Simon Heffer Battles Historians about the First World War | New Republic - 0 views
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Now no one is alive who served in the trenches or on a dreadnought, and the reliance is entirely upon documents, there can be, paradoxically, far more rigour in the analysis, as sources are tested against each other, and the unreliability of active memory ceases to intrude.
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Few historians have the range of specialisms needed, at least in the depth to which each is required, to tell the whole story,
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First, an understanding of the history of power, international relations since (at least) the Congress of Berlin and of European diplomacy is required to illuminate the catastrophe of August 1914.
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Brexit: What is the Withdrawal Agreement Bill and why is it so controversial? - CNN - 0 views
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We're in the Brexit endgame -- or so Boris Johnson hopes.
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By Thursday evening, the British Prime Minister intends to have done the seemingly impossible and passed a Brexit deal.But whether he is able to do that depends on a series of crucial votes by lawmakers on his Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB).
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But the government's efforts to force it through in three days are proving controversial, and the bill could be picked apart and reshaped by lawmakers even if it succeeds in its initial vote on Tuesday.
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'Islamic State' Turning Into a Guerrilla Army, Top General Warns - The Daily Beast - 0 views
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‘Islamic State’ Turning Into a Guerrilla Army, Top General Warns
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The capital of the self-proclaimed Islamic State in Iraq is now under assault. But ISIS isn’t going anywhere. Instead, the terror group is beginning to rebrand itself from a “caliphate” to an insurgency
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It could well mean that there will be no “lasting defeat” of ISIS, even if it loses control of Iraq’s second-largest city, despite Secretary of Defense Ash Carter’s claim of such a victory just four days ago
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When Finland's Teachers Work in America's Schools - The Atlantic - 0 views
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When Finnish Teachers Work in America’s Public Schools
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Kristiina Chartouni, a veteran Finnish educator who began teaching American high-school students this autumn, said in an email. “I am supposedly doing what I love, but I don't recognize this profession as the one that I fell in love with in Finland.”
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In Tennessee, Chartouni has encountered a different teaching environment from the one she was used to in her Nordic homeland—one in which she feels like she’s “under a microscope.”
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Farhad and Mike Discuss the Apple Case and a Go-Playing Computer Program - The New York... - 0 views
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The program is a blend of deep learning and Monte Carlo algorithms, meaning it is both good at recognizing patterns and has the ability to exhaustively search vast libraries of possible moves.
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the timetable for computing dominance of Go has been moved up roughly a decade from when it had been expected. That’s largely because the new ability to blend pattern recognition algorithms and vast data sets has been yielding spectacular results in the last half-decade. It’s like computer scientists have found a powerful new hammer, and they’re using it to pound lots of different nails
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The Google program combines two types of algorithms. One is a machine learning algorithm, which does an extremely good job of recognizing patterns based on being trained on a vast set of examples. So it is likely to have seen almost any move that a human could make, and also know which responses are better ones.
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Palestinians Make a Surprise Move, and Mideast Talks Falter - NYTimes.com - 0 views
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Surprising the United States and Israel, the Palestinian leadership formally submitted applications on Wednesday to join 15 international agencies, leaving the troubled Middle East talks brokered by Secretary of State John Kerry on the verge of breakdown.
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relayed to the appropriate body for each of the 15 treaties and conventions the Palestinians want to join, adding that there is “a whole procedure involved” in examining the documents. “You basically submit that you want to accede and then it goes to the depository and there’s a process of review,” Ms. Ramming said. “To say this takes effect tomorrow, that’s a bit misleading.”
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In that planned deal, the United States would release from prison Jonathan J. Pollard, an American convicted of spying for Israel more than 25 years ago, while Israel would free hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and slow construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.Mr. Abbas, who had vowed not to seek membership in international bodies until the April 29 expiration of the talks that Mr. Kerry started last summer, said he was taking this course because Israel had failed to release the fourth batch of Palestinian prisoners.
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History News Network | Woodrow Wilson's Blunders as a Wartime President - 0 views
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Woodrow Wilson’s presidential leadership was often egregious. His frequent failure to master or even to employ the most rudimentary forms of power orchestration amounted to strategic incompetence. The unhappy sequence of blunders that fed upon each other can be traced to the early months of 1917
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This sort of behavior was increasingly typical for Wilson: inattention to power orchestration, neglect of strategy, obliviousness to opportunities for leverage. Instead, Wilson succumbed increasingly to the illusion that noble ideals expressed in eloquent words would sway the hearts and minds of the people of the world in a manner which — when combined with the providence of God — would force the leaders of other nations to do the right thing.
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in April 1917. Wilson’s adviser, Col. House, requested copies of their pre-existing understandings of war aims and territorial settlements. The British foreign minister, Arthur Balfour, provided them. But in the opinion of Wilson scholar Arthur S. Link — editor of the Papers of Woodrow Wilson — Wilson never even bothered to read these treaties
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BBC News - Syria chemical weapons equipment destroyed, says OPCW - 0 views
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31 October 2013 Last updated at 19:42 ET Share this page Email Print Share this page2.6KShareFacebookTwitter Syria chemical weapons equipment destroyed, says OPCW Advertisement $render("advert-post-script-load"); Jerry Smith, OPCW: "We have... observed all of the destruction activities" Continue reading the main story Syria conflict Arms destruction Chemical stockpile 'Please let it be over' Assad opponents Syria's declared equipment for producing, mixing and filling chemical weapons has been destroyed, the international watchdog says. This comes a day before the deadline set by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). The weapons have been placed under seal, an OPCW spokesman said. Inspectors were sent to Syria following allegations, denied by the government, that its forces had used chemical weapons in civilian areas. Continue reading the main story Analysis Jonathan Marcus BBC diplomatic correspondent The achievement of this crucial initial target is an important moment for the chemical weapons destruction effort in Syria. The inspectors' first task was to move swiftly to prevent the government from producing any more chemical agent and to destroy facilities and equipment used for mixing agents and filling munitions. Production facilities will be closely monitored to ensure that there are no moves to repair them. The next deadline is mid-November, by which time the OPCW and the Syrians must agree a detailed plan to destroy Syria's chemical weapons stockpile. All sorts of questions are raised. Where will this destruction be carried out ? Who will provide the necessary equipment and so on? Western intelligence agencies will be studying Syria's declarations carefully. They will be eager to direct inspectors to additional locations if there are any grounds to believe that Damascus has been less than frank in its disclosures. The inspections were agreed between Russia and the US after Washington threatened to use force in Syria. Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad
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Syria's declared equipment for producing, mixing and filling chemical weapons has been destroyed, the international watchdog says.
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nspectors were sent to Syria following allegations, denied by the government, that its forces had used chemical weapons in civilian areas.
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China's Swift Trains Are a Boon to Development, but a Costly One - NYTimes.com - 0 views
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China’s ambitious rail rollout is helping integrate the economy of this sprawling, populous nation — though on a much faster construction timetable and at significantly higher travel speeds than anything envisioned by the Eisenhower administration.
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China’s manufacturing might and global export machine are likely to grow more powerful as 200-mile-an-hour trains link cities and provinces that were previously as much as 24 hours by road or rail from the entrepreneurial seacoast.
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high-speed trains were making it more convenient to base businesses here in Hunan Province. Populous Hunan has long provided labor to the factories of the east, but its mountains have tended to isolate it from the economic mainstream.
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Iran demands apology after detaining US navy boat crews for 'violating' Gulf waters | W... - 0 views
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Iran has said the US should apologise after the crews of two US Navy boats were detained by Revolutionary Guards for “violating” Iran’s waters in the Gulf.
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Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi, said in an interview broadcast live on state television that foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had taken a “firm stance” on the issue when contacting US secretary of state John Kerry.
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Earlier, US officials said they had received assurances from Tehran that the crew of two small US navy ships in Iranian custody would soon be allowed to continue their journey. Fadavi was quoted by the Tasnim news agency as saying “The final order will be issued soon and they will probably be released.”
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Transitional Brexit deal must be agreed this year, City warns government | Politics | T... - 0 views
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The City of London has warned that businesses will start activating Brexit contingency plans unless there is a transitional deal by the end of 2017, as Philip Hammond tried to calm fears that a final agreement may not be reached for another year.
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In a letter to Hammond before next month’s budget, McGuinness said the UK was facing a “historically defining moment” and warned that the timetable for business to prepare for transition was “tightening very rapidly”.
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“We must have agreement with the EU on transition before the end of 2017,” she added.
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Size and duration of empires growth-decline curves, 3000 to 600 b.c. - ScienceDirect - 0 views
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Area changes of about 30 best known empires and states
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Size-time integral, maximum stable size, adulthood date, and duration are defined operationally and are listed for 20 empires.
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A criterion is given for distinctness of successive empires.
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BBC - Future - The lifespans of ancient civilisations - 0 views
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In the graphic below, I have compared the lifespan of various civilisations, which I define as a society with agriculture, multiple cities, military dominance in its geographical region and a continuous political structure
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Given this definition, all empires are civilisations, but not all civilisations are empires.
Growing List of Countries Agree on Net-Zero Emissions Goal | Time - 0 views
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As lawmakers around the world debate how best to fight climate change, one goal is rapidly becoming standard: net-zero emissions by 2050.
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That means that greenhouse gases would be dramatically reduced — most likely by using a combination of switching from coal and gas to wind and solar, becoming more energy-efficient and putting taxes or fees on carbon — and whatever remains would be offset by planting trees or using budding technology to pull carbon dioxide out of the air.
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two key problems remain: the worst polluters, including the United States, haven’t yet signed on, and most places still need to figure out the details of how they will reach their goal.
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White House Economists Warned in 2019 a Pandemic Could Devastate America - The New York... - 0 views
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White House economists published a study last September that warned a pandemic disease could kill a half million Americans and devastate the economy.It went unheeded inside the administration.
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In an interview, she said it would encompass school closures, shutting down many businesses and the sort of stay-at-home orders that many, but not all, states have imposed.“What it entails is something as drastic as you can get,”
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Public health threats did not typically hurt the economy, Mr. Philipson said. He suggested the virus would not be nearly as bad as a normal flu season.
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As states grapple with reopening their economies, Trump says Brian Kemp's plan is 'just... - 0 views
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President Donald Trump says he strongly disagrees with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's plan to reopen part of that state's economy, especially by putting beauty salons and other establishments that require close personal contact back in business.
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"It's just too soon," Trump said Wednesday at the daily White House news briefing on coronavirus when asked about Kemp's timetable. "The spas and the beauty parlors and the barber shops ... I love them but they can want a little bit longer, just a little bit, not much, because safety has to predominate."
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"Our next measured step is driven by data and guided by state public health officials. We will continue with this approach to protect the lives -- and livelihoods -- of all Georgians. ... I am confident that business owners who decide to reopen will adhere to Minimum Basic Operations, which prioritize the health and well-being of employees and customers."
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Mis-Educating the Young - The New York Times - 0 views
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While in school, her thinking was station to station: take that test, apply to that college, aim for a degree. But in young adulthood, there are no more stations. Everything is open seas. Your main problems are not about the assignment right in front of you; they are about the horizon far away. What should you be steering toward? It requires an entirely different set of navigational skills.
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one of the oddest phenomena of modern life. Childhood is more structured than it has ever been. But then the great engine of the meritocracy spits people out into a young adulthood that is less structured than it has ever been.
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There used to be certain milestones that young adults were directed toward by age 27: leaving home, becoming financially independent, getting married, buying a house, having a child. But the information economy has scrambled those timetables. Current 20-somethings are much less likely to do any of those things by 30. They are less likely to be anchored in a political party, church or some other creedal community.
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Culture Clash at a Chinese-Owned Plant in Ohio - The New York Times - 0 views
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Culture Clash at a Chinese-Owned Plant in Ohio
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But now the Chinese were suddenly creating them. More than 1,500 jobs, in fact.
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From 2000 to the first quarter of this year, the Chinese have invested almost $120 billion in the United States, according to the Rhodium Group, which tracks these flows. Nearly half of that amount has come since early 2016, making China one of this country’s largest sources of foreign direct investment during that time.
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Merkel says EU is 'ready to start Brexit negotiations' - BBC News - 0 views
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Merkel says EU is 'ready to start Brexit negotiations'
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The German chancellor said she believed Britain would stick to the timetable, adding the European Union was "ready".
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It is her first comment since Mrs May's Conservative party lost 13 seats.The loss left the Conservatives eight MPs short of a majority in parliament, plunging negotiations into uncertainty. Mrs May called the snap election in order to secure a clear mandate for her vision of Brexit.
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