emo

Trump joins World War II vets at V-E Day ceremony

The seven veterans who took part at the wreath-laying ceremony were ages 96 to 100.




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Congress Mulls Expanded SBA Loan Authority, Democratic Demands

Sen. Chris Van Hollen and Rep. Andy Harris are weighing in.




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Congress Mulls Expanded SBA Loan Authority, Democratic Demands

Sen. Chris Van Hollen and Rep. Andy Harris are weighing in.




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Laplace’s Demon: A Seminar Series about Bayesian Machine Learning at Scale

David Rohde points us to this new seminar series that has the following description: Machine learning is changing the world we live in at a break neck pace. From image recognition and generation, to the deployment of recommender systems, it seems to be breaking new ground constantly and influencing almost every aspect of our lives. […]




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Orioles: Trey Mancini Has Malignant Tumor Removed

The fan-favorite outfielder abruptly left the team last week.




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Orioles' Trey Mancini Undergoing Chemotherapy For Stage 3 Colon Cancer

Baltimore Orioles' Trey Mancini announced Tuesday he is undergoing chemotherapy for Stage 3 colon cancer. 




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Mancini Understands Risk Of COVID During Chemo

The Orioles outfielder was open with reporters after publishing an emotional essay.




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National Park Service and Havasupai Tribe hold ribbon cutting ceremony on new housing for Supai Camp constructed with funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Under clear blue skies the National Park Service and Havasupai tribal members held a ribbon cutting ceremony today for newly constructed housing in Supai Camp located within Grand Canyon National Park. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/5aug10-2_news.htm




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In preparation for the Memorial Day Weekend, Grand Canyon National Park would like to remind everyone to be fire aware and “know before you go” to your public lands

Although Grand Canyon National Park received below-average precipitation this winter, the warm spring caused vegetation in the park to thrive. Now, fine fuels are quickly drying out as winds and temperatures rise, increasing the risk of wildfire. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/2012-05-24_fire.htm




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Grand Canyon National Park Taking Steps to Ensure Public Safety over the Memorial Day Weekend

Grand Canyon National Park rangers will be setting up sobriety safety checkpoints, over the Memorial Day weekend, in an effort to assure the safety of park visitors and residents. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/grand-canyon-national-park-taking-steps-to-ensure-public-safety-over-the-memorial-day-weekend.htm




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Bright Angel Trailhead Dedication and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony Saturday May 18th

Grand Canyon National Park and the Grand Canyon Association will dedicate the renovated trailhead for Bright Angel Trail, one of the oldest and best known trails in the National Park system. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/bright-angel-trailhead-dedication-and-ribbon-cutting-ceremony-saturday-may-18.htm




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In preparation for the Memorial Day Weekend, Grand Canyon National Park would like to remind everyone to be fire aware and “know before you go” to your public lands

Although Grand Canyon National Park received below-average precipitation this winter, the warm spring caused vegetation in the park to thrive. Now, fine fuels are quickly drying out as winds and temperatures rise, increasing the risk of wildfire. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/memorial-day-fire-aware.htm




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Grand Canyon National Park to Commemorate Designation of New National Historic Landmark 1956 Grand Canyon TWA-United Airlines Aviation Accident Site

The National Park Service (NPS) today announced plans to dedicate one of the nation’s newest National Historic Landmarks, the 1956 Grand Canyon TWA-United Airlines Aviation Accident Site in Grand Canyon National Park. This site commemorates a horrific airline collision over the Grand Canyon in 1956. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/1956-nhl-designation.htm




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Desert View Watchtower Hosts Second Annual Cultural Demonstration Series

Local artisans will share their culture and crafts with Grand Canyon National Park visitors at the Desert View Watchtower. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/dv-cultural-demonstrations.htm




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Desert View Watchtower Set to Host the Last Cultural Demonstration of 2015

The Desert View Watchtower at Grand Canyon National Park will host the final artist in the annual Cultural Demonstrator Series. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/last-2015-desert-view-demonstration.htm




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Cultural Demonstrator Series to Continue at Desert View Watchtower in Grand Canyon National Park

Weekends through autumn, join jewelers, silversmiths, weavers, potters and more during Desert View Watchtower's Cultural Demonstrator Series. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/watchtower-cultural-demonstrators.htm




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Tree Removal and Trimming at Indian Garden, September 28-30, 2015

Tree removal and trimming will occur adjacent to the Bright Angel Trail near the Indian Garden day-use area Monday, September 28 through Wednesday, September 30. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/indian-garden-tree-trimming.htm




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Celebrate Earth Day and Commemorate the National Historic Preservation Act at Grand Canyon during National Park Week

Celebrate Earth Day at Grand Canyon and commemorate the National Historic Preservation Act https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/earth-day-2016.htm




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Grand Canyon National Park to Hold Desert View Watchtower Rededication Ceremony

The National Park Service (NPS) and its partners invite the public to a re-dedication ceremony at the Desert View Watchtower on Sunday, May 22, 2016 at 10:30 am. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/desert-view-ceremony.htm




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Grand Canyon National Park Expecting a Busy Memorial Day Weekend

Visitors to Grand Canyon National Park over Memorial Day weekend can expect long lines, crowds, and full parking lots. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/busy-memorial-day.htm




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Grand Canyon National Park and Grand Canyon Conservancy to Celebrate 100th Anniversary with Fee-Free Entrance and Commemoration Ceremony on February 26th

Grand Canyon National Park and Grand Canyon Conservancy invite the public and park partners to join National Park Service staff in celebrating the 100th anniversary of Grand Canyon’s designation as a national park. To celebrate this significant milestone, Grand Canyon National Park will waive entrance fees for visitors coming to the park on February 26. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/grand-canyon-national-park-100th-anniversary-commemoration.htm




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In a Revolutionary Medical Treatment, Man’s Lung Was Removed, Cleaned, and Replaced—No Transplant Necessary

The procedure, which has only been conducted a few times in history, could be a groundbreaking new treatment for patients suffering from lung cancer.

The post In a Revolutionary Medical Treatment, Man’s Lung Was Removed, Cleaned, and Replaced—No Transplant Necessary appeared first on Good News Network.




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President Trump commemorates VE Day

President Donald Trump has joined World War Two veterans at a wreath laying ceremony commemorating the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Europe. President Trump and First Lady Melania paid their respects at a memorial in Washington.




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Liberated rivers: lessons from 40 years of dam removal

In recent decades, dam removal has emerged as a viable national and international strategy for river restoration.




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CSSplay - CSS Photo Info demo updated

Using the latest CSS techniques to bring the previous Photo Infor demo up to date.




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When a Red Arrows flypast to commemorate VE Day will fly over part of Surrey

SurreyLive has detailed the times and locations the aerobatics team is expected in the county




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The parts of Surrey, Hampshire and Sussex that could see Spitfire flypast commemorating VE Day

The spitfires will be flying over 11 locations across the three counties




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Effects of Vegetation Control and Organic Matter Removal On Soil Water Content In A Young Douglas-Fir Plantation

We evaluated the effects of vegetation control and organic matter (OM) removal on soil water content (SWC) in a Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) plantation from age 3 through age 5. Treatments were presence versus absence of vegetation control through year 5 and bole-only harvest of the previous stand versus total-tree harvest of the previous stand including removal of all coarse woody residues.




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Westwood One Nashville Offers Memorial Day Weekend Special With Dustin Lynch

CUMULUS MEDIA’s WESTWOOD ONE NASHVILLE will celebrate the start of Summer and salute service men and women with its annual “Summer Kickoff with DUSTIN LYNCH” Memorial Day … more




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Prince's Never-Before-Aired Demo Show For SiriusXM To Air Tonight

The previously-announced debut of the pilot show PRINCE produced for SIRIUS SATELLITE RADIO in 2005 (NET NEWS 4/29) will air TONIGHT (5/1) on the limited-run PRINCE CHANNEL, premiering at 7p … more




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Mechanical clot removal without clot busters may be sufficient stroke treatment

Research Highlights: Mechanical clot removal alone may be as effective as combining it with intravenous (IV) clot-busting medications for stroke patients.    Mechanical clot removal alone reduced the risk of brain bleeding in this Japanese...




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Telemonitoring plus phone counseling lowers blood pressure among black and Hispanic stroke survivors

Research Highlights: Minority stroke survivors experience better blood pressure control when lifestyle counseling by phone from a nurse is added to home blood pressure telemonitoring. Improved blood pressure control could lower strokes and stroke ...




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Brain emotional activity linked to blood vessel inflammation in recent heart attack patients

Research Highlights: People with recent heart attacks have significantly higher activity in a brain area (the amygdala) involved in stress perception and emotional response. They also have more inflammation in key arteries and increased bone marrow ...




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The Three Levels of Emotional Design

To design positive emotional experiences you must understand human emotion. The subject of emotions is complex largely because everything we do is either influenced by, or directly caused by, emotion. Factor in the range and capacity different individuals have for emotion, add in the fact most emotions occur subconsciously, and round this out with the […]

The post The Three Levels of Emotional Design appeared first on Psychology of Web Design | 3.7 Blog.




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Fight or Flight: Which Emotion Does Your Website Evoke?

Are you a logical individual? Do you carefully consider all options before making a decision? Are opinions shaped primarily through facts and reasoning? If you answered yes to these questions, you’d be wrong. We are all emotional beings, and our emotions are the root cause of our thoughts and behaviors. Our logical, conscious thoughts simply […]

The post Fight or Flight: Which Emotion Does Your Website Evoke? appeared first on Psychology of Web Design | 3.7 Blog.




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Xavier senior athletes feel the pain, but enjoy the memories

CEDAR RAPIDS — One moment has the potential to change a person’s life in either a positive or a negative way. This holds true for high school athletes involved in spring sports. Gov/...




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Congress working remotely highlights need for better broadband connectivity, Loebsack says

CEDAR RAPIDS — Like other members of the United States House, the “new normal” for Rep. Dave Loebsack involves a lot of time on the phone and in video conferences.

Although the Senate returned to Washington this past week, the House may not return to the Capitol until mid-May. As representatives work from their districts, many face the same challenges as their constituents who are working from home via various phone and video meeting platforms.

“They’re clunky, difficult, frustrating at times,” the 2nd District Democrat said after a 90-minute Energy and Commerce Committee teleconference meeting, “but we can get a lot of things done that way without necessarily going into Washington. It’s not the same by any means ... but I think we can get a lot of our work done that we have to get done even though were not there.”

If there’s an upside to the telecommuting downside, it’s that the poor connections, dropped calls and sometimes spotty internet signals highlight an issue Loebsack has been working on — Congress and the country need better broadband connectivity. A member of the Communications and Technology subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over telecommunications issues, Loebsack also serves as a co-chair of the Rural Broadband Caucus.

In one meeting, Loebsack said, a fellow committee member was unable to ask questions because the Wi-Fi signal at his home outside of a southwestern city was so poor.

“So I think we’re going to make some progress” convincing congressional colleagues of the need to connect all Americans to reliable and affordable broadband internet, Loebsack said.

“In times like these, when families are at home, millions of K-12 students do not have access to the high-speed internet needed to take classes and complete their assignments online,” he said in an announcement with House Majority Whip James Clyburn and others of a House Democratic plan to connect all Americans to high-speed internet.

When the transmission of COVID-19 slows, the need for high-speed internet connectivity will remain as well as the need for Congress to provide incentives for internet service providers to close the “broadband gap” by extending service to the las mile in rural areas and eliminate what he called “internet deserts” that exist in cities.

The plan calls for an investment of $80 billion over five years for internet infrastructure and another $5 billion over five years for low-interest financing of projects.

With more reliable connectivity, Congress could consider remote voting at times like this when members don’t want to gather in Washington. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been cool to the idea, but Loebsack thinks members are “more open” to voting remotely.

“But we have to make sure that it’s completely secure, that the system can’t get hacked, and that votes are recorded properly,” he said.

Remote voting may be a may be a generational issue, “but I think this is doable.”

“I’m not making that prediction, but I would not be shocked if we move in that direction, especially the longer this (isolation) goes on,” Loebsack said.

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




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Together We Flourish, Remotely

Like many other companies, Viget is working through the new challenge of suddenly being a fully-distributed company. We don’t know how long it will last or every challenge that will arise because of these unfortunate circumstances, but we know the health and well-being of our people is paramount. As Employee Engagement Manager, I feel inspired by these new challenges, eager to step up, and committed to seeing what good can come of this.

Now more than ever, we want to maintain the culture that has sustained us over the last 20 years – a culture that I think is best captured by our mantra, “do great work and be a great teammate.” As everyone is adjusting to new work environments, schedules, and distractions, I am adjusting my approach to employee engagement, and the People Team is looking for new ways to nurture and protect the culture we treasure.

The backbone of being a great teammate is knowing each other and caring about each other. For years the People Team has focused on making sure people who work at Viget are known, accepted, and cared about. From onboarding to events to weekly and monthly touchpoints, we invest in coworkers knowing each other. On top of that, we have well-appointed offices where people like to be, and friendships unfold over time. Abruptly becoming fully distributed makes it impossible for some of these connections to happen organically, like they would have around the coffee machine and the lunch tables. These microinteractions between colleagues in the same office, the hellos when you get off the elevator or the “what’d you get up to this weekend” chit chat near the seltzer refrigerator, all add up. We realize more than ever how valuable those moments are, and I know I will feel extra grateful for them when we are all back together.

Until that time, we are working to make sure everyone at Viget feels connected, safe, healthy, and most importantly, together, even when we are physically apart. We are keeping up our weekly staff meetings and monthly team lunches, and we just onboarded a new hire last week as thoroughly as ever. There are some other, new ways we’re sparking connections, too.

New ways we're sparking connections:

Connecting IntentionallyWe are making the most of the tools that we’ve been using for years. New Slack channels have spun up, including #exercise, where folks are sharing how they are making do without a gym, and #igotyou, a place where folks can post where they’ve found supplies in stock as grocery stores are being emptied at an alarming pace.
Remote Lunch TablesWe have teammates in three different time zones, on different project teams, and at different stages of life. We’ve created two virtual lunch tables, one at 12PM EST and one at 12PM MST, where folks can join with or without their lunches and with or without their kids, partners, or pets. There are no rules or structure, just an opportunity to chat and see a friendly face as a touchpoint to your day.
Last Weekend This MorningCatching up Monday morning is a great way to kick off your week. Historically, I’ve done this from my desk over coffee as I greet folks coming off the elevator (I usually have the privilege of sitting at our front desk). I now do this from my desk, at home, over coffee as folks pop in or out of our Zoom call. One upshot of the new normal is I can “greet” anyone who shows up, not just people who work from my same office. Again, no structure, just a way to start our week, together.
Munch MadnessYes, you read that right. Most of the sports world is enjoying an intermission. Since our CEO can’t cheer on his beloved Cavaliers and our VP of Design can’t cheer on his Gators, we’ve created something potentially much better. A definitive snack bracket. There is a minimal time commitment and folks with no sports knowledge can participate. The rules are simple: create and submit your bracket, ranking who you believe will win each snack faceoff. Then as we move through the rounds, vote on your favorite snacks. The competition has already sparked tons of conversation and plenty of snack hot takes. Want to start a munch-off of your own? Check out our bracket as a starting point.
Virtual Happy HoursSigning off for the day and shutting down your machine is incredibly important for maintaining a work-life balance. Casually checking in, unwinding, and being able to chat about your day is also important. We have big, beautiful kitchens in each of our offices, along with casual spaces where at the end of any given day you can find a few Vigets catching up before heading home. This is something we don’t want to miss! So we’re setting up weekly happy hours where folks can hop in and say hi to each other face-to-face. We’ve found Zoom to be a great platform so we can see the maximum number of our teammates possible. Like all of our other events, it’s optional. There is also an understanding that your roommate, kid, significant other, or pet might show up on screen (and are welcome!). No one is shamed for multitasking and we encourage our teammates to join as they can. So far we’ve toasted new teammates, played a song or two, and up next we’ll play trivia.

At the end of the day, we are all here for one reason: to do great work. Our award-winning work is made possible by the trust we’ve built within our teams. Staying focused and accountable to ourselves and our clients is what drives our motivation to continue to show up and do our best. In our new working environment, it is crucial that we can both stay connected and productive; a lot of teammates are stepping up to support one another. Here are a few ways we are continuing to foster our “do great work” mantra.

New ways we're fostering great work:

Staying in TouchThe People Team is actively touching base with every employee. Our focus is on their health, productivity, and connection. These 1:1s have given us a baseline for how we can provide the best support for our team, from making sure they're aware of flexible work options to setting them up with the tools they need to be successful. We’ve delivered chairs, monitors, and helped troubleshoot in-home wifi issues. We are committed to making sure every Viget is set up for success.
Sharing is CaringWe’re no stranger to remote teams. We have four offices across the U.S. and a handful of full-time remote folks, and we’ve leaned on our inside experts to share their expertise on remote work. Most recently, ourData & Analytics Director, who has been working remotely full time for five years, gave a presentation on best practices for working from home. His top tips for working from home include:
  • Minimize other windows in remote meetings.
  • Set a schedule and avoid midday chores.
  • Take breaks away from the screen.
  • Plan your workday on your shared calendar.
  • Be mindful of Slack and social media as a distraction.
  • Use timers.
  • Keep your work area separate from where you relax.
  • Pretend that you’re still working from work.
  • Experiment and figure out what works for you.

Our UX Research Director also stepped up to share her expertise to aid in adjusting to our new working conditions. She led a microclass on remote facilitation where she shared best practices and went over tools that support remote collaboration. Some of the tools she highlighted included Miro, Mural, Whimsical, and Jamboard. During the microclass she demonstrated use of Whimsical’s voting feature, which makes it easy for distributed groups to establish discussion topic priorities.

Always PreparedHaving all of our project materials stored in the Cloud in a consistent, predictable way is a cornerstone of our business continuity plan. It is more important than ever for our team to follow the established best practices and ensure that project files are accessible to the full Viget team in the event of unplanned time off. Our VP of Client Services is leading efforts to ensure everyone is aware of and following our established guidelines with tools like Drive, Slack, Github, and Figma. Our priorities are that clients’ needs are met, quality is high, and timelines are honored.

As the pandemic unfolds, our approach to employee engagement will evolve. We have more things in the works to build and maintain connections while distributed, including trivia and game nights, book clubs, virtual movie nights, and community service opportunities, just to name a few. No matter what we’re doing or what tool we’re using to connect, we’ll be in it together: doing great work, being great teammates, and looking forward.



  • News & Culture

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Meet the Remote Workplaces of the WPZOOM Team

The world turned upside down lately, forcing the majority of people to work from their homes. For the WPZOOM team, working remotely is not something new. Some of our team members have been working remotely since they joined us, others had the experience of both working from home and from the office (hello, Pavel). However, we’ve gone completely remote, without […]




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Together We Flourish, Remotely

Like many other companies, Viget is working through the new challenge of suddenly being a fully-distributed company. We don’t know how long it will last or every challenge that will arise because of these unfortunate circumstances, but we know the health and well-being of our people is paramount. As Employee Engagement Manager, I feel inspired by these new challenges, eager to step up, and committed to seeing what good can come of this.

Now more than ever, we want to maintain the culture that has sustained us over the last 20 years – a culture that I think is best captured by our mantra, “do great work and be a great teammate.” As everyone is adjusting to new work environments, schedules, and distractions, I am adjusting my approach to employee engagement, and the People Team is looking for new ways to nurture and protect the culture we treasure.

The backbone of being a great teammate is knowing each other and caring about each other. For years the People Team has focused on making sure people who work at Viget are known, accepted, and cared about. From onboarding to events to weekly and monthly touchpoints, we invest in coworkers knowing each other. On top of that, we have well-appointed offices where people like to be, and friendships unfold over time. Abruptly becoming fully distributed makes it impossible for some of these connections to happen organically, like they would have around the coffee machine and the lunch tables. These microinteractions between colleagues in the same office, the hellos when you get off the elevator or the “what’d you get up to this weekend” chit chat near the seltzer refrigerator, all add up. We realize more than ever how valuable those moments are, and I know I will feel extra grateful for them when we are all back together.

Until that time, we are working to make sure everyone at Viget feels connected, safe, healthy, and most importantly, together, even when we are physically apart. We are keeping up our weekly staff meetings and monthly team lunches, and we just onboarded a new hire last week as thoroughly as ever. There are some other, new ways we’re sparking connections, too.

New ways we're sparking connections:

Connecting IntentionallyWe are making the most of the tools that we’ve been using for years. New Slack channels have spun up, including #exercise, where folks are sharing how they are making do without a gym, and #igotyou, a place where folks can post where they’ve found supplies in stock as grocery stores are being emptied at an alarming pace.
Remote Lunch TablesWe have teammates in three different time zones, on different project teams, and at different stages of life. We’ve created two virtual lunch tables, one at 12PM EST and one at 12PM MST, where folks can join with or without their lunches and with or without their kids, partners, or pets. There are no rules or structure, just an opportunity to chat and see a friendly face as a touchpoint to your day.
Last Weekend This MorningCatching up Monday morning is a great way to kick off your week. Historically, I’ve done this from my desk over coffee as I greet folks coming off the elevator (I usually have the privilege of sitting at our front desk). I now do this from my desk, at home, over coffee as folks pop in or out of our Zoom call. One upshot of the new normal is I can “greet” anyone who shows up, not just people who work from my same office. Again, no structure, just a way to start our week, together.
Munch MadnessYes, you read that right. Most of the sports world is enjoying an intermission. Since our CEO can’t cheer on his beloved Cavaliers and our VP of Design can’t cheer on his Gators, we’ve created something potentially much better. A definitive snack bracket. There is a minimal time commitment and folks with no sports knowledge can participate. The rules are simple: create and submit your bracket, ranking who you believe will win each snack faceoff. Then as we move through the rounds, vote on your favorite snacks. The competition has already sparked tons of conversation and plenty of snack hot takes. Want to start a munch-off of your own? Check out our bracket as a starting point.
Virtual Happy HoursSigning off for the day and shutting down your machine is incredibly important for maintaining a work-life balance. Casually checking in, unwinding, and being able to chat about your day is also important. We have big, beautiful kitchens in each of our offices, along with casual spaces where at the end of any given day you can find a few Vigets catching up before heading home. This is something we don’t want to miss! So we’re setting up weekly happy hours where folks can hop in and say hi to each other face-to-face. We’ve found Zoom to be a great platform so we can see the maximum number of our teammates possible. Like all of our other events, it’s optional. There is also an understanding that your roommate, kid, significant other, or pet might show up on screen (and are welcome!). No one is shamed for multitasking and we encourage our teammates to join as they can. So far we’ve toasted new teammates, played a song or two, and up next we’ll play trivia.

At the end of the day, we are all here for one reason: to do great work. Our award-winning work is made possible by the trust we’ve built within our teams. Staying focused and accountable to ourselves and our clients is what drives our motivation to continue to show up and do our best. In our new working environment, it is crucial that we can both stay connected and productive; a lot of teammates are stepping up to support one another. Here are a few ways we are continuing to foster our “do great work” mantra.

New ways we're fostering great work:

Staying in TouchThe People Team is actively touching base with every employee. Our focus is on their health, productivity, and connection. These 1:1s have given us a baseline for how we can provide the best support for our team, from making sure they're aware of flexible work options to setting them up with the tools they need to be successful. We’ve delivered chairs, monitors, and helped troubleshoot in-home wifi issues. We are committed to making sure every Viget is set up for success.
Sharing is CaringWe’re no stranger to remote teams. We have four offices across the U.S. and a handful of full-time remote folks, and we’ve leaned on our inside experts to share their expertise on remote work. Most recently, ourData & Analytics Director, who has been working remotely full time for five years, gave a presentation on best practices for working from home. His top tips for working from home include:
  • Minimize other windows in remote meetings.
  • Set a schedule and avoid midday chores.
  • Take breaks away from the screen.
  • Plan your workday on your shared calendar.
  • Be mindful of Slack and social media as a distraction.
  • Use timers.
  • Keep your work area separate from where you relax.
  • Pretend that you’re still working from work.
  • Experiment and figure out what works for you.

Our UX Research Director also stepped up to share her expertise to aid in adjusting to our new working conditions. She led a microclass on remote facilitation where she shared best practices and went over tools that support remote collaboration. Some of the tools she highlighted included Miro, Mural, Whimsical, and Jamboard. During the microclass she demonstrated use of Whimsical’s voting feature, which makes it easy for distributed groups to establish discussion topic priorities.

Always PreparedHaving all of our project materials stored in the Cloud in a consistent, predictable way is a cornerstone of our business continuity plan. It is more important than ever for our team to follow the established best practices and ensure that project files are accessible to the full Viget team in the event of unplanned time off. Our VP of Client Services is leading efforts to ensure everyone is aware of and following our established guidelines with tools like Drive, Slack, Github, and Figma. Our priorities are that clients’ needs are met, quality is high, and timelines are honored.

As the pandemic unfolds, our approach to employee engagement will evolve. We have more things in the works to build and maintain connections while distributed, including trivia and game nights, book clubs, virtual movie nights, and community service opportunities, just to name a few. No matter what we’re doing or what tool we’re using to connect, we’ll be in it together: doing great work, being great teammates, and looking forward.



  • News & Culture

emo

10 Tools That Will Help Your Remote Design Team Stay On The Same Page

If you weren’t working on a remote team before, well, chances are that you probably are now! I know that I love working from home, but when you first start working remotely, it can start as a bit of a challenge. Of course, it has its pros and cons, but it’s just a learning curve. […]

Read More at 10 Tools That Will Help Your Remote Design Team Stay On The Same Page




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Coronavirus pandemic could inflict emotional trauma and PTSD on an unprecedented scale, scientists warn

Researchers are warning that the coronavirus pandemic could inflict long-lasting emotional trauma on an unprecedented global scale. They say it could leave millions wrestling with debilitating psychological disorders while dashing hopes for a swift economic recovery.




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Tips for Working Remotely and Enjoying It!

With the coronavirus spreading and employers telling employees work from home if possible, there are scores of people getting their first taste of working remotely. Depending on your experience and discipline levels, this could be a welcomed change or a complete culture shock. The amount of freedom your find yourself in can be similar the […]

The post Tips for Working Remotely and Enjoying It! appeared first on David Walsh Blog.




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Giant Icebergs Play Key Role in Removing CO2 From the Atmosphere

By The University of Sheffield Giant icebergs leave trail of carbon sequestration in their wake – a month after they have passed Geographers analysed 175 satellite images of ocean colour which is an indicator of phytoplankton productivity at the ocean’s … Continue reading




emo

Together We Flourish, Remotely

Like many other companies, Viget is working through the new challenge of suddenly being a fully-distributed company. We don’t know how long it will last or every challenge that will arise because of these unfortunate circumstances, but we know the health and well-being of our people is paramount. As Employee Engagement Manager, I feel inspired by these new challenges, eager to step up, and committed to seeing what good can come of this.

Now more than ever, we want to maintain the culture that has sustained us over the last 20 years – a culture that I think is best captured by our mantra, “do great work and be a great teammate.” As everyone is adjusting to new work environments, schedules, and distractions, I am adjusting my approach to employee engagement, and the People Team is looking for new ways to nurture and protect the culture we treasure.

The backbone of being a great teammate is knowing each other and caring about each other. For years the People Team has focused on making sure people who work at Viget are known, accepted, and cared about. From onboarding to events to weekly and monthly touchpoints, we invest in coworkers knowing each other. On top of that, we have well-appointed offices where people like to be, and friendships unfold over time. Abruptly becoming fully distributed makes it impossible for some of these connections to happen organically, like they would have around the coffee machine and the lunch tables. These microinteractions between colleagues in the same office, the hellos when you get off the elevator or the “what’d you get up to this weekend” chit chat near the seltzer refrigerator, all add up. We realize more than ever how valuable those moments are, and I know I will feel extra grateful for them when we are all back together.

Until that time, we are working to make sure everyone at Viget feels connected, safe, healthy, and most importantly, together, even when we are physically apart. We are keeping up our weekly staff meetings and monthly team lunches, and we just onboarded a new hire last week as thoroughly as ever. There are some other, new ways we’re sparking connections, too.

New ways we're sparking connections:

Connecting IntentionallyWe are making the most of the tools that we’ve been using for years. New Slack channels have spun up, including #exercise, where folks are sharing how they are making do without a gym, and #igotyou, a place where folks can post where they’ve found supplies in stock as grocery stores are being emptied at an alarming pace.
Remote Lunch TablesWe have teammates in three different time zones, on different project teams, and at different stages of life. We’ve created two virtual lunch tables, one at 12PM EST and one at 12PM MST, where folks can join with or without their lunches and with or without their kids, partners, or pets. There are no rules or structure, just an opportunity to chat and see a friendly face as a touchpoint to your day.
Last Weekend This MorningCatching up Monday morning is a great way to kick off your week. Historically, I’ve done this from my desk over coffee as I greet folks coming off the elevator (I usually have the privilege of sitting at our front desk). I now do this from my desk, at home, over coffee as folks pop in or out of our Zoom call. One upshot of the new normal is I can “greet” anyone who shows up, not just people who work from my same office. Again, no structure, just a way to start our week, together.
Munch MadnessYes, you read that right. Most of the sports world is enjoying an intermission. Since our CEO can’t cheer on his beloved Cavaliers and our VP of Design can’t cheer on his Gators, we’ve created something potentially much better. A definitive snack bracket. There is a minimal time commitment and folks with no sports knowledge can participate. The rules are simple: create and submit your bracket, ranking who you believe will win each snack faceoff. Then as we move through the rounds, vote on your favorite snacks. The competition has already sparked tons of conversation and plenty of snack hot takes. Want to start a munch-off of your own? Check out our bracket as a starting point.
Virtual Happy HoursSigning off for the day and shutting down your machine is incredibly important for maintaining a work-life balance. Casually checking in, unwinding, and being able to chat about your day is also important. We have big, beautiful kitchens in each of our offices, along with casual spaces where at the end of any given day you can find a few Vigets catching up before heading home. This is something we don’t want to miss! So we’re setting up weekly happy hours where folks can hop in and say hi to each other face-to-face. We’ve found Zoom to be a great platform so we can see the maximum number of our teammates possible. Like all of our other events, it’s optional. There is also an understanding that your roommate, kid, significant other, or pet might show up on screen (and are welcome!). No one is shamed for multitasking and we encourage our teammates to join as they can. So far we’ve toasted new teammates, played a song or two, and up next we’ll play trivia.

At the end of the day, we are all here for one reason: to do great work. Our award-winning work is made possible by the trust we’ve built within our teams. Staying focused and accountable to ourselves and our clients is what drives our motivation to continue to show up and do our best. In our new working environment, it is crucial that we can both stay connected and productive; a lot of teammates are stepping up to support one another. Here are a few ways we are continuing to foster our “do great work” mantra.

New ways we're fostering great work:

Staying in TouchThe People Team is actively touching base with every employee. Our focus is on their health, productivity, and connection. These 1:1s have given us a baseline for how we can provide the best support for our team, from making sure they're aware of flexible work options to setting them up with the tools they need to be successful. We’ve delivered chairs, monitors, and helped troubleshoot in-home wifi issues. We are committed to making sure every Viget is set up for success.
Sharing is CaringWe’re no stranger to remote teams. We have four offices across the U.S. and a handful of full-time remote folks, and we’ve leaned on our inside experts to share their expertise on remote work. Most recently, ourData & Analytics Director, who has been working remotely full time for five years, gave a presentation on best practices for working from home. His top tips for working from home include:
  • Minimize other windows in remote meetings.
  • Set a schedule and avoid midday chores.
  • Take breaks away from the screen.
  • Plan your workday on your shared calendar.
  • Be mindful of Slack and social media as a distraction.
  • Use timers.
  • Keep your work area separate from where you relax.
  • Pretend that you’re still working from work.
  • Experiment and figure out what works for you.

Our UX Research Director also stepped up to share her expertise to aid in adjusting to our new working conditions. She led a microclass on remote facilitation where she shared best practices and went over tools that support remote collaboration. Some of the tools she highlighted included Miro, Mural, Whimsical, and Jamboard. During the microclass she demonstrated use of Whimsical’s voting feature, which makes it easy for distributed groups to establish discussion topic priorities.

Always PreparedHaving all of our project materials stored in the Cloud in a consistent, predictable way is a cornerstone of our business continuity plan. It is more important than ever for our team to follow the established best practices and ensure that project files are accessible to the full Viget team in the event of unplanned time off. Our VP of Client Services is leading efforts to ensure everyone is aware of and following our established guidelines with tools like Drive, Slack, Github, and Figma. Our priorities are that clients’ needs are met, quality is high, and timelines are honored.

As the pandemic unfolds, our approach to employee engagement will evolve. We have more things in the works to build and maintain connections while distributed, including trivia and game nights, book clubs, virtual movie nights, and community service opportunities, just to name a few. No matter what we’re doing or what tool we’re using to connect, we’ll be in it together: doing great work, being great teammates, and looking forward.



  • News & Culture

emo

The Three Levels of Emotional Design

To design positive emotional experiences you must understand human emotion. The subject of emotions is complex largely because everything we do is either influenced by, or directly caused by, emotion. Factor in the range and capacity different individuals have for emotion, add in the fact most emotions occur subconsciously, and round this out with the […]

The post The Three Levels of Emotional Design appeared first on Psychology of Web Design | 3.7 Blog.




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Fight or Flight: Which Emotion Does Your Website Evoke?

Are you a logical individual? Do you carefully consider all options before making a decision? Are opinions shaped primarily through facts and reasoning? If you answered yes to these questions, you’d be wrong. We are all emotional beings, and our emotions are the root cause of our thoughts and behaviors. Our logical, conscious thoughts simply […]

The post Fight or Flight: Which Emotion Does Your Website Evoke? appeared first on Psychology of Web Design | 3.7 Blog.




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Together We Flourish, Remotely

Like many other companies, Viget is working through the new challenge of suddenly being a fully-distributed company. We don’t know how long it will last or every challenge that will arise because of these unfortunate circumstances, but we know the health and well-being of our people is paramount. As Employee Engagement Manager, I feel inspired by these new challenges, eager to step up, and committed to seeing what good can come of this.

Now more than ever, we want to maintain the culture that has sustained us over the last 20 years – a culture that I think is best captured by our mantra, “do great work and be a great teammate.” As everyone is adjusting to new work environments, schedules, and distractions, I am adjusting my approach to employee engagement, and the People Team is looking for new ways to nurture and protect the culture we treasure.

The backbone of being a great teammate is knowing each other and caring about each other. For years the People Team has focused on making sure people who work at Viget are known, accepted, and cared about. From onboarding to events to weekly and monthly touchpoints, we invest in coworkers knowing each other. On top of that, we have well-appointed offices where people like to be, and friendships unfold over time. Abruptly becoming fully distributed makes it impossible for some of these connections to happen organically, like they would have around the coffee machine and the lunch tables. These microinteractions between colleagues in the same office, the hellos when you get off the elevator or the “what’d you get up to this weekend” chit chat near the seltzer refrigerator, all add up. We realize more than ever how valuable those moments are, and I know I will feel extra grateful for them when we are all back together.

Until that time, we are working to make sure everyone at Viget feels connected, safe, healthy, and most importantly, together, even when we are physically apart. We are keeping up our weekly staff meetings and monthly team lunches, and we just onboarded a new hire last week as thoroughly as ever. There are some other, new ways we’re sparking connections, too.

New ways we're sparking connections:

Connecting IntentionallyWe are making the most of the tools that we’ve been using for years. New Slack channels have spun up, including #exercise, where folks are sharing how they are making do without a gym, and #igotyou, a place where folks can post where they’ve found supplies in stock as grocery stores are being emptied at an alarming pace.
Remote Lunch TablesWe have teammates in three different time zones, on different project teams, and at different stages of life. We’ve created two virtual lunch tables, one at 12PM EST and one at 12PM MST, where folks can join with or without their lunches and with or without their kids, partners, or pets. There are no rules or structure, just an opportunity to chat and see a friendly face as a touchpoint to your day.
Last Weekend This MorningCatching up Monday morning is a great way to kick off your week. Historically, I’ve done this from my desk over coffee as I greet folks coming off the elevator (I usually have the privilege of sitting at our front desk). I now do this from my desk, at home, over coffee as folks pop in or out of our Zoom call. One upshot of the new normal is I can “greet” anyone who shows up, not just people who work from my same office. Again, no structure, just a way to start our week, together.
Munch MadnessYes, you read that right. Most of the sports world is enjoying an intermission. Since our CEO can’t cheer on his beloved Cavaliers and our VP of Design can’t cheer on his Gators, we’ve created something potentially much better. A definitive snack bracket. There is a minimal time commitment and folks with no sports knowledge can participate. The rules are simple: create and submit your bracket, ranking who you believe will win each snack faceoff. Then as we move through the rounds, vote on your favorite snacks. The competition has already sparked tons of conversation and plenty of snack hot takes. Want to start a munch-off of your own? Check out our bracket as a starting point.
Virtual Happy HoursSigning off for the day and shutting down your machine is incredibly important for maintaining a work-life balance. Casually checking in, unwinding, and being able to chat about your day is also important. We have big, beautiful kitchens in each of our offices, along with casual spaces where at the end of any given day you can find a few Vigets catching up before heading home. This is something we don’t want to miss! So we’re setting up weekly happy hours where folks can hop in and say hi to each other face-to-face. We’ve found Zoom to be a great platform so we can see the maximum number of our teammates possible. Like all of our other events, it’s optional. There is also an understanding that your roommate, kid, significant other, or pet might show up on screen (and are welcome!). No one is shamed for multitasking and we encourage our teammates to join as they can. So far we’ve toasted new teammates, played a song or two, and up next we’ll play trivia.

At the end of the day, we are all here for one reason: to do great work. Our award-winning work is made possible by the trust we’ve built within our teams. Staying focused and accountable to ourselves and our clients is what drives our motivation to continue to show up and do our best. In our new working environment, it is crucial that we can both stay connected and productive; a lot of teammates are stepping up to support one another. Here are a few ways we are continuing to foster our “do great work” mantra.

New ways we're fostering great work:

Staying in TouchThe People Team is actively touching base with every employee. Our focus is on their health, productivity, and connection. These 1:1s have given us a baseline for how we can provide the best support for our team, from making sure they're aware of flexible work options to setting them up with the tools they need to be successful. We’ve delivered chairs, monitors, and helped troubleshoot in-home wifi issues. We are committed to making sure every Viget is set up for success.
Sharing is CaringWe’re no stranger to remote teams. We have four offices across the U.S. and a handful of full-time remote folks, and we’ve leaned on our inside experts to share their expertise on remote work. Most recently, ourData & Analytics Director, who has been working remotely full time for five years, gave a presentation on best practices for working from home. His top tips for working from home include:
  • Minimize other windows in remote meetings.
  • Set a schedule and avoid midday chores.
  • Take breaks away from the screen.
  • Plan your workday on your shared calendar.
  • Be mindful of Slack and social media as a distraction.
  • Use timers.
  • Keep your work area separate from where you relax.
  • Pretend that you’re still working from work.
  • Experiment and figure out what works for you.

Our UX Research Director also stepped up to share her expertise to aid in adjusting to our new working conditions. She led a microclass on remote facilitation where she shared best practices and went over tools that support remote collaboration. Some of the tools she highlighted included Miro, Mural, Whimsical, and Jamboard. During the microclass she demonstrated use of Whimsical’s voting feature, which makes it easy for distributed groups to establish discussion topic priorities.

Always PreparedHaving all of our project materials stored in the Cloud in a consistent, predictable way is a cornerstone of our business continuity plan. It is more important than ever for our team to follow the established best practices and ensure that project files are accessible to the full Viget team in the event of unplanned time off. Our VP of Client Services is leading efforts to ensure everyone is aware of and following our established guidelines with tools like Drive, Slack, Github, and Figma. Our priorities are that clients’ needs are met, quality is high, and timelines are honored.

As the pandemic unfolds, our approach to employee engagement will evolve. We have more things in the works to build and maintain connections while distributed, including trivia and game nights, book clubs, virtual movie nights, and community service opportunities, just to name a few. No matter what we’re doing or what tool we’re using to connect, we’ll be in it together: doing great work, being great teammates, and looking forward.



  • News & Culture

emo

#COVIDwear: a hilarious photo series showing quarantine fashion of remote workers

With the coronavirus pandemic, many folks switched to working online. Things like teaching, business meetings and other face-to-face activities have been replaced with video calls. Home has become both home and workplace, and admit it: your wardrobe totally reflects this. Creative duo The Workmans shows this “fashion crossover” in their latest photo series #COVIDwear. The […]

The post #COVIDwear: a hilarious photo series showing quarantine fashion of remote workers appeared first on DIY Photography.




emo

On boundedness, gradient estimate, blow-up and convergence in a two-species and two-stimuli chemotaxis system with/without loop. (arXiv:1909.04587v4 [math.AP] UPDATED)

In this work, we study dynamic properties of classical solutions to a homogenous Neumann initial-boundary value problem (IBVP) for a two-species and two-stimuli chemotaxis model with/without chemical signalling loop in a 2D bounded and smooth domain. We successfully detect the product of two species masses as a feature to determine boundedness, gradient estimates, blow-up and $W^{j,infty}(1leq jleq 3)$-exponential convergence of classical solutions for the corresponding IBVP. More specifically, we first show generally a smallness on the product of both species masses, thus allowing one species mass to be suitably large, is sufficient to guarantee global boundedness, higher order gradient estimates and $W^{j,infty}$-convergence with rates of convergence to constant equilibria; and then, in a special case, we detect a straight line of masses on which blow-up occurs for large product of masses. Our findings provide new understandings about the underlying model, and thus, improve and extend greatly the existing knowledge relevant to this model.