Serving as state representative of House District 85 for the past few years has been a privilege and an honor. I have worked hard to stand for the people of my district fighting for issues that are important to them and to the voters of Iowa City. I want to continue that advocacy and am running for another term in the Iowa House and ask for your vote.

I vigorously support adequate funding for education from pre-school to our community colleges and universities. Our young people are Iowa’s future and deserve the best start available through our excellent education system in Iowa. But we need to provide the dollars necessary to keep our teachers in the classroom so our children are prepared for whatever may lie ahead of them.

I have advocated for the fair treatment of workers in Iowa and support their right to organize. I have worked on laws for equal pay for equal work and whistle blower protection.

I am for essential funding for mental health services for Iowans of all ages. Children and adults who are struggling with mental health issues should have services available to them no matter where they live in this state.

I have fought to keep government open and accessible to Iowans. I support open records and open meetings laws to ensure that availability and transparency to all Iowans.

Keeping voting easy and accessible to voters has been a priority of mine. I support a fair and balanced redistricting system for voting in Iowa.

I have advocated to keep the bottle deposit law in place and expand it to cover the many new types of containers available.

I have worked on oversight legislation after several investigations into defrauding government which involved boarding homes, government agencies and pharmacy benefit managers (the “middleman” between pharmacies/Medicaid and the healthcare insurance companies.)

I cannot avoid mentioning the challenge of the coronavirus in Iowa. It has impacted our health, jobs, families and businesses. No one could have predicted this pandemic but as Iowans, we need to do our best to limit contact and the spread of this disease. My sincere appreciation goes to those workers on the frontlines of this crisis: the healthcare workers, store owners, businesses, farmers, teachers and workers who show up every day to keep this state moving forward. Thank you all!

There is still much work to be done to keep Iowa the great place where we live, work and raise our families. I am asking for your vote to allow me the privilege of continuing that work.

Vicki Lensing is a candidate in the Democratic primary for Iowa House District 85.

Several hundred cars were parked outside a food bank in San Antonio on Good Friday — the food bank fed 10,000 people that day. Such scenes, increasingly common across the nation and evocative of loaves and fish, reflect the cruel facts about the wealthiest nation in the world: 80 percent of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, and 100 percent of Americans were unprepared for the COVID-19 pandemic. People are hungry due to macroeconomic and environmental factors, not because they did something wrong. Although everyone is at risk in this pandemic, the risk is not shared equally across socioeconomic classes. Universal basic health care could resolve this disparity and many of the moral and economic aspects associated with the pandemic.

Increases in the total output of the economy, or the gross domestic product (GDP), disproportionately benefit the wealthy. From 1980 to 2020, the GDP increased by 79 percent. Over that same time, the after-tax income of the top 0.01 percent of earners increased by 420 percent, while the after-tax income of the middle 40 percent of earners increased by only 50 percent, and by a measly 20 percent for the bottom 50 percent of earners. At present, the top 0.1 percent of earners have the same total net worth as the bottom 85 percent. Such income inequality produces poverty, which is much more common in the U.S. than in other developed countries. Currently 43 million Americans, or 12.7 percent of the population, live in poverty.

At the same time, 30 million Americans are uninsured and many more are underinsured with poorly designed insurance plans. The estimated total of uninsured and underinsured Americans exceeds 80 million. In addition, most of the 600,000 homeless people and 11 million immigrants in the U.S. lack health care coverage. Immigrants represent an especially vulnerable population, since many do not speak English and cannot report hazardous or unsafe work conditions. Furthermore, many immigrants avoid care due to fear of deportation even if they entered the country through legal channels.

Most people in poverty and many in the middle class obtain coverage from federal programs. On a national level, Medicaid is effectively a middle-class program and covers those living in poverty, 30 percent of adults and 60 percent of children with disabilities as well as about 67 percent of people in nursing homes. In Iowa, 37 percent of children and 48 percent of nursing home residents use Medicaid. Medicaid also finances up to 20 percent of the care provided in rural hospitals. Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Hospital Insurance Program (CHIP) together cover over 40 percent of Americans.

In addition to facilitating care, health care policy must also address the “social determinants of health,” since the conditions in which people live, work, and play dictate up to 80 percent of their health risks and outcomes. This means that health care reform requires programs in all facets of society. Winston Churchill first conceptualized such an idea in the early 20th century as a tool to prevent the expansion of socialism, arguing that inequality could persist indefinitely without social safety nets. Since that time most developed countries have implemented such social programs, but not the US.

All developed countries except the U.S. provide some type of universal basic health care for their residents. Universal basic health care refers to a system that provides all people with certain essential benefits, such as emergency services (including maternity), inpatient hospital and physician care, outpatient services, laboratory and radiology services, treatment of mental illness and substance abuse, preventive health services (including vaccinations), rehabilitation, and medications. Providing access to these benefits, along with primary care, dramatically improves the health of the community without imposing concerns regarding payment. Perhaps not coincidentally, the U.S. reports a lower life expectancy and higher rates of infant mortality, suicide and homicide compared to other developed countries.

Countries such as Canada, Great Britain, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, and Japan all produce better health care outcomes than the U.S. at a much lower cost. In fact the U.S. spends about twice the percentage of its GDP on health care compared to these countries. With that being said, the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA), which facilitated a decrease in the rate of the uninsured in the U.S. from 20 percent to 12 percent, also decreased the percentage of the GDP spent on health care from 20.2 percent to 17.9 percent in just 10 years. For this reason, most economists agree that universal basic health care would not cost more than the current system, and many would also argue that the total costs of the health care system cannot be further reduced unless everyone has access to basic care.

Achieving successful universal basic health care requires a serious long-term commitment from the federal government — contributing to Medicaid and financing its expansion are not enough. It requires courage from our elected leaders. The ACA took several important steps toward this goal by guaranteeing coverage for preexisting conditions, banishing lifetime maximums for essential services, and mandating individual coverage for everyone, though Congress repealed this final provision in 2017. At present, the ACA requires refinement and a public option, thereby preserving private and employer-based plans for those who want them.

Without universal basic health care the people living at the margins of society have no assurances that they will have access to basic health care services, especially during times of pandemic. Access to food and medications is less reliable, large families live together in small spaces, and public transportation facilitates frequent exposure to others. Childhood diseases such as asthma, chronic diseases such as diabetes, and diseases related to smoking such as COPD and cancer are all likely to worsen. Quarantine protocols also exacerbate the mental health crisis, further increasing rates of domestic violence, child abuse, substance abuse, depression, and suicide. In the last six weeks over 30 million Americans have applied for unemployment benefits, and as people become unemployed, many will lose health insurance.

Access to basic health care without economic or legal consequences would greatly enhance all aspects of pandemic management and response, from tracing contacts and quarantining carriers to administering tests and reinforcing supply chains. The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected minorities and the impoverished in both mortality and livelihood. Universal basic health care helps these vulnerable populations the most, and by reducing their risk it reduces the risk for everyone. In this way, universal basic health care supports the best interests of all Americans.

Like a living wage, universal basic health care aligns with the Christian tradition of social justice and is a moral and economic imperative for all Americans. Nurses, doctors, and other health care providers often observe a sharp contrast between the haves and have-nots when seeing patients. The homeless, the hungry, the unemployed, the working poor, the uninsured; people without families, patients with no visitors, those who live alone or lack support systems; refugees and immigrants — all of these people deserve the fairness and dignity provided by universal basic health care and programs which improve the social determinants of their health. The ACA moved U.S. toward this goal, but now it requires refinement and a public option. The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the urgency of this imperative by demonstrating how universal basic health care could decrease the risks to those less fortunate, thus significantly decreasing the risks to everyone.

James M. Levett, MD, serves on the board of Linn County Public Health and is a practicing cardiothoracic surgeon with Physicians’ Clinic of Iowa. Pramod Dwivedi, MS, DrPH (c), is the health director of Linn County Public Health.

Immigrants have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 pandemic. They’re more likely than native-born Americans to be laboring to keep our essential services running, especially in the food processing sector that has been ravaged by the pandemic.

And yet immigrants living here illegally — including many food industry workers, their family members and people who have been living here since they were children — do not get the same coronavirus relief that legal citizens do, such as the $1,200 federal payment millions of Americans are receiving.

To remedy the situation, Iowa could coordinate direct cash payments to undocumented immigrants who were left out of the federal program. California announced such a program last month, offering $500 payments to thousands of undocumented Californians.

The public health crisis is tightly bound to the immigration crisis. It has exposed disparities in the workforce and also given rise to protectionists who want to restrict migration.

Iowa’s meat processing industry has been slammed by the virus, with at least one plant in Iowa reporting more than half of its workers have tested positive. Those production lines are heavily populated by immigrants. Well over 1,000 combined cases have been reported at four major packing facilities.

Nationally, 28 percent of agriculture workers and 29 percent of food processing workers are foreign-born, according to the pro-immigration New American Economy Research Fund.

Most immigrant workers have legal status, but many don’t. Some of those who are legal have family members who are undocumented. An influx of cash would help bring some stability to struggling families so they can weather the crisis.

At the same time we are asking essential workers to risk their health to sustain us, the anti-immigration lobby has used the pandemic as an opportunity to ramp up their campaign to cut off the flow of workers across borders. As one recent example, four GOP senators — including Iowa’s Sen. Chuck Grassley — sent a letter this week to the Trump administration, asking for guest worker visas to be suspended until next year.

In the pandemic, the idea of giving people money quickly gained political support. Direct payments are not mucked up by the corporate cronyism that plagues traditional economic development, a la checks to companies and targeted tax breaks. When politicians and bureaucrats pick certain businesses to stimulate, they do a bad job.

As long as the government is doing stimulus, the best avenue is writing checks to individuals. People need to buy stuff and as long as the economy limps on, they can buy stuff with money. Immigrants are people, even if they came here illegally. They are also workers, caretakers and taxpayers.

Direct payments would not be a special kickback or a reward for people living in the country illegally. It would be just like the $1,200 direct deposit I got from the government. It comes with a recognition that they are the same as us, important contributors of our culture and economy who are victims of an unworkable legal system.

If the federal government won’t do it, Iowa should.

adam.sullivan@thegazette.com; (319) 339-3156

With the throng of websites on the internet vying for people’s attention, it will be hard to stand out if you don’t have an appealing or dependable business website. Investing in building your own website and acquiring a reliable domain and web hosting provider are some of the things you must do right to make […] More

What does a localization specialist do? What is the concept of localization? If these questions are on your mind, then this article is for you. More

Recent advances in technology have helped both small and large companies to automate their business process to improve productivity. In fact, experts have also emphasized that productivity has stalled over the last couple of years. Numerous large-scale businesses also complained that their productivity was in decline despite implementing innovative workplace guidelines to improve the workflow. […] More

Do you want to duplicate your WordPress database using phpMyAdmin? WordPress stores all your website data in a MySQL database. Sometimes you may need to quickly clone a WordPress database to transfer a website or to create manual backups.

Using a local server environment will save you a bunch of time if you regularly develop new WordPress websites. Local development has many advantages – it’s faster and more secure than constantly uploading files to a server.

There are so many different types of hosting that it can be overwhelming to choose the right one for your WordPress site, but at the same time, it just means there are enough options so you can choose the perfect fit.

En 2016, la route du photographe finlandais Konsta Punkka croisait celle de deux pumas. Il se situait alors au cœur de la Patagonie, au Chili, dans le vaste parc national Torres del Paine. Spécialiste des clichés d’aventure et d’animaux dans leur habitat naturel, le photographe a passé une dizaine de jours à suivre les félins pour tirer de […]

Durant cette période de confinement, les créatifs rivalisent d’ingéniosité pour rester créatifs et continuer leur pratique. C’est le cas du photographe Florian W.  Mueller. Contraint de rester chez lui avec son fils de 6 ans et donc dans l’impossibilité de voyager pour réaliser des projets, il a opté pour la création à domicile. Lorsque son […]

Au carrefour de la mode et de l’image documentaire, Jessica Antola photographie des tissus, mais avant tout des personnes. Elle construit avec eux une relation de confiance et en retour, ses modèles lui offrent une petite fenêtre ouverte sur leur vie. Tout d’abord, vous avez travaillé dans l’industrie de la mode. Ainsi, votre amour pour […]

The time is near, only 6 hours and some change to to get your tickets to WordCamp in Las Vegas! I have my tickets, and so do 125 other at the moment. If you have not purchased tickets and are going to be in the LV area, or planning on heading that way, well then […]

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I talked about Disabling search engine on search pages in a previous post using the meta tag. Today lets go over the web bots Cached copy of your site. If you are working on builder your blog, or have a temporary site up, use the following code: <meta name="robots" content="noarchive"> This will tell any bot […]

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I am at the WordCamp convention in Las Vegas and

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Here is a neat trick. Say you want to show a custom field in you post or in a certain categories post. There is a simple code you need to write in order to accomplish this: <?php $image = get_post_meta($post->ID, "image", $single = true); ?> <?php if($image != '') : if(in_category(7)) { echo ''; } […]

The post Echo custom fields in any category appeared first on WPCult.

Everything I have tried has led to nothing. And I have tried six way’s from Sunday to get my main posts to paginate. example one: <?php $paged = (get_query_var('paged')) ? get_query_var('paged') : 1; query_posts('offset=1&showposts=' . get_option('woo_other_entries') . '&cat=-' . $GLOBALS['ex_asides'] . '&paged=$paged' ); ?> example two: <?php global $myOffset; global $wp_query; $myOffset = 1; $paged […]

The post Can′t add pagination on WooThemes Thick Theme appeared first on WPCult.

Benefits include the Black Canvas theme, unlimited theme support answered by our experts, customization techniques with our detailed theme tutorials and professional design services available by our list of recommended designers.

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Jeff Chandler has done a great interview with Dan Milward of Instinct. Check it out here.

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When Joe Sample started posting photos of his takeout food stops in the days after Iowa restaurants were ordered shut down to dine-in service in March, he didn’t think much of it. He just wanted to get some good food while supporting restaurants.

“I have a lot of friends in the food business. My wife worked at Elevate Salon and Emil’s Deli, so she’s not working right now,” he said. “I felt it was a great way to support local businesses.”

But then a new Facebook group dedicated to promoting curbside, delivery and takeout food options in Cedar Rapids sprung up — this week, it had more than 15,000 members — and Sample started sharing photos there. The 46-year-old Cedar Rapids resident quickly found himself having a new experience — going viral.

In a pandemic, that phrase could have negative connotations, but this was the positive kind of viral spread. The kind where hundreds of people liked his photos and commented on them. Then a Cedar Rapids T-shirt maker, Ivory Pearl Designs, started selling “Be Like Joe” T-shirts and other people started showing up to order takeout in the shirts. Soon, restaurants were asking if he would come take a photo at their restaurant.

“I just started it to have fun and posted a few fun pictures, and then I started having restaurants reach out to me,” Sample said.

He decided to dedicate his stimulus check from the federal government to the effort. Sometimes, he said he hits up more than one restaurant a day.

“I’ve hit close to 60 restaurants,” he said.

He’s leaned into the enthusiasm and found ways to play up the efforts. One day he dressed as Oscar the Grouch while visiting’ Oscar’s Restaurant in Hiawatha. On another day, he and one of his daughters bought plastic pig noses to wear on a stop at the Blind Pig in Cedar Rapids. He wears a Superman costume to some stops.

“I was totally surprised at how viral it went,” he said. “Now I’m just trying to keep it exciting.”

In his day job, Sample is a salesman for American Building Components in Mount Pleasant. He normally spends a lot of time on the road, selling metal roofing, siding and steel frame structures around the Midwest. These days, he’s working from home, making sales over the phone instead. He said going out to get carryout is a chance to see other people and get out of the house.

“It brings some normalcy to my life,” he said.

He has two daughters at home, age 9 and 15, and one son, 22. When he’s not eating out, he likes to spend time outdoors with his family, fishing, camping, hunting and coaching soccer. He admits his last name is a bit on-the-nose for his newest hobby.

“A lot of people ask, ‘Is that really even your real name?’” he said with a laugh.

Sample was born and raised in Cedar Rapids, which fuels his desire to support his town.

“My dad had Sample Pharmacies when I was growing up. People helped support us, so I figured it was the least I could do, to support other local businesses,” he said. “I think the biggest thing is, we want to keep them here. There are so many great restaurants in Cedar Rapids, and we don’t want to lose half of them. I’m going to try to keep going with this until they open the places back up, as much as I can.”

He also has helped do deliveries of donated meals to area hospitals and long-term care facilities. That effort started when his younger daughter’s Girl Scout troop had dozens of boxes of unsold cookies and few options to sell them once the pandemic hit. Sample’s family purchased them and sent them to staff at Mercy Medical Center. Since then he’s dropped off boxes of pita, hummus and gyro meat from Pita’z Mediterranean and American Cuisine, trays of cinnamon rolls from Oscar’s and other places.

“People seem to be very supportive in Cedar Rapids,” he said.

He gave a lot of credit to the Cedar Rapids Facebook group, which was started by Lindsay Leahy, Brooke Murphy-Fitzgerald and Shannon Hanson. Others like it have sprung up in Marion, North Liberty and Iowa City.

“I think this has opened a lot of people’s eyes; it has given people an opportunity to try new things,” Sample said. “I’ve seen more restaurants on here than I’d ever tried before.”

He’s also started to promote nonprofits like the Freedom Festival. He is helping sell the $5 commemorative buttons — even though the 2020 festival was canceled, the buttons will help support the organization’s operations. And he helped with a Big Brothers Big Sisters fundraiser, an effort which inspired him so much he signed up as a volunteer.

He said he hopes his efforts, and others like it inspire others to support the community.

“Keep supporting local, do your best to stay healthy, and when restaurants open back up, keep going to them,” he said. “They’re going to need our help for a long time to come.”

Comments: (319) 398-8339; alison.gowans@thegazette.com

Background

CEDAR RAPIDS — After a bitter battle between residents and one of the city’s major employers — Cargill — with the city of Cedar Rapids in the middle, in December, the Cedar Rapids City Council approved a $6.5 million, 12-track, 200-car rail yard located between the Rompot neighborhood and Prairie Park Fishery.

Cargill wanted to buy and put the rail yard on a 28-acre city-owned site on Stewart Road SE. Construction required rezoning the land to industrial use and a change to the city’s future land use map — putting city officials in the spotlight.

The rail yard was needed for more supply chain stability and to protect jobs at the corn-milling plant, at 1710 16th St. SE and not far from the rail yard site, company officials said. Cargill officials planned to submit final paperwork within a month of the vote, begin construction in early spring and have the rail yard operating by the end of the year.

A lot and nothing.

Before construction was to begin, the city required Cargill to provide a third-party appraisal of the land. The city had provided an initial value of $83,200, which Cargill agreed to match. However, the value of the land has been in question as nearby properties ranged from $20,000 to $30,000 an acre, which was far greater than the $3,000 per acre value the city used.

City officials say the appraisal has not been submitted, nor has Cargill sought the required permits before construction can begin.

This delay began well before disruptions from the coronavirus pandemic and after lawsuits were filed to block the rail yard.

Rompot resident and state Sen. Rob Hogg, who is a lawyer, filed two lawsuits against the City Council — one each challenging the rezoning vote and the vote to change the future land use map. Numerous neighbors and others in opposition to the rail yard have joined the lawsuit, which Hogg supported.

Meanwhile, Cargill intervened on behalf of the city. At this point, sides still are arguing whether to expand the record to include additional evidence. Dates for a hearing have not been set.

So, the status of the contentious rail yard and a timeline for construction remains in limbo.

“We don’t have anything new to share at this point regarding work and timelines specific to the development of the rail yard,” Kelly Sheehan, a spokeswoman for Cargill, said in late April.

In normal times, Chew on This focuses on restaurant openings and closings. These are not normal times, with restaurants closed except to carryout, curbside and delivery. We know these businesses still need support from the community to survive, so each week we are going to highlight five local restaurants.

These are just a few of the many places offering barbecue; look up your favorite restaurants on Facebook or call to find out what they have.

If you don’t want to leave the house, try a delivery service like Chomp, GrubHub or MyTown2Go. Check with the restaurant to make sure they’re affiliated with a delivery service before ordering.

124 Second Ave. NW, Mount Vernon; (319) 535-1060, facebook.com/bigsbbq

Get a growler of house-brewed beer to pair with your barbecue. Every Wednesday features a wings special; check the Facebook page for additional daily specials.

6677 16th Ave. SW, Cedar Rapids; (319) 378-4777, facebook.com/austinbluesbbq

Call in advance orders from 3 to 7 p.m. Wednesday to Friday and pickup from the food truck parked in the parking lot or stop by the truck parked at Cassill Motors, 2939 16th Ave. SW, Cedar Rapids, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays.

1940 Lower Muscatine, Iowa City, (319) 354-7427 and 745 Community Dr., North Liberty, (319) 665-2486; jimmyjacksribshack.com

This Iowa City staple has classic dishes like ribs, smoked chicken and brisket and can even please vegetarians with a portobello sandwich.

525 S. Gilbert St., Iowa City, (319) 338-1419 and 125 E. Zeller St., North Liberty, (319) 626-4227; mosleysbarbecue.com

Try a family-style meal for curbside pickup, featuring four sandwiches or a slab of ribs, plus sides and cornbread, or order off the menu.

288 Blairs Ferry Rd. NE, Cedar Rapids; (319) 206-3806, willieraysqshack.com

This tiny establishment was made for social distancing, with drive-through the only option for service even before the pandemic. Get one of the daily specials or order a la carte.

Comments: (319) 398-8339; alison.gowans@thegazette.com

“I pledge my Head to clearer thinking, my Heart to greater loyalty, my Hands to larger service, and my Health to better living, for my club, my community, my country, and my world.” — 4-H pledge

The Johnson County 4-H program is living up to these words, teaming up with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Johnson County to assemble Camp-in-a-Bag kits for the youngest “Littles” enrolled in the BBBS mentoring program.

Big Brothers Big Sisters creates one-on-one opportunities between adult volunteer mentors and at-risk youths ages 6 to 18. Known as “Bigs” and “Littles,” they meet for at least six hours a month for 18 months. But those in-person outings to movies, museums, restaurants, recreational activities and new adventures, as well as monthly events and school-based programs organized by the agency, are on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic.

So the kits became an outreach outlet.

“I was thinking about ways that we would be able to connect with our Littles, to let them know that we’re thinking about them,” said Dina Bishara, program specialist for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Johnson County. “And also in a very small way, to try to fill that gap that so many kids are experiencing right now. They’re used to the structure and activity of school and extracurricular activities and playing with friends.”

The bags contain more than six hours of STEAM — science, technology, engineering, arts and math — activities, from the pieces needed for building gliders and balloon flyers, to conducting scientific experiments, planting seeds, choosing healthy snacks and writing down their thoughts.

Those activities also reflect the other contributing partners: Johnson County Master Gardeners, Johnson County Extension and Outreach’s Pick a Better Snack program, O’Brien Family McDonalds and Forever Green Garden Center.

“(We wanted to) just give them something really fun and also educational and engaging, to help them spend time with their siblings, if they have them, and get their parents involved, if possible — and just really keep them connected to that learning and the fun, but also to Big Brothers Big Sisters,” Bishara said. “Camp-in-a-Bag helps us structure things in an intentional and thoughtful way.”

Partnering with 4-H, known for its summer camps, fairs and educational programs, “was a really great way to make sure that the activities we were including were really robust, so it was not going to be a hodgepodge, throw-some-things-in-a-bag,” Bishara added. “We really needed to be deliberate about it, to have the directions nicely laid out.”

The first wave is being distributed to 20 elementary-age children, and officials are hoping to expand the project.

“Funding is always a question,” Bishara said. “We would love to expand to 20 or 40 for more. ... We’d sure like to be able to target the kits to a little older kids, who have different interests.”

Bishara and Kate Yoder, who works with 4-H out of the Iowa State University Extension office in Johnson County, are eager to continue their collaborative efforts.

“It really great,” Yoder said. “When you work together, things comes together and amazing things happen. I’m excited to see what the future holds — what partnerships we can build on and grow.”

Comments: (319) 368-8508; diana.nollen@thegazette.com

• What: Big Brothers Big Sisters Camp-in-a-Bag kit contributions

• Contact: Email Dina Bishara at dina@bbbsjc.org

Summer is going to look a bit different in the Corridor this year as many, long-cherished events are being canceled or postponed. And the organizations that run those events want you to know they aren’t any more happy about it than you are.

The organizers of these events are having to make unprecedented, tough decisions.

“Cancellation is not a good word in our business,” said Chuck Swanson, Building a Legacy executive director of Hancher. “It is something that we really don’t want to do and it takes a lot for us to come to that.

“We live for the live performance and bringing the artists and audiences together. That’s the happiest time for me, so none of these decisions have been easy.”

Hancher has had to cancel numerous upcoming events in the past few months that would have brought to Iowa City in artists from all over the country and the world. It also is holding off announcing its upcoming season — which it typically would be doing at this time of year.

this isn’t something the staff has faced since the floods of 2008 and because they book events so far in advance they are confronting additional challenges.

“You know there’s so much that goes into a show before it happens,” Swanson said. “I just think of all the anticipation, booking the artists, advancing the show, setting ticket prices, advertising and then ticket sales.

“It’s like a farmer who does all this work to get his crops ready and then at the end of the season ends up with nothing to harvest.”

He noted Hancher has been reaching out to its booked performers and, in some cases, have had performers reach out to them to cancel upcoming shows.

The significant time and resources that go into planning large-scale events is the main factor in necessitating cancellation discussions and decisions at many organizations.

“Many logistical items have to be coordinated, from renting shuttles to scheduling volunteers and staff. Initial planning for some events begins as early as 12 to 18 months in advance and proceeds all the way up to the day of the event,” said John Myers, Indian Creek Nature Center executive director.

Citing the center’s annual Maple Syrup Festival, he noted food represents a significant cost and often cannot be saved or reused.

“We have had to be mindful of the financial resources available to us and ensure that we wisely manage those to ensure (the center) can emerge from this pandemic as a functioning and healthy organization,” he said.

“None of the decisions to cancel events or how to handle subsequent financial losses are easy and they challenge everyone,” Myers added. “As our whole lives have been upended, it makes even the simplest of decisions harder and that takes an impact on morale.”

He acknowledged staff members aren’t the only ones feeling the strain.

“We have a significant core of volunteers who are no longer able to give their time, which also creates a strain on morale and increases the amount of work that needs to be done when we return,” he pointed out.

Another primary factor is what is allowed and considered safe by the city, state and Iowa Department of Public Health.

“At this point, only allowing groups of 10 or less is a far cry from the thousands or people we usually see at the Iowa Arts Festival,” said Lisa Barnes, executive director of Summer of the Arts in Iowa City, which produces the Iowa Arts Festival.

“The governor has announced that reopening the state will be done in stages, and based on what we’ve found from other events around the country, concerts and large festivals will be the last to open,” he noted.

Summer of the Arts announced just last week that the Iowa Arts Festival would not take place this year, a month in advance of the event.

“We needed to make a decision so that we can move forward with alternative plans,” Barnes said, noting the organization has had questions about the Iowa City Jazz Festival, scheduled for July 3 through 5 and added a decision regarding that festival and July programming will be made by mid-late May.

“We also needed to make the decision far enough out to be able to work with our performers and cancel the agreements,” she said.

On Wednesday, Gov. Kim Reynolds loosened some but not all of the social-distancing restrictions for the remaining 22 counties she had put in place.

Discussions about the future of these events have been happening for weeks for many organizations, highlighting they are not taken lightly.

Carissa Johnson, executive director of the Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival, said conversations about the future of this year’s event started in mid-March, right around the time the Cedar Rapids SaPaDaPaSo Parade announced its cancellation for 2020.

“We plan year ’round for the two- to three-week festival,” Johnson explained.

“Our planning really ramps up in April and May, and we have many more costs associated with producing the festival the closer we get to the start. In order to protect our time and resources, we elected to cancel before we had more costs and variables to consider.”

As for who is making the final decision, organizations said many stakeholders are involved. Barnes said the decision on the Iowa City Arts Festival, for example, included staff, the board of directors, festival planning committees, the city of Iowa City and Johnson County Public Health, along with input from some of the vendors, artists and performers.

Tapping into experts in those public health field has been key as well.

“We have these assets, people, at the University (of Iowa), that have been really helpful as we make these decisions about canceling and as we prepare to think about reopening,” Hancher’s Swanson said.

The Freedom Festival include staff and board members in discussions, with recommendations from Linn County Public Health and the city of Cedar Rapids, factoring in the health, safety and well-being of the community.

“We are just as heartbroken as the rest of the community, but this decision was to protect our community as much as possible,” Swanson said.

“This community is a family and we will all get through this together and come back stronger next year.”

Myers noted organizations such as the Indian Creek Nature Center are also rely on advice from national associations, such as the American Alliance of Museums, and discussions among the leadership of many local cultural groups.

“For many events, we have also reached out to participants to gather their input and comfort level of attending once we are able to reopen,” Myers said.

The financial effects of having to cancel is stressful for organizations, too.

“Financially, this has been a hard time for the Nature Center to endure,” Myers pointed out. “We’ve had over 100 different programs, events and facility rentals canceled between March 15 and April 30, and our losses are currently over $250,000. As we approach the summer, there are a number of other events we continue to review, including our popular summer camps.”

The Nature Center has postponed a national conference to be held there in September — due to indications of low participation — for peers from around the nation who run not-for-profit and government nature centers.

“We are losing thousands of dollars in vendor fees and sales receipts because we had to cancel,” said Barnes, of Summer of the Arts.

“We have sponsors tied to certain events, like the Iowa Arts Festival, that in some cases want to carry over their support to next year, which impacts our fundraising for this year and next.”

She noted her group already has been made aware of funding that won’t be coming in from some sponsors next year due to the financial impact those organizations are facing as well.

And that can be tough.

“When we cancel, our whole staff is involved — from the box audience and public engagement folks to the technical production team and our front-of-house staff,” Swanson said.

“Our communication is key in talking through it all and then sharing clear messages with our audiences, especially in terms of refunds. But we’ve been encouraged by so many generous friends of Hancher donating their ticket purchase price back to us.”

While disappointment still is thick in the air, organizations don’t plan to abandon their missions and is keeping an eye on serving the public.

“This is a challenging time for everyone, and our board and staff is committed to finding creative and non-traditional solutions to ensure the Freedom Festival’s return,” Johnson said. “The community and our stakeholders have been tremendous supports of the Freedom Festival and we believe they will continue to do so in the future.

“We ask for understanding and patience as we try to navigate this crisis and what we can still provide for our community.”

Freedom Festival buttons will be sold this year as they’ve already been made, and “It’s a way the community can show their support,” Johnson said.

Barnes agreed and noted the Iowa Arts Festival committee is working on ways to support the performers, artists and vendors they had scheduled by trying to develop some virtual opportunities for engagement.

While the show, or events, might not go on, organizers said they very much want to remain connected to their audiences and attendees.

“I want to make sure everybody knows we care about them and that we’re trying to find ways to stay connected because I think we’re all in this together and the arts are one of the best ways for people to get through difficult times,” Swanson said.

Myers agreed.

“Indian Creek Nature Center will be ready to welcome guests and visitors back to our events as soon as we are able to do so safely,” he said.

“In the meantime, we hope everyone finds peace in nature by taking a hike or bike ride, having a picnic or just enjoying time outside.”

An Iowa judge has ruled unconstitutional a state law that would have blocked Planned Parenthood of the Heartland from receiving federal money to provide sex education programs to Iowa youth.

Fifth Judicial District Judge Paul Scott on Wednesday ruled the law “has no valid, ‘realistically conceivable’ purpose that serves a legitimate government interest as it is both irrationally overinclusive and under-inclusive.”

“The act violates (Planned Parenthood of the Heartland’s) right to equal protection under the law and is therefore unconstitutional,” Scott ruled in issuing a permanent injunction to prevent the law’s implementation.

House File 766, passed in 2019 by the Republican-controlled Iowa House and Senate, excluded any Iowa organization that “provides or promotes abortion” from receiving federal dollars that support sex education and related services to Iowa youth.

Planned Parenthood of the Heartland and ACLU of Iowa challenged the law, filing a lawsuit shortly after Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the bill into law.

Polk County District Court issued a temporary injunction blocking the law, which was to go into effect July 1, allowing Planned Parenthood to continue providing sex education programming throughout the past year.

The governor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ruling.

In its lawsuit, Planned Parenthood and ACLU argued that by blocking the abortion provider from the two federal grants — the Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) and the Community Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention (CAPP) — the law violated protections of free speech, due process and equal protection.

“The decision recognizes that the law blocking Planned Parenthood from receiving grants to provide this programming violated the constitutional requirement of equal protection,” ACLU of Iowa Legal Director Rita Bettis Austen said in a statement Thursday.

Though Planned Parenthood would be excluded, the law did allow “nonprofit health care delivery systems” to remain eligible for the federal funding, even if they are contracted with or are affiliated with an entity that performs abortions or maintains a facility where abortions are performed.

By doing so, the law effectively singles out Planned Parenthood, but allows other possible grant recipients to provide an array of abortion-related services, according to the court documents.

“The carved-out exception for the ‘nonprofit health care delivery system’ facilities undermines any rationale the State produces of not wanting to be affiliated with or provide funds to organizations that partake in any abortion-related activity,” Scott ruled. .

In fiscal year 2019, Planned Parenthood received about $265,000 through the federal grants, including $85,000 to offer PREP curriculum in Polk, Pottawattamie and Woodbury counties.

It was awarded $182,000 this year to offer CAPP curriculum in Linn County, as well as in Dallas, Des Moines, Jasper, Lee, Polk, Plymouth and Woodbury counties.

The grants are administered by the Iowa Department of Human Services and the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Planned Parenthood has provided sex education to students in 31 schools and 12 community-based youth organizations in Iowa using state-approved curriculum since 2005, according to a new release.

The focus has remained “on areas with the highest rates of unintended pregnancies and sexually-transmitted infections,” the news release said.

“Today’s decision ensures that teens and young adults across Iowa will continue to have access to medically accurate sex education programs, despite the narrow and reckless policies of anti-abortion lawmakers,” said Erin Davison-Rippey, executive director of Planned Parenthood North Central States.

Comments: (319) 368-8536; michaela.ramm@thegazette.com

CEDAR RAPIDS — The Linn County Fair has canceled grounds and grandstand entertainment at this year because of the novel coronavirus and is looking at ways youths could exhibit their work.

“After consulting with Linn County Public Health, the Linn County Board of Supervisors, and other stakeholders, it was determined this was the best decision due to the uncertainty of what the public health situation may look like at the end of June,” Albert Martin, Linn County Fair Board president, said Thursday in a statement.

The fair was scheduled June 24-28.

The Linn County Fair Association said it is working with the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach of Linn County and Linn County 4-H to determine how 4-H and FFA members and other youths will exhibit their work. Those details — which could include in-person or virtual exhibiting — are expected to be finalized and announced in mid-May.

Tom Barnes, executive director of the Association of Iowa Fairs, told The Gazette on Thursday that the Benton County Fair also was canceled for 2020.

Organizers for the Wapello County Fair in south-central Iowa previously announced they would not host the fair this year.

Comments: (319) 339-3155; lee.hermiston@thegazette.com

MARION — While the Uptown Marion Market will continue to sell fresh produce, it will look a little different this year.

The market will continue operating on the second Saturday of June, July and August with some adjustments.

But the city of Marion has canceled community events until at least early July because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Uptown market will run along Sixth Avenue instead of being held in City Square Park. It will be fenced and no more than 50 people will be let in at an time.

Jill Ackerman, president of the Marion Chamber of Commerce, said there are usually between 50 and 60 vendors at each market, but she expects only 15 to 25 at this summer’s markets.

“The main thing here is safety,” Ackerman said. “We want to make sure people have opportunities to buy fresh produce from our local growers, but we’re going to ask patrons to only spend 30 minutes inside the market.”

Vendors will sell produce and some plants, but artisan items will not be available.

While there will be summer events through the Chamber of Commerce, Ackerman said, they will be fewer and look a little different than they usually do.

Free community concerts and movie nights are canceled until July by the city, according to a news release.

The Marion Farmers Market, held at Taube Park, is expected to resume May 16.

Officials hope to have smaller-scale events throughout the summer like performances in the Uptown Artway, Messy Art Days and the Tiny Fair series as restrictions ease.

Sunrise Yoga at the Klopfenstein Amphitheater at Lowe Park is expected to take place every Saturday from June to August.

“Unfortunately, given our current reality, we know that 2020 will be far from normal,” said Marion Mayor Nicolas AbouAssaly. “After careful consideration and consultation with event organizers and sponsors, we have made the collective decision to cancel the free community concerts, events and movie nights originally planned for our outdoor public venues through early-July.”

Comments: (319) 368-8664; grace.king@thegazette.com

Vice President Mike Pence owes Iowans more than a photo-op when he visits Des Moines today, according to Joe Biden’s campaign.

“Iowans are seeing up close the most consequential failure of government in modern American history,” said Kate Bedingfeld, spokeswoman for the former vice president and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

“With nearly 300,000 Iowans filing for unemployment, rural hospitals on life support, Latino communities disproportionately suffering and workers on the job without sufficient protection, Mike Pence owes Iowans more than a photo-op — he owes them answers,” she said.

Pence, head of the White House coronavirus task force, is scheduled to meet with Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and U.S. Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst, all Republicans, as well as with faith, farm and food production leaders.

Pence will talk to faith leaders about how they are using federal and state guidelines to open their houses of worship in a safe and responsible manner.

Later, he will go to Hy-Vee’s headquarters in West Des Moines for a roundtable discussion with agriculture and food supply leaders to discuss steps being taken to ensure the food supply remains secure.

Pence has called Iowa a “success story” in its response to the COVID-19, but Bedingfeld said the Trump administration failed to protect Iowa families from the virus that has claimed the lives of 231 Iowans.

“From devastating losses across the state, at meatpacking plants to rural communities, one thing is clear — it’s Iowans and the American people who are paying the price for the Trump administration’s denials and delays in response to this pandemic,” she said.

“Instead of listening to our own intelligence agencies and public health experts, Donald Trump was fed dangerous propaganda from the Chinese Communist Party — and he bought it,” she said. “Iowans deserve better — they deserve Joe Biden.”

For his part, Grassley said he welcomes the discussion with Pence.

“There’s much work to be done, and the pandemic is disrupting all of our communities,” Grassley said. “It’s important to hear directly from those who help feed the nation and the world.”

Ernst also is looking forward to the discussion of how Iowa is working to protect the health and safety of Iowa’s families and communities while reopening the state’s economy.

“We continue to take an all-hands-on-deck approach to tackling this pandemic,” she said. “Together, we will get through this.”

Comments: (319) 398-8375; james.lynch@thegazette.com

This Mother’s Day, April Kelley just wants to give her daughter Jessica Kelley a hug. But she can’t. Jessica, 21, works on the COVID-19 floor at Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids.

To protect her family and still do her job, Jessica is living full time at the hospital, which has made housing available to staff who need to isolate from their families during the pandemic.

“Just based on the floor I’m on, I don’t want to put my family at risk. It’s not worth it,” she said.

Her mother has an autoimmune disorder, adding another layer to Jessica’s worries. Though she does not interact with patients with the coronavirus directly, she still knows exposure is a risk.

“It wasn’t too hard of a decision, but it’s hard on me sometimes,” she said. “I really miss her.”

Jessica is a telemetry monitor technician. For her eight- to 12-hour shifts, her job is to watch heart monitors of patients in the hospital’s intensive care unit. If any patient starts to have cardiac distress or irregular heart rhythms, she and her fellow technicians are the first ones to notice and can notify the doctors and nurses in the main ward.

“It was her choice to either work at the hospital or come home, which was really difficult for her,” April Kelley said. “She’s only 21, so I was pretty proud of her for choosing to help. I don’t think people realize the sacrifice people are making to be there, working in the hospitals right now.”

Jessica is finishing her junior year as a nursing student at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids. When classes moved online and the dorms closed, she had to figure out what to do. While many of her classmates moved back home with their families, doing so would have meant quitting her job. Right now, she said, that job feels more important than ever. In addition to being a full-time student, she works 32 to 36 hours a week at the hospital.

She spent about a week at home with her mother and brother in Humboldt after the dorms closed, but even then, she stayed in her mother’s finished basement and didn’t interact directly with her.

Her older brother, 26, is staying at home with their mom, and she misses him, too. Jessica said to stay connected, she does FaceTime with her mom, a social worker, almost every day.

“She’s definitely one of my best friends, one of my biggest supporters. She is a single mom, and she’s worked two jobs for the last 12 years,” Jessica said. “She always provides for us, and she’s just wonderful in every single way. She’s very caring, she takes care of everybody, no matter where you are.”

This Mother’s Day, those roles have reversed. Now, Jessica is protecting her mother instead of the other way around.

“She said, ‘Mom, I just can’t come home again, I couldn’t put you in that kind of danger,’” April said. “I’m extremely proud of the young lady she is and how responsible she is, and what she is doing during this time, to make sure other people are safe.”

Jessica’s interest in nursing came from her family. Her grandmother, aunt and cousin are all nurses. She also had an experience as a child that stuck with her and inspired her current career goal of becoming a pediatric intensive care nurse after graduation.

In the second grade, she had encephalitis. At first, she said, doctors didn’t believe she was actually sick. Her mother had to take her to a different hospital to get help.

“They said I was making it up, that my screaming and vomiting was just trying to get attention. They said I was faking it,” she said. “At one point, I really did not know who my mom was, and that’s the scariest part, to have someone tell you that’s not real. That’s just not right, and I don’t want other people, especially children to have to deal with that.”

She became interested in the telemetry job after touring the hospital as a student. She said watching the monitors can be surreal, knowing each line she watches represents a patient she may never meet but whose life she is responsible for.

“You see their heart, but you don’t see them,” she said. “Sometimes you watch them die, but never see them. Other times, you see someone going into a fatal rhythm, and you call the nurses ... and when they finally get that person stabilized, you know they might not have made it if we weren’t there. It’s very rewarding.”

April stressed the need for people to follow public health guidelines on social distancing to stay healthy.

“I know they’re starting to open back up and people are eager to get on with their lives,” she said. “But there are a lot of people putting their lives on the line right now ... and I would hate for Jessica to have to go back and self-isolate again if there was a second wave.”

April’s sad she can’t spend this Mother’s Day with her daughter, but right now, that’s not what is important.

“Remember, there’s going to be another Mother’s Day, she said. “We all just have to take care of our people.”

Comments: (319) 398-8339; alison.gowans@thegazette.com

At the same time Vice President Mike Pence was in Iowa on Friday to discuss the nation’s food supply security, U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack called on the administration to take more measures to protect workers in food processing plants.

Loebsack also questioned the decisions to reopen the economy being made by the Trump administration and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds.

“I don’t think we’re ready for that yet, quite honestly,” the Iowa City Democrat said.

“Ready” will be when adequate protections are in place for the people processing America’s food, Loebsack said.

Workers are showing up on the job, but “they fear for their families, they fear for themselves, they fear for everybody,” Loebsack said. “They don’t know if they’re going to catch this thing or not. But they’re there.”

Of particular concern are workers in food processing, such as those in meatpacking plants in Iowa where more than 1,600 cases of COVID-19 have been reported.

“I really believe that we should not open the plants if we do not ensure worker safety,” Loebsack said.

He called for President Donald Trump to use the Defense Production Act, which the president invoked to keep meatpacking plants open, to ensure an adequate supply of personal protective equipment for packing plant workers.

If Pence and the president are concerned about the nation’s food supply, then they need to “keep those workers safe and, therefore, keep those processing plants running” to avoid meat shortages at the grocery store, Loebsack said.

“We can’t have those plants running if workers are not protected. It’s that simple,” he said. “It’s not just the workers, it’s the families, it’s the community at large.”

With unemployment at 14.7 percent — probably higher, Loebsack said, Congress should extend federal coronavirus-related unemployment benefits of $600 a week beyond their current July end date.

He’s also pleased that the last relief package fixed a Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loan program to allow farmers to apply for assistance.

Comments: (319) 398-8375; james.lynch@thegazette.com

Some Eastern Iowans are ready to go camping.

With Gov. Kim Reynolds allowing campgrounds across the state to open Friday, some people wasted little time in heading outdoors.

“They’re already starting to fill up,” said Ryan Schlader of Linn County Conservation. “By about 7 this morning, we had a dozen at Squaw Creek Park. People were coming in bright and early to camp. We’re not surprised.”

Schlader said Linn County Conservation tried to have the campgrounds open at the county’s Squaw Creek, Morgan Creek and Pinicon Ridge parks at 5 a.m. Friday. He expected all of them would be busy.

“I think people were ready to go,” he said.

Lake Macbride State Park in Johnson County didn’t see quite as much of a rush for campsites, park manager Ron Puettmann reported Friday morning, saying he’d had six walk-ins for the park’s 42 campsites.

Camping this weekend will be done on a first-come, first-served basis. Sites won’t be available for reservations until next week, though online reservations can be made now, Puettmann said.

“I’m quite sure people were waiting anxiously to get on,” he said.

While Reynolds’ campground announcement came Wednesday, Schlader and Puettmann said they had no issues having the campgrounds ready for Friday.

Schlader said county staff have been in touch with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and other county conservation boards to discuss protocols for reopening to ensure a safe experience for campers and employers.

“We anticipated at some point the order would be lifted,” Schlader said. “We were anticipating maybe May 15. The campgrounds were in good shape and ready to go.”

For now, camping comes with some limitations:

• Campers can camp only in a self-contained unit with a functioning restroom, such as a recreational vehicle.

• Shower houses with restrooms will remain closed for the time being.

• Campsites are limited to six people unless they are from the same household.

• No visitors are allowed at the campsites.

Puettmann said staffers and a DNR officer will be on hand to make sure guidelines are followed, but he didn’t anticipate enforcement would be an issue.

“For the most part, we’re going to allow people to police themselves,” he said.

It’s hard to gauge demand, Schlader said.

The weather isn’t yet deal for camping, and some people might not be ready to camp, given the continuing coronavirus.

“There is a lot of uncertainty,” he said. “Do people feel like they need to get out and enjoy a camping experience within their own campsite, or do people still feel under the weather and think it’s not a good idea for my family to go right now? ... We just want this to be an option for people.”

Comments: (319) 339-3155; lee.hermiston@thegazette.com

CEDAR RAPIDS — An injured pelican rescued at Cedar Lake on Wednesday will have a permanent home at one of the top zoos in the Midwest.

“We downloaded all of the paperwork (on Friday), and we want to get it transported (to Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha) within a week,” said Tracy Belle, founder and director of Wildthunder Wildlife and Animal Rehabilitation and Sanctuary in Independence.

“It’s doing well — we’re going to get it outside today to decompress a little.”

Belle, who also serves as primary animal rehabilitator at Wildthunder, believes the pelican is young — the average life span is 20 to 25 years — and she is not sure of its gender.

It suffered broken carpal bones and, according to Belle, surgical repair is unlikely.

“The veterinarian told me that the injury appears to be five to six weeks old,” she said. “I can only speculate, but I think when it flew into the lake, it may have clipped a power line.”

Belle said the pelican will need one more veterinary exam before transport to Omaha. In the meantime, “its appetite is good,” she said. “It’s eating five to 10 pounds of fish per day.”

Henry Doorly is closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In a typical year, the complex attracts about 2 million visitors.

Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com

I’ve shot at this location a few times but for some reason I’ve never seen it from the other side. Literal proof that shooting with other creatives gives you new perspective. ???? (at Toronto, Ontario)

Lights, camera, action. ????
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A few more days left to get 50% off my custom Lightroom presets! Link in profile. (at Toronto, Ontario)

I just realized that I can export my entire story all at once now, which means uploading my tutorials to my Facebook page will be a million times easier (it was tedious to stitch all the individual clips together before). ????
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Related: I posted a story this morning deconstructing the edit on yesterday’s shot.
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Also related: I uploaded the 3 tutorials from my November feature on @thecreatorclass to my Facebook page this morning too. More to come! (at London, United Kingdom)

In a previous blogpost we talked about the Opus codec, which offers very low bitrates. Another codec seeking to achieve even lower bitrates is Codec 2.

Codec 2 is designed for use with speech only, and although the bitrates are impressive the results aren’t as clear as Opus, as you can hear in the following audio examples. However, there is some interesting work being done with Codec 2 in combination with neural network (WaveNets) that is yielding great results.

Layers of a WaveNet neural network.

Background

Codec 2 is an open source codec designed for speech, and aims for compression rates between 700bps and 3200bps (bits per seconds).

The man behind it, David Rowe, is an electronic engineer currently living in South Australia. He started the project in September 2009, with the main aim of improving low-cost radio communication for people living in remote areas of the world. With this in mind, he set out to develop a codec that would significantly reduce file sizes and the bandwidth required when streaming.

Another motivation according to David, was to be free from patented technologies used by closed source codes which he believes “require expensive and awkward licenses and are stifling innovation”. His belief is that this work can be done without requiring the use of patent protected codecs, so all his work is open source.

Potential Applications

Rowe’s perceived applications include VOIP trunking, voice over low bandwidth HF/VHF digital radio, (especially for amateur radio, so as to avoid issues with the use of proprietary codecs), and developing world and remote area communications, including military, police and emergency services.

Why we’re interested here at Auphonic is for its potential for longer podcasts, presentations and audiobooks, allowing for low storage and minimizing the effect of bad network connections.

How it Works

To achieve the lower rates sought, speech has to be reduced into the smallest possible information/data, and this means that the amount of redundant information that is transmitted has to be minimized.

To do this, Codec 2 uses harmonic sinusoidal speech coding. This splits the speech into 10 - 30ms segments, called frames. Each frame is then analysed for the fundamental frequency (or pitch), and the number of harmonics that fit into a 4Khz bandwidth. Further, for each of the harmonics within the 4khz range, the amplitude and phase are recorded.

This information is then coded, and the decoder reconstructs the audio based on this data.

Codec 2 Block diagrams - Encoder (left) And decoder (right)
Figure from Rowtel.

Audio Examples and Comparison with other Codecs

Whilst it all sounds great in theory, how does the reality match up? Let’s have a listen.

Here is a short wav audio file:

Applying Codec 2 (without the WaveNet decoder) at the different rates available, 3200bps, 2400bps,1600bps,1200bps and 700bps, we get:

These examples show significantly reduced file sizes.
Putting that information more meaningfully in terms of how much storage you would need for an hour of audio:

• At 3200bps, 1 hour of audio requires only 1.37MB (this would fit on one old 3½-inch floppy disk!)
• A rate of 2400bps equates to 1.03MB/h
• A rate of 1600bps equates to 0.68MB/h (Or approximately 2 hours of audio on one floppy disk!)
• A rate of 1200bps equates to 0.51MB/h
• A rate of 700bps equates to 0.3MB/h

So great compression, but the result is clearly not natural sounding.

As a comparison here is the same audio as a 8kb/s MP3:

The file size is significantly larger than Codec 2 and the quality is arguably still not useable. You can clearly hear what is sometimes called sizzle - the weird metallic sounds you hear on low quality MP3s.

There is a final codec which is worth comparing, one that that seems to capture the two ideals of usable quality at low bitrates that we want: Opus.
Because of it's convincing low-bitrate performance, Auphonic already offers Opus encoding all the way down to 6 kbps, the lowest bitrate that Opus supports.

Comparing Opus at this 6 kbps rate to the 8kbps MP3 shows a significant improvement - although slightly muffled, it still sounds natural:

Returning to Codec 2, and purely as s a bit of fun, here are some samples of Codec 2 on music! (Note that Codec 2 is not designed for music, it was only ever conceived for use on speech).

I personally couldn’t listen to the MP3 at this rate, so let’s listen to what Codec 2 does!

Codec 2 at different bitrates:

As you can hear, it is not suitable for this application at all!

Codec 2 and WaveNet

As we have heard, despite the impressive bitrates achieved, the end result is not very natural sounding.
However, where it starts to get more interesting is the work done by W. Bastiaan Kleijn from Cornell University Library. He has been using with Codec 2 running at 2400bps on the coding side, but replaced the Codec 2 decoder with a WaveNet deep learning generative model (for more informationsee the paper Wavenet based low rate speech coding).

Here are some samples from the authors:

Comparing to Codec 2 you can hear a significant increase in quality, and if you compare to the original, there is not a significant decrease in quality.

Conclusion

Whilst the (original) Codec 2 project represents very interesting work, it is limited, and the end result is not suited for podcasting. Also as we heard in the audio examples, it can only be used for voice recordings, and not music.

However, Codec 2 in combination with a WaveNet decoder improves the quality a lot and the low bitrate (2400bps) would be extremely interesting for podcasts and audiobooks distribution as well: one hour of audio would require only 1.03MB of storage!

Auphonic will add support for Codec 2 output files when the WaveNet decoder is in a usable form. For now we have just added support for Codec 2 input files.

Like most paddlers I have a tendency to shoot pictures in a horizontal (landscape) format. It is more tricky to shoot in a vertical format from my tippy kayaks, especially, when I have to use a paddle to stabilize my camera.

If you have your visa refused or cancelled, you need to get expert advice a soon as possible. Strict time limits apply to drafting submissions and appeals. A visa refusal or cancellation can limit the type or visas you can apply for in the future or even prohibit you from applying for any visa to […]

The post What happens if my visa is refused or cancelled due to my character? appeared first on Visa Australia - Immigration Lawyers & Registered Migration Agents.

It is a requirement that a visa applicant must fill in or complete his or her application form in a manner that all questions are answered, and no incorrect answers are given or provided. There is also a requirement that visa applicants must not provide incorrect information during interviews with the Minister for Immigration (‘Minister’), […]

The post Visa cancelled due to incorrect information given or provided to the Department of Home Affairs appeared first on Visa Australia - Immigration Lawyers & Registered Migration Agents.

Seasonal Worker Programme and Pacific Labour Scheme workers can extend their stay for up to 12 months to work for approved employers as long as pastoral care and accommodation needs of workers are met to minimise health risks to visa holders and the community. Approved employers under the Seasonal Worker Programme and Pacific Labour Scheme […]

The post What can I do if I am on a working holiday or seasonal worker visa in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis? appeared first on Visa Australia - Immigration Lawyers & Registered Migration Agents.

It’s been a few months since the release of the Recipe Card Blocks PRO plugin, and our team continued to release new updates constantly for both versions of the plugin: Free & PRO. As we’ve released many major updates for both versions in the past months, let’s make a quick overview of the most important changes and new features we’ve […]

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