text: Cloaked in an eye-catching, solid mahogany box, Cohiba Black cigars are available in four frontmarks:
  The Cohiba line of premium cigars is handcrafted in the Dominican Republic and is a favorite among cigar aficionados. In addition to the Cohiba hallmark line, General Cigar manufactures and markets Cohiba XV cigars which was introduced in 2001.
  General Cigar Co., Inc., a subsidiary of Swedish Match, manufactures and markets handcrafted cigars for the premium market. Passionate about delivering cigars of the finest quality, General Cigar produces Macanudo, Partagas, Cohiba, Punch, Excalibur, Hoyo de Monterrey, La Gloria Cubana and several other industry-leading brands. In addition, the company grows its own proprietary Connecticut Shade wrapper tobacco, as well as natural and candela wrapper in the Dominican Republic. General Cigar also operates Club Macanudo, a cigar bar in New York City.
  
  From pretrial detention to sentencing to community supervision, data can inform and guide how our justice system works but, for better and for worse, that data doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Holly Swan and Sharmini Radakrishnan discuss the approaches we can take—and the expertise we’ll need—to eliminate racial bias in the justice system.
  Eric Tischler: Hi, and welcome to The Intersect. I'm Eric Tischler. Abt Associates tackles complex challenges around the world, ranging from improving health and education, to assessing the impact of environmental changes. For any given problem, we bring multiple perspectives to the table. We thought it would be enlightening and maybe even fun to pair up colleagues from different disciplines so they can share their ideas, and perhaps spark new thinking about how we solve these challenges.
  Today's a little unusual. I'm alone in Abt Studio One with engineer John and our colleagues, Holly Swan and Sharmini Radakrishnan, are calling in from our offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Holly is a sociologist and implementation scientist with expertise in criminal justice and behavioral health. She's directed several mixed-methods evaluations of practices and initiatives within the justice system. Sharmini is an economist specializing in quantitative research methods for health and criminal justice. She's analyzed and validated risk assessment tools used by federal and state criminal justice agencies. Thank you both for joining me.
  Eric: So, Holly, I came to you with an idea for this podcast, because I'd read about the challenges of applying AI and machine learning to the justice system sentencing procedures, but you said there are potential applications throughout the justice system. Can you tell us what we're trying to solve for, with these technologies?
  Holly: Sure. Thanks, Eric. Yeah, I think, the idea of artificial intelligence and machine learning as applied to criminal justice is relatively new. Although, the problems that it's trying to solve are pretty old. So thinking about the justice system as a continuum, there's many points along the way, from pretrial all the way through re-entry after somebody serves time, onto community supervision even, where decisions need to be made. And at each of those decision points, there is a possibility that bias gets introduced into those decisions based on a variety of factors.
  So, I think the use of standardized tools and assessments is something that is currently occurring in the criminal justice system. And the idea of using technology to help make these decisions more objective and try to reduce the bias that goes into the decision making, is what the appeal is around using data science. I think there are some risks to it as well that we'll probably get into today, but that's the overall thinking around this idea.
  Eric: Got it. And so, Sharmini, do you want to talk a little bit about what technologies and approaches we might want to take to address both these concerns and the benefits of these technologies?
  Sharmini: Sure. I'll start off talking about what a risk assessment is a little bit more, and then we can talk about some of the challenges of using them. So a risk assessment is a tool that uses an algorithm to predict an individual risk of reoffending. And that risk prediction is used at different points in the criminal justice system to inform—it could be the sentence that they receive or the supervision conditions that someone receives when they're coming out of prison.
  So, risk assessments are a tool that use an algorithm to predict an individual's risk of reoffending. And that risk prediction that's generated by the assessment is used at various points in the criminal justice system to either inform the sentence that someone receives or the supervision conditions that someone might get when they're released from prison. And it's typically not the only thing that's influencing the sentence or the supervision conditions, but it's a factor. Increasingly, I think, in most agencies, some type of assessment is being used.
  And the types of factors that get included in these models are things like criminal history, education, employment, substance use, antisocial behavior, and pro-criminal attitudes. So the way these tools are developed, is that the developer starts with some sample of individuals that ideally represents the target population that you're trying to assess.
  Sharmini: So for example, if it's people who are being released from prison and going out into the community, then they would start with a sample of individuals like this.
  Sharmini: And then they essentially apply a predictive model to these individuals. Where the predictors are the factors that I just mentioned, criminal history and various other things. So the stronger the predictor is, the greater the weight that it gets assigned in this algorithm. And so that's how these tools are developed.
  A challenge with these assessments of course is that they're developed using data, and the data on criminal history reflects not just the individual's behaviors and choices, but also decisions made by police officers, prosecutors, and judges. And so to the extent that there is some bias in those decisions, the data will reflect that bias. And of course the algorithm then replicates that bias, because the algorithm is only as good as the data underlying it.
  So that's, I'd say, the main challenge with risk assessments that I think has been highlighted a lot recently in the media, that's seems to be the key issue.
  Eric: We're trying to combat biases, like the idea that the technology and the data, rather, really can help us look past biases, but the struggle is to remove the biases from the data in the first place, from that sample.
  Sharmini: Exactly. I mean, that's exactly right. I think just to put things in context and, really, Holly already mentioned this. Before risk assessments were used, the agencies were relying on almost purely subjective judgments from law enforcement officers and judges. And so the intention of risk assessment is really to introduce a standardized approach to reduce bias, or ideally remove bias. But as you've said, it's the data itself does reflect that bias.
  Eric: We're trying to correct for bias, but what is the effect and impact of bias? Why do we need to correct for it? I guess let's answer that question, and then talk about what are we doing to address these challenges.
  Holly: Industry officials are trying to figure out where to devote their resources, and trying to figure out how best to both administer justice, but also prevent future recidivism, criminal activity, and keep the community safe. And then, in addition to that, we have this new problem of mass incarceration, and we're trying to reduce the number of people in prison who maybe don't need to be. And so one of the ideas is that by eliminating bias, we can administer justice more fairly, but then also reduce the prison population by keeping people in the community who maybe don't need to be incarcerated.
  I think also the idea of risk assessment in particular, so there's a framework in criminal justice, the risk, needs and responsivity framework, or RNR for short, which basically says you should focus your resources on people at the highest risk for failing on supervision or for committing new crimes. And of course, there's bias that goes into that as well. We have assumptions about who might be more likely to recidivate or to commit criminal crimes. And by reducing those biases, and instead of formulating it again on something more objective, criminal history or other criminogenic thinking type of things that are evidence-based, then those decisions are more appropriate for making decisions to focus resources on those people.
  Eric: Right. Okay, great. And so what are we doing to help get to that point, to help sanitize that data or level those perspectives?
  Sharmini: So, one thing that Abt does is we do independent validations of risk assessments. I think that is one of the most important things that has to be done with effective risk assessments, it's what a validation study is, is that it assesses the accuracy of the instrument by comparing the predicted risks to the actual outcomes that we would observe in the individuals who are given the assessment. And I think independent validation studies that are done by a third party that is not affiliated with the developer of the instrument, and not affiliated with the agency that is administering the instrument, is really important. And Abt has done those studies, both for federal agencies and for state agencies. And with these assessments, you look at the accuracy of a tool and you can look at subgroups as well, to the extent that you have a large enough sample, to see how these error rates look like for the overall population and also for the different subgroups that you're interested in.
  I'd say that's, I think, the biggest thing, but also, we've seen in our work where we do some qualitative research as well, the implementation of these tools is really important, and having the staff get the right training to be able to use the tools correctly, is also really important. I think training and retraining, regular retraining, is really important to make sure they're actually using the tool as intended.
  Holly: Yeah. And I'll just reiterate that a little bit. I think, so in addition to validating tools that agencies are developing for their specific agencies or populations, there are existing actuarial risk assessments out there that have been demonstrated to have some validity already. And so that next step of getting those implemented—and getting them used appropriately—is really important. Rather than reinventing the wheel with new tools, maybe we could figure out, okay, does the application of this tool in this context work?
  Eric: So, that's what I was going to ask, what are the next steps? We know what the process is, or what we need to do to make these tools more effective. What do we do about getting them implemented so we can have that more balanced approach to the justice system?
  Sharmini: I think some of the things we've mentioned are really ongoing things that need to happen regularly. But I think aside from that, I would say, getting stakeholder input at the time that any tool is implemented, is really important. Because sometimes these tools are developed by a company that is in a different location and the sample they've used to build a tool is a very different sample from the target population that a criminal justice agency is using in another part of the country. They may be just aspects of the tool that don't always translate. And so their officers, or whoever is administering, may just not be using it correctly for that reason. Sometimes the wording of the questions are they may not really be understanding it, and then recording the answers accurately. And so, getting that input ... Again, this all goes back to implementation, how important implementation is. It's really important in that regular retraining, I think.
  Holly: And I'll add, in addition to training on using the tool, I think training in capturing quality data and reliably captured data that's consistently collected in order to be used appropriately. And I think a challenge there that agencies face, and another area that I think machine learning and AI can help with, is a lot of agencies collect data through case notes. And so it's just written texts and not discrete fields, that maybe it can be input into a statistical program, for example, to make predictions. And so something that machine learning and different technologies can use to take that, all that body of narrative texts and turn it into some sort of discreet categories, would be a way to move the field forward, I think.
  
  Career pathways is an important approach for delivering integrated services that help individuals achieve success in postsecondary education and training and obtain employment in high-growth, high-demand, and high-wage occupations.
  The U.S. Department of Education funded the Moving Pathways Forward: Supporting Career Pathways Integration project to build on previous adult education activities in developing career pathways systems at state and local levels and to leverage other career pathways investments made by the U.S. Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services.
  Abt Associates, in partnership with Manhattan Strategy Group and CORD Communications, provided multi-tiered technical assistance to support states’ efforts to integrate and scale adult education career pathways systems. Abt led the intensive technical assistance component of the project in which 13 states’ adult education offices received customized technical assistance to strengthen their career pathways state systems and expand the delivery of career pathways in local communities. Implementation data were collected to develop models for scaling career pathways at the local level. The three-year project was completed in 2016.
  Career Pathways Planner: A Resource Guide for Adult Education State Leaders to Promote Local Career Pathways Systems
  
  We supply a full range of Avenger Stands & Support. Please contact our Sales Team who will be happy to offer pricing and advice to find a solution that meets your requirements.
  
  Originally published in 1900 and set in fin-de-siecle California, Heirs of Yesterday by Emma Wolf (1865-1932) uses a love story to explore topics such as familial loyalty, the conflict between American individualism and ethno-religious heritage, and anti-Semitism in the United States.
  The introduction, co-authored by Barbara Cantalupo and Lori Harrison-Kahan, includes biographical background on Wolf based on new research and explores key literary, historical, and religious contexts for Heirs of Yesterday. It incorporates background on the rise of Reform Judaism and the late nineteenth-century Jewish community in San Francisco, while also considering Wolf's relationship to the broader literary movement of realism and to other writers of her time.
  As Cantalupo and Harrison-Kahan demonstrate, the publication history and reception of Heirs of Yesterday illuminate competing notions of Jewish American identity at the turn of the twentieth century. Compared to the familiar ghetto tales penned by Yiddish-speaking, Eastern European immigrant writers, Heirs of Yesterday offers a very different narrative about turn-of-the-twentieth-century Jewish life in the United States.
  The novel's central characters, physician Philip May and pianist Jean Willard, are not striving immigrants in the process of learning English and becoming American. Instead, they are native-born citizens who live in the middle-class community of San Francisco's Pacific Heights, where they interact socially and professionally with their gentile peers.
  Tailored for students, scholars, and readers of women's studies, Jewish studies, and American literature and history, this new edition of Heirs of Yesterday highlights the art, historical value, and controversial nature of Wolf's work.
  
  Don't get caught without power again. Keep an this GD15N power supply around for security. With the power adapter, your GD15N could provides high-definition images for enhanced movies and video game graphics.
  
  Book Direct with the Owner at The Peninsula in South Perth with Accommodation Kalgoorlie. Click on the Email or Call Now button to get your special price, talk with the owner to get a special price.
  Accommodation Kalgoorlie welcomes The Peninsula, the ideal South Perth WA Holiday outlet for all the family to enjoy. We have made sure that we have thought of everything you would expect from your vacation with many features, click on the email or phone now button to get in touch with the owner.
  Is The Peninsula in South Perth your property on Accommodation Kalgoorlie, please claim your listing and subscribe to update your contact details and receive your phone calls and emails from your clients.
  
  Please do keep supporting local foodbanks if you can – so many people are struggling to feed their families at the moment. You can donate at the COOP and Tesco in Chellaston (not sure about Aldi and Lidl). If you, or someone you know, needs help do get in touch with Derby City Mission.
  
  ACLU of Florida Statement on House Bill Restricting Amendment 4 | ACLU of Florida | We defend the civil rights and civil liberties of all people in Florida, by working through the legislature, the courts and in the streets.
  TALLAHASSEE, FL – The House Criminal Justice Subcommittee today voted to pass CRJ 3, a bill that undermines Amendment 4, the constitutional amendment that restores the eligibility to vote to Floridians with felony convictions after they fulfill all terms of their sentences. The amendment, which excludes those convicted of murder or sexual offenses, passed with 64.55% of the vote this past November.
  The bill places unconstitutional caveats to the implementation of Amendment 4 by restricting the eligibility to vote for individuals who should have their voting rights back, as Floridians intended. Among other deficiencies, it would effectively disenfranchise two categories of returning citizens for life: those with very small financial obligations that they will never be able to pay due to poverty and those with financial obligations for non-violent property crimes. It also seeks to alter the amendment’s self-executing language by extending far beyond what voters intended when they passed Amendment 4.
  “CRJ 3 is an affront to Florida voters who approved Amendment 4. If this bill passes, it will undoubtedly continue to disenfranchise those who have already served their time and paid their debt to society. This is exactly what we were worried about from the beginning – legislative attempts to undermine the will of the people who voted for second chances and to rid Florida of the last vestiges of its Jim Crow era past. This bill will broaden the narrow exclusions for murder and sexual felony offenses in the amendment, and broaden what was contemplated by completion of one’s sentence to include all sorts of court fees and supervision costs unrelated to one’s sentence. This will inevitably prevent individuals from voting based on the size of one’s bank account.
  “The House bill raises serious constitutional concerns. It is overbroad, vague and thwarts the will of the people and extends far beyond what any reasonable person would conclude the voters intended when they passed Amendment 4. We urge lawmakers to uphold the will of Florida voters and withdraw this deficient bill.”
  
  Update financial accounts with a particular status using this easy to read image that keeps all users aware of actions that are required or prohibited based on management decisions. This regular (Large) stamp displays the "No Deposits" message in a professional quality format, as shown in the picture, allowing your staff to quickly stamp multiple legal, financial and miscellaneous documents in a timely fashion. It is an easy to use tool with a practical wooden handle that firmly secures the 7/8" tall by 2-1/4" wide rubber stamp and requires the use of an ink pad in your color of choice.
  I love using my large no deposits rubber stamp. It is an extremely effective stamp and I highly recommend it to anyone who works in the legal, or financial, or other related fields. What's more, is that it is a huge time saver which is really clutch because it frees up time so I can work on other things.
  My no deposits rubber stamp had arrived today and I cannot be more pleased with the shipping, and certainly the price. I will definitely be re-ordering this particular stand once the ink begins to wear out. Furthermore, the impressions are very bold and vibrant looking.
  
  The cruise boom is continuing full steam ahead into 2019, with plenty of new ships -- piled high with innova...
  Shipbuilding trends are leaning toward sustainability (with industry-first hybrid and LNG-powered ships on the roster) and high-tech gadgetry (from onboard AI-enabled digital assistants to excursion submarines).
  And it's not just ocean-going ships that are being revolutionized: New modernized designs are redefining the riverboat travel experience, too, while an explosion of extravagant expedition vessels will bring unprecedented luxury to the farthest reaches of the globe.
  So get ready for some serious vacation daydreaming, with these 10 exciting new cruise ships on the horizon for 2019:
  Italian-flavored Costa Cruises debuts its newest flagship and largest vessel to date -- the 5,200-passenger Costa Smeralda -- in October, for a series of 5- to 7-night Mediterranean sailings.
  Jam-packed with the line's signature whiz-bang megaship amenities (waterslides, kids' clubs, rock climbing, mini-golf and more) and a design scheme inspired by Italian locales, the ship will bring plenty of innovations for the brand, too.
  Among the new-for-Costa highlights: an onboard Italian design museum (dubbed CoDe, or Costa Design) and a glass-bottomed skywalk that reaches more than 200 feet above sea level.
  But where Costa Smeralda really innovates is in its standing as the first major cruise ship to be powered by clean-burning, eco-friendly liquified natural gas (LNG), affording a significant reduction in emissions. The first of two LNG-powered vessels slated for the brand, its to-be-named, LNG-powered sister ship will follow suit in 2021.
  The new year introduces a duo of technologically tricked-out ships for MSC Cruises, including the 4,434-passenger MSC Bellissima in March and the 4,880-passenger MSC Grandiosa in November (each are running inaugural seasons in the Med, with 7-night sailings).
  MSC Bellissima is a sister ship to the 2017-launched MSC Meraviglia, and will replicate some of its predecessor's most popular innovations, including an indoor, Mediterranean-styled retail-and-dining promenade capped by a 262-foot-long LED ceiling; high-tech RFID-chipped guest wristbands (that will even let you geo-locate your kids on board); and two new show concepts from Cirque du Soleil at Sea.
  But MSC Bellissima ups the ante with some cool new features all its own, too, including a magic school for kids; a tapas restaurant from Michelin-starred chef Ramón Freixa; and the absolute coup: an in-cabin digital personal assistant dubbed "Zoe."
  This voice-enabled AI device is on hand to answer all of guests' cruise-related questions -- in seven languages -- from the comfort of their cabins (think Alexa, but for the high seas).
  Zoe will sail along with the MSC Grandiosa, as well, which will be the first of the line's Meraviglia-Plus class of ships, and MSC's largest vessel to date; ship details are still emerging, but you can expect returning favorites like an even longer LED screen-capped promenade and new Cirque shows, as well as novel twists like the first fine art museum at sea.
  The Galapagos archipelago is tailor-made for cruise-based exploration, and thanks to Celebrity Cruises' new Celebrity Flora, you can island-hop here in style.
  The 100-passenger vessel -- purpose-built for the destination and proposing all-inclusive pricing -- will run 10- and 11-night Galapagos journeys year-round (including a two-night, pre-cruise hotel stay and air transfers from Quito), following its launch in May.
  When not snorkeling with sea turtles or admiring the showy dance of the blue-footed boobies, you can retreat on board to the plunge pool, private cabanas or telescope-equipped stargazing platform, or simply hunker down in the all-suite staterooms -- the largest accommodations on offer in the region -- many of which come trimmed with touch-of-a-button "infinite verandas."
  Or, opt in for the first glamping experience at sea, a sunset-to-sunrise, top-deck, extra-fee experience that bundles in naturalist-guided stargazing; alfresco, camping-themed wining-and-dining; and sleeping under the stars in a cabana.
  It's not just ocean-going ships making waves in 2019 -- AmaWaterways' 196-passenger AmaMagna will be revolutionizing riverboat design with its expanded shape, measuring roughly twice the width of standard riverboats, at 72 feet wide.
  That extra interior real estate means more room for multiple dining venues (four in all), a heated pool, an expansive wellness studio and a water sports platform at the ship's aft, offering intimate excursions aboard the 14-passenger Sundowner boat.
  Hop aboard to experience it all firsthand come May, when AmaMagna puts on a season of 7-night Danube River sailings, between Budapest and Vilshofen an der Donau, Germany.
  Princess Cruises' 3,660-passenger Sky Princess is unveiled in October, offering a brief run of 7- to 14-night Mediterranean voyages, before moving on for a winter season in the Caribbean.
  The line's 18th ship -- and the fourth in Princess's Royal class of ships -- Sky Princess will import some fleet-mate favorites (like poolside Movies Under the Stars and SeaWalk, a glass-bottomed, ocean-spanning walkway that cantilevers the ship's side), but will tout some unique evolutionary features for the brand, too, including a new suite category.
  A duo of top-deck crowning Sky Suites, with space for five guests, boast Princess' largest private balconies at 700 square feet. Expect, too, enhancements over previous Royal class ships, including upgrades to the adults-only Sanctuary that will double the number of cabanas; as well as the addition of two more Jacuzzis and a new pool at the aft of the ship.
  In July 2019, Hurtigruten sets out to prove that in no way does expedition cruising have to mean roughing it.
  With a sleek aesthetic, the 530-passenger MS Roald Amundsen is literally the Rolls-Royce of cruise ships (the luxurious car brand designed the ship's engine).
  Expect modern Scandinavian design and plenty of exciting features: a bi-level indoor/outdoor observation deck, a gadget-filled science center (where guests might hobnob with expedition staff or review footage from the ship's underwater drones), a wellness area with a panoramic sauna, an infinity pool, and aft suites with private outdoor Jacuzzis.