League Two side Oldham Athletic appoint Dino Maamria as their new head coach after sacking Laurent Banide.
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Intro Video
Friday, September 20, 2019
Thursday, September 19, 2019
Bridging the information gap in solar energy
Just 30 seconds into their walk to the town center of Kitale, in Kenya, where they would later conduct a focus group about locally available solar energy options, Elise Harrington and her research partner came across a vendor selling a counterfeit solar lantern. Because they had been studying these very products, they knew immediately it was a fake. But the seller assured them it was authentic and came with a warranty.
They bought the lantern and presented it, along with a genuine version, to the members of focus groups. Few of them were able to tell the difference. It was an “eye-opening” discovery says Harrington, a doctoral student in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning who has been studying the ways that people in Kenya and India learn about solar products and make decisions about buying and maintaining them.
While consumers in developed countries generally assume that a product such as a solar panel will come with a reliable warranty — and wouldn’t purchase the product if it didn’t — Harrington has learned through her fieldwork that this type of information isn’t necessarily communicated to consumers in the countries she’s studied. So far, her research indicates that people’s social relationships, for example with friends, family members, or trusted shop owners, play a critical role in the adoption of solar products, but that gaps remain in household knowledge when it comes to the more complex ideas of standards and after-sales services.
“My research looks at not just whether solar energy products are available, but if they’re high quality and have services associated with them that will allow people to use them for a longer period of time,” Harrington says. She hopes that her findings can provide policymakers with information that will help them expand the use of clean energy while also serving communities that lack affordable, reliable electricity.
The research combines Harrington’s interests in sustainability (she’s been involved in environmental issues “forever,” she says) with her love of travel (she’s learning Swahili and Hindi in her spare time). She’s also dedicated to her local community at MIT. As a graduate resident advisor in Simmons Hall, she can be found spending time with her undergraduate residents and even brewing them butterbeer during the occasional Harry Potter-themed event.
Equitable, reliable access
In many parts of the world including Kenya, a variety of different products provide electricity generated by solar power. These range from the ubiquitous solar lanterns that can power an LED light or charge a cell phone, to other types of solar home systems or microgrids that each provide varying amounts of power for different types of household devices.
Advised by Associate Professor David Hsu, Harrington has studied how rural communities, first in India and now Kenya, can transition from a centralized electricity grid to these various types of home solar systems. During her recent trip to Kenya, this past summer, she fielded two surveys focusing on solar “intermediaries” who interface between end-users, companies, and policymakers.
“As adoption of solar products grows in rural areas, so does the need for energy services accessible by rural communities, and consumer protections that result in equitable and durable electricity service models,” she says.
Harrington, who majored in architecture as an undergraduate at the University of Pennsylvania, has studied solar energy in several different contexts during her time at MIT. In her first year, she focused on electricity planning for rooftop solar systems in the United States, specifically the growth of distributed solar in Hawaii. Then, as a fellow at the MIT Tata Center for Technology and Design, she investigated household decision-making on solar microgrids in rural India, looking at how communities could use these small-scale systems as alternatives to the state-sanctioned electricity grid, which is often unreliable in rural areas.
“One of the faculty members in our department said to us during our first year that if we came in doing exactly the same thing we wrote in our statement, then we have not been pushed enough. This idea really set the trajectory on the risks I was willing to take in my research,” says Harrington.
Harrington is also a recent fellow in the Martin Family Society of Fellows for Sustainability, a community at MIT dedicated to environmental sustainability. Martin fellows are selected every academic year from across the Institute’s departments. “We get the opportunity to interact with each other, learn about each other’s research, and be a part of this network of people who can learn from one another and contribute to environmental and sustainable work inside and out of MIT,” says Harrington.
A GReAt way to find community
Harrington is a graduate resident advisor (GRA) in Simmons Hall, which she describes as one of the best things about her experience at MIT. As a GRA, she acts as a resource for residents whenever they have questions, challenges, or want to talk about exciting opportunities or events in their lives.
She says being a GRA has increased the depth of her connections to the MIT community, and she appreciates that she can come back to that after a long, hard day of work and spend time with the Simmons community.
“From my perspective, so much of MIT’s entrepreneurial and creative spirit is housed in the undergraduate population here. Without being a GRA, I don’t think I would get to know that side of MIT as much,” says Harrington.
She says she learns as much from her undergraduate residents as they do from her, especially about thinking ahead and managing stress. As a GRA, she hosts a range of events for them, her favorite being the aforementioned annual Harry Potter gathering where she and her partner dress up in costumes in addition to brewing up beverages for Simmons residents.
The benefits of downtime
In her spare time, Harrington likes to stay active, physically and mentally. She takes yoga classes in Boston and says it's one of the best ways to end a difficult day. She also enjoys going for runs, walks, and hikes in the outdoors.
One of Harrington’s favorite activities is playing cards and board games with friends, which she says is a fantastic way to take her mind off of research. On the weekends, she likes to try out new games; her current favorite is Mission to Mars, which she describes as a Settlers of Catan-type board game in space, but with a bit more randomness. In general, she loves games that are accessible for everyone, so that players can just sit down with a group of people and figure out as they go.
“Games, hiking, different things that get you out, they help. I find when I take a true break like that, I can work so much better when I go back to it,” Harrington says.
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Charles “Chazz” Scott: Teaching Youth To Overcome Adversity Through Positive Thinking
BE Modern Man: Charles “Chazz” Scott
Cyber defense engineer, motivational speaker; 27; executive director of Positively Caviar Inc.
Twitter: @Mr_CaViar; Instagram: @mr_caviar
As the executive director and chief creative optimist of Positively Caviar Inc. based in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area, I lead a passionate team that focuses on empowering, inspiring, and motivating all human beings, with a special emphasis on youth, to instill mental resilience by way of intentional positive thinking. To accomplish our mission, we host our signature B.U.I.L.D.(Being Unique While Learning and Developing) self-empowerment workshops, high-intensity speaking engagements, and develop positive digital media that have served over 5,000 workshop attendees and followers. Our fun, interactive, and science-centric informative workshops introduce youth to the importance of optimism and how it affects their emotions, decision making, well-being, and future.
I am also a full-time cyber defense engineer at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. In this role, I also function as a technical advisor responsible for helping to attract, identify, and recruit minority cybersecurity professionals and engineers.
HOW HAVE YOU TURNED STRUGGLE INTO SUCCESS?
I’ve had quite a few struggles, especially as it relates to running a nonprofit. Starting a business of any kind will make you question yourself during times of adversity. One of my mentors told me that being “an entrepreneur is one of the closest experiences to death humanly possible.” You are essentially vulnerable every single day while trying to bring your heartfelt ideas into fruition despite the naysayers and numerous disappointments.
A couple of years ago I started to question the mission and objectives of our nonprofit because of the discouragement and disappointments I was facing regarding my full-time job, obtaining support and nonprofit grants, and just downright not believing in myself. Additionally, I did not do so well on a recent organizational presentation to a mental health clinic and potential donors. I began questioning my abilities as a speaker, writer, and leader. My negative self-talk–about my life, my nonprofit, the value of positive thinking, and my career–was terrible, and I felt like I couldn’t combat it. I stopped going to the gym, reading, waking up early, and began binge-watching TV for hours. I was paralyzed by my fears and insecurities.
I knew I couldn’t live like this. I started to see the effects of how my negative self-talk carried over into my relationships. I wanted to change the internal dialogue within myself to shift my focus toward helping others, and I knew I the only way I could do this was to go to work on myself–mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. So, I did just that. I started eating more fruits and vegetables, meditating, reading inspirational books, and developed a rigorous morning routine that made me unstoppable. As I started meditating more, I began to uncover unconscious behaviors that were ultimately influencing my decisions. One of them happened to be realizing that I resorted to binge-watching TV shows only during times when I was avoiding a fear that I needed to overcome. I was suffering from analysis paralysis and I didn’t even know it. It took some time, but I ended up turning a very dark moment in my life into rocket fuel to take me to the stars. Still, to this day I will never miss a day of my morning routine of meditating, reading, and running.
WHO WAS YOUR GREATEST MALE ROLE MODEL AND WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM HIM?
My greatest role model is my late grandfather, Ackneil M. Muldrow. He had such an impact on just about every aspect of my life. He was a very well-respected businessman for the city of Baltimore who worked tirelessly to uplift underserved communities and help economically disadvantaged businesses gain access to capital. He was on more boards of directors than I could count. Additionally, he was one of the very first individuals to participate in the Greensboro sit-ins while he was in undergrad attending North Carolina A&T. The synchronicity in his life, his tenacity in helping people, his selfless spirit, and tireless work ethic allowed him to rise to his highest self in business and in life. He taught me to never give up, helped me secure my first internship at a civil engineering company in high school, exposed me to the importance of ownership, and showed me the importance of selflessly helping others.
He passed in late 2018. There is not a day that goes by when I don’t think about him. I model my life every single day because of how he lived. He would have been so proud of my selection for this award from BLACK ENTERPRISE, because of what this magazine meant to him and the black community he passionately fought for.
WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?
The best advice I’ve been given was from one of my mentors, Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski III, who is the president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). While attending high school, when I was still trying to discover myself and my purpose, he said this: “You are older than you think you are.”
This one quote added urgency and instilled purpose into my life. As a high schooler, you think you have the rest of your life to figure it all out. This could not be the furthest thing from the truth. As I grew older, I began to really see just how fast life can move. I was hungry to make a name for myself. I began mapping out my entire life–from attending Hampton University, summer internships, and obtaining my master’s degree. This one statement allowed me to internalize that you can’t just wait around for things to just happen in life, you have to map it out and attack it with everything you have.
WHAT PRACTICES, TOOLS, BOOKS, ETC. DO YOU RELY ON FOR YOUR SUCCESS?
Meditation has led to a lot of my success. Setting my intentions in the morning has created moments of synchronicity in my life that continue to let me know I am on the correct path of my life journey. It’s provided me guidance that can only stem from sitting in a room at 4:00 a.m. with no phone, no distractions, and absolutely no social media. In these moments, I am able to train my mind and direct it toward thoughts that support my life. Our brains are like muscles; this was my time to exercise my brain to ensure it is performing at an optimal level. In these quiet moments, I combat my ego, insecurities, and fears. Spending time with these attributes and getting to know them every single day allows me to begin to use them as an advantage, and not my downfall. Meditation has allowed me to stay in the fight longer when adversity arises and take the experience and emotion objectively for what it is. I don’t lose control when things may not go the way that I planned. All of this stemmed from just 15 minutes of meditation a day.
Your life depends upon your internal dialogue with yourself. Control your mind, and you will control your life. Meditate, read, and exercise, if you can, every single day to leave nothing on the table that God wants you, and only you, to bring into the world. Remember, your life will move in the direction of your thoughts and words. Speak victory, not defeat!
WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT BEING A BLACK MAN?
I absolutely love being the underdog. As black men, we are the underdog in America. Mentally, we are bombarded subconsciously with information to support a false narrative about ourselves. This not only influences society but also makes us question ourselves. Every black male suffers from the internal conflict within one’s self of how we perceive ourselves and how the world perceives us. The media portray us to be violent, lazy, and selfish. This is the furthest thing from the truth. Our perceptions about our lives and how others see us can either lead to our downfall or lead to our rise. I chose the latter. We were taught to harm one another and unconsciously told not to believe in ourselves, and even taught that our black skin makes us inferior. Every single day when I wake up in the morning I make a conscious choice to battle these perceptions and lift my family, friends, and community in any way that I can. We can love, we can express our emotions, we are not broken, we are mentally strong, and we can provide for our families. We are passionate, driven, and, most importantly, selfless.
BE Modern Man is an online and social media campaign designed to celebrate black men making valuable contributions in every profession, industry, community, and area of endeavor. Each year, we solicit nominations in order to select men of color for inclusion in the 100 Black Enterprise Modern Men of Distinction. Our goal is to recognize men who epitomize the BEMM credo “Extraordinary is our normal” in their day-to-day lives, presenting authentic examples of the typical black man rarely seen in mainstream media. The BE Modern Men of Distinction are celebrated annually at Black Men XCEL (www.blackenterprise.com/blackmenxcel/). Click this link to submit a nomination for BE Modern Man: https://www.blackenterprise.com/nominate/. Follow BE Modern Man on Twitter: @bemodernman and Instagram: @be_modernman.
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New York student fatally stabbed as teens watched, recorded death
Khaseen Morris, 16, was the victim of a stab wound to the chest, which turned fatal as 50-plus teens stood by and watched instead of attempting to help him during a brawl at a strip mall in Long Island, N.Y.
The fight, which occurred in Long Island’s Oceanside community, was recorded and shared on social media, allowing police authorities to estimate the number of teens who watched or participated, according to The New York Times. He attended Oceanside High School.
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For those who watched, they also observed Morris laying on the concrete bleeding, as seen in a video that circulated Snapchat and additional social media applications.
Khaseen died Monday night at an area hospital, just a month ahead of his 17th birthday, according to Buzzfeed News.
“Kids stood here and didn’t help Khaseen — they would rather video this event. They videoed his death instead of helping him,” Nassau County Police Department Detective Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick said at a press conference. “Your friends are dying while you’re standing there and videoing it. That’s egregious.”
Police have had the assistance of some of the teens in identifying suspects. Also circulating online is the name and face of a teen who is believed to have had a role in the stabbing, which is not confirmed by police.
Khaseen sister, Keyanna Morris, 30, refers to her brother as the baby of four and detailed his love for music, animé, and skateboarding. She also spoke glowingly of his loving spirit.
“Khaseen was loved by everyone and literally loved everyone,” Keyanna Morris, writes BuzzFeed. “He always said he would change the world. He wanted the world to be so much better than it was. Didn’t matter if you were black, white, Hispanic, gay, straight, he loved every color.”
Keyanna also detailed her family just relocated to Oceanside and Khaseen was excited to start over at a new school and already began to make friends in just a short 10-day span.
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The brawl reportedly sparked over a girl Khaseen walked home after a party so she didn’t have to do so alone. Keyanna states her brother would then receive threats from the girl’s ex-boyfriend stating he wanted to fight Khaseen. She states her brother believed in protecting himself but not instigating a fight.
Keyanna would also detail how hard it has been for the video to appear online. Her coworkers and community members have reported it as it surfaces, ensuring it stays down.
“Everyone reached out and said how much he changed the school with how positive he was — no one could be down or depressed around him,” she said.
The death resonated at his high school, and grief counselors were made available for students, and staff, The Times writes..
“These kids even said they want to change, and they want to put their phones down now and actually help,” Morris said.
The post New York student fatally stabbed as teens watched, recorded death appeared first on theGrio.
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‘The Wendy Williams Show’ Renewed Through 2021-22 Season
She may have had some slips and falls in recent times, but she’s not going anywhere anytime soon. According to Variety, The Wendy Williams Show has been renewed for the next two seasons.
The controversial talk show host made the announcement on her 11th season premiere. “Attention, Wendy staff and crew and everybody gather around,” she said, “and you on TV and you here. ‘The Wendy Show’ has been renewed through 2022. I love you!”
The former radio show host has had her share of grief in the past several months. She took a four-month hiatus due to medical reasons as she revealed that she was diagnosed with Graves’ disease and shortly after her return, she admitted that she had been living in a sober house. Williams’ husband, Kevin Hunter, left the show as an executive producer amid rumors of being unfaithful and impregnating his mistress. Williams has since filed for divorce.
“Wendy is family to us, and post-AM news, her program jumpstarts the day in our markets. Plus, she’s got enough wigs to make sure the show never gets stale,” said Frank Cicha, executive vice president of programming for Fox Television Stations of the renewal.
Hosted by Williams, the talk show is produced and distributed by Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury and airs on Fox owned-and-operated stations. It averaged more than 1.6 million viewers per day nationally during its past season, including 440,000 in the target demo of women 25-54.
“I’m so excited to launch our 11th year by letting the world know I will continue to do what I love to do so much — and for a very long time,” Williams said in a press release. “I want to tell Fox and all of our stations today how much their support and confidence means to me. They should know we will never stop working very hard to bring our dedicated Wendy Watchers and audience ‘co-hosts’ the freshest national daytime television!”
Over the summer, Williams opened up at Black Enterprise’s FWD conference about her estranged husband and former business partner, advising the live audience not to do business with a romantic partner. “Don’t do it,” she said. “Marry a cardiologist and you go on to be an engineer—make sure people support you but have your separate lives. When you come home you have more to talk about than business. Keep it separate.”
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Whitney Houston hologram tour slated to go worldwide in 2020
Nearly a decade after her untimely death, Whitney Houston’s fans will be able to see her in concert one more time, or at least her digital likeness.
A new hologram will tour will bring a digitized version of the “I Will Always Love You” songstress to European stages before making a Fall 2020 run of American dates.
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The hologram tour has been dubbed An Evening with Whitney and will have fan favorites such as “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me),” and “The Greatest Love of All.” The digital version of the late icon will be supported by a live band, back-up singers and dancers.
People detail the hologram is created by BASE Hologram who are calling the tour a “celebration of her best work.” Famed choreographer Fatima Robinson will be in charge of production, who has previously worked with other icons like Rihanna and Kanye West.
Whitney was a musical trail-blazer and I’m extremely honored to have this opportunity to help craft this show in her honor,” Robinson said in a statement.
Fans of Houston who may be concerned about a realistic performance, the tour has been called an “authentic Whitney experience” by her sister-in-law and estate executor Pat Houston.
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“A hologram show is all about the imagination and creating a ‘wow factor’ that extends to an incredible experience to enjoy for years to come,” she said. “Whitney is not with us but her music will live with us forever.”
If you are in North America and hoping to experience An Evening with Whitney without waiting until the fall, there will be one show in Mexico on January 23. The tour will then make its run through Europe in April, touching down in the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia and more. The dates for the fall have not been announced.
Along with the tour, Houston’s estate announced a new album, which will have unreleased work and the possibility of a musical.
The post Whitney Houston hologram tour slated to go worldwide in 2020 appeared first on theGrio.
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