illustration-of-spiral-arrangement-in-nature-golden-ratio-concept-stockpack-adobe-stock.jpg

Consciousness, as a concept, is so easy to experience and so hard to define. Or explain. The most popular current theory of consciousness is Integrated Information Theory (IIT), pioneered by neuroscientist Giulio Tononi and championed by Allen Institute neuroscientist Christof Koch. For the purpose of discussing IIT, science writer Mike Hogan works with this definition:

Consciousness for purposes of this theory is defined as self-awareness or the Central-Identity; the inner-voice that allows your brain to talk to itself, an awareness that you exist, the rationalization of your own relevance to that existence, and an awareness of the cause and effect of your actions in regard to yourself and your environment.

But now, how does IIT account for consciousness? On that view, it arises from the mathematics of our universe:

Integrated Information Theory is based on mathematical concepts such as the Golden Ratio (or the irrational number Phi ), which because of its prevalence in the geometry of the natural world, from the formation of flower petals and galaxies to hurricanes, is sometimes called the divine proportion; in its most basic explanation, the Golden Ratio, is derived from a sequence of numbers that follows a pattern where each successive number is a sum of the two numbers preceding it

Seen this way, Hogan suggests that consciousness emerges from the activity of the brain as a whole the way a nation state emerges from a variety of cultural components.

Similarly, as J. Scott Turner points out in Purpose and Desire: What Makes Something Alive and Why Modern Darwinism Has Failed to Explain It, a hive mind emerges in a termite colony from the collective behavior of the termites. It is not in any one termites brain nor in a special place in all of them. A hive mind can only be understood as an emerging process.

In other words, the basic idea is that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

In recent years, IIT, first proposed by Tononi in 2004, has been pitted against another leading theory, Global Workspace Theory (GWT) defended by Stanislas Dehaene of the Collge de France in Paris According to GWT, the theory of Bernard Joseph Baars that suggests that consciousness involves the global distribution of focal information to many parts of the brain. Pam N., Global Workspace Theory, Psychology Dictionary.

Whats quite interesting about IIT is its panpsychist character. Its champion Koch is explicit about that:

But who else, besides myself, has experiences? Because you are so similar to me, I abduce that you do. The same logic applies to other people. Apart from the occasional solitary solipsist this is uncontroversial. But how widespread is consciousness in the cosmos at large? How far consciousness extends its dominion within the tree of life becomes more difficult to abduce as species become more alien to us.

One line of argument takes the principles of integrated information theory (IIT) to their logical conclusion. Some level of experience can be found in all organisms, it says, including perhaps in Paramecium and other single-cell life forms. Indeed, according to IIT, which aims to precisely define both the quality and the quantity of any one conscious experience, experience may not even be restricted to biological entities but might extend to non-evolved physical systems previously assumed to be mindless a pleasing and parsimonious conclusion about the makeup of the universe.

As we noted last month, thats MIT Reader in which Koch is expounding these views, not Levitation News and Views.

IIT may be part of a trend in science in which emergence and panpsychist theories are slowly replacing materialist and physicalist ones. On that view, the growing comfort with panpsychism in various venues is because materialism according to which the whole is merely the sum of the parts is increasingly doubted as an accurate description of the world we live in. Analytical philosopher Galen Strawson slowly moved from physicalism to panpsychism because it made more sense to hold that our consciousness is built up from that of electrons than that consciousness doesnt really exist.

Time will tell how significant the trend toward acceptance of panpsychism as a defensible science position is and what specific changes it introduces. But the fact that emergence and panpsychism are being mainstreamed is worth keeping an eye on.

You may also wish to read:

Why would a neuroscientist choose panpsychism over materialism? It seems to have come down to a choice between nothing is conscious and everything is conscious Materialism becomes incoherent when it requires us to believe that we only imagine we are conscious thats a basic error in logic.

Why some think emergence is replacing materialism in science. Materialism, in the form of reductionism, posits a world without novelty but that is not the world we live in. Philosophers and scientists who champion emergence over reductionism argue that the whole is more than the sum of its parts.

and

Quest for consciousness: A historic contest is announced. The two theories to be tested pit information processing against causal power as a model of consciousness. One side must admit it is wrong.

Here is the original post:
Quick Facts on IIT (the Leading Theory of Consciousness) - Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence

A Texas Republican was mocked for admitting that people think he is the dumbest guy in Congress, after a speech also ridiculed for its stupidity.

On Thursday, Louie Gohmert stood in front of Congress and rambled on about college admission tests (SATs), Black Lives Matter campaigners destroying western-style families, and Democrat senator Bernie Sanders sending American billionaires to gulags.

We were doing better on our SATs until president Carter created a department of education, Rep Gohmert told the House, [and] when I took it I did very well, it got me into the honours program at [Texas] A&M.

Im sure that shocks people that think Im the dumbest guy in Congress.

Rep Gohmerts complaints about the department of education were afterwards ridiculed, because SATs scores, in fact, begun to fall before its creation in 1979.

According to statistics from PrepScholar, average American scores for maths and critical writing fell from 521 and 505 in 1974, to 512 and 498 in 1975 four years before Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, founded a department of education.

Joy Reid, a correspondent and TV anchor for MSNBC, wrote: Submitted without comment....

He's lying about the time frame of SAT scores falling so he's probably lying about his scores also, another critic wrote on Twitter, SAT scores started falling in the sixties at about the same time Gohmert was taking his.

Any grown ass middle aged man who still feels compelled to brag about his SAT score is indeed the dumbest man in Congress, added another.

If Louie Gohmert has the self-awareness to know that people say he's the dumbest guy in Congress, a Twitter critic wrote, does that make him no longer the dumbest guy? Or just the most aware dumbest guy?

Also on Thursday, the Texas Republican told Congress: I read last year that one of the basic goals of Black Lives Matter was to destroy western style families.

In fact, it removed a section of its website about "disrupt[ing] the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure., and according to PolitiFact, did not call for the destruction of western style families, but a move away from relying on it.

Rep Gohmert also accused the Democratic party and senator Sanders who has called for a tax on wealth of taking money from US billionaires to win, and then youll either go to a gulag, or youll be put to death.

The false allegations were also ridiculed, with a Twitter user writing: Louie Gohmert gets crazier every year. I'd say that you can't make this s**t up but he does it every time.

Read the original:
Gohmert admits people think he's 'the dumbest guy in Congress' in speech immediately mocked for its stupidity - The Independent

By Richard Baum, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles Failure of the 28 Bolsheviks

The revolutionary mass movement orchestrated by Mao Zedong and Zhu De in the Jiangxi Soviet Republic was a major concern for Chiang Kai-shek. He concentrated on terminating the communist threat rather than dealing with the military threat from the Japanese. By the mid-1930s, he was able to create a serious rift within the Communist leadership.

In 1930, a group of pro-Moscow Communists dubbed the 28 Bolsheviks were sent to take control of the Soviet government from Mao on Joseph Stalins orders. However, Chiang Kai-sheks continuous assaults on Jiangxi Soviet Republic led the Red Army to execute a hastily-planned escape to ensure their survival.

In January 1935, the retreating Red Army forces paused to rest in the town of Zunyi, in eastern Guizhou Province. There the Communist Party held an important leadership conference, in the course of which the pro-Moscow 28 Bolsheviks received a sharp rebuke for having failed to prevent the Red Armys defeat in the fifth annihilation campaign.

Their top leader, Bo Gu, was held responsible for the debacle and was removed from power. With that, the Autumn Harvest veterans assumed control of the party, with Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai in overall command.

Learn more about rural misery and rebellion, 18421860.

By this time, Mao Zedong began to reveal his darker side, including his overwhelming ambition, manipulativeness, and ruthless nature. Not content to share power with Zhou Enlai, the ambitious Mao moved to undermine Zhous co-equal status through various strategies, including the use of blackmail.

Zhou did not relish a political showdown with Mao, and he volunteered to take a back seat. From that point on, Mao Zedong completely dominated Zhou, manipulating and intimidating him virtually at will, and assumed full control of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.

Learn more about the hundred days of reform and the boxer uprising.

The escape of the Communists was known as the Long March and included 85,000 soldiers, 15,000 party and government officials, and only 35 women. With Mao now in charge of planning for the Long March, the Communists set as their final destination the city of Yanan in northern Shaanxi Province, some 800 miles to the northwest.

By the time the Red Army reached Yanan at the end of 1935, 13 months after they set out, the Communists had traversed nine provinces and crossed snow-covered peaks, raging rivers, and uninhabitable forests, from Western Guangdong to eastern Tibet.

Of the original 100,000 Long Marchers, only 8,000 reached their destination. The rest, more than nine-tenths of the original Communist force, had either been killed, taken prisoner, or had dropped out along the way. Having finally reached Yanan, out of reach of Chiang Kai-sheks Nationalist armies, Maos forces rested.

At the time the Communists were undertaking their arduous Long March, back in Nanjing, Chiang Kai-shek and his American-educated wife, Soong Mei-ling, were launching a New Life Movement.

Designed to foster a new spiritual awakening for the Chinese people, the movement drew from both Confucian and Christian moral traditions, accompanied by liberal political rhetoric drawn from Sun Yat-sens Three Peoples Principles.

The movement sought to create a new national consciousness based on the traditional Chinese virtues of propriety, justice, integrity, and self-awareness. It also stressed Christian values such as plain living, personal hygiene, cleanliness, and self-discipline.

Chiang once boasted that when properly implemented, the New Life Movement would lead to the social regeneration of China.

However, in reality, many of the precepts of the New Life Movement were essentially a reprise of failed Confucian traditions and were highly reflective of Chiangs own deepening right-wing authoritarian tendencies.

The movement offered no economic reforms to ameliorate the poverty of Chinas long-suffering workers and peasants, and no political framework to allow ordinary Chinese to participate in deliberating the important issues of the day. Indeed, at its core, Chiang Kai-sheks New Life Movement was an attempt to create an orderly, well-disciplined, highly regimented, conformist, and obedient society under patriarchal leadership.

This is a transcript from the video series The Fall and Rise of China. Watch it now, on The Great Courses Plus.

In 1932, in response to a growing Chinese patriotic movement to boycott Japanese goods, a shipload of fully armed Japanese marines came ashore in Shanghai. After a brief exchange of gunfire with Nationalist troops, the Japanese commander ordered an aerial bombardment of the city, followed by a full-scale ground attack on Shanghais defenders.

Three divisions of Japanese soldiers were committed to the battle, which ended in an armistice three months later. However, early in 1933, Japanese forces struck south of their Manchukuo stronghold, attacking Jehol Province, north of Beijing. Then, in the spring of the same year, they occupied a strategic mountain pass at the eastern terminus of the Great Wall at Shanhaiguan, less than 150 miles from Beijing. Soon, they moved into Hebei Province, south of the Great Wall.

Confronted with such audacious acts of Japanese aggression, Chiang Kai-shek temporized, ordering his outmanned troops to stand down and seek a cease-fire, rather than fight with the Japanese. But, anti-Japanese sentiment had been building steadily in China ever since the Japanese seizure of Manchuria, and in December of 1935 thousands of Chinese students demonstrated in several Chinese cities demanding that Chiang cease his vendetta against the Communists and instead create a national united front to resist Japan.

Learn more about the self-strengthening movement, 18601890.

Chiang Kai-shek refused to abandon his plan to wipe out the Communists and ordered an attack on Yanan. His best commanding officer, Zhang Xueliang had no intention of fighting fellow Chinese, Communists or otherwise. Ever since the Japanese militarists had assassinated his father, the Manchurian warlord Zhang Zuolin, the Young Marshal, as he was known, had been waiting to fight Japan.

When Chiang learned of the Young Marshals refusal to attack Yanan, the Generalissimo flew to the city of Xian, 100 miles south of Yanan, to confront him. But Zhang turned the tables on his commander-in-chief, kidnapping him in the middle of the night and holding him hostage.

The Young Marshals demands were simpleChiang Kai-shek must call off his planned attack on the Communists and form a second united front with the Chinese Communist Party, directed against the Japanese.

At first, Chiang stubbornly refused; but when his wife learned of his predicament, she flew to Xian and convinced her husband to agree to the rebels demands. And so, a second Guomindang/Chinese Communist Party, the united front, came into being in December of 1936, a full decade after the first united front had ended abruptly with Chiangs murderous coup in Shanghai.

After Mao Zedong took charge of the planning for the Long March, the final destination was the city of Yanan in northern Shaanxi Province.

The New Life Movement sought to create a new national consciousness based on traditional Chinese virtues of propriety, justice, integrity, and self-awareness.

Zhang Xueliangs demands were simpleChiang Kai-shek must call off his planned attack on the Communists and form a second united front with the Chinese Communist Party, directed against the Japanese.

See the article here:
Chaos in China: The Turning Point in Modern Chinese History - The Great Courses Daily News

As internal coaches, we are deeply embedded into Shopify's unique context and have developed powerful relationships with our clients and stakeholders. Our focus is on creating confidential, safe and catalytic learning spaces that empower our clients to bring the best of who they are to what they do. We play many roles to support client growth - helping them to increase their self-awareness, expand their ability to see and take different perspectives, increase their relational capacity, think more creatively and act more effectively to navigate through the issues and challenges they face on the way to delivering on our mission.

We are looking for coaches who have diverse life and professional experiences, are dedicated to the craft of coaching, committed to bringing their best selves, deeply curious and devoted learners, and team players. You will be working with highly intelligent, driven, and growth oriented people, which will challenge and grow your skill set. You will also have the opportunity to work both in 1-1 and team learning environments.

Responsibilities

Qualifications

At Shopify, we are committed to building and fostering an environment where our employees feel included, valued, and heard. Our belief is that a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion enables us to truly make commerce better for everyone. We strongly encourage applications from Indigenous peoples, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from gender and sexually diverse communities and/or people with intersectional identities.

Continue reading here:
Coach (EMEA) - remote job with Shopify | 165137 - The Business of Fashion

CHERRY HILL, NJ Happy weekend, Cherry Hill! As more local businesses and venues reopen and it becomes safer to gather in small groups, don't miss what's new on your Cherry Hill Patch community calendar. Here's a roundup of local events coming up in the area this weekend.

Wondering how you can get your event in the next roundup? You can add it to the calendar using this form. As always, it's free to post an event in your community. To reach more people, you can promote your event and share it nearby for $1 per day per community.

See more local events, or add your own, on the Cherry Hill Patch community calendar.

Editor's note: This article was automatically generated based on event information mainly provided by community members. Patch has not independently verified most of this information, always check with organizers to confirm posted events are proceeding as planned. Click on any event in the list for more details. You can also reach out to content@patch.com with any questions or other feedback about this article.

Reply to this articleReply

The rest is here:
This Weekends Cherry Hill Area Events - Patch.com

The world is fighting an invisible enemy at the moment which has not only taken numerous lives but also deeply affected the physical and mental health of people. As such, it becomes extremely important to calm down the body and mind and try to keep stress at bay. One of the ways to do that, as suggested by experts, is meditation.

The power of connecting with ourselves helps to take care of our mental health and physical health. One of the most important ways to achieve this is through meditation, which helps create awareness about our emotions, go beyond and understand ourselves more, said Shashank Lalwani, Mindfulness and Life Enhancement coach at Institute of Nutrition and Fitness Sciences (INFS).

However, when one sits down to meditate for the first time, it can get difficult to concentrate as the mind wanders and certain uncontrollable thoughts float out of the way. In order to combat this, here are some tips on how to begin meditating and build concentration levels, he told indianexpress.com.

Acceptance of thoughts

As humans, it is only natural for us to catch random thoughts when trying to concentrate while meditating or otherwise. However, one common mistake beginners make is shutting these thoughts and assuming they fail to meditate peacefully.

Instead of ignoring such thoughts, one should accept and acknowledge them and move back to concentrating on the meditation session. To achieve this acceptance, begin with setting small goals concentrate for three or five minutes and gradually, with practice, increase the meditation time, he suggested. Acceptance helps in gradually increasing the concentration level.

Visualise

Many people follow a certain guide to building concentration. It is helpful to discover oneself while keeping the mind occupied with a happy memory. Visualising fond memories for a minute or so helps to replace random thoughts and go back to the meditation session, said Lalwani.

Draw a shape in mind

Apart from overall development, meditation also helps in focusing on self-awareness. If one deviates from concentrating during meditation, an important tip is to pick a shape that you may like.

Imagine filling it up with a favourite colour and visualise a ray from the centre of the shape touching the centre of the forehead. This exercise helps collate all thoughts and release others and bring back the focus, opening the blockages in your mind, he shared.

Read the original post:
World Meditation Day: Simple tips to improve concentration - The Indian Express

Meditation is one of those things that many people do, but seldom do we hear about how others actually do it. So we decided to ask nine women in the wellness space to share exactly what apps, podcasts, books, and the like they use to meditate on a regular basis.

For me, I've also found some tools this past year that have helped me commit to my practice. Tara Brach's podcast and guided meditations have both centered me in times of deep anxiety and stress, and also taught me about radical acceptance, compassion, and self-love. I've also found that I really like to meditate with a Core "meditation trainer," which tracks my heartbeat and heart-rate variability to give me feedback about how my body is doing. I also love Mala Collective's meditation cushions, which support a healthy posture but also look pretty when I'm not using them (important!).

If you meditate, you probably have a favorite guide of some kind to help you go deeper, but it's always inspiring to discover new resources. We can't wait to check out some of these options!

Photo: Courtesy of Wilma Mae Basta

"My well-being is an eternal practice in staying grounded, cultivating self-awareness, and maintaining an open heart. It is always a balancing act. One tool I use to achieve this includes The Pocket Pema ChodronI meditate daily in front of a small altar, upon which sits my pocket Pema Chodron book, which includes impactful passages from her decades of writing. I read one page before each session. It gives me a focus for self-awareness throughout the day. It's also worth listening to her audiobooks. Her voice is comforting, she is lighthearted without being dogmatic, and the teachings she shares are so helpful, especially during the pandemic.

"Another tool I use is Relax Melodies. It has been said that I sleep like it's a jobit's my superpower. However, sometimes my sleep pattern is out of sync or other stressors upset my sleep. This app is amazing because I can craft my own blend of sounds that create my own unique adult lullaby, and I always drift off. My go-to sound is a thunderstorm with light rain.

"And one more tool is Insight Timer. I've been using this app for five or six years. It has helped me to level up my meditation practice. I use it mainly to customize my own style of meditation, but it also offers teachings and lessons from a myriad of practitioners from around the world. I love it."

Photo: Courtesy of Polly Roderick

"I have several outlets to help sever my mind from how manic life becomes. I find old-school jazz music super relaxing when I log off on a Friday night, as my weeks are so crazy. There is nothing like lighting a couple of candles, putting on a face mask, and listening to Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald!

"I often listen to meditation before bed if I feel a little anxious or manic. My favorite is Agapi Stasinopoulos. She is so positive and has the most calming voice. She talks of escaping to your own paradise. Mine is always visualizing drifting on a lake past a trickling waterfall. There's a warm breeze with birds singing as my fingers touch the surface of the water. It gently redirects my mind from my days full of stress.

"Affirmations are also very helpful. There are times when I really feel overwhelmed and out of balance. On those days I stop, take a few deep breaths, and I repeat my chosen affirmations: 'I am happy, I am healthy, I have a beautiful life.' Repeating this really helps!"

Photo: Courtesy of Grace Okafor

"My favorite way to get grounded is actually listening and singing along to old-school music on Spotify or listening to meditative videos or songs on YouTube, like the sound of rain, while visualizing.

"Some people read books or listen to podcasts, but this is what I prefer. It works a lot for me and quickly gets me to a happy spot where I feel refreshed, positive, happy, and ready to go. I love listening to Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, and Toni Braxton."

Photo: Courtesy of Niye Aniekan-Attang

"I am all about self-care, which keeps me feeling really grounded. When I have had a busy or stressful week, I look forward to self-care on the weekends. It could be as simple as using the Calm app for short meditations or as elaborate as giving myself an at-home facial, pedicure, and body scrub."

Photo: Courtesy of Chrissy Papetti

"The To Be Magnetic (TBM) Pathway membership has been my home base on my personal growth journey for years now. With TBM's Neural Manifestation process, fusing science and spirituality, I've reached new heights of radical self-awareness and, in doing so, have reclaimed my power over my reality.

"The TBM meditations, or 'deep imaginings,' have led me to uncover the root cause of what's held me back and stopped me from fully embracing my authentic self and manifesting what I desire in life. Through TBM's manifestation method, I've learned how to access the freedom that comes with releasing past patterns and rewiring my mind-body connection to be fearless in leading my most authentic life.

"And The Code of the Extraordinary Mind by Vishen Lakhiani has raised me to new heights on my personal-growth path. I may even dare to say that this book is a mandatory companion for anyone committed to living their best life on their terms. Lakhiani manages to extract wisdom from some of the world's greatest change makers, teachers, and thought leaders and synthesize it into digestible, powerful frameworks for anyone to use to transform their life.

"My favorite thing about this book is that it highlights how much of your own destiny lies within your own powerif only you understand the tools you need to shift your perspective on what's possible for your life. In an endless sea of surface-level, redundant self-growth books out there, The Code of the Extraordinary Mind differentiates itself by using cutting-edge science and spirituality to deliver practical methods for how to live a life that's truly extraordinary."

Photo: Courtesy of Jamie Leilani Pelayo

"The most life-changing book that I've read is Eastern Body, Western Mind by Anodea Judith, along with its companion workbook, The Sevenfold Journey, which includes meditation and body-work practices to help release energy blockages within the body, based on the teachings of the EBWM.

"I recommend EBWM to literally anyone and everyone who is interested in understanding how even the most mundane experiences can shape the stories that we tell ourselves about ourselves and the narratives that we form around the concept of our identity, which can result in deficient and excessive behaviors. Working with these tools has been personally liberating for me and very eye-opening, especially in how I approach raising young children with this awareness."

Photo: Courtesy of Ashley Wray

"Tara Brach is one of my favorite meditation teachers, and she often talks about radical compassion and self-love. Every Wednesday she hosts a donation meditation and lecture through Spirit Rock.

"I love using a guided meditation to help me focus my mind and energy. When I first started my practice, this helped me immensely. Our minds always tend to wander when we are meditating, and having someone lovingly hold you and guide you through is such a gift. That's what inspired our I Am Enough seriesa simple yet loving and effective meditation series to help guide you through your practice, whether you're just starting out or deepening your practice."

Photo: Courtesy of Nikita Mehta

"My favorite meditation is Dynamic Meditation by Osho, shaking and releasing before centering in silence. My favorite meditation book is Untethered Soul by Michael Singer, on the importance of removing past samskaras, blockages, and letting energy (shakti) rise from within. Both have helped me embrace radical honesty by choosing to show up for myself every day and be responsible for my joy and letting energy flow freely."

Photo: Courtesy of Nathalie Walton

"I spend a crazy amount of time meditatingit's my job to continually evaluate new meditations. I began my meditation practice in 2001 in an ashram in Thailand, and it's been wonderful to see the field of wellness blossom over time. I struggled to cultivate a meditation practice until I discovered Transcendental Meditation (TM). TM helped me deepen my practice and enjoy guided meditations on apps like Expectful.

"My all-time favorite mindfulness book is When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron. I also love investing in mindfulness retreats at The Esalen Institute and We Care Spathese are some of my favorite places to take a break from life and invest in my overall well-being."

Go here to read the rest:
Tips & Tools for Mastering the Art of Meditation - Coveteur

Diego Sanchez has cut his professional ties with Joshua Fabia. Sanchez has also announced that hes set to put forth a statement next week and that he requires time to collect his thoughts before talking to the media.

According to MMA Fighting, in a revelation made by Diego Sanchez to them on Thursday (May 20th, 2021), Sanchez is no longer in a professional relationship with Joshua Fabia. Sanchez has confirmed that Fabia is no longer his manager, coach or guru.

As of this time, Diego Sanchez hasnt provided any further details or comments on his split from Joshua Fabia. Charles Lakins, who is Sanchezs attorney, revealed that the decision was made on Thursday (May 20th, 2021). Lakins has reiterated that Sanchez has ended his business relationship with Fabia.

Charles Lakins has now stated:

As of this writing, Joshua Fabia is yet to address his sudden split from Diego Sanchez. The MMA legend started working with Fabia back in 2019 in the lead-up to his UFC 235 (March 2019) fight against Mickey Gall.

Diego Sanchez defeated Gall via second-round TKO. This proved to be Sanchez's final clear-cut win inside the octagon. Sanchez went 1-2 in his next three fights, with his sole win coming by way of DQ (disqualification). Sanchezs most recent fight was a unanimous decision loss against Jake Matthews at UFC 253 (September 2020).

While many in the MMA community have expressed their surprise over Diego Sanchez parting ways with Joshua Fabia, some believe the split had likely been on the cards for the past few days.

As reported by MMA Fighting, Diego Sanchez recently revealed that he had reestablished contact with the UFC. Sanchez noted that hes also decided to go ahead and participate in the Professional Athletes Brain Health study. This study is partly funded by the UFC.

Furthermore, Diego Sanchez has emphasized that he will stay loyal to Joshua Fabia, as the latter has helped him out and done a number of good things for Sanchez during their time together.

Joshua Fabia, a self-proclaimed healer, is the founder of the School of Self Awareness. Fabia is regarded as more of a lifestyle coach than an MMA coach and was strongly criticized after footage recently emerged of his controversial upside-down training routine wherein he was seen hitting Diego Sanchez.

Diego Sanchez was set to fight Donald Cowboy Cerrone in a bout billed as a retirement fight at UFC Vegas 26 (May 8th, 2021). This was supposed to be Sanchezs final fight, the end of his legendary career. However, Joshua Fabia was involved in multiple clashes with the UFC brass in the buildup to this fight, eventually leading to Sanchezs departure from the UFC.

One of the clashes witnessed Fabia secretly record a conversation wih UFC execs Sean Shelby and Hunter Campbell. Sanchez and Fabia demanded Sanchezs complete medical history from the UFC.

Campbell subsequently inquired whether all was well with Diego Sanchez and requested Sanchez to confirm that he isnt suffering from any health issues. Sanchez responded via his attorney, Charles Lakins, but refused to confirm or deny any purported health issues.

The UFC resultantly released Diego Sanchez. This was followed by Sanchez and Fabia putting out a few accusations against the UFC. Nevertheless, as noted, Sanchez recently reconnected with the UFC. Regardless, the consensus is that while The Nightmare will participate in the Professional Athletes Brain Health study, hes unlikely to ever fight in the UFC again.

The rest is here:
Diego Sanchez has cut his professional ties with Joshua Fabia, announces that a statement will follow - Sportskeeda

Ive noticed some patterns in business owner decision-making behaviors over the years. Most of us tend to fall into more than one group. Among other things, were number crunchers, marketers, procrastinators, and magicians. Develop some self-awareness about which one of these groups you belong to. The more we know about ourselves, the better.

These folks track and (often) know every metric about their business. Sometimes thats good. Sometimes, it isnt. Dont focus on metrics to the exclusion of other important work. Its important to know your metrics, but having too many can fog your vision. Theres lead cost, lifetime customer value, ARR, MRR, conversion rate, traffic, net promoter score, and so on

Which do you focus on? If your company is large enough to have departments, each likely has a most important metric. How many are there?

While Im a number cruncher (among other things), metrics arent everything. Theyre a tool whose importance gains clarity when I travel.

The road strips away metrics FOMO because you can only handle so much while traveling. While I can have everything when Im at my desk, I dont NEED (or use) everything. On the road, I seldom need much more than OK vs Not OK.

Can you boil down your most important 37 metrics to OK vs Not OK?

Yes, most important 37 metrics was sarcasm, but you may have that many. You cant focus on the most important work of the day AND keep your finger on the 37 heartbeats. Theres a time and a place for each metric, but it isnt every day.

As my friend Tim Francis says, You need only enough precision to make the right decision.

Marketers tend to be number crunchers. We use LTV, CAC, and other metrics to make decisions & determine how were doing. We sometimes focus so hard on marketing that we forget everything else. Marketing metrics often drive mindset, even when theres little profit. More than once, Ive heard, Theres so much gross, there has to be some net somewhere. Pro tip: Know where the net is.

Jim Collins talks about making a decision as early as possible when known risks are stable. When the risk changes in severity or nature, review your decision.

Procrastinators view risks from a different angle. Making a decision as late as possible is one way to manage risk. It also increases cognitive load much longer than necessary. For decisions with little risk or little change in risk, procrastination has a cost. Sometimes the cost is that you arent ready for rapid change.

Some make decisions so fast that it appears they didnt care. What you dont often see is information gathering / review over time. One remaining piece of information may trigger their decision its the final piece of the puzzle.

Almost everything magicians touch seems to turn to gold, even if it takes years. Many dont appear to be working at all often because they enjoy their work and the people involved. Theyre often skilled decision makers.

The best decision makers have a process & guidelines. Ask and dig in thats where the gold lies. They often have a refined process for decision making, but refined doesnt mean slow. Make decisions as soon as possible, but not too soon, and dont look back. Focus on making your decision pay off unless changing conditions force a review.

After 14 years, this is my last column for the Beacon. I hope at least one of these 728 columns has helped you, your business, your team, and your customers.

Three things drove what I wrote about each week: 1) Whatever pushed my buttons, 2) A lesson (re)learned by me or someone I know, 3) Something reminded me that we all need occasional reminders.

If youre an employer, remember that your most important people are your employees. Theyre the ones who take care of your other most important people your customers.

If youre an employee, consider a side hustle. It might grow well beyond that. It might become your new role at your current employer. Almost everyone starts small. You have to believe, even when no one else does.

Thank you Liz Marchi and Kellyn Brown. Its been a fun ride.

PS: Skinner, you win.

Read more from the original source:
Decision Making And The Last Word - Flathead Beacon

I was saddened to hear of the recent and unexpected passing of the city of Hugos longtime finance director, Ron Otkin. I met Ron in 1989 when he first came to the city; at the time, I was a volunteer on the Planning Commission. Our paths crossed far more often when I served on the City Council.

Ron was passionate about his job, and it showed. I knew nothing about city finances when I first began contributing to Hugos budget planning decisions, but Ron was, first and foremost, a good communicator. He made it a priority to educate all of us in financial matters. His annual budget PowerPoint presentations were crystal clear. His aim was to help the city of Hugo keep its taxes low, set attainable financial goals, take care of its assets in a responsible way and be well prepared for the growth that we knew would come. I learned so much from him.

Years later, when I began writing about city budgets in Centerville, Hugo and Lino Lakes for The Citizen newspaper and, later, Press Publications, Ron was always ready to help and answer my questions in a timely way so that I could make my press deadlines. He believed that a citys financial reports should be able to be understood by everyone. Over the years, I attended hundreds of city council meetings in Anoka, Ramsey, and Washington counties involving budgets, taxes, bond sales and assessments. Rons presentations were always the easiest to understand.

Because of Rons passion for excellence, the city of Hugo was recognized year after year for its excellence in financial reporting. There was a running joke at City Hall that the city would have to reinforce the walls in the finance directors office to accommodate the weight of the accumulating plaques. He and his team deserved every one of them.

Ron will be greatly missed.

Schools need to promotesocial-emotional learning

I am currently a school social worker in White Bear Lake Area Schools and wanted to bring to everyone's attention the importance of social and emotional learning (SEL). The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) describes SEL as "the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. SEL core competencies consist of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision-making.

Schools need to promote SEL instruction within a school, as SEL skills promote and enhance students through increased school connections, positive behaviors and academic achievement and so much more. CASEL discovered SEL has a positive impact on students' academics because students received an 11 percentile point gain in academic achievement compared to peers who did not receive SEL programming.

SEL instruction has proven to have many long-term as well as short-term impacts. For example, schools that have implemented SEL have increased educational milestones being achieved along with increasing high school and college graduation rates. Additionally, research shows that "SEL programming can have a positive impact up to 18 years later on academics, conduct problems, emotional distress and drug use. Short-term, SEL helps decrease negative behaviors in the classrooms through the development of skills that help students better manage their emotions. SEL helps decrease bullying and increases friendship and relationship skills.

As a school social worker, I have seen firsthand some of the amazing work that teachers and buildings are doing to promote and incorporate SEL into their schools and classrooms. I believe this is a significant first step to providing students with more holistic support that aims to expand beyond academic growth to increase social-emotional well-being. To increase SEL implementation, there is a need to further an awareness of SEL by school districts, students, families and community members, as well as why it is essential to teach, as it helps students be more successful and strengthens communities.

Original post:
Letters to the Editor | Letters To The Editor - Burnett County Sentinel