Lewis Macdonald MSP has been elected as a temporary Deputy Presiding Officer (DPO) of the Scottish Parliament. The election was held as part of the Parliament's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee has today issued a call for views from Scottish businesses and workers on the current Covid-19 crisis.

The first Leaders’ Virtual Question Time will take place tomorrow, Thursday 9 April, at 12:30, with arrangements set out in a message sent to all MSPs from the Scottish Parliament’s Presiding Officer, Rt Hon Ken Macintosh MSP, today.

The Presiding Officer has today written to all Members to set out new business plans this week. The first ever Members’ Virtual Question Time will be held this Friday, 17 April at 2:30pm.

• A new Committee will be created to scrutinise the response to the Covid-19 outbreak, subject to Parliamentary approval.

The detrimental impact of Covid-19 and the lockdown measures imposed on people across Scotland is to be investigated by MSPs.

The impact the Coronavirus outbreak has had on children and young people is to be explored by Holyrood’s Education and Skills Committee as it announces its work in response to the current public health crisis.

A Scottish Parliament Committee will take evidence from a leading microbiologist, Professor Hugh Pennington, as it begins its scrutiny of the Government’s response to COVID-19.

The Culture, Tourism, Europe and External Affairs Committee has today issued a call for views from the culture and tourism industry on the current Covid-19 crisis.

Plans for further virtual scrutiny at the Scottish Parliament have today been announced by the Scottish Parliament’s Presiding Officer.

Impact of Covid-19 on care homes to be investigated by Health and Sport Committee

Members of the Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee have launched a call for views on the Scottish Government’s plans to update hate crime laws.

The Scottish Government’s testing strategy during the coronavirus pandemic is to be investigated by the Health and Sport Committee.

The Scottish Parliament’s Covid-19 Committee, which will be tasked with considering any changes to lockdown legislation, has launched a consultation to gather views about moving out of the current lockdown phase.

Unit trusts give investors a spread of assets at an affordable price.

Twice UEFA Super Cup losers after UEFA Champions League successes – and now once as UEFA Europa League winners – Manchester United have won only one of their four appearances.

Possible line-ups, coach quotes, expert views and stats – your in-depth guide to the 2018 UEFA Super Cup.

Security expert Max Eddy explains how Apple banning an app used by pro-democracy protesters shows how even the best consumer security polices fail when there's a lack of will to enforce them appropriately.

Obviously, some people have to work on Thanksgiving. But let's all work together to make the number of people working as small as possible.

The app failed for the same reason that every tech rollout struggles: bugs, user training, and the known unknowns.

Jose, an Argentinian worker serving in Southeast Asia, tells of how he entered overseas service and what he has seen God do through his not-so-typical ministry.

Despite being aware of the need for discretion when talking about Jesus, Argentinian Cecilia felt no fear while she was in Central Asia.

Another new monitor and another win for ViewSonic, the Elite XG270 shares much of its DNA with the Editors' Choice XG270QG, and helps to move the entire category of gaming displays forward with screaming speeds and beautiful picture quality.

The pandemic has disrupted internships and student teaching in Pennsylvania’s teacher education programs. Teacher educators in K-4 Professional Development School partnership between Penn State and the State College Area School District have taken an inquiry stance to empower interns to navigate learning to teach during these times.

Jose, an Argentinian worker serving in Southeast Asia, tells of how he entered overseas service and what he has seen God do through his not-so-typical ministry.

Despite being aware of the need for discretion when talking about Jesus, Argentinian Cecilia felt no fear while she was in Central Asia.

A performing arts outreach team shares Christ with crowds gathered to watch their street performances every evening during the Avignon Festival.

Mathilde, a French teen, describes her trip to Bosnia-Herzegovina. She and others will raise funds for a youth centre where Bosnian teens can discover God.

A young French woman learns more about herself and God as she serves aboard Logos Hope from 2009 to 2011.

More people are buying smart speakers—and one of the reasons the numbers have risen so high recently is that many owners have purchased more than one device.

Right now, several Echo devices are marked down, and we've rounded up the sales below.

The $130 Vizio 2.1 SB2021n-G6 is an inexpensive soundbar and subwoofer combo that falls short on audio performance and usability.

Americans overwhelmingly believe civics should be taught in school, and almost 70 percent of them think it should be a requirement to graduate, a new survey finds.

California's proposed curriculum guide in ethnic studies is being sent back for substantial revision after a pileup of criticism that it's anti-Semitic.

If Virginia's proposal is approved, it will become part of a trend: states that are taking a stronger role in helping teachers find high-quality curriculum materials.

Behavioral economics applies key principles from psychology and economics to address obstacles to behavior change. The important topic of pediatric firearm injuries has not yet been explored through a behavioral economic lens. Pediatric firearm-related injuries are a significant public health problem in the United States. Despite American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines advising that firearms be stored unloaded, in a locked box or with a locking device, and separate from ammunition, estimates suggest that ~4.6 million children live in homes with at least 1 loaded and unlocked firearm. In this article, we use behavioral economic theory to identify specific cognitive biases (ie, present bias; in-group, out-group bias; and the availability heuristic) that may influence parental decision-making around firearm storage. We illustrate situations in which these biases may occur and highlight implementation prompts, in-group messengers, and increased salience as behaviorally informed strategies that may counter these biases and subsequently enhance safe firearm storage. We also describe other opportunities to leverage the behavioral economic tool kit. By better understanding the individual behavioral levers that may impact decision-making around firearm storage, behavioral scientists, pediatric providers, and public health practitioners can partner to design and test tailored interventions aimed at decreasing pediatric firearm injuries. Further empirical study is warranted to identify the presence of specific biases and heuristics and determine the most effective behavior change strategies for different subpopulations.

Source: www.youtube.com - Monday, April 20, 2020

Source: www.youtube.com - Thursday, April 30, 2020

Source: www.youtube.com - Thursday, May 07, 2020

Source: www.youtube.com - Friday, May 08, 2020

Source: www.youtube.com - Friday, May 08, 2020

Penn State researchers have developed a comprehensive online tutor to educate the general public about the science behind COVID-19 and appropriate steps anyone can take to help reduce its transmission.

After months of hard work and preparation, nearly a dozen Penn State Hazleton seniors are now one step closer to graduating after presenting their Capstone Research and Design Thesis projects.

Penn State researchers provide informed commentary on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the criminal justice system (CJS), focusing on its efforts to contain the spread of the virus through the three core components of the CJS — courts, corrections, and policing – as well as opportunities going forward. To read more, visit the "Insights from Experts" website — a partnership of Penn State's Social Science Research Institute and the Center for Health Care and Policy Research.

(As of 29 April 2020) Information on travel restrictions and advice on quarantine measures.

(Last updated: 08.05.2020) Find out here about the current situation at Schönefeld and Tegel Airports.

UEFA's ground-breaking weekly vlog Press Play has now had over three million views on the Together #WePlayStrong Youtube channel.

The provisional schedule has England kicking off the tournament on 7 July 2021, with the final at Wembley on 1 August.

Washington D.C., Mar 22, 2020 / 04:00 am (CNA).- The Syrian civil war has led to one of the largest refugee crises of modern times, and presented unique problems for Syria’s ancient Christian communities. Marginalized for centuries, persecuted by ISIS, afraid to attract any attention from the West, Syrian Christians remain, by most accounts, the war’s most invisible victims.

Seta Kale, a Syrian with a Syriac and Armenian descent, was born and raised in Qamishli and fled to Sweden at the age of 16. Today, as a 23-year-old, she’s studying business and economics at Jönköping International Business School, while working part-time as a cashier at a supermarket called Coop, and as a saleswoman at Rituals Cosmetics. Kale likes to sing to cope with her stress, and she likes to read poetry.

In partnership with the Philos Project, CNA sat down with Seta Kale:

When and how did you flee to Sweden?

I moved to Sweden seven years ago in December 2012, a couple of days before Christmas. We flew from Syria to Armenia, and from there we came to Sweden as tourists. We are some of the lucky ones as there were not many who could flee safely. But it was not as easy as it sounds. My family and I had to split up and travel on different dates in order to avoid the suspicion that we were refugees. We had no idea how we were going to be treated upon our arrival in Sweden, and therefore did not want to take any risks by travelling together.

We have seven people in our family. My mom, two of my brothers and I went first. After six months my older sister and third brother came, and a year later my dad arrived. My dad had to take the most difficult route, one that was filled with risks. He couldn’t get a tourist visa, so he had to travel between countries (Turkey, Italy, Greece and France) to be able to come to Sweden. At one point, he had to cross the sea in a small boat together with 30 other people and walk through a forest for several days. Some days he was unreachable, and I’ve never felt that kind of fear ever before. It was a kind that I will never forget.

When did you start feeling the war?

As I mentioned before, I lived in Qamishli. It is a city in northeast Syria, and it was one of the cities that was least affected by war in the beginning unlike, for example, Aleppo and Raqqa. There still were bombs and shootings. The violence started when our bread factory was bombed. It then escalated to hospitals, schools and many public places. Everything became more expensive and there was no access to electricity and clean water 24/7. People were afraid to go to work and children were afraid to go to school. Qamishli felt like a haunted city.

It was when my school was bombed only minutes after my sister and I had left that my dad decided that we had to flee Syria. I will never forget the memory of that day. The ground was shaking under our feet as my mom and aunt ran towards us. After that, people became desperate to flee the war. Houses and apartments were quickly emptied. The feelings and stories that Syria has carried together with her people since 2011 is indescribable.

Tell me about your hometown in Syria.

In Qamishli, Syriacs, Armenians, Assyrians, Arabs, Kurds, Christians, Muslims all lived together. There were as many churches as there were mosques. People worked alongside one another. They were humble, loving, loyal and respectful towards each other. We felt secure because we knew that if we ever were in danger, the whole city would come and help. Religion and ethnicity did not matter to us, and this was the case in the whole country, not only in my hometown. We never thought “he’s Muslim” or “she’s Christian.”

The social life never stopped in Qamishli. There were things to do 24/7 with friends and family. Christians and Muslims celebrated Christmas, Eid al-fitr, Easter and Eid al-adha together.

When I came to Sweden, everyone thought I lived in a tent in the desert. But the more they got to know me, they were surprised by my knowledge and all the languages I could speak. Unfortunately, people tend to believe things about Syria that are not true. We had access to development, education, jobs and more. People say that nothing is perfect, but Syria was perfect in my eyes. We were very rich, but not in a materialistic way. We were rich in culture, religion, knowledge, history, tradition, peoples and so much more. Everything had a reason and I am the way I am today mostly because of what and who Syria is.

What are your best and worst memories from Qamishli?

Wow, I don’t know where to begin. I have so many good memories imprinted in my heart. I cannot choose one because there are so many; from silly things in school with friends, to mini trips with the family throughout Syria, to celebrations of Christmas and Easter.

The worst memory I have was a time when I was on my way from Qamishli to Aleppo while we were fleeing the war. It was a 9-hour drive by bus. Before, it used to be a beautiful ride with beautiful buildings, houses, people and restaurants on the road. But that day I saw a completely different scene. It was filled with sorrow, and the beautiful buildings were reduced to stones on the ground. There were no houses, no restaurants and no people. During the trip to Aleppo the bus had to stop more than five times at checkpoints. Some checkpoints belonged to the Syrian military and some were controlled by ISIS. Once, my sister and I had to hide under the seats so the ISIS soldiers wouldn’t take us. Another horrible memory is simply when I realized that this is it, I will never go back to my country. I cried the entire flight.

Have you lost any friends or family members during the war?

I was one of the lucky ones who didn’t lose any friends or family members. But in Qamishli, everyone knows everyone, and we heard a lot of incredibly sad stories about people who disappeared during bombings and shootings. I had family members and friends, both boys and girls, who were drafted to the military. It was during the worst time in the war and the military needed as many people as possible. When these people would return, they were very different. What they witnessed during their time in the military changed them. In that way, I’ve lost loved ones.

If you could go back, would you stay in Sweden or move back to Syria?

I would definitely go back. Besides the fact that I miss it, I want to help rebuild what the war has destroyed. I want to see my country back on its feet and stronger than ever. I want to start a family there and I want my children to grow up in the country that I grew up in.

If you could send a message to Christians in the West, what would you want them to know about Syria?

I want people not to only think of war when they hear “Syria,” because it’s so much more. I want them to know that the Syrian people are struggling and fighting for the country to remain. But most of all, I want them to continue to pray every day for the people there and know that any contribution is an enormous help for the Syrians.