DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Daniel A. Moore, Founder of an African American Museum, Dies at 88
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Adam Nossiter | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Daniel A. Moore Sr., who created a pioneering African American history museum in Atlanta when such initiatives were rare, died on March 4 in Decatur, Ga. His death, in a hospital, was confirmed by his son Dan Moore Jr.Mr. Moore started his eclectic collection of artifacts in 1978 and in 1984 moved it to a handsome 1910 brick building on Auburn Avenue, known as “Sweet Auburn” for its centrality to African American history. The building, which had been a schoolbook depository and a tire warehouse, was “erected brick by brick by African American masons,” the museum says. Mr. Moore took a longer view, though memories of the civil rights movement were still fresh when he was getting started, with help from a handful of well-off patrons and from Fulton County, which donated the land. Unlike the King Center, his focus was on the whole African American experience, from Africa to the Middle Passage, and from enslavement to the civil rights campaign and beyond.

Persons: Daniel A, Moore, Dan Moore Jr, Martin Luther King Jr Organizations: Auburn, King Center Locations: Atlanta, Decatur , Ga, Auburn, Fulton County, American, Africa

Is ancient Roman concrete better than today's? Most modern concrete starts with Portland cement, a powder made by heating limestone and clay to super-high temperatures and grinding them up. The ancient builders mixed materials like burnt limestone and volcanic sand with water and gravel, creating chemical reactions to bind everything together. Now, scientists think they’ve found a key reason why some Roman concrete has held up structures for thousands of years: The ancient material has an unusual power to repair itself. Even though Roman concrete lasted a long time, it couldn't hold up heavy loads: “You couldn’t build a modern skyscraper with Roman concrete,” Oleson said.

Persons: they’ve, ”, Carlos Rodriguez, Navarro, John Oleson, Vitruvius, Admir, Rome —, Marie Jackson, Jackson, ” Jackson, Rodriguez, Cecilia Pesce, They’d, ” Pesce, Thirumalini Selvaraj, Selvaraj, Oleson, Masic Organizations: —, Spain’s University of Granada, University of Victoria, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Utah, University of Sheffield, Vellore Institute of Technology, Army Corps of Engineers, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: Canada, Portland, Rome, Copan, Honduras, England, India

☆ Rice, beer, and urine mixed into ancient structures could help explain how they're still standing after millennia
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AdvertisementAdvertisementIs ancient Roman concrete better than today's? Her research has found that the key could be in the specific volcanic materials used by the Romans. According to Selvaraj's research, in humid areas of India, builders used local herbs that help structures deal with moisture. Even though Roman concrete lasted a long time, it couldn't hold up heavy loads: "You couldn't build a modern skyscraper with Roman concrete," Oleson said. Instead, researchers are trying to take some of the ancient material's specialties and add them into modern mixes.

Persons: —, they've, Carlos Rodriguez, Navarro, John Oleson, Domenico Stinellis, Vitruvius, Admir, Rome —, Marie Jackson, Jackson, Rodriguez, Moises Castillo, Cecilia Pesce, They'd, Pesce, Mark Schiefelbein, Thirumalini Selvaraj, Selvaraj, Oleson, Masic Organizations: Service, Spain's University of Granada, University of Victoria, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Utah, AP, University of Sheffield, Vellore Institute of Technology, Army Corps of Engineers, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science, Educational Media Group Locations: Canada, Portland, Rome, Copan, Honduras, England, India

☆ Egypt’s Government Is Bulldozing the City of the Dead - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Hussein Omar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

It’s the oldest continuously used Muslim cemetery in the world, and its history traces back to the seventh century. The City of the Dead has always been a city of the living as well. My visits, and the small acts of tending to the dead, helped me make meaning out of a meaningless loss. The City of the Dead does not just house my own personal memories; it is one of the last remaining open repositories of Egypt’s historical memory. Now the dead are being exhumed, the living are being evicted, and the historic buildings that house them both are being bulldozed.

Persons: grievers, Cairenes, I’ve, Abdel Fattah el Locations: Cairo, al, City, Egypt

☆ 30-year-old bought a ‘cheap, old’ abandoned house for $16,500—and completely transformed it: Take a look inside
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-23 | by ( Betsy Sweeny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

But I wasn't planning to buy a house until I saw the 3,075-square-foot McLain House during a walk through the East Wheeling Historic District. Mickey Todiwala for CNBC Make ItUpon entrance, you're greeted by a grand stairway, complete with a fireplace tucked into the corner. Photo: Mickey Todiwala for CNBC Make ItThe third floor will be my next big project. What I love about living in a cheap, old houseThere are so many wonderful things about this house. Photo: Mickey Todiwala for CNBC Make It

Persons: Betsy Sweeny, Thomas B, McLain, John G, Eliza Ellen Baird McLain, Mickey Todiwala, Kellie Organizations: Wheeling National Heritage Area, East, East Wheeling Historic, Friends, CNBC Locations: Wheeling , West Virginia, Wheeling, East Wheeling, East Wheeling Historic District, Portugal, Warren , Ohio, McLain

As the death toll from the powerful earthquake in Morocco rose on Saturday, questions mounted about the vulnerability of buildings in the seismically active North African country. Moroccan architects said that the hardest-hit areas were rural zones with many earthen houses that were unable to withstand the shaking. “Given the state of the buildings in the country, this death toll was kind of expected,” said Anass Amazirh, an architect in the northern city of Casablanca. Image Rescue workers searching for survivors in a collapsed house in Moulay Brahim, in Morocco’s Al Haouz Province, on Saturday. “These more extreme risks occur regularly in other countries,” the report said, “and Morocco cannot avoid taking them into account.”

Persons: “, ”, Anass Amazirh, Omar Farkhani, Fadel Senna, Mr, Farkhani, Al Hoceima, Al, Haouz, Amazirh Organizations: Morocco’s, of Architects, ., Agence France, Moroccan, Organization for Economic Cooperation, Development Locations: Marrakesh, Morocco, Moroccan, Casablanca, Al Haouz, Moulay Brahim, Morocco’s Al Haouz Province, Al, Al Hoceima, “

☆ Fact Check-Georgia mason-run missing kids program does not involve microchipping minors
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An initiative by freemasons called the Georgia Child Identification Program states it helps parents collect basic information about their children in an identification kit in case they were to go missing. There is no evidence the program, also known as GACHIP, involves inserting microchips in minors, contrary to social media posts. Similar masonic initiatives in Missouri and Ontario, in Canada, clarify their programs do not involve microchipping children (mochip.org/faq/), (www.masonichip.ca/newsList.php). (here)The Grand Lodge of Georgia and the GACHIP did not respond to a request for comment. A Georgia masons’ program called the Georgia Child Identification Program (GACHIP) helps parents put together an identification kit with basic information about their children.

Persons: Kit ”, Read Organizations: freemasons, Reuters, National Center for, of Locations: Georgia, Missouri, Ontario, Canada, of Georgia

☆ UK relaxes visa rules to attract foreign construction workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 17 (Reuters) - Britain has added a number of construction roles to its "shortage occupation list", allowing the building industry to bring in staff from abroad more easily to help employers struggling to fill positions. Bricklayers, masons, roofers, roof tilers, slaters, carpenters, joiners and plasterers will benefit from cheaper visas and more relaxed employment criteria under the changes. Britain is suffering from acute labour shortages in some sectors meaning employers are keen to recruit workers from abroad. The list already includes care workers, civil engineers and laboratory technicians, plus healthcare roles. Those working in a shortage occupation can be paid 80% of the job's usual rate and still qualify for a visa, the government statement said.

Persons: Rishi Sunak's, Sarah Young, William James Our Organizations: Conservative Party, Advisory, European Union, Thomson Locations: Britain, Sunak

☆ Opinion | The Power of Community, Religious and Secular
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Richard HolmerLake Forest, Ill.To the Editor:Rabbi David Wolpe’s essay strikes a number of chords, one of which is to affirm the value of affiliating with a house of worship. Faith institutions offer individuals and families the opportunity to be an integral part of a community, sharing times of joy and sadness. Reuven H. TaffSacramentoTo the Editor:Rabbi David Wolpe writes with his usual grace, eloquence and wisdom. Idealistic people who join together in furtherance of social goals often create supportive and nurturing associations. A union can create a sense of community, as can a group like the Masons or a sports club.

Persons: Richard, David Wolpe’s, Wolpe, Reuven H, David Wolpe Organizations: Public Religion Research, Taff Sacramento, Masons Locations: Lake Forest

☆ How should slavery and its legacy be taught in U.S. schools?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +21 min

My father said it was indeed a general store, supplying everything from hog feed to eggs to coal for heating. On the map, I believe General’s Store is the building at the bottom and labeled S for store. Black people appeared chiefly in sketches aimed at amusing readers – or when they were accused of crimes against whites. The letter writer said a young white man in a general store had ordered the woman to put down a can of oil she was examining. I could find nothing that accounted for the death of General Bryson, let alone any item that mentioned the Bryson family.

Persons: General Bryson, General, G.G, Bryson, George T, Williamson, Bryson’s, Lucille Newton Duke, Boots ”, Barbara Newton, Bud Moon, Jim Smith, Smith, Sheriff Culberson, Moon, “, Martin Luther King Jr, Ancestry.com, Jim Crow’s, Margaret Burnham, Burnham, ”, –, ” Burnham, Isaac Gaston, Gaston –, General Bryson –, Walter White, weren’t, Patricia, Julia, I’d, LaBrenda Garrett, Nelson, Thomas Colquitt Hardman, Lamartine Hardman, Hardman, – Hardman, Harry Bryson, Harry, wasn’t, Uzell Mathis, Black, you’d, Terrie Epstein, Epstein, Chara Haeussler Bohan, Alexander Stephens, Mildred Rutherford, Bohan, ” Bohan, ” Chara Haeussler, Ron DeSantis, David Walker, DeSantis, ’ ” Bohan, Jim Crow, Carol Swain, Swain, ” Swain, Booker T, Washington . Organizations: Commerce, Herald, Calvary Baptist Church, Sanborn, Company, Library of Congress, Hurricane, Reuters, Civil, Northeastern University, National Association for, Advancement of Colored, NAACP, New York Times, Jackson County Herald, Arlington National Cemetery, Quartermaster Corps, Harmony, Black Commerce, New, Hunter College, Blacks, Georgia State University, Confederacy, Southern Poverty Law, Union, American AP, Republican, Yale, Harvard Law School, state’s Department of Education, –, demonize, Washington, Tuskegee University Locations: Jackson, Mt, Calvary, Hurricane, Hurricane Grove, Jefferson, Winder, Maxey’s, Donalsonville , Georgia, Donalsonville, Commerce, Georgia, Atlanta, Jackson County, United States, Brest, France, Arlington, Harmony Grove, Commerce Jackson County Georgia, Black, Grove, Michigan, Confederate States, America, Southern, South Carolina, Mississippi, Texas, Florida, demonize America, Virginia, Washington

☆ China wants to start using moon soil to build lunar bases as soon as this decade
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, April 12 (Reuters) - China wants to start building a lunar base using soil from the moon in five years, Chinese media reported, with the ambitious plan kicking off as soon as this decade. Ding Lieyun, an expert from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said a team is designing a robot named "Chinese Super Masons" to make bricks out of lunar soil, according to Changjiang Daily. China previously retrieved soil samples from the near side of the moon with its Chang'e-5 mission in 2020, state media reported. The country has stated that it wants its astronauts to stay on the moon for long periods once it establishes a lunar research station. Reporting by Ethan Wang, Bernard Orr and Ryan Woo; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ 10 things about ancient Egypt that movies and TV got wrong, according to an expert
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Carter Thallon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Movies and television shape what people think about ancient Egypt. Here are 10 things that "Moon Knight", "The Mummy", and others got wrong and one they got right. When it comes to ancient Egypt, they can draw the portrait of pharaohs ruling Egypt with an iron fist, cruel torture, and wicked booby-trapped pyramids. "All of the sarcophagi that I've seen in Egypt were made of stone," said Browder, an author of several books on ancient Egypt. The curse that set Imhotep on his murderous path in "The Mummy" has no historical basisIn "The Mummy," Imhotep was mummified alive.

☆ Relics found in 23 lead boxes in Mexico City cathedral
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY — Experts restoring the interior of Mexico City’s Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral said Friday they found 23 lead boxes containing religious inscriptions and relics like small paintings and wood or palm crosses. The lead containers are about the size of a mint box, and had written inscriptions dedicated to particular saints. The National Institute of Anthropology and History said they may have been placed there to provide divine protection for the cathedral or the city. The institute said that once they were catalogued, the boxes and their contents would be returned to their niches and re-covered with plaster. A perfectly preserved parchment found in the box described the time capsule’s contents, including 23 medals, 5 coins, and five small crosses made of palms.

Nov 14 (Reuters) - Squire Patton Boggs on Monday said it will open an office in Dublin next year, becoming the latest international law firm to expand into Ireland. Agnew was a founding partner of Pinsent Masons' Dublin office. A Squire Patton Boggs spokesperson said the firm is currently looking at space in Dublin's central business district. Agnew said in an email that the exact timing of his departure from Pinsent Masons "has still to be agreed." Squire Patton Boggs was created in 2014 by the merger of Washington, D.C.-founded Patton Boggs and Cleveland-founded Squire Sanders.

☆ How a maverick Brazil lawmaker helped Lula beat Bolsonaro's propaganda machine
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Gabriel Stargardter | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov 10 (Reuters) - To bring down far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, Andre Janones had to fight fire with fire. Janones also raised eyebrows among some in Lula's Workers Party (PT) for his vulgar attacks on Bolsonaro and his allies. One senior Lula aide defended the role of Janones, saying he could tread where the official campaign did not dare. He was the most prominent Lula ally to drop the gloves in a bruising run-off race that took even Bolsonaro's campaign by surprise. Despite his hell-raising, Janones has not lost sight of digital media as a public service.

☆ Brazil's rural boomtowns ensure Bolsonarismo's future
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Gabriel Stargardter | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

REUTERS/Gabriel StargardterCATANDUVA, Brazil, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The small city of Catanduva in the rural farm belt of Sao Paulo state has been ahead of the political curve in Brazil. The residents of Catanduva, who have benefited from robust Chinese demand for Brazilian commodities, are now fully behind Bolsonaro. Since Sahao stepped down in 2005, the PT has spent nearly two decades locked out of power at Catanduva's city hall. Across Sao Paulo, countless PSDB mayors and state lawmakers have, like Father Oliveira of Catanduva, thrown in their lot with Bolsonaro. Bassitt, the farmer, said the conservative values of rural, small-town Brazil were now the driving force in national politics.

Search resuls for: "Masons"

16 mentions found