In Federalist No. 2, John Jay [1764 Graduate of King’s College; now Columbia University] argues that a strong union under the Constitution will promote peace and prosperity, which are conducive to the spread of religion and morality:
“Providence has been pleased to give this one connected country to one united people—a people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion, attached to the same principles of government, very similar in their manners and customs… These considerations, and many others that might be mentioned, prove, and experience confirms it, that artificial distinctions and separations of [America’s] land are essentially unnatural; and that they may be eradicated and extirpated by the united and advisable efforts of individuals and communities…”
The Federalist Papers discuss themes of morality, social order, and the importance of a cohesive society, they do not explicitly emphasize the importance of Christian faith to the American constitutional republic. The authors generally focused on principles of governance, political theory, and the structure of the proposed Constitution.
“The experience of the sacred is a universal phenomenon,
found in all human societies, however primitive or complex.”
Harvard’s Memorial Chapel, also known as Memorial Church, was designed by the architectural firm Coolidge, Shepley, Bulfinch, and Abbott. The church was dedicated on Armistice Day, November 11, 1932, as a memorial to Harvard alumni who died in World War I.
John Harvard, the namesake of Harvard University, was a 17th-century English minister lived on campus from 1607 – 1638 and conformed to Puritan ideal of dedicating Sundays to worship, prayer, and rest.
First week of classes and it’s good to see our common room blackboards covered in math again! Welcome home to all our mathematicians! #harvardmathpic.twitter.com/Jm7OauGA6r
— Harvard Department of Mathematics (@HarvardMath) September 3, 2025
The central element in any educational space is the writing board; sometimes a “blackboard”, “chalkboard” or a “dry-erase board” — all used for teaching. During today’s session we survey the product and the installation standards with special attention to optics, illumination, mounting heights and distances.
EN 14434: Writing boards for educational institutions.The primary European standard specifically for school whiteboards and chalkboards. Covers safety requirements (no sharp edges, stable frames, non-toxic surfaces), magnetic performance, writability/erasure, durability, fire resistance, and hygiene (easy-to-clean surfaces).
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ASTM F2957-13 (2021): Standard Specification for Whiteboards.American standard for dry-erase whiteboards. Defines requirements for surface gloss, erasability, stain resistance, scratch resistance, and color fastness.
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Some state level procurement and installation standards — Kansas and Connecticut, for example — are de facto standards for visibility, accessibility and mounting hardware.
Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.
School stuff from reindeers to guest readers. We’re having a blast in 2nd grade! 🫶🏼 pic.twitter.com/TnRaWXHRC0
The hearings officially run from April 19–24 (or up to April 28 in some references), with daily sessions typically from morning into the evening. This is part of the 2024–2026 code development cycle for the 2027 editions of the International Codes (I-Codes). Stakeholders discuss and testify on public comments submitted for proposed changes to building, residential, mechanical, plumbing, fire, energy, and related codes. It is the first combined Public Comment Hearing under ICC’s updated process.
The Group B suite now under consideration is listed below: .
International Energy Conservation Code
International Building Code – Structural Only
International Existing Building Code
International Green Construction Code
International Residential Code
We have covered noteworthy concepts in all of the foregoing codes and standards in previous posts and during our daily and monthly coverage of commenting opportunities the ICC makes available to its stakeholders. Today we are simply providing a link to the webcast of the hearings that will take place for the better part of 10 days for about 10 hours per day. The webcasts proceed on two tracks and may be accessing by clicking on the image below:
USE TRACK 2
The agenda of the hearings generally proceeds according to the core document for this phase of the Group B consensus product development; linked below:
We encourage education industry facility managers (especially those with operations and maintenance data) to participate in the ICC code development process. The business models of education industry trade associations as “opinion aggregators” is limited by many factors so we encourage direct participation by workpoint experts involved with individual school districts, colleges, universities, university-affiliated healthcare systems and trade schools.
“Efeito de Sol” | Lucílio de Albuquerque (1877-1939)
Our tenure in the 2026 National Electrical Code will result in at least a 10 percent reduction in the cost of building premise wiring — (mostly in the feeder power chain) — in healthcare facilities; based on the results of last month’s meeting of Code Making Panel 15.
Assuming electrical power infrastructure is 15 percent of in a $920 million facility like this (excluding interior moveable fixtures), that would have meant an approximate $14 million reduction in cost. That cost savings cannot be realized because it was designed to an earlier version of the National Electrical Code.
University of Michigan – Bell Telephone Laboratories – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract. A method is developed for representing any communication system geometrically. Messages and the corresponding signals are points in two “function spaces,” and the modulation process is a mapping of one space into the other. Using this representation, a number of results in communication theory are deduced concerning expansion and compression of bandwidth and the threshold effect. Formulas are found for the maximum rate of transmission of binary digits over a system when the signal is perturbed by various types of noise. Some of the properties of “ideal” systems which transmit at this maxmum rate are discussed. The equivalent number of binary digits per second for certain information sources is calculated.
Claude Shannon (30 April 1916 in Petoskey, Michigan, USA – 24 Feb 2001 in Medford, Massachusetts, USA) founded the subject of information theory and he proposed a linear schematic model of a communications system. His Master's thesis was on A Symbolic Analysis of Relay and… pic.twitter.com/d8q8og02oA
It’s actually good to see college kids on Spring Break drinking & socializing instead of playing video games alone in their room on a macrodose edible.
See the clip that caused your grandma to email me & call me a “disgusting person” here: pic.twitter.com/E00Xqx06Wy
“The Dressmaking Factory” 1914 | Charles Ginnar @Tate
Building inspection authority refers to the governmental power granted to building officials and inspectors to enforce building codes, conduct site visits, review plans, issue permits, and ensure construction complies with safety, structural, zoning, and environmental standards.
Its significance lies primarily in protecting public safety by identifying hazards, preventing structural failures, fire risks, and health threats from substandard work. This authority mandates minimum quality levels, reducing risks of collapses, injuries, or fatalities—lessons reinforced by historical disasters.
It promotes accountability among designers, builders, and owners, ensuring durability, energy efficiency, and accessibility while supporting sustainable urban development. By halting non-compliant projects or requiring fixes, inspectors safeguard communities, preserve property values, and minimize long-term costs from repairs or liabilities.
Ultimately, this regulatory framework upholds trust in the built environment, balancing innovation with life-protecting oversight for residents, workers, and the public.
Here are the primary **ANSI-accredited standards developers that develop and publish model building codes, related consensus standards for construction safety, inspection, structural integrity, energy efficiency, plumbing, fire safety, and similar areas incorporated into or referenced into public law:
– **International Code Council (ICC)** — Develops the International Building Code (IBC), International Residential Code (IRC), International Fire Code (IFC), and other model codes widely adopted for building inspection and enforcement, plus ANSI-approved standards.
Link: https://www.iccsafe.org
– **National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)** — Publishes NFPA 1 (Fire Code), NFPA 101 (Life Safety Code), NFPA 5000 (Building Construction and Safety Code), and numerous fire safety/inspection standards referenced in building codes.
Link: https://www.nfpa.org
– **International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO)** — Develops the Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) and Uniform Mechanical Code (UMC), key for plumbing/mechanical inspections.
Link: https://www.iapmo.org
– **ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers)** — Develops ANSI/ASHRAE standards like 90.1 (Energy Standard for Buildings) and others for HVAC, energy, and indoor air quality, often referenced in codes.
Link: https://www.ashrae.org
– **ASTM International** — Produces thousands of material, testing, and performance standards (e.g., for construction materials and inspection methods) referenced in building codes.
Link: https://www.astm.org
– **American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)** — Develops ASCE 7 (Minimum Design Loads), ASCE 24 (Flood Resistant Design), and structural/inspection-related standards.
Link: https://www.asce.org
Building inspection authority, while essential for safety, can be abused through corruption, such as inspectors accepting bribes to approve substandard work, overlook violations, expedite permits, or ignore stop-work orders. Examples include cases in New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Honolulu, where inspectors took cash, gifts, or favors to falsify approvals or fast-track processes, enabling unsafe or non-compliant construction.This abuse distorts fair competition, favors corrupt developers or connected parties, and erodes public trust in regulatory systems.
More critically, it limits economic development by inflating costs (e.g., bribes add 10-30% to projects), causing delays from bureaucratic extortion or backlogs exploited for payoffs, deterring legitimate investment, and misallocating resources toward sub-optimal or risky builds.Corruption in permitting and inspections discourages foreign and domestic developers, slows urban growth, reduces infrastructure quality, and hampers long-term competitiveness. In booming markets, it exacerbates inefficiencies, diverts funds from productive uses, and ultimately stifles job creation and sustainable expansion.
Meet Cameron, a Buildings & Inspections Academy grad & a Building Inspector for the City of Cincinnati. He is proud of the work he does to make sure buildings are up to code & ensure housing is safe and sanitary.
Battle of the Bands broke its fundraising record, earning $21,000 this year for the Joe Espy Needs-Based Scholarship! 🤯 This scholarship helps UA students in need of essential financial assistance due to a temporary hardship or emergency. Read more: https://t.co/WbB8jUebbupic.twitter.com/pjmBdV1BHa
Thanks to YOU @ua_babh raised 630,624 pounds of food! 🎉 Huge congrats to @AuburnU for winning the competition this year! Together we raised more than 1.2 million pounds of food! 😱 More details about the competition → https://t.co/agP51r7xXfpic.twitter.com/SOQHVoTctX
New update alert! The 2022 update to the Trademark Assignment Dataset is now available online. Find 1.29 million trademark assignments, involving 2.28 million unique trademark properties issued by the USPTO between March 1952 and January 2023: https://t.co/njrDAbSpwBpic.twitter.com/GkAXrHoQ9T
