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“April hath put a spirit of youth in everything” -- William Shakespeare, Sonnet 98
Stanford University | Santa Clara County California -
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ALWAYS ON
Cherry Blossom Tea Latte
A delicate, floral spring drink featuring the subtle cherry-like aroma and slight saltiness of sakura (cherry blossoms). Made with steeped sakura tea or a flavored base, combined with steamed or frothed milk, and often sweetened or enhanced with syrup or powder for color and flavor. It's lighter and more tea-forward than a coffee-based latte. Available hot or with ice at the UnCommon Grounds Cafe in the Neuberger Centennial Campus Center
Rain & Lightning
"The rain began again. It fell heavily, easily, with no meaning or intention but the fulfilment of its own nature." - F. Scott Fitzgerald, "The Great Gatsby"
Teacher Pensions
Pensions do not prepare teachers for 50+ year careers. Benefits are heavily backloaded: little value accrues early in a career, with most wealth spiking only after 20–30 years tied to final average salary and service years. Teachers leaving before vesting (often 5–10 years) get back only their contributions, sometimes with minimal interest — no employer match.
Quadrivium: Spring
Educational settlements should be magical places. The stack informing the beauty of these "cities-within-cities" changes 100 to 1000 times per day globally. Titles are time-sensitive, copyright protected and land in public law. We monitor the action continuously to formulate response to public consultations. Topics appear on our CALENDAR and explored every day at 15:00 UTC. Recommend refresh of this web page once or twice to see timeliest information.
Flood Abatement Equipment
Seasonal severe weather usually spawns floods and inspire a revisit of relevant codes and standards for mitigating water damage. FM Global, an accredited standards developer, has posted updates of its flood management data sheets; available to the public for free.
Lightning Protection Systems
Seasonal weather patterns inspire a revisit of lightning protection standards in the United States. While the wiring "technicals" in NFPA 780 are fairly well stabilized it is time well spent updating our understanding of best practice and how recent lightning damage informs the direction of research with special attention to campus chapels and outdoor athletic events. Public input on the 2029 Edition will be received until June 3, 2026.
Current Issues & Recent Research
We met both deadlines for the IEEE National Electrical Safety Code and the NFPA National Electrical Code. We are now in the process of getting ready for next week's meeting of the Education & Healthcare Facililties Committee.
Readings: The “30-30” Rule for Outdoor Athletic Events Lightning Hazard
Rule of Thumb for lightning safety: Go indoors if, after seeing lightning, you cannot count to 30 before hearing thunder. Stay indoors 30 minutes after hearing the last clap of thunder.