Thank you, Sean, for your kind introduction. And thank you to CSIS for partnering with us in this conference and for your leadership and innovative thinking on critical policy issues that affect us all. I would like to take a few moments now to reflect on how the National Security Division (NSD) came to be and how, in our first decade, we have strived to achieve our twin aims: protecting the United States against national security threats while safeguarding our core freedoms.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) has issued two risk alerts: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Regulation Best Interest and Examinations that Focus on Compliance with…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it is providing temporary, conditional relief for established smaller companies affected by COVID-19 that may look to meet their urgent funding needs through a Regulation Crowdfunding offering.…

This conference offers a great opportunity for CCIPS, the Department, and each of our law enforcement colleagues gathered at the table today to discuss our shared efforts in IP enforcement, and to hear your comments about the latest successes and challenges. It’s an event that benefits all of us.

A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returned a 16-count indictment against a former Acting Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and a former subordinate for their alleged theft of proprietary software and confidential databases from the U.S. government as part of a scheme to defraud the U.S. government.

As citizens across the nation follow public health instructions to shelter in their homes to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus Disease, victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse are facing increased risk to their own personal safety.

The Department of Justice Antitrust Division announced today that it has adopted a series of temporary changes to its civil merger investigation processes, which will remain in place during the pendency of the coronavirus (COVID-19) event. These changes will ensure that the Antitrust Division will be able to continue operations as its employees carry out their duties to protect American consumers under a mass telework directive, in accordance with health guidance from the CDC, WHO, and other health authorities.

The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division and The Federal Trade Commission today issued a joint statement detailing an expedited antitrust procedure and providing guidance for collaborations of businesses working to protect the health and safety of Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced today that it will not challenge collaborative efforts of McKesson Corporation, Owens & Minor, Inc., Cardinal Health, Inc., Medline Industries, Inc., and Henry Schein, Inc. (together “Medical Supplies Distributors”) to expedite and increase manufacturing, sourcing, and distribution of personal-protective equipment (“PPE”) and coronavirus-treatment-related medication. These collaborative efforts are part of an emergency response developed and led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to address supply needs arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Bureau of Competition jointly released a statement today affirming the importance of competition for American workers.  The agencies also announced that they will protect competition for workers on the frontlines of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) response in the United States by enforcing the antitrust laws against those who seek to exploit the pandemic to engage in anticompetitive conduct in labor markets.

The Department of Justice announced today that it will not challenge a proposal by the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) to operate an online platform for advertisers to solicit bids from companies that provide production services for commercial advertisements. The Department’s position was stated in a business review letter from Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim for the Antitrust Division to counsel for the AICP.

The Department of Justice announced today that it will not challenge collaborative efforts of AmerisourceBergen Corporation (AmerisourceBergen) to identify global supply opportunities, ensure product quality, and facilitate product distribution of medications and other healthcare supplies to treat COVID-19 patients.

This week, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division celebrates the 20th anniversary of World Intellectual Property Day. The division marks the occasion by remembering the revolutionary ideal that our nation’s founding fathers embedded in the U.S. Constitution: that “securing . . . to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries” will “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” For over 200 years, this “exclusive Right” has served as the foundation of the U.S. system of patent, copyright, and trademark laws.

Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute LLC (FCS), an oncology group headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida, was charged with conspiring to allocate medical and radiation oncology treatments for cancer patients in Southwest Florida, the Department of Justice announced.  This charge is the first in the department’s ongoing investigation into market allocation in the oncology industry.

Four graduating Glenelg High School seniors were arrested after allegedly spray painting racist graffiti.

Authorities say details on his capture are forthcoming,

There are eight red light cameras around the city that will begin issuing warnings for violators for 30 days, before beginning to issue tickets.

House Speaker Mike Busch and Senate President Mike Miller say they are waiting for the results of a disparity study of the state's medical cannabis program, and will consider emergency legislation when lawmakers return to Annapolis in January.

Two medical marijuana dispensaries opened Friday -- one in Montgomery County and another in Allegany County -- after five years of bureaucracy and delays.

The battle against coronavirus has intensified across the country as more workers are laid off, medical supplies dwindle, and states enact new rules to get Americans to stay home.

This is the easiest way to listen to WBAL NewsRadio 1090 and FM 101.5 on Amazon Alexa and Google Home.

WBAL NewsRadio, 98 Rock, WBAL-TV 11 and our partners at Howard Bank are proud to launch ‘Operation: Shop Local’ a community initiative to benefit small businesses in the Baltimore region.

From the museum of Sankey diagrams, here is a black&white classic. This Sankey process diagram for rapeseed oil production is taken from the year 2002 dissertation ‘Simultane Öl- und Proteingewinnung bei Raps’ (Simultaneous oil and protein production from rapeseed) by Andreas Waesche, Berlin Technical University.
[See image gallery at www.sankey-diagrams.com]
Flows are in kilograms per ton of rapeseed input. Black is the water fraction, dark gray is oil, and light gray is oil free dry matter. Rapeseed husks, filtered matter and liquid rejects branch out on arrows to the right. Extract from the T4 separation stage (‘Extrakt als Ruckfuhrung’) is fed back into the second node although this loop is not shown here.

The article ‘Tracing the energy footprints of Indonesian manufacturing industry’ by Yales Vivadinar, Widodo W. Purwanto & Asep H. Saputra from Department of Chemical Engineering, Universitas Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia (published as Open Access in: Energy Science and Engineering 2016; 4(6): 394–405) looks at typical energy usage in different industrial manufacturing sectors in Indonesia.

There are Sankey diagrams representing “energy maps” for basic chemicals, cement, pulp, paper, spinning, weaving and textile finishing. I am showing two of them below. The first one is for the basic chemical industry.

Flows are in kboe (thousand barrels oil equivalent) for the year 2013. Losses are shown as grey arrows. The second one is for textile finishing:
[See image gallery at www.sankey-diagrams.com]
For those of you interested, please read the full paper here.

Trainer Luis Carvajal, Jr. was disappointed when veterinarians scratched Imperial Hint on the morning of the Breeders' Cup Sprint, and told horseracingnation.com that despite the horse's “Win and You're In” paying the entry fees, there were other expenses related to traveling to Santa Anita which placed a strain on his 15-horse operation. Vets scratched the 6-year-old […]

The post Carvajal Believes Imperial Hint ‘Was 100 Percent Right’ When Scratched By Vets, Will Run Next Year appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Following an upset victory in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, Spun to Run is likely for the Grade 1, $750,000 Cigar Mile on December 7 at Aqueduct Racetrack. Trained by Juan Carlos Guererro and owned by Robert Donaldson, the sophomore son of Hard Spun set the pace in the Dirt Mile at Santa […]

The post Spun To Run ‘Recouped Quickly’ After Breeders’ Cup Win, Will Point To Cigar Mile appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Following is a statement from Rusty Ford, equine operations consultant for the Kentucky Department of Agriculture's Office of State Veterinarian, laying out guidelines for summer yearling inspections in regards to COVID-19. The public health threat presented by COVID-19, otherwise known as coronavirus, is impacting all, and the equine industry has not been immune to it. […]

The post Kentucky Department Of Agriculture Issues COVID-19 Guidelines For Yearling Inspections appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Invasive species (of all kinds) keep things interesting on Lake Minnetonka. Howard's Point Marina is still going strong. The owner said he bought it because "it's a neighborhood treasure."

We’ve been making lenses for thousands of years, but someone just now discovered the formula to let you make lenses that have zero (ZERO!) spherical aberration. Will this be the miracle cure to make super lenses for cheap? [sc:podlovebutton] Links: The Formula: Spherical Aberration Solved SPONSOR: MasterClass. Get $30 off the All-Access-Pass by visiting masterclass.com/topfloor … Continue reading "877 Smaller Cheaper Sharper Lighter"

The post 877 Smaller Cheaper Sharper Lighter appeared first on PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS FROM THE TOP FLOOR.

Let’s go a bit deeper into two aspects of the last episode: frameworks and how they can help you with your photography and perspectives.. but not just those that we photographers love so much. [sc:podlovebutton] Links: Baltic Sea – Photos by Chris Marquardt Inbox Zero – YouTube Pomodoro Technique – Wikipedia Getting Things Done – … Continue reading "880 Perspectives and Frameworks"

The post 880 Perspectives and Frameworks appeared first on PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS FROM THE TOP FLOOR.

Herd immunity has a cost.

The world of horse rescue isn't easy for anyone to take day in and day out. For volunteers who frequent horse auctions along the Canadian or Mexican borders, bidding against agents for meat processing plants, the constant onslaught of confused, homeless horses can be enough to make them lose faith in the world. Photographer Sarah […]

The post Three Chimneys Presents Good News Friday: A New Year of Horses and Hope appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

The racing industry isn't exactly known for having an atmosphere of cooperation. The conflicts within the sport stack up fast after a quick glance at the headlines. Change is on the horizon in at least one area, though—drug regulation. Officials are coming together around the Mid-Atlantic Uniform Medication Program, an initiative promoted by the Racing […]

The post Three Chimneys Presents Good News Friday: A State of Cooperation appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Safety and Integrity Alliance today released a document outlining best practices for North American racetracks determined to prioritize the health and safety of all participants and employees, when conducting live racing in a spectator-free environment in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The comprehensive document will assist racetracks that […]

The post NTRA Safety And Integrity Alliance Releases Best Practices For Spectator-Free Racing appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

On Friday, May 1 Indiana's Governor released a five-stage phase-in for Indiana businesses to re-open using differing dates through July 4. The Indiana Horse Racing Commission and racetrack management have been working in conjunction with the governor's office to confirm where horse racing falls within this reopening plan and the timeline below outlines those stages. […]

The post Indiana Scheduled To Resume Racing June 14; Spectators Possible By July appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

The Maryland Jockey Club has released a spring condition book for Laurel Park covering a period of 15 days ahead of the still-undetermined resumption of live racing in the state. Specific dates have not been set. As part of Gov. Larry Hogan's statewide shutdown, live racing was paused in Maryland following the March 15 program […]

The post Maryland Jockey Club Releases Spring Condition Book; No Specific Dates Set For Live Racing appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

On sultry summer evenings in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., it's not unusual to see owners John C. Oxley, Charlotte Weber and Tracy Farmer sharing a table with trainer Mark Casse, reliving the day's excitement and spinning yarns about the sport's champions and colorful characters. No matter the outcome of Saturday's Grade II, $400,000 Lambholm South Tampa […]

The post ‘Grown Up’ Dream Maker Represents Friendly Competition In Tampa Bay Derby appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.