Debunking Common Bathroom Remodeling Misconceptions

Many homeowners put off upgrading essential spaces like the bathroom because they perceive the hassle or expense outweighs the benefit. Common myths surrounding these projects keep many homeowners from even envisioning a beautiful new bathroom, let alone embarking on a remodeling project.

“There’s a lot of misinformation about renovations, especially when it comes to bathrooms,” said Scott McGillivray, HGTV star. “A lot of people think a bathroom renovation means you have to gut the whole thing and start over. That is not true.”

To help sort facts from fiction, consider this information from the experts at Bath Fitter, a leader in custom bath and shower remodels, along with results from their online survey of 1,000 U.S. adults.

Myth: A traditional down-to-studs remodel is the “right” way or “only” way to achieve a new bathroom.
Truth: Tradition and right are not one and the same. There are plenty of innovative ways to achieve a like-new bathroom without the messy demolition, stress and unexpected delays. In fact, according to the survey, 50% of respondents who renovated their bathroom in the past five years agree that a tub-over-tub liner is an affordable solution that eliminates these renovation pain points while providing the same quality and durability of a traditional remodel with long-lasting results.

Myth: Tub and shower liners are made from substandard material that results in a low-quality look.
Truth: Constructed from the same premium acrylic found in high-end spas, custom liner products are a high-quality solution that’s just as attractive, exceptionally durable and easy to clean. Consider options from Bath Fitter, which manufactures every acrylic bathtub, shower and wall at its North American facility, ensuring the highest quality standards are met. When installed with a one-piece seamless wall system, these acrylic tubs and showers look new for longer than most traditional remodel options and are backed by a lifetime guarantee.

Myth: Tub and shower liners are “coverups,” which can worsen or create problems with mold or water damage.
Truth: Custom-made tubs and showers are installed using a grout-free, watertight system that prevents future mold and water damage. Extensive sanitizing of existing bath areas ensures a clean and strong foundation prior to installation. In fact, 47% of survey respondents who renovated their bathroom in the past five years used a tub-over-tub solution as part of the renovation.

Myth: Liners are a temporary fix that won’t last or serve as a long-term replacement.
Truth: While 1 in 4 future renovators believe tub-over-tub solutions are covers and insufficient substitutes for a complete replacement, McGillivray’s renovation experience tells a different story.

Unlike resurfacing or replacing bathtubs or showers, which may only last a few years, Bath Fitter products offer the same look and feel of a new tub or shower but with a lifetime guarantee, installation in as little as 24 hours and less hassle than a full demolition renovation.

“Bath Fitter is a great example of how to reface a bathroom,” McGillivray said. “It gets you the beautiful, finished product you are looking for, but it’s smart because it saves time, money and adds life expectancy back to the space.”

Myth: The number of bath and shower style options are limited and won’t fit contemporary bathroom design trends.
Truth: Custom tubs and showers are available with hundreds of design and customization options to suit any space or style and blend in seamlessly with your chosen aesthetic. From Scandinavian to English Country, you can find an expansive portfolio of designs that can be integrated into an existing design or incorporated into an updated look.

Find more ideas and inspiration for your bathroom remodel at bathfitter.com.

Benefits of a One-Day Bathroom Remodel

If you've lived in your home for a while, it may be time to give your bathroom more than just a facelift. Dated fixtures, peeling paint and chipped tiles are telltale signs that all isn't well with your bathroom. A beautiful new bathroom may be more accessible than you think. A one-day bath remodel can turn your outdated bathroom into a stylish space you’ll enjoy using every day.

Convenient: A one-day bathroom remodel is perfect if you want to upgrade your bathroom without interrupting your daily life. Since it can be completed in just a few hours, you can skip the inconvenience of having a construction crew in your home or experiencing extended disruptions to your daily routine.

Affordable: Traditional bathroom renovations can take weeks to finish with costs rising by the hour. A one-day bathroom remodel keeps costs down since the installers specialize in completing bathroom remodels quickly and efficiently.

Customizable: You can customize every aspect of your new bathroom, from the fixtures and walls to the accessories and lighting. Experiment with different designs and make your vision a reality using Bath Fitter’s Design Your Own Bath online tool.

SOURCE:
Bath Fitter

Tuberville ends holdout on most high-ranking military nominations

Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol in November 2023. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Brooks D. Simpson, Arizona State University

After holding up the promotions or new assignments of several hundred senior officers for nearly a year, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville relented to pressure from both GOP and Democratic Senate members and ended most of his campaign against a military policy on abortion.

But while Tuberville’s announcement clears the way for about 400 appointments, published reports said that Tuberville would continue to block the promotions of 10 four-star generals and admirals.

Within hours of Tuberville’s decision, the Senate confirmed hundreds of nominations.

Tuberville’s announcement come on the heels of growing pressure from Democratic Senate Leader Charles Schumer as well as several GOP senators who grew frustrated over Tuberville’s actions that many argued jeopardized national security.

In September 2023 and again in November, the Senate got around Tuberville’s blockage by voting on several individual nominations for top-level positions, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

A far-right fight

Tuberville had blocked the Senate from considering their nominations because he opposes a Defense Department policy to reimburse travel expenses for military personnel who have to leave their states to get abortions or other reproductive care.

The policy was put in place after the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned previous Supreme Court rulings affirming federal protections for abortion and returned the responsibility of passing abortion laws to the states.

A U.S. senator has the prerogative of placing what is called a hold on a measure, preventing the Senate from acting on that measure.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin characterized Tuberville’s hold as a threat to national defense. Senate Democrats have called him reckless, and more than 550 military families petitioned Tuberville and Senate leaders to end the stalemate. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, has said he does not support a hold on military nominations.

But Tuberville didn’t budge for months.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin departs a news briefing on July 18, 2023, at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va. At right is Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley. Win McNamee/Getty Images

No monopoly on Senate holds

The practice of senators placing holds on legislation has become more frequent in recent decades. But it is not a practice confined to lawmakers of one party.

Republican Sen. J. D. Vance of Ohio placed a hold on the confirmation of Justice Department officials to protest the federal indictment of former president Donald J. Trump. Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont is using the same tactic to block President Joe Biden’s nominee to head the National Institute of Health until the Biden administration delivers a plan to lower prescription drug prices. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia will not approve any nominees for positions in the Environmental Protection Agency because he opposes proposed regulations to limit power plant emissions. The holds these senators are using make a connection between the agencies the senators want to take an action and the agencies’ nominees.

Tuberville had been using the hold to get the Senate to vote on a bill introduced by Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire that, if passed, would make the Defense Department’s policy law. In that case, Tuberville said he would relinquish his hold. If the bill fails, he wants the Defense Department to end the policy on reimbursement for travel related to reproductive care.

Holding promotions hostage

This is not the first time senators have used the promotion process to object to military policy or practice. But, in most cases, those objections pertained to specific individuals.

Perhaps the most obvious cases occurred during the Civil War when the Republican senators most committed to ending the war and ending slavery dragged their heels over promotions as a way to push that agenda.

General George G. Meade is perhaps best known as the victorious U.S. general at the battle of Gettysburg. You might think that leading the army that defeated Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia in the war’s most famous battle would mean Meade would have no problem securing a well-deserved promotion.

But that was not the case. Meade’s handling of his forces at Gettysburg came under criticism from a congressional committee – the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War – as well as some of his fellow generals, who wanted to highlight their own contributions, while diminishing his.

Essential to that scrutiny was that Meade had a reputation as a Democrat who was not an enthusiastic supporter of emancipation as a war aim. His detractors, including committee members and several generals, embraced the destruction of slavery and wanted war to be waged vigorously against Confederate civilians as well as enemy forces.

The Pentagon building, located in Arlington County, Va., across the Potomac River from Washington. Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

As a result, Meade’s promotion to major general in the regular army – a rank that would persist after the war – ran into snags, largely because of concern that if Meade were nominated, the Senate would not confirm him.

Although General Ulysses S. Grant repeatedly pushed for Meade’s promotion, it would not be until November 1864, after President Abraham Lincoln was safely reelected, that Meade’s name was presented for confirmation, according to the book “Meade of Gettysburg.” The Senate finally approved the promotion in February 1865, just two months before Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House.

Other army promotions faced similar obstacles. Even Grant’s elevation to lieutenant general in the winter of 1863-1864 proved a struggle, as Congress wrangled over the wording of the bill that reestablished that rank. Some Republicans wanted to delay the promotion until the end of the war; others wanted to force Lincoln to nominate Grant for the new rank. It took over 11 weeks just to pass the bill, and Grant accepted his commission in March 1864, some three months after the bill was introduced.

These cases involve individuals, albeit in high positions, and in many cases political debate over the promotions involved discussions of their presumed support for the destruction of slavery as a war aim.

Tuberville’s actions were not focused in the way those previous cases were. He blocked consideration of all nominations because of an unrelated Defense Department policy. This public obstruction spotlights how Senate rules, written and unwritten, offer opportunities for individual senators to impede the legislative process until their demands are met.

This is an updated version of an article published on July 26, 2023.

Brooks D. Simpson, Foundation Professor of History, Arizona State University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. 

5 Steps to Winterize Your Home

Without a little prep work and routine maintenance, winter weather can wreak havoc on your home. Following a few simple steps can help you avoid frozen pipes, drafty rooms and slippery sidewalks.

Watch video for helpful tips this winter!

1. Clear Gutters – Melting snow will have nowhere to go if gutters are clogged with leaves and debris.

 

2. Protect Pipes – Open cabinet doors under kitchen and bathroom sinks so warm air can surround pipes. Drain outside spigots before temperatures drop below freezing.  

 

3. Improve Insulation – Cold air can seep in through openings around windows and doors. Install weather stripping and seal openings with caulk to insulate cracks and crevices.

 

4. Prevent Slips and Falls – Keep sidewalks and driveways clear of ice and snow. Sprinkle deicing salt on steps, sidewalks and driveways to prevent accidents.

 

5. Control the Temperature – Set the thermostat to at least 65 F during winter months. Consider installing an energy efficient or programmable thermostat.

 

Find more home maintenance advice at eLivingtoday.com.

SOURCE:
eLivingToday

Fast Facts About Healthy Skin and Coat Care for Dogs

The condition and appearance of your dog’s skin and coat can serve as outward indicators of his or her overall health. While grooming is one of the most important steps to maintaining a healthy coat, other factors can play a role in the look and feel of your four-legged friend’s fur.

For example, dull, dry or flaky coats can be external indicators of internal issues. Stress, illness and inadequate nutrition can all lead to lackluster fur. Breed can also play a role in the shininess of your pet’s coat.

To get a better understanding of how you can improve your pet’s skin and coat, consider these facts and misperceptions from the experts at Petcurean, makers of the Go! Solutions line of premium pet food.

Fiction: Frequent washing dries out dogs’ skin and coats.
Regularly bathing your dog removes dirt, dander, debris and odors, and can help clear irritation-causing allergens. However, bathing too frequently removes natural oils, which keep skin supple and the coat soft and pliable. For best results, use a high-quality pet shampoo that’s gentle on the skin and coat then follow up with a nourishing conditioner for smooth, shiny fur.

Fact: Dogs should be groomed regularly.
Regular brushing with proper tools – sometimes as often as daily – is important. Not only can it help prevent matting in long-haired or double-coated dogs, it also stimulates blood flow to the skin, which helps keep it healthy, and ensures you notice any changes in your pet’s skin and coat. Grooming should also include cleaning ears, brushing teeth and trimming nails.

Fiction: Poor hydration does not affect skin or coat.
Fresh, clean water is essential for all bodily functions, including the maintenance of healthy skin. To help keep dogs hydrated, be sure fresh water is available to them, particularly at mealtimes.

Fact: Flea and tick control is essential for healthy skin and shiny coats.
If not controlled, fleas and ticks can wreak havoc on skin, which in turn affects coat quality. The irritation they cause typically promotes excessive scratching and licking.

Fiction: Dogs don’t need to use pet shampoo.
Human skin and hair are different from the skin and fur of dogs and should be treated as such. Shampoo designed for humans can strip oils and lead to dryness when used on dogs, which can result in infections and skin irritations. Be sure to use a shampoo specifically formulated for pets to maintain skin and coat health.

Fact: A high-quality, balanced pet food recipe is key to healthy skin and a shiny coat.
Because every dog is different and has varied energy requirements, the right blend of ingredients – rather than any one specific ingredient – tailored for individual dogs can help achieve healthy skin and shiny coats. For example, recipes like Go! Solutions Skin + Coat Care Large Breed Puppy and Adult Salmon Recipes with Grains are tailor-made for large breed puppies and adults with single-source animal protein from salmon to help build strong muscles; Omega fatty acids to support healthy, hydrated skin and a shiny coat; and the proper balance of nutrients to meet the unique needs of large breed dogs throughout their life stages.

To learn more about recipes that promote healthy skin and shiny coats, visit go-solutions.com.

SOURCE:
Petcurean
 

5 Simple Holiday Hosting Hacks

Entertaining friends and loved ones during the holidays offers an opportunity to slow down from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and make lasting memories. The key is getting ahead of hosting duties so you can be present with family and friends.

Make this season’s holiday hosting effortless and enjoyable with these tips:

1. Stick with a simple menu. There’s no need to create an elaborate menu with complex dishes that take hours to prepare. Instead, build your menu around easy crowd-pleasers. Save the experimenting with new recipes and ingredients for another time when you’re less likely to feel the pressure. Be sure to consider your guests’ likes and dislikes and be conscious of potential dietary restrictions.
    
2. Serve beverages with festive flair. A beverage station is a fun and unexpected way to infuse some extra holiday cheer into your event. Offer cozy options like hot chocolate and coffee, along with an array of seasonal mix-ins and flavors. Convenient and tasty options to have on-hand for the holidays are Starbucks creamers, featuring flavors inspired by cafe beverages like Caramel Macchiato, White Chocolate Mocha and Cinnamon Dolce Latte, all which are now available in limited-time red holiday packaging online and at your local grocery store.
   
   Give your guests some festive drink inspiration to start with, such as this delicious holiday-themed recipe for Iced Gingerbread Caramel Coffee that is sure to become a favorite. For added fun, provide an array of toppings such as marshmallows, peppermint sticks and chocolate candies wrapped in colorful holiday wrappers.
    
3. Plan for entertainment. When a well-acquainted group gathers, the party has a way of taking on a life of its own. In case of a slow start, or if you’re entertaining different groups of friends who don’t know each other well, it’s a good idea to prepare some options to get guests mingling and engaged. A playlist of holiday music creates a festive atmosphere and planning a few interactive games ahead of time can help break the ice.
    
4. Pace your preparations. Make a conscious effort to spread your party prep over the days and weeks leading up to your event. Saving all the cooking and cleaning until the day of the party only leaves hosts exhausted before guests even arrive. Instead, make a list of everything you need to accomplish around the house and tackle a few chores each night. Do your shopping a few days ahead so ingredients are still fresh but you aren’t left scrambling. Prepare any dishes that can be refrigerated or frozen ahead of time.
    
5. Anticipate guests’ needs. The secret to great hosting isn’t really a secret at all; it’s simply making sure your guests feel welcome and comfortable. Providing a secure spot for coats and handbags, offering a drink when they arrive and making sure they can find essentials like the restroom may seem obvious, but they’re easily overlooked basics. If you worry you’ll be too busy in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on the meal, recruit a friend or family member to act in your place.

Find more inspiration and other holiday-worthy recipes at athome.starbucks.com.

Iced Gingerbread Caramel Coffee

Prep time: 3 minutes
Yield: 16 ounces

Drink:

• 1 cup ice
• 4 tablespoons Starbucks Gingerbread Naturally Flavored Ground Coffee for double strength
• 6 ounces water
• 1 ounce Starbucks Caramel Macchiato Flavored Creamer

Toppings:

• whipped cream
• homemade or store-bought caramel sauce
• 1 pinch nutmeg

1. Place ice in 16-ounce glass.
2. Brew gingerbread coffee with water and pour into glass.
3. Add caramel creamer. Stir.
4. Top with whipped cream, drizzle of caramel sauce and nutmeg.

 

SOURCE:
Starbucks

If you want to avoid ‘giving away your first born’ make sure you read the terms and conditions before signing contracts

Paul Harrison, Deakin University and Jeff Rotman, Deakin University

In 2019, a travel insurance company held a secret contest in which they included a line in the fine print of their policy promising $10,000 to the first person who spotted it.

Seventy-three policies were bought before the award was finally claimed. But those 73 who had obviously not read the policy, would not have been alone.

It seems most of us don’t read the terms and conditions of some relatively important, legally binding contracts before signing up.

In one study only 8% of people read a bank account contract, 19% a car rental contract and 25% a dry-cleaning contract before committing to a deal. Similarly, more than 80% of participants in a different study reported “not reading at all” or “not really” reading click through agreements.

A good reason to read a contract

Even more confrontingly, 98% of participants in another study effectively agreed to give up their first born child after supposedly having read the fictional terms and conditions of an agreement online.

The number of people who do actually read the terms and conditions may be even lower with another study finding only 0.1% of shoppers accessed the licence agreement and most only read a small portion.

Studies show very few people read contracts, let alone read them in full. Ralf Geithe/Shutterstock

Despite our best intentions, most of us simply sign terms and conditions, rarely read the fine print, and fail to appreciate the consequences.

However, once we are presented with a particular problem arising from or related to the contract, our attitude alters. Studies have shown the number of people who return to their contracts after a problem more than doubles for car rentals, triples for dry-cleaning issues and rises nearly seven times for a bank account.

Unsurprisingly though, most people don’t believe it’s their fault. Rather, they assume it’s to do with something they weren’t made aware of at the time of purchase or they believe it is easily fixed.

So, why don’t we read the fine print?

Like all things in human behavior, it’s complicated.

Some reasons given by consumers include terms and conditions are too long and time-consuming, they are full of legal jargon, they seem all the same, they are irrelevant and they have no choice but to accept them if they want the particular product.

They also believed if there was something wrong with the agreement somebody else would have pointed it out (and fixed it before them) and vendors are usually reputable so they wouldn’t be put at risk.

The last two reasons point to a rational tendency to equate low probability risks with zero probability risks, as well as to use mental shortcuts that simplify decision-making and align with a person’s beliefs. There are also social norms and signals for us not to read the contract, such as the expectation to “sign the form and keep moving”.

Problems arise in markets where it appears easy to switch from one contract to another, but where there are complex agreements, including telecommunications, banking, health insurance and gyms. These sectors might use strong marketing tactics, such as bundling offers, along with apparently easily accessible customer service, which can cause consumers to be overconfident in their dealings with businesses.

Sometimes it is simply the length and complexity of contracts that puts people off reading them. For example, assuming a reading rate of 240 words a minute, Spotify’s terms of service is estimated to take about 36 minutes, while TikTok’s would take 31. Microsoft would take over an hour. For comparison, reading all of Chinese war strategist Sun Tzu’s The Art of War would take only 50 minutes.

These extremely long policies, coupled with the fact individuals feel most information is unimportant, influence willingness to read the fine print. Realistically, failure to read the terms and conditions, particularly because contracts are rarely negotiable, seems like a perfectly rational response. This is made even more likely if we thinks the costs of reviewing a dense document outweighs its benefits.

Agreements are binding (kind of)

Legally, though, terms and conditions are enforceable and allow businesses to reduce costs that might otherwise be associated with bargaining.

Getting us to agree to the terms and conditions upfront also provides an opportunity for businesses to pass on certain risks to the consumer. Clearly this should be a concern for lawmakers. The idea of a well-informed consumer who understands their obligations and the rights under an agreement is a foundation of consumer law.

An unfair contract can be voided under consumer law. McLittle Stock/Shutterstock

The Australian Consumer Law does help reduce some risk by deeming terms of a standard consumer contract unfair if they have been presented unclearly or disadvantage one party, regardless of whether they have been accepted by the consumer.

However, it is unlikely most consumers read consumer law or use it given the complexity of challenging a vendor who is unwilling to abide by them.

Dealing with reality

If we are serious about the concept of the informed consumer, then we have to accept some realities.

We have to acknowledge consumer attention is limited and information overload and assymetry prevents people from comprehending what is and isn’t important.

We also have to accept the type of information and the way it’s presented does have an impact on whether people understand the consequences of signing an agreement.

Critically, most terms and conditions currently seem to be designed to protect the seller more than they are to help the consumer to make an informed choice.

Research does suggest consumers are more inclined to read terms and conditions before committing when the product or service cost is significant, the contract is perceived as short, and there is a belief they will be able to change or influence contract terms.

Indeed, if businesses seriously do want their customers to be informed, shorter, less abstract and more focused terms and conditions that highlight the critical information related to potential harm is one solution. Another might be to quiz participants with a short knowledge test as they sign the document to see if they have actually understood the agreement.

Or perhaps they could hide surprise $10,000 “Easter eggs” in their terms and conditions and create a culture of reward for effort, instead of the current deficit approach.

Paul Harrison, Director, Master of Business Administration Program (MBA); Co-Director, Better Consumption Lab, Deakin University, Deakin University and Jeff Rotman, Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Consumer Psychology & Co-Director of the Better Consumption Lab, Deakin University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. 

Home Exterior Trends for 2024

A home’s exterior is often the first thing guests or potential buyers see, meaning its curb appeal can have a significant impact on making a good first impression. Whether refreshing or renovating your home, staying current with exterior trends can help make a statement, increase your home’s value and enhance the comfort of your living space.

If you’re looking to refresh or improve your home’s function and style in the new year, consider these 2024 home exterior trends from the experts at Westlake Royal Building Products, a leader in innovation, design and production of exterior and interior building products including siding, trim, mouldings, roofing, stone, windows, outdoor living and more.

A Connection with Nature
Connecting people more closely with nature and natural elements, biophilic design can lead to increased well-being and productivity. Growing wellness and environmental concerns are driving demand for outdoor living space improvements and integration of nature in design, including elements like green roofs, living walls and large windows.

You can create dramatic outdoor spaces by contrasting light and dark colors. For example, matte black can be paired with materials like brick, stone, shingles and wood for an eye-catching twist. Bold, earthy tones such as navy blue, forest green, dark brown and red can also be combined with nature-inspired materials for organic texture and warmth. Other trending colors for 2024 include vivid teal and aqua blue, which can induce a sense of serenity.

High-Performance Siding
As climate change continues to intensify and lead to severe weather, there is a growing need for high-performance, weather-resistant building products. Homeowners continue to favor resilient materials that require less maintenance or replacement such as recycled vinyl, engineered wood and fiber cement, which maintain beauty and function.

Designed with innovation and performance in mind, Celect Cellular Composite Siding, a premium PVC siding from Westlake Royal Building Products, replicates the beauty and aesthetics of wood while remaining low maintenance and durable for a lifetime. Featuring a patented interlocking seam design, it keeps moisture out and almost completely eliminates seams. Plus, its Kynar Aquatec coating provides superior protection against ultraviolet rays, reduces energy demands and resists dirt, seasonal staining and insects.

Functional Outdoor Living Spaces
Focused on creating seamless connections between interior and exterior spaces, this evolution in outdoor design includes integration of outdoor kitchens and living areas. Elements such as fire pits, pizza ovens, outdoor entertainment and games can be incorporated to personalize the space and provide a unique entertaining hub. Using cohesive materials and textures that can withstand the elements and flow from indoors to outdoors, such as stone veneer, can help elevate the space and further tie it to the home’s interior.

Mixed Materials and Textures
Blending various textures, finishes and materials on a home’s facade can create a unique, visually dynamic look. Using a combination of materials like brick and vinyl siding or stone and wood can add depth and visual interest. An option like Versetta Stone delivers the authentic look and feel of stone in a panelized format that is easy to install with screws or nails and requires no metal lath or scratch coat. The stone siding features a tongue-and-groove system for perfect spacing, has a built-in rainscreen and can be installed almost anywhere without additional footings for support.

Transitional Takes on Tradition
A versatile design approach allows a home to transcend trends, ensuring its relevance and appeal over an extended period of time. In 2024, look for a rise in classic design trends featuring elements such as vertical siding, crisp white trim and other modernized traditional styles as well as a shift away from minimalism that incorporates more nostalgic, personal touches to home exteriors, ushering in more of a transitional style.

Find more ideas to update your home’s exterior at WestlakeRoyalBuildingProducts.com.

SOURCE:
Westlake Royal Building Products

Santos, now booted from the House, got elected as a master of duplicity – here’s how it worked

Rep. George Santos in the U.S. Capitol on Nov. 7, 2023. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

David E. Clementson, University of Georgia

U.S. Rep. George Santos, a Republican from New York, was expelled on Dec. 1, 2023, from Congress for doing what most people think all politicians do all the time: lying.

Santos lied about his religion, marital status, business background, grandparents, college, high school, sports-playing, income and campaign donation expenditures.

Santos’ fellow members of Congress – a professional class stereotypically considered by the public to be littered with serial liars – apparently consider Santos peerless and are kicking him out of their midst on a 311-114 vote, with two members voting present.

How could a politician engage in such large-scale deception and get elected? What could stop it from happening again, as politicians seem to be growing more unapologetically deceptive while evading voters’ scrutiny?

Santos’ success demonstrates a mastery of something more than just pathological lying. He managed to campaign in a district close to the media microscope of New York City, in one of the richest districts in the state, and get elected and stay in office for a year, despite making a mockery of any semblance of honesty.

I am a scholar of political deception. Experiments I conducted have revealed how the trustworthiness of politicians is judged almost entirely from perceptions of their demeanor, not the words they utter.

Politicians lie, as this compilation shows.

Misleading with a smile

I have found that voters are drawn in by politicians’ demeanor cues, which are forms of body language and nonverbal communication that signal honesty or dishonesty and yet have no relationship to actual honesty. For example, looking nervous and fidgety or appearing confident and composed are demeanor cues, which give impressions of a politician’s sincerity and believability. Someone’s demeanor cues might signal that they are trustworthy when they’re actually lying, or could signal lying in someone who is actually telling the truth.

The most authoritative index of demeanor cues that affect people’s perceptions of honesty and deception was developed by Tim Levine, a professor of communication at the University of Alabama, Birmingham. Demeanor cues that convey sincerity and honesty include appearing confident and composed; having a pleasant, friendly, engaged and involved interaction style; and giving plausible explanations.

The insincere/dishonest demeanor cues include avoiding eye contact, appearing hesitant and slow in providing answers, vocal uncertainty in tone of voice, excessive fidgeting with hands or foot movements, and appearing tense, nervous or anxious.

Empirical research has long revealed that voters are overwhelmingly influenced by politicians’ nonverbal communication. In one experiment, participants were shown 10-second clips of unfamiliar gubernatorial debates. The participants were asked to predict who won the election.

Participants who saw muted 10-second clips – making their judgments solely on nonverbal cues – were able to predict which candidate would go on to win. But those who watched the video with the sound were no better at picking the winner than if they picked randomly without ever watching or listening to anything. Voters make their judgments of a politician’s competence, it turns out, based on a 1-second glance at the politician’s face.

Another study also found that politicians’ facial expressions have the power to move us, literally: People watching clips of Ronald Reagan looking friendly adjusted their facial muscles accordingly and mimicked his smile, and people watching clips of Reagan looking angry tended to furrow their brow, too.

How Santos does it

Santos speaks with certitude. He has a charming, friendly and interactive manner – all sincere demeanor cues. He makes intense eye contact without fidgeting. He dresses well and is pleasant looking.

He was able to make up lies out of whole cloth and have them believed – a feat rarely accomplished by liars. He exudes confidence.

Santos dresses with sartorial elegance. He wears chic eyeglasses and sunglasses, accessorized with bright but not tacky jewelry. All this is complemented by one of his signature fleeces or sweaters, typically worn over a collared dress shirt and under a smart jacket. Santos even bought his campaign staff Brooks Brothers shirts to wear.

In my experiments, which have shown that voters base their judgment of politicians’ trustworthiness almost entirely from perceptions of demeanor, I found that Republicans are especially susceptible to demeanor cues. Republican voters will disbelieve their own honest politician if they perceive that the politician’s demeanor is insincere. But they will believe their own politician if they perceive sincerity.

Santos’ believable demeanor follows in the lineage of other con artists who could deceive absurdly yet adroitly. Disgraced financier Bernie Madoff dressed well, looked dignified, acted friendly and cordial, and his resting face was a smiling expression. The Fyre Festival fraudster Billy McFarland also had a resting face that was a smiling, aw-shucks expression, and acted harmless and friendly.

And Elizabeth Holmes of Theranos – who became the youngest female billionaire in history – faked a deep voice, walked upright with perfect posture, smiled and conveyed unrelenting confident poise, and maintained an unblinking gaze. All this enabled her to tell lies to some of the richest, most accomplished, intelligent titans of industry.

Madoff, McFarland and Holmes could look people in the eye and steal their money – swindling largely through the same sorts of demeanor cues that Santos exhibits.

McFarland, Holmes and Santos have the ability to smile with their upper teeth showing while they are answering tough questions in interviews, which research shows exudes trustworthiness.

Republican candidate George Santos, left, fist-bumps campaign volunteer John Maccarone while campaigning on Nov. 5, 2022, in Glen Cove, N.Y. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

Fool me once …

Just because someone speaks confidently, dresses well and acts friendly does not mean the person is honest. Pay attention to what people say – the content of their verbal messaging.

Don’t fall prey to body language or seemingly sincere behavioral impressions, which actually have no correlation to actual truthfulness. As my research has shown, the appearance of sincerity is misleading. It is a myth that eye contact means someone is telling you the truth and that a roving gaze or elevated blinking means they are lying.

Some people just look honest but they are pulling the proverbial wool over your eyes. Some people look sketchy and appear unbelievable, but what they say is truthful.

Santos’ disgrace is a teachable moment for citizens. As the proverb goes: Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

David E. Clementson, Assistant Professor, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Georgia

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. 

Stanley Stoutamire, Jr.

     Stanley Stoutamire, Jr., a resident of Calera and senior at John Carroll Catholic High School, spent March 4 – 11 in Washington D.C. as one of two delegates from Alabama to the U.S. Senate Youth Program.  This prestigious program selects two outstanding young leaders from each state, plus the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Schools.  Selection for the program is based on leadership abilities, commitment to volunteer work, and academic achievement, along with recommendations from school officials.

     Young Mr. Stoutamire was the guest speaker at a recent meeting of the Shelby County Democratic Party.  With poise and eloquence unusual in someone still too young to vote, Stanley entertained an enthralled audience, in person and on Zoom, with his description of the arduous application and selection process, his whirlwind week of meetings with government officials, tours of government buildings and national monuments, plus becoming friends with other high school seniors from all over the country.

     The most memorable public figures with whom he met were Senator John Hickenlooper and Justice Sonia Sotomayor, both of whom spoke in depth of their own paths toward a life of public service, and who encouraged the young leaders to embrace unexpected opportunities.  Stanley and Ella Duus, the other Alabama delegate who is from Huntsville, were also scheduled to meet with Alabama’s senators; Senator Tuberville was in a meeting at the appointed time, but they enjoyed a lively conversation with the personable Senator Katie Britt.

      Stanley Stoutamire, Jr. is now back at home in Calera, where he lives with proud parents Stanley, Sr. and Clarissa, with loads of photos and memories, and a renewed appreciation of the effort that goes into making government work for all Americans.  Although his sights are set on medical school at this time, who knows what opportunities might arise for this talented, promising young man.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Questions about your state’s delegates, alternates or state selection process:

Dr. Carolyn A. Jones at cajones@alsde.edu or (334) 694-4768.

For general information about the United States Senate Youth Program:

Program Director Ms. Rayne Guilford at rguilford@hearstfdn.org or (800) 425-3632.

Alabama Students Selected for United States Senate Youth Program

     Students Headed to Washington, D. C. and to Receive $10,000 Scholarship

January 10, 2023, Washington, D.C. —The United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) announces that high school students Ms. Ella Ryan Duus and Mr. Stanley Jerome Stoutamire, Jr. will join Senator Tommy Tuberville and Senator Katie Britt in representing Alabama during the 61st annual USSYP Washington Week, to be held March 4 — 11, 2023. Ella Duus of Huntsville and Stanley Stoutamire of Calera were selected from among the state’s top student leaders to be part of the 104 national student delegation. Each delegate will also receive a $10,000 college scholarship for undergraduate study.

The USSYP was created by Senate Resolution 324 in 1962 and has been sponsored by the Senate and fully funded by The Hearst Foundations since inception. Originally proposed by Senators Kuchel, Mansfield, Dirksen and Humphrey, the Senate leadership of the day, the impetus for the program as stated in Senate testimony is "to increase young Americans’ understanding of the interrelationships of the three branches of government, learn the caliber and responsibilities of federally elected and appointed officials, and emphasize the vital importance of democratic decision making not only for America but for people around the world."

     Each year this extremely competitive merit-based program provides the most outstanding high school students - two from each state, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity - with an intensive week-long study of the federal government and the people who lead it. The overall mission of the program is to help instill within each class of USSYP student delegates more profound knowledge of the American political process and a lifelong commitment to public service. In addition to the program week, The Hearst Foundations provide each student with a $10,000 undergraduate college scholarship with encouragement to continue coursework in government, history and public affairs. All expenses for Washington Week are also provided by The Hearst Foundations; as stipulated in S.Res.324, no government funds are utilized.

     Ella Duus, a senior at New Century Technology High School, serves as the president of the Student Government Association.She is a National Merit Semifinalist, a two-time national qualifier in Congressional debate, and a RISE Global Winner. She is also the co-founder of Datakata LLC, a machine learning startup that has contracted with NASA, and has won first place in the 2022 Alabama Economics Challenge. Additionally, Ella is the Speech and Debate captain, Model United Nations founder and head delegate, and Academic Team captain for her school. Ella served as the Federalist chair at Alabama Girls State.

     She plans to enroll in a Bachelor’s and Master’s program in public policy and computer science. Upon graduation from college, she intends to seek hands-on experience in the technology industry before entering a public service career field.

UNITED STATES SENATE YOUTH PROGRAM

2023 Alabama Delegate Announcement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

Helena Annual Christmas Parade - Senator April Weaver

"Our crew had a wonderful time in Helena at the annual Christmas Parade. What a great crowd and huge parade! Great job City of Helena-Helena, Alabama!"

 

3 ways AI can help farmers tackle the challenges of modern agriculture

Farming today is as much about data as hardware. AP Photo/Nati Harnik

Joe Hollis, Iowa State University

For all the attention on flashy new artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT, the challenges of regulating AI, and doomsday scenarios of superintelligent machines, AI is a useful tool in many fields. In fact, it has enormous potential to benefit humanity.

In agriculture, farmers are increasingly using AI-powered tools to tackle challenges that threaten human health, the environment and food security. Researchers forecast the market for these tools to reach US$12 billion by 2032.

As a researcher studying agricultural and rural policy, I see three promising developments in agricultural AI: federated learning, pest and disease detection and forecasting prices.

Pooling data without sharing it

Robotics, sensors and information technology are increasingly used in agriculture. These tools aim to help farmers improve efficiency and reduce chemical use. In addition, data collected by these tools can be used in software that uses machine learning to improve management systems and decision-making. However, these applications typically require data sharing among stakeholders.

A survey of U.S. farmers found that more than half of respondents said they do not trust federal agencies or private companies with their data. This lack of trust is linked to concerns about sensitive information becoming compromised or being used to manipulate markets and regulations. Machine learning could reduce these concerns.

Federated learning is a technique that trains a machine learning algorithm on data from multiple parties without the parties having to reveal their data to each other. With federated learning, a farmer puts data on a local computer that the algorithm can access rather than sharing the data on a central server. This method increases privacy and reduces the risk of compromise.

If farmers can be persuaded to share their data this way, they can contribute to a collaborative system that helps them make better decisions and meet their sustainability goals. For example, farmers could pool data about conditions for their chickpea crops, and a model trained on all of their data could give each of them better forecasts for their chickpea yields than models trained only on their own data.

An AI-driven giant robot armed with lasers is a major threat – to weeds.

Detecting pests and disease

Farmer livelihoods and global food security are increasingly at risk from plant disease and pests. The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that worldwide annual losses from disease and pests total $290 billion, with 40% of global crop production affected.

Farmers typically spray crops with chemicals to preempt outbreaks. However, the overuse of these chemicals is linked to harmful effects on human health, soil and water quality and biodiversity. Worryingly, many pathogens are becoming resistant to existing treatments, and developing new ones is proving to be difficult.

Reducing the amount of chemicals used is therefore paramount, and AI may be part of a solution.

The Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers has created a mobile phone app that identifies pests and disease. The app, “Tumaini,” allows users to upload a photo of a suspected pest or disease, which the AI compares with a database of 50,000 images. The app also provides analysis and can recommend treatment programs.

If used with farm management tools, apps like this can improve farmers’ ability to target their spraying and improve accuracy in deciding how much chemical to use. Ultimately, these efficiencies may reduce pesticide use, lessen the risk of resistance and prevent spillovers that cause harm to both humans and the environment.

Crystal ball for prices

Market volatility and fluctuating prices affect how farmers invest and decide what to grow. This uncertainty can also prevent farmers from taking risks on new developments.

AI can help reduce this uncertainty by forecasting prices. For example, services from companies such as Agtools, Agremo and GeoPard provide AI-powered farm decision tools. These tools allow for real-time analysis of price points and market data and present farmers with data on long-term trends that can help optimize production.

This data allows farmers to react to price changes and allows them to plan more strategically. If farmers’ economic resilience improves, it increases the likelihood that they can invest in new opportunities and technologies that benefit both farms and the larger food system.

AI for good

Human innovation has always produced winners and losers. The dangers of AI are apparent, including biased algorithms, data privacy violations and the manipulation of human behavior. However, it is also a technology that has the potential to solve many problems.

These uses for AI in agriculture are a cause for optimism among farmers. If the agriculture industry can promote the utility of these inventions while developing strong and sensible frameworks to minimize harms, AI can help reduce modern agriculture’s impact on human health and the environment while helping improve global food security in the 21st century.

Joe Hollis, PhD student in Rural Sociology and Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.

A massiveMassive planet too big for its own sun pushes astronomers to rethink exoplanet formation

LHS 3154b, a newly discovered massive planet that should be too big to exist. The Pennsylvania State University

Suvrath Mahadevan, Penn State; Guðmundur Kári Stefánsson, Princeton University, and Megan Delamer, Penn State

Imagine you’re a farmer searching for eggs in the chicken coop – but instead of a chicken egg, you find an ostrich egg, much larger than anything a chicken could lay.

That’s a little how our team of astronomers felt when we discovered a massive planet, more than 13 times heavier than Earth, around a cool, dim red star, nine times less massive than Earth’s Sun, earlier this year.

The smaller star, called an M star, is not only smaller than the Sun in Earth’s solar system, but it’s 100 times less luminous. Such a star should not have the necessary amount of material in its planet-forming disk to birth such a massive planet.

The Habitable Zone Planet Finder

Over the past decade, our team designed and built a new instrument at Penn State capable of detecting the light from these dim, cool stars at wavelengths beyond the sensitivity of the human eye – in the near-infrared – where such cool stars emit most of their light.

Attached to the 10-meter Hobby-Eberly Telescope in West Texas, our instrument, dubbed the Habitable Zone Planet Finder, can measure the subtle change in a star’s velocity as a planet gravitationally tugs on it. This technique, called the Doppler radial velocity technique, is great for detecting exoplanets.

“Exoplanet” is a combination of the words extrasolar and planet, so the term applies to any planet-sized body in orbit around a star that isn’t Earth’s Sun.

Thirty years ago, Doppler radial velocity observations enabled the discovery of 51 Pegasi b, the first known exoplanet orbiting a Sunlike star. In the ensuing decades, astronomers like us have improved this technique. These increasingly more precise measurements have an important goal: to enable the discovery of rocky planets in habitable zones, the regions around stars where liquid water can be sustained on the planetary surface.

The Doppler technique doesn’t yet have the capabilities to discover habitable zone planets the mass of the Earth around stars the size of the Sun. But the cool and dim M stars show a larger Doppler signature for the same Earth-size planet. The lower mass of the star leads to it getting tugged more by the orbiting planet. And the lower luminosity leads to a closer-in habitable zone and a shorter orbit, which also makes the planet easier to detect.

Planets around these smaller stars were the planets our team designed the Habitable Zone Planet Finder to discover. Our new discovery, published in the journal Science, of a massive planet orbiting closely around the cool dim M star LHS 3154 – the ostrich egg in the chicken coop – came as a real surprise.

LHS 3154b: The planet that should not exist

Planets form in disks composed of gas and dust. These disks pull together dust grains that grow into pebbles and eventually combine to form a solid planetary core. Once the core is formed, the planet can gravitationally pull in the solid dust, as well as surrounding gas such as hydrogen and helium. But it needs a lot of mass and materials to do this successfully. This way to form planets is called core accretion.

A star as low mass as LHS 3154, nine times less massive than the Sun, should have a correspondingly low-mass planet forming disk.

An artist’s rendering of LHS 3154b. Video Credit: Abby Minnich.

A typical disk around such a low-mass star should simply not have enough solid materials or mass to be able to make a core heavy enough to create such a planet. From computer simulations our team conducted, we concluded that such a planet needs a disk at least 10 times more massive than typically assumed from direct observations of planet-forming disks.

A different planet formation theory, gravitational instability – where gas and dust in the disk undergo a direct collapse to form a planet – also struggles to explain the formation of such a planet without a very massive disk.

Planets around the most common stars

Cool, dim M stars are the most common stars in our galaxy. In DC comics lore, Superman’s home world, planet Krypton, orbited an M dwarf star.

Astronomers know, from discoveries made with Habitable Zone Planet Finder and other instruments, that giant planets in close-in orbits around the most massive M stars are at least 10 times rarer than those around Sunlike stars. And we know of no such massive planets in close orbits around the least massive M stars – until the discovery of LHS 3154b.

Understanding how planets form around our coolest neighbors will help us understand both how planets form in general and how rocky worlds around the most numerous types of stars form and evolve. This line of research could also help astronomers understand whether M stars are capable of supporting life.

Suvrath Mahadevan, Verne M. Willaman Professor of Astronomy & Astrophysics, Penn State; Guðmundur Kári Stefánsson, NASA Hubble Fellow, Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, and Megan Delamer, Graduate Student, Department of Astronomy, Penn State

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.