monitor spending. Public Reporting Requirements: Demanding clear, accessible, real-time updates on Medicaid fund allocation. Technology-Driven Accountability: Using platforms that allow taxpayers to track Medicaid expenditures. 2. ADA Compliance Stronger Enforcement Mechanisms: Implementing fines for noncompliance. Universal Design Principles: Creating healthcare spaces that serve everyone equally. Training Programs: Educating providers on accessibility and inclusive care. 3. Whistleblower Protections Secure Reporting Channels: Providing anonymous, protected avenues for truth-tellers. Expanded Legal Protections: Shielding whistleblowers from retaliation. Public Recognition: Honoring those who expose inefficiencies and corruption. A Movement Empowered by the Legal Community The legal profession plays a critical role in this transformative effort. From civil rights attorneys to healthcare specialists, lawyers across the nation are uniting to enforce ADA compliance, litigate Medicaid transparency, and champion whistleblower protections. Why Lawyers Are Joining This Cause: A Moral Imperative: Upholding the principles of justice and accountability. A National Impact: Transforming Medicaid reform into a model for systemic change across all public programs. A Legacy of Justice: Creating lasting reforms that protect the most vulnerable while restoring trust in America's institutions. The Ripple Effect of Change This movement's impact goes far beyond Medicaid reform. It touches the core of what it means to be an American: Families Will Benefit: Caregivers will have access to resources that support their loved ones with dignity. Taxpayers Will See Accountability: Public funds will be used ethically and efficiently. Future Generations Will Inherit Justice: A healthcare system built on transparency and fairness. A Call to Action David Medeiros and ABI Resources are inviting you to join this historic movement. Whether you're a policymaker, legal professional, healthcare advocate, or concerned citizen, your voice matters in this collective mission. Here's How You Can Help: Amplify the Message: Share this story on social media and in your communities. Advocate for Reform: Write to your representatives, demanding Medicaid transparency and ADA compliance. Support Survivors: Donate, volunteer, and uplift the voices of those driving this movement. David Medeiros: The Heart of the Movement "Every day, I am inspired by the strength of the survivors and families around me. They teach me what it means to lead with purpose, compassion, and resilience," says David Medeiros. David's leadership is rooted in action, empathy, and a deep belief in the power of unity. "This is not just a moment in history-it's a movement for humanity. Together, we will create a legacy of justice and dignity for all." For More Information or to Get Involved Media Contact ABI RESOURCES Email: ABI@ctbraininjury.com Website: CTbrainInjury.com Address: 39 Kings HWY STE Connect with Us: Follow us on social media for updates: * X [ https://x.com/abiresources ] | Facebook [ https://www.facebook.com/ABIresourcesCT ] | YouTube [ https://www.youtube.com/@ABI.RESOURCES-CT-ABI-MFP-CARE/videos ] | LinkedIn [ https://www.linkedin.com/company/abi-resources-llc ] | TikTok [ https://www.tiktok.com/@abi.resources.ct ] Medicaid reform, Brain injury survivors, ADA compliance, Whistleblower protections, Medicaid transparency, Healthcare accountability, Medicaid fraud solutions, Accessible healthcare, Disability advocacy, Medicaid spending oversight, Medicaid reform movement, Brain injury advocacy, Healthcare system reform, Disability rights, Medicaid whistleblower, Transparency in healthcare, Medicaid fraud prevention, Universal healthcare access, Healthcare advocacy, Inclusive healthcare, Disability inclusion, Medicaid accountability, Whistleblower retaliation, Healthcare accessibility, Medicaid transformation, Civil rights advocacy, Brain injury community, Medicaid reform advocates, Transparency in Medicaid, Healthcare justice, Medicaid misuse, Disability support, ADA enforcement, Medicaid systemic reform, Medicaid legal reform, Healthcare corruption, Medicaid advocacy, Disability healthcare access, ADA accessibility, Medicaid ethics, Medicaid oversight, Medicaid legal action, Brain injury leadership, Justice in healthcare, Medicaid improvement, Whistleblower legal protection, Medicaid innovation, Accountability in healthcare, Medicaid spending reform, Inclusive healthcare reform. Media Contact Company Name: ABI Resources Contact Person: David Medeiros Email:Send Email [ https://www.abnewswire.com/email_contact_us.php?pr=transforming-americas-healthcare-system-a-historic-movement-for-medicaid-reform-and-universal-justice ] City: Gales Ferry Country: United States Website: https://www.ctbraininjury.com/ This release was published on openPR.US stock indexes drifted lower Tuesday in the runup to the highlight of the week for the market, the latest update on inflation. Tech titan Oracle dragged on the market and sank 6.7% after reporting growth for the latest quarter that fell just short of analysts' expectations, the reports. It was one of the heaviest weights on the S&P 500, even though CEO Safra Catz said the company saw record demand related to artificial-intelligence technology for its cloud infrastructure business, which trains generative AI models. AI has been a big source of growth that's helped many companies' stock prices skyrocket. Oracle's stock had already leaped nearly 81% for the year coming into Tuesday, which raised the bar of expectations for its profit report. Elsewhere on Wall Street, Alaska Air Group soared 13.2% after raising its forecast for profit in the current quarter. The airline said demand for flying around the holidays has been stronger than expected. It also approved a plan to buy back up to $1 billion of its stock, along with new service from Seattle to Tokyo and Seoul. Boeing climbed 4.5% after saying it's resuming production of its bestselling plane, the 737 Max, for the first time since 33,000 workers began a seven-week strike that ended in early November. Economists expect Wednesday's inflation report to show roughly similar increases as the month before. Many investors expect the year's third cut to interest rates at the Fed's meeting next week. Even though the Fed has been cutting its main interest rate, mortgage rates have been more stubborn and have been volatile since the autumn. That has hampered the housing industry, and homebuilder Toll Brothers' stock fell 7% even though it beat analysts' expectations for profit and revenue in the latest quarter.We’re taking a look back at some of our favourite and most popular Entertainment stories of 2024 , giving you a chance to catch up on some of the great reading you might have missed this year. In this story from October, we count down the 25 best animated films, ideal for inspiration if the kids are already bored with their Christmas presents. For years it was the superheroes who were saving Hollywood. From Spider-Man to Batman to, belatedly, a few women — the comic-book movie became a multibillion-dollar ballast for a business struggling to make money in a world of streaming and smartphones. But then, like Superman faced with kryptonite, said superheroes started to weaken and their fickle audiences moved on as studio execs started to panic. Who, they gasped, would save Hollywood now? Well, step forward ... cartoons. Lots of them. In a previous life the top of the box-office charts would be full of Oscar-worthy adult movies — but the days of cinema being dominated by serious dramatic fare are long gone. Five of the top 20 highest-grossing films worldwide this year were animated — and three of those five were among the top six money-makers. Such is the domination that the biggest film this year is Inside Out 2 , the sequel starring new emotions in the teenager Riley’s brain. It was the fastest film to date to reach US$1 billion (from box offices around the world) and that’s with half the publicity of a film like, say, Barbie , which made far less money. Meanwhile, Despicable Me 4 was the third-highest earner of the year and Kung Fu Panda 4 landed at No 6. “Entering the summer, the marketplace was suffering a malaise — a year-to-date downturn with films not living up to expectations,” says Paul Dergarabedian, an analyst for the global media company Comscore. “Then family movies became the saviour of box office.” This is glorious for Hollywood. In 2020, when Trolls World Tour became the first film of the pandemic to be released at home at the same time as in cinemas, entire pricing structures fell into jeopardy. A family of four in the UK gathered around a TV would pay £20 to stream Trolls World Tour instead of north of £50 for four multiplex tickets and some overpriced popcorn and drinks. Losing that income for ever would have been fatal for the industry, but the success of Inside Out 2 and its ilk has brought back multigenerational family entertainment — something Marvel and DC superhero franchises never pulled off — when studios needed it most. Dave Holstein, a writer on Inside Out 2 , describes the film as “many movies in one. My six-year-old thinks it’s the funniest he’s seen. My mum thinks it’s the saddest. And when my son sees it again in 10 years he’ll have a whole different movie to watch.” By the end of this year the blockbusters with actual actors in them — The Fall Guy , Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Dune: Part Two — will be further sidelined by the arrival of Moana 2 (the first Moana earned US$600 million) and Mufasa: The Lion King (the 2019 Lion King reboot took US$1.6 billion). Even the king of rom-coms Richard Curtis is getting in on the act with a cartoon, That Christmas. And The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim has no A-listers in sight. Yet this year’s animation boom was not nearly as bright, gaudy and empty as the film posters tended to suggest. Yes, there was dross ( The Garfield Movie ) but more interestingly, more excitingly, it has brought a sense of creative expression and exuberance, as if animation is entering its baroque phase. Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is delivered in beautifully rendered anime, making the screen look like the best room in an art gallery; while the masterly and meaningful The Wild Robot , out this weekend, is like watching ET , Finding Nemo and Bambi as drawn by Claude Monet. Inside Out 2 had equal quality, following the rich Pixar tradition of Up, Wall-E and Soul by tackling the biggest topics — such as loneliness and death — in a way that never felt patronising. “One of my favourite films of the past 20 years is Toy Story 3 ,” Miguel Gomes, the Portuguese arthouse film-maker who won best director at the Cannes Film Festival this year, told The Film Stage. “Pixar is closer to the idea of mainstream classical cinema than most of what is made today.” And Gomes’s enthusiasm is the crux of the animation boom, explaining why the backbone of Hollywood profit shifting from superhero to cartoon will become less of a trend and more of an era. Comic-book films lost their audience in the 2020s due to creative stagnation and a dwindling interest in periphery characters ( The Flash? Ant-Man ?), yet animation is a sandbox where artists can draw what they want. Such endless ideas will always have a chance of welcoming new fans, especially those who grew up with gaming culture. This is a key factor in why animation is having a moment — because the future of cinema depends on convincing Gen Z and Gen Alpha that a multiplex remains as appealing as it did before various devices littered the home. The signs are encouraging: 37 per cent of the audience at Inside Out 2 ′s opening weekend was made up of 18 to 34-year-olds, an age group who go to the cinema without parents but, crucially, without kids. Why are they watching a cartoon? Because for younger fans animation is serious storytelling, with their most beloved yarns in gaming on Xbox and PlayStation spun via that medium. Studios know this. They have been trying and failing to bring video games to the big screen for at least 20 years, since before Angelina Jolie played Lara Croft in 2001. But rather than mimic stories, what if they tried for the essence of a video game instead? The feel and the look — the myriad possibilities? That is what we have seen in animation this year, because if studios were able to transpose what people enjoy about consoles on to the big screen, then Hollywood will own the next generation. It will save itself. The 25 best animated films ranked - from Snow White to Up The Times critics pick their favourite cartoons that you can watch now. We’re living in an animation boom. Family-friendly cartoons are taking over the box office, with two of the biggest movies of 2024 so far being Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4 . The Pixar film, about the emotions inside a teenager’s brain, became the highest-grossing animated film ever, raking in over US$1.6 billion since its release. And now The Wild Robot hits cinemas, a new animated film from DreamWorks about a robot named Roz. It has already been praised by critics as a masterpiece. But what’s the best animated film? Here our critics rank the top 25 of all time — from Up to Waltz with Bashir . Did they get it right? 25. Frozen (2013, Disney+) Disney spent ten years trying to adapt Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytale The Snow Queen and the result was this shimmering, frosted fantasy. It tells a simple yet compelling tale of two sisters, one with icy powers, and a snowman named Olaf who likes summer days. It has become a cultural touchstone that has spread its icy tips across the globe with merchandise, stage shows and ice shows — until Frozen 2 in 2019 it was the highest grossing animated film. Crammed with earworms, this is the movie your children won’t let you forget, no matter how hard you try to, err, let it go. 24. Inside Out (2015, Disney+) It’s a perennial question: what actually goes on inside our heads? Pixar’s imaginative film follows Riley, an ice-hockey obsessed 11-year-old, as she moves to San Francisco. But she isn’t the star of the show. Instead, viewers get a peek inside her mind where anthropomorphised versions of emotions — Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, Anger — struggle to keep control. It’s an abstract premise delivered with giddy, colourful characters. The film is at once a tearjerker and pure joy. Its sequel became the highest-grossing animated film ever. 23. The Jungle Book (1967, Disney+) In 1967 Disney needed a hit: the response to the studio’s previous feature The Sword in the Stone (1963) had been lacklustre and Walt had died of lung cancer at 65 the year before. Luckily they had this lively animated adaptation of the Rudyard Kipling classic in the bag. Stuffed with exuberant characters and a jumpin’ score, this film is pure fun. The star is Baloo, the loveable bear, and his infectious track The Bare Necessities . It was the last film overseen by Walt Disney — a magical note to bow out on. 22. James and the Giant Peach (1996, Disney+) Henry Sellick’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s classic about a boy riding in a giant, runaway peach with a crew of ugly bugs matches Dahl’s mixture of spikiness and sparkiness almost exactly — the storytelling has a helium bounce thanks to inspired voice work by Simon Callow, Joanna Lumley, Richard Dreyfuss and Miriam Margolyes. The best Dahl adaptation before Wes Anderson got to work. 21. Monsters Inc (2001, Disney+) It’s not your typical plot for a children’s film: monsters elicit screams from children to power their glistening metropolis. Yet this is packed with warmth and cheerful high energy, delivered by a hairy blue-purple monster called Sulley, voiced by John Goodman, and his green pal Mike (Billy Crystal). At its heart it’s a tale of confronting one’s fears, but it never becomes bogged down. It’s full of gleeful gags and silliness (odorants called Wet Dog and Low Tide). How did it lose the Oscar to Shrek? A travesty. 20. Fantastic Mr Fox (2009, Disney+) This stop-motion animation and ingenious adaptation of Roald Dahl’s novel comes from the mind of one of Hollywood’s most idiosyncratic directors: Wes Anderson. The director, a lifelong Dahl fan who read the book as a child in Texas, teams up with the co-writer Noah Baumbach to dream up a story that extends beyond the poultry-stealing fox (voiced by George Clooney) and greedy farmers. This is a world of misfits, disaffected parents and troubled teenagers. Plus, there’s a farmhand voiced by the pop singer Jarvis Cocker. 19. Alice (1988, Mubi) The Czech surrealist Jan Svankmajer’s stop-motion version of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is one to give even adults the jitters. Alice’s transformations unfold with the logic of a bad dream, in which everyday objects — playing cards, china dolls, croquet mallets — take on spooky life and significance. Sure, there is some live action there, but it’s directed in a way that never distracts from the spectacular animation. Knocks the Disney version into a mad hatter’s hat. 18. My Neighbor Totoro (1988, Netflix) Hayao Miyazaki’s magical film is about two sisters who move to a creaky house near the hospital where their mother is being treated. They explore a visually enchanting world of their invention, a fantasy realm with a big, cuddly forest spirit and a “catbus”. Its friendly characters delight children, but its themes of wonderment and the thrill of exploration are great enough to awaken anyone’s inner child. The stage adaptation became a monster hit in the West End. 17. Pinocchio (1940, Disney+) Walt Disney didn’t like the Pinocchio of Carlo Calodi’s source novel very much and invented the character of Jiminy Cricket to give him a conscience, thus bequeathing to the studio its theme song: When You Wish Upon a Star , sung heartbreakingly by the singer-comedian Cliff Edwards. But the film remains one of the darker Disneys, and is all the more memorable for it. Remember how terrifying it is when Pinocchio transforms into a donkey? 16. Waltz with Bashir (2008, buy/rent Apple TV) Think animation can’t tackle challenging subject matter? Just watch this haunting movie, which brings to life the dreams and traumatic memories of the Israeli soldiers who fought with Lebanese forces against the Palestine Liberation Organisation and Syria in the 1982 Lebanon war. The Israeli director Ari Folman uses his shattered recollections as a soldier during the conflict and interviews with others who were there to create a nightmarish vision, a vivid and brutal portrait of the horrors of war. Still as pertinent as ever, this is a stunning anti-war film. 15. The Wild Robot (2024, in cinemas now) Chris Sanders has crafted a joyous film — warm, wise and funny — about oddball parenting. It tells the story of a robot (Lupita Nyong’o) who is washed up on the shore and has to adapt to its new surroundings. The director has focused his movie on the emotions and experience of parenthood, particularly when those parents happen to be slightly different. Anybody who has found themselves thrust into parenthood without a user’s manual — which is to say, just about everybody — will feel understood. Knockouts don’t come much cleaner than this. 14. Watership Down (1978, buy/rent Apple TV) Martin Rosen’s labour-of-love adaptation of Richard Adams’s bestseller about a warren of Hampshire rabbits forced into exile, featuring the voices of John Hurt, Richard Briars and Nigel Hawthorne, is not for those craving Disney cuteness. It’s a bloody, tooth-and-claw survival epic, bristling with violent predators and lurking threats, aimed at old souls who can still hum the tune to Art Garfunkel’s melancholy theme song, Bright Eyes . 13. Up (2009, Disney+) Is there a more traumatic movie scene than the first ten minutes of this animation? It captures the life of Carl (voiced by Ed Asner), the 78-year-old widower, from first love to the death of his wife. Heartbreaking. Next up, an adventure to visit the mythical lost worlds of South America, courtesy of the thousands of balloons he ties to the roof of his house. His companion is a freckled eight-year-old named Russell (Jordan Nagai). The film, which opened at Cannes in 2009, has a simple message: you’re never too old for an adventure. Just wonderful. 12. The Incredibles (2004, Disney+) Brad Bird’s retro-futurist hymn to space-age architecture, Bond villain lairs, couturiers inspired by the costume designer Edith Head (“Dahlink!”) and jetpacks — what more could you want? The zippiest Pixar, as well as the funniest, The Incredibles is executed with more craft, invention and wit than most of the superhero movies it spoofs. 11. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993, Disney+) This started life as a poem that Tim Burton wrote while working as a junior animator at Disney. It became a witty, dark, wonderfully inventive fable about a takeover of Christmas by a village of spindly Halloween ghouls. The film mixes dark barbs and twinkly charm. Burton’s Edward Gorey-style designs receive cantering accompaniment in Danny Elfman’s antic score so that the production at times seems possessed by some mischievous spirit. 10. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018, Neon) After a torrent of half-baked superhero films, this animation felt refreshing. Produced by The Lego Movie ’s Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, its innovative design, quick-witted humour and mind-bending storytelling took modern animation into a different universe. At the centre of the tale is Miles Morales, a Brooklyn schoolboy, who teams up with all sorts of spider heroes, including a jaded middle-aged Spider-Man and a radioactive pig. The Oscar winner for best animated feature is busy but never overwhelming. It’s zippy, entertaining — and proved there was life yet in caped crusaders. 9. Wallace & Gromit: The Wrong Trousers (1993) Before Nick Park’s work acquired the scale and spectacle of Hollywood features, The Wrong Trousers with its techno trousers and penguin arch-villain got the balance with the more humdrum, homespun elements of the series exactly right. The film may be just 30 minutes long, but it took eight months to make. And the climax, featuring a death-defying run round a train set is an unimprovable mixture of thrills and slapstick. Buster Keaton would be proud. 8. Beauty and the Beast (1991, Disney+) Howard Ashman was dying of Aids when he wrote the lyrics for this glorious film with the composer Alan Menken. The duo had resurrected Disney’s fortunes in the 1980s with The Little Mermaid , but this was their magnum opus, a tale of a headstrong bibliophile who is held captive by a beast. Steeped in enchanting moments and bursting with colourful characters, this film looks gorgeous and combines the traditions of the past with the spectacle of a Broadway musical. It earned the first best picture Oscar nomination for an animated movie, an impressive feat for a medium so often dismissed. 7. Wall-E (2008, Disney+) One small step for a robot, one giant leap for animation. Pixar’s epic space adventure, about the last robot left on Earth, was an impressive move forward in technology, proving that animation could make you forget what you’re watching isn’t real. Andrew Stanton, who started his career as a writer on Toy Story , directs the tale of a droid clearing up the mess that mankind left behind while they’re getting fat on space cruises. Much of it unfolds like a silent movie with the whirring bot’s only accompaniment, at the start, an old Betamax tape of Hello, Dolly! . The artistic risk pays off — it’s animation’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. 6. Snow White (1937, Disney+) The Citizen Kane of animated features, the one that proved that a full-length animated feature was even possible, swept along by the obsession and storytelling verve of Walt Disney. While making it, he could practically run the entire film — every cut, fade-out, line of dialogue — in his sleep. The big gamble to make this — Walt’s “folly” — paid off and more than just a film, a new form was born. Adriana Caselotti, who was the voice of Snow White, was not credited for her role. She went on to have small parts in The Wizard of Oz and It’s a Wonderful Life (singing in Martini’s bar). 5. The Lion King (1994, Disney+) Of all the more recent Disneys The Lion King is the one with the simplicity of old — it’s basically Bambi in Africa — but the desert landscapes, soaring songs and basso profundo of James Earl Jones all give Rob Minkoff and Roger Allers’s film an epic sweep worthy of that continent. So dedicated were the animators that lions were brought into the studio to study. The voice work is among Disney’s best and Jeremy Irons’s Scar the most seductive Disney bad guy since Shere Khan. 4. Spirited Away (2001, Netflix) This film, which won the director Hayao Miyazaki his first Oscar, centres on ten-year-old Chihiro, whose family’s move to a new town takes a fantastical turn. Her parents have turned into pigs and she’s soon on a journey with supernatural beings, including a six-legged man and a grotesque sludge creature in a psychedelic bath house. It knows that it’s weird, that it’s not very Disney — but that doesn’t stop us from admiring its beauty and brashness. This is animation as art and Miyazaki’s most outlandish and ambitious Studio Ghibli picture. 3. Bambi (1942, Disney+) Completed in the aftermath of the death of Walt Disney’s mother, Bambi ’s purity of line and emotion make it the most poetic of all the Disneys. The storytelling has the economy and enchantment of fable. The first Disney feature to do without humans, except as a threat, it’s a film children can just pour themselves into. They are Bambi and Thumper. Originally there was a shot in the scene where Bambi’s mother dies, but the screenwriter Larry Morey felt that it was more powerful to have it happen off screen. 2. The Iron Giant (1999, buy/rent Apple TV) The characters of Ted Hughes’s The Iron Man are transplanted from 1950s England to rural Maine with barely a scratch, unlike the crash-landed robot. Like Steven Spielberg’s ET: the Extra-Terrestrial , the film is the simplest of love stories — boy finds robot, boy loses robot, robot slowly reassembles himself screw by screw — told with such sweetness and charm you could forget there’s a cold war going on. It began as a musical with the Who guitarist Pete Townshend involved. 1. Toy Story 3 (2010, Disney+) The first Toy Story , the first computer-generated feature film, was a mix of groundbreaking tech, narrative ingenuity and heart — the space ranger Buzz proving he’s the real deal by soaring around the bedroom, or as he calls it “falling with style” — but it was Toy Story 3 that had us reaching for the tissues. There is an escape from Colditz, a great Barbie-Ken subplot (with voice work from Michael Keaton and Jodie Benson) and a backstory for Ned Beatty’s Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear that is a small masterpiece of storytelling and heart-tugging pathos. It became the second Pixar film (after Up ) to receive an Academy award nomination for best picture. Don’t bother with the mediocre fourth film — this goodbye is the equal of the one in Brief Encounter . Pixar has taken us on a journey with these toys, and this film was a flawless conclusion. Written by: Jonathan Dean, Tom Shone and Jake Helm © The Times of London Share this article Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read. Copy Link Email Facebook Twitter/X LinkedIn Reddit
In conclusion, the participation of Yun Kuaichong in the 2024 Anhui New Energy Vehicle Aftermarket Conference showcased the company's commitment to driving innovation and collaboration in the electric vehicle industry. By deepening partnerships and sharing expertise, Yun Kuaichong is playing a vital role in shaping the future of sustainable transportation in North Anhui and beyond.RICHMOND, British Columbia, Nov. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- General Fusion has published peer-reviewed scientific results confirming world-first achievements in plasma compression using its uniquely practical Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF) technology. The results, published in Nuclear Fusion , verify that during the company's Plasma Compression Science (PCS) experiment series, it successfully produced significant fusion neutron yield by compressing plasmas in the spherical tokamak configuration required for its MTF approach. The results demonstrated a method that ensures plasma stability and symmetry during compression and verified the company's predictions for the rate of plasma heating and increased neutron yield. The tests proved the effectiveness of the company's technology for plasma formation and compression using a metal liner, providing the foundation for its Lawson Machine 26 (LM26) - the company's large-scale fusion demonstration. LM26 will begin integrated operations in early 2025 and is on target to achieve key milestones of 1 keV, then 10 keV (fusion conditions of over 100 million degrees Celsius), and, ultimately, scientific breakeven equivalent (100 per cent Lawson criterion) in the next two years. In the PCS experiment, General Fusion's high-performing plasmas remained stable and maintained magnetic flux while the fusion neutron yield increased significantly. The experiment results demonstrated that significant volumetric compression of a spherical tokamak plasma is practical, de-risking the company's LM26, which will compress plasmas at large scale to reach higher fusion yields. Key Experiment Results: Neutron yield increased significantly, exceeding 600 million neutrons per second in one compression shot. During compression, the plasma became approximately 190 times denser than it started, consistent with plasma particle confinement time being significantly longer than the compression time. The magnetic field that provides robust confinement for the hot plasma became over 13 times higher than it started due to the action of compression. Measurements of plasma heating agreed well with the rate expected for the scale of the experiment, with a modest rise in ion temperature to approximately 0.63 keV during the compression. "During our PCS series, General Fusion was the first in the world to compress a spherical tokamak plasma with a collapsing metal liner, and we are thrilled to now share in a peer-reviewed publication the results we achieved in demonstrating fusion from MTF through this experimental campaign," said Dr. Michel Laberge, Founder and Chief Science Officer, General Fusion. "This research is another example of our trailblazing work over the past two decades. Now, we're approaching breakthrough milestones with LM26. Our practical approach translates to an economical power plant, putting us on the path to electricity on the grid by the early to mid-2030s." General Fusion is a world leader in plasma research. Twenty-four prototypes and over 200,000 plasma shots have helped the company build the world's largest and most powerful operational fusion plasma injector for LM26. The company's multi-year PCS series, conducted from 2013 to 2019, was the first of its kind to study the behavior of a magnetized plasma during rapid compression. Custom experimental systems and testbeds were built in-house to reliably compress a high-performance compact spherical tokamak plasma within an imploding metal wall. A robust suite of diagnostics provided data for each compression test. The peer-reviewed results from the experiment closely align with the company's advanced predictive simulation and modelling, providing confidence that LM26 will achieve its targets of 1 keV, 10 keV, and scientific breakeven equivalent (100 per cent Lawson criterion). "We've demonstrated the viability of a stable fusion process using our MTF approach, laying the foundation for our groundbreaking LM26," said Mike Donaldson, Senior Vice President, Technology Development, General Fusion. "These achievements in plasma compression are a testament to our team's deep expertise and capabilities, accumulated over two decades of fusion technology development. Through our PCS series, we also made major advances in plasma systems, materials, coatings, and diagnostics. Now we're ready for the next step – demonstrating fusion and significant heating at large scale with LM26! Our incredibly talented team has made it all possible, building a practical, clean energy technology with world-changing potential from the ground up." Quick Facts The open-access paper published in Nuclear Fusion provides a comprehensive analysis of the engineering and plasma physics involved in achieving this new foothold in MTF research. In General Fusion's MTF approach , the proprietary liquid metal liner in the fusion vessel is mechanically compressed by high-powered pistons. This allows General Fusion to create fusion conditions in short pulses, rather than creating a sustained reaction, while protecting the machine's vessel, extracting heat, and re-breeding fuel. The technology is designed to scale for cost-efficient power plants. It does not require large superconducting magnets or an expensive array of lasers. Today, General Fusion is accelerating its progress by building LM26. The fusion demonstration machine is on track to achieve transformative technical milestones in the next 24 months—1 keV in the first half of 2025, then 10 keV, and ultimately scientific breakeven equivalent (100 per cent Lawson criterion) by 2026. Its results will significantly de-risk the company's commercial-scale machine, fast-tracking its path to provide commercial fusion energy to the grid by the early to mid-2030s. About General Fusion General Fusion is pursuing a fast and practical approach to commercial fusion energy and is headquartered in Richmond, B.C., Canada. The company was established in 2002 and is funded by a global syndicate of leading energy venture capital firms, industry leaders, and technology pioneers. Learn more at www.generalfusion.com . General Fusion Media Relations media@generalfusion.com +1-866-904-0995 Follow General Fusion twitter.com/generalfusion instagram.com/generalfusion linkedin.com/company/general-fusion facebook.com/generalfusion © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.New Lewis County GOP Chair eyes unification within party
Notre Dame DL Rylie Mills (knee) out for seasonNEW YORK (AP) — Matías Tarnopolsky will become president and CEO of the New York Philharmonic on Jan. 1 after six years heading the Philadelphia Orchestra, a hiring boosted by his long friendship with incoming music director Gustavo Dudamel . Tarnopolsky's appointment was announced Monday. The 54-year-old, who has American, British and Argentine citizenship, fills a void created when Gary Ginstling quit in July just one season into the job. “He’s done a really wonderful job with Philadelphia, and one of the most important issues was that he has a very close relationship with Gustavo Dudamel,” philharmonic co-chairman Peter W. May said. “That was really the most important factor for us.” Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tarnopolsky played clarinet and received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music and musicology from King's College, London. A performance of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony by Leonard Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic at the 1987 BBC Proms had an especially memorable impact. He was the New York Philharmonic's vice president of artistic planning from December 2005 until August 2009, then spent nine years as executive director of Cal Performances at Berkeley until moving to Philadelphia in 2018. Cal hosted Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in several residencies. He called his return to the New York Philharmonic along with Dudamel a “full circle moment,” recalling hitting it off with the conductor during a work visit to Caracas. “I watched him work with the kids of the Simón Bolivar and was just blown away, and so we invited him to conduct the New York Philharmonic. So this is a story almost two decades in the making,” Tarnopolsky said in an interview. Ginstling joined the New York Philharmonic as executive director from Washington's National Symphony Orchestra. “Frankly, it just wasn’t a good fit from both Gary's perspective and our perspective," May told The Associated Press. "Matías clearly had significantly more experience than Gary has had in terms of leading one of the top orchestras in the country and we're quite confident that this is the right guy for the job.” Philharmonic co-chairman Oscar L. Tang said Tarnopolsky is aligned with the vision held by Dudamel and the board. “Gustavo says that he feels classical music is a human right and he wants to view classical music as a force for social development, social good,” Tang said. “These are some of the aspirations that Peter and I have for the New York Phil in terms of extending its role in the cultural and civic life of New York City and really the country and the world.” The New York Philharmonic returned to a renovated Geffen Hall in October 2022, announced Dudamel’s hiring four months later . Borda said guest conductors have been engaged and a tour has been arranged for Dudamel's first season, with his approval, but much of the 2026-27 programming remains open. “Here’s a chance that comes along maybe once in a lifetime to author a completely new chapter for a great musical institution,” Tarnopolsky said. “The commitment here is to rededicate ourselves to ensuring the philharmonic’s place in the civic, cultural, musical, educational life of contemporary New York.” Ryan Fleur, the Philadelphia Orchestra's executive director, will become its interim president on Jan. 1, a role he held for eight months in 2018 between Allison Vulgamore's departure and Tarnopolsky's arrival. ___ This story corrects that Matías Tarnopolsky headed Philadelphia Orchestra six years. Ronald Blum, The Associated PressOn Dec. 2, Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) announced a new strategic partnership with SNC, the global aerospace and national security company. The partnership is part of the U.S. Air Force’s Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) contract. In support of the SAOC program, one of two 747-8i aircraft recently arrived in Wichita from SNC’s Aviation Innovation and Technology Center (AITC) in Dayton, Ohio. Delivery of the aircraft signifies the next phase of SAOC engineering and manufacturing development since the contract award in April 2024. Under the USAF’s SAOC award, SNC will modernize and deliver a replacement for the current fleet of E-4B “Nightwatch” aircraft, which entered service in 1974. This highly specialized aircraft serves as an airborne command center for the president of the United States, secretary of defense, and chairs of the joint chiefs of staff to ensure continued critical command, control and communication during national emergencies. NIAR’s experience in composites and advanced materials, digital twin, advanced manufacturing technologies such as additive manufacturing, aircraft and component testing, and certification will enhance SNC’s ability to deliver a cutting-edge, innovative solution to the USAF. “SAOC is a critical program that will ensure our nation is adequately prepared to ensure unfaltering communication during a national emergency,” said John Tomblin, WSU executive vice president for WSU Research and Industry and Defense Programs and NIAR executive director. “This is the most significant industry contract in the history of the university.” “The partnership between NIAR and SNC will modernize and replace outdated aircraft that are vital to the operations of the United States Air Force,” said U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran. “I look forward to seeing NIAR’s experience in advanced, cutting-edge technology enhance the design of SNC’s innovative aircraft remodeling as these two companies work to make our country more secure.”
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By RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge has reaffirmed her ruling that Tesla must revoke Elon Musk’s multibillion-dollar pay package Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick on Monday denied a request by attorneys for Musk and Tesla’s corporate directors to vacate her ruling earlier this year requiring the company to rescind the unprecedented pay package. McCormick also rejected an equally unprecedented and massive fee request by plaintiff attorneys , who argued that they were entitled to legal fees in the form of Tesla stock valued at more than $5 billion. The judge said the attorneys were entitled to a fee award of $345 million. The rulings came in a lawsuit filed by a Tesla stockholder who challenged Musk’s 2018 compensation package. McCormick concluded in January that Musk engineered the landmark pay package in sham negotiations with directors who were not independent. The compensation package initially carried a potential maximum value of about $56 billion, but that sum has fluctuated over the years based on Tesla’s stock price.