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☆ Duke Energy to sell distributed generation portfolio in $364 million deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 5 (Reuters) - Utility firm Duke Energy (DUK.N) said on Wednesday it would sell its commercial distributed generation business to private equity firm ArcLight Capital Partners in a $364 million deal. The business includes operating assets of REC Solar, which Duke had acquired in 2015, development pipeline and operations and maintenance portfolio, as well as distributed fuel cell projects managed by Bloom Energy (BE.N). Duke said it expects about $259 million of proceeds from this sale, which the company would use to help incorporate more than 30,000 megawatts of regulated renewable energy into its system by 2035. Electric utilities in the United States are streamlining their operations to shift away from fossil fuels toward cleaner energy sources, including solar and wind, to meet climate goals. "The sale of commercial renewables businesses streamlines our portfolio and provides the resources to support our growing regulated territories," said Duke President and CEO Lynn Good.

Persons: Duke, Lynn Good, Tanay, Shilpi Majumdar Organizations: Duke Energy, ArcLight Capital Partners, REC, Bloom Energy, Electric, Duke, Thomson Locations: United States, Bengaluru

☆ Opinion | The Debate Over Affirmative Action Isn’t Over
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

To the Editor:Re “Justices Rule Against Affirmative Action” (front page, June 30):While I share the outrage directed at the Supreme Court’s striking down affirmative action, as the founder and director of a preschool day care center and having devoted my life to early childhood interventions, I know that the starting point for creating equality in this country was never at the college level. The reason affirmative action has been necessary to equalize college admissions is that the needed resources have not been spent to prepare children for learning when they first start formal schooling. Children of color from disadvantaged backgrounds need quality preparation to develop attitudes, skills and behaviors that are essential to eventually passing their classes, graduating and writing a college application. While protesting the recent Supreme Court decision is cathartic, the real solution to providing a diverse population ready for college is to pour more resources into early schooling and a variety of parent supports. Then a wider demographic will be qualified and admitted and can enjoy the fruits of higher education.

Persons: Susan Cedar Locations: Susan Cedar Santa Fe

☆ 5 Scenic E.V. Road Trips
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Lauren Sloss | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

travel:California: up the coast, down through wine countryCalifornia is lousy with scenic drives, from its extensive, 840-mile coastline to routes through the magnificent Sierra Nevada. The route is also the focus of a new electric vehicle-centric initiative, with eight new E.V. New Mexico: The High Road to the Enchanted CircleA road trip between Santa Fe and Taos — two standout New Mexico destinations — is a decided win. The route has beautiful scenery, a dose of history and is easily doable in an E.V. planning tool and then hit the 56-mile High Road to Taos, which passes through villages with epic views of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

Persons: “, ”, Cowing, Martin Ray, Mount, it’s, Worthy, that’s, Butch Cassidy Organizations: Point, Gifford, Forests, Elk Loop, Rockies, New, Sundance Locations: United States, California, Sierra Nevada, San Francisco, Point Reyes, Bodega Bay, Jenner, Mendocino ., Philo, Boonville, Sonoma, Healdsburg, Sebastopol, Petaluma, Washington, Chahalis, Naches, Okanogan, Wenatchee, Mount Rainier, Colorado, Elk, Elk Loop Colorado, Carbondale, Crested, Gunnison, New Mexico, Santa Fe, Taos, —, Cristo, El, Red, Taos Ski Valley

Weekly orders this year now average 26 as the strike by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) halted many film and TV productions, Elyea said. Florists, caterers, costume suppliers and others have seen orders dwindle as many are still recovering from disruptions caused by COVID-19. No new talks are scheduled between major Hollywood studios and the writers, who are seeking higher pay and guardrails around the use of artificial intelligence. The strike's impact would be magnified if the SAG-AFTRA actors union also goes on strike when its contract expires on Friday. "Now, there's the writers' strike, and we're losing the movies that have been so good to us."

Persons: Pam Elyea's, Elyea, Kevin Klowden, Klowden, You've, Ross Garner, Danni Sapp, Sapp, Cristina, John Iverson, Cristina Iverson, Iverson, we're, hadn't, Lisa Richwine, Dawn Chmielewski, Danielle Broadway, Rollo Ross, Mary Milliken, Sandra Maler Organizations: Hollywood, Hire, Writers Guild of America, SAG, WGA, Milken Institute, NFP's Entertainment Group, Services, Netflix, HBO, Television Fund, Vogue, FBI, Thomson Locations: ANGELES, Los Angeles, California, United States, COVID, New Mexico, Santa Fe, Waco

☆ Honduras military takes over prisons after dozens die in riot
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Fredy... Read moreTEGUCIGALPA, June 26 (Reuters) - Honduras' military began taking control of the country's violent prisons on Monday, following a gang dispute that left 46 inmates dead at a women's detention center last week, officials said. Official video showed hundreds of shirtless male inmates, many tattooed and with their heads shaved, arranged on the floor of Honduras' high-security Tamara prison with their arms over their heads, guarded by heavily armed soldiers. In Honduras, some 20,000 inmates coexist in 26 overcrowded prisons, with a United Nations report saying that the country's prisons are 34.2% over capacity. Military police on Monday seized pistols, machine guns, ammunition, magazines and grenades from an area of the Tamara prison occupied by the Barrio 18 gang, Colonel Fernando Munoz told reporters. Reporting by Gustavo Palencia in Tegucigalpa Writing by Valentine Hilaire Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Tamara, Xiomara Castro, Jose Manuel Zelaya, Antonio Coello, Fernando Munoz, Gustavo Palencia, Valentine Hilaire, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Military Police, Honduras Armed Forces, REUTERS, El, Defense, Armed Forces, United, Military, Thomson Locations: Honduras, Esperanza, Tegucigalpa, TEGUCIGALPA, United Nations

☆ ‘Rust’ Armorer Transferred Narcotics on Day of Shooting, Prosecutor Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Julia Jacobs | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The original armorer on the film “Rust,” who was charged with involuntary manslaughter after a gun that was loaded with live ammunition fired on the set and killed the cinematographer, will face an additional charge of evidence tampering related to narcotics, a special prosecutor in the case said Thursday. The new charge against the armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, “relates to the transfer of narcotics to another person” on Oct. 21, 2021, the day of the shooting, “with the intent to prevent criminal prosecution,” the prosecutor, Kari T. Morrissey, said in a statement. A lawyer for Ms. Gutierrez-Reed said that she intended to plead not guilty to both the evidence tampering and the involuntary manslaughter charges. The additional charge was announced as tensions between prosecutors and the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office over the case began to spill into public view. An investigator who was removed from the case after working on it for months for the district attorney’s office sharply criticized the sheriff’s office earlier this week in an email to prosecutors.

Persons: ”, Hannah Gutierrez, Reed, “, Kari T, Morrissey, Gutierrez, Robert Shilling Organizations: Sheriff’s Office Locations: Santa Fe

☆ 'Rust' armorer faces new charge of tampering with evidence
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Andrew Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 22 (Reuters) - The armorer for the movie "Rust" transferred drugs to someone on the day the film's cinematographer was shot dead in 2021, special prosecutors said on Thursday as she faced a new charge of tampering with evidence. Prosecutors said the additional charge against Hannah Gutierrez-Reed related to the Oct. 21, 2021, transfer of "narcotics to another person with the intent to prevent the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of herself." Special prosecutors and the SFCSO did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Bowles was sent Shilling's message in error then asked to delete it by prosecutors, according to emails in the court filing. Bowles called the new charge "retaliatory and vindictive" and described the email exchange as "beyond troubling," saying it backed his motion for the case to be dismissed."

Persons: Prosecutors, Hannah Gutierrez, Reed, " Gutierrez, Jason Bowles, Halyna Hutchins, Robert Shilling, ” Shilling, Bowles, Gutierrez, Hutchins, Alec Baldwin, Andrew Hay, Chris Reese, Matthew Lewis, Diane Craft Organizations: ”, Thomson Locations: Santa Fe , New Mexico, Santa Fe

☆ Why families should lease a car instead of buying
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

"Family needs change very quickly," Stumpe said. That's why Kelly Stumpe, a former car salesperson who runs the educational car-buying site The Car Mom, often advises families to lease vehicles instead of buying. Why young families should delay car purchasesPre-pandemic, leasing accounted for about 30% of all new vehicle retail sales. What families quickly find out is family needs change very quickly," said Stumpe, who regularly posts family car reviews to her 422,000 Instagram followers. Stumpe said families often rush into buying a car that they are hoping to drive forever.

Persons: Kelly Stumpe, Stumpe, they're Organizations: Morning, Leasing, Hyundai, Nissan, Ford Expedition Locations: Hyundai Santa Fe

☆ I'm the 'Car Mom' and review family cars for a living. Here's my favorite models and why 100,000-mile vehicles shouldn't scare you.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Kelly Stumpe, also known as the Car Mom, has test-driven and toured 65 family cars. The problem with buying a family car is, it's not just a matter of: "I don't like the drive." It is not as simple as if it has a seatbelt, it can fit a car seat. In the Sequoia, I can only put it in the middle seat, so I could not have another child in this car who would still be in a car seat. It actually allows you to access the third row when a car seat is still installed.

Persons: Kelly Stumpe, Alexa St, Stumpe reevaluated, St . Louis, there's, I've, shouldn't, Joe Raedle, it's, Stumpe, It's, they're, I'm, Sienna Organizations: Morning, Toyota, Hyundai, Nissan, Ford Expedition, Toyota Sequoia, Leasing, Ford The Ford Expedition, General Motors, Honda, VW Locations: John, St, Louis , Missouri, St ., Florida, Hyundai Santa Fe, Autotrader, Edmunds, Yukon

☆ My final, unexpected conversation with Cormac McCarthy
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

My last conversation with Cormac McCarthy, the acclaimed and elusive novelist who died last week at 89, came as unexpectedly as the first. "I thought you said Cormac McCarthy edited your book on theoretical physics?" "I got the manuscript back in the mail, and it was marked up on every page," Randall told me. By the time I interviewed Randall, Cormac was spending his days at the Santa Fe Institute, a theoretical-research institute in the piñon foothills of New Mexico. "Don't do this to yourself," McCarthy told the guy, before shutting the door in his face.

Persons: Cormac McCarthy, McCarthy, —, Belying, Cormac, Lisa Randall, Randall, Gil, Jon, MacArthur, Murray Gell, Mann, it's, Einstein, they're, Doug Erwin, David Krakauer, David, Stella Maris, I'd, He'd, David Kushner Organizations: Wired, Stone, Harvard, drifters, Santa Fe Institute, Atari Locations: backwoods Florida, piñon, New Mexico, Texas, Tennessee, El Paso, Rolling Stone, SFI

☆ I'm a mom that's test-driven or toured 65 family cars — these are my favorite models and top tips for buying
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —The armorer on the set of the movie “Rust” likely was hungover when she loaded a prop gun used by actor Alec Baldwin that fired a live round of ammunition during a rehearsal, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, prosecutors said in a court filing. Witnesses told investigators Hannah Gutierrez Reed “was drinking heavily and smoking marijuana in the evenings during the shooting of Rust,” prosecutors said in the Friday filing. Gutierrez Reed will plead not guilty to two counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the October 2021 shooting, an attorney for her has said. A final decision on charges against Baldwin would be made before August 8, prosecutors said in the Friday filing. Through their respective attorneys, both Gutierrez Reed and Halls accused Baldwin of deflecting blame onto others.

Persons: Alec Baldwin, Halyna Hutchins, Hannah Gutierrez Reed “, ”, Gutierrez, Gutierrez Reed’s, Gutierrez Reed, Joel Souza, Jason Bowles, ” Bowles, “, Baldwin, ” Kari Morrissey, Jason Lewis, Mr, Luke Nikas, Alex Spiro, Hannah, Jae C, CNN’s Chloe Melas, Dave Halls, ” Baldwin, Hutchins ’, Baldwin –, Matthew Hutchins, “ Rust ” Organizations: CNN, ” CNN Locations: Mexico, Santa Fe , New Mexico, New Mexico, Montana

☆ Cormac McCarthy, Novelist of a Darker America, Is Dead at 89
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Dwight Garner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Knopf, his publisher, said in a statement that this son, John, had confirmed the death. Mr. McCarthy’s fiction took a dark view of the human condition and was often macabre. He decorated his novels with scalpings, beheadings, arson, rape, incest, necrophilia and cannibalism. “There’s no such thing as life without bloodshed,” he told The New York Times magazine in 1992 in a rare interview. While not quite as reclusive as Thomas Pynchon, Mr. McCarthy gave no readings and no blurbs for the jackets of other writers’ books.

Persons: Cormac McCarthy, grotesques, ”, Knopf, John, scalpings, “, Thomas Pynchon, McCarthy Organizations: New York Times Locations: American, Santa Fe

☆ Cormac McCarthy, Pulitzer-winning novelist known for apocalyptic Westerns, dies at 89
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Daniel Arkin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 16: Writer Cormac McCarthy attends the premiere of "The Road" at Clearview Chelsea Cinemas on November 16, 2009 in New York City. McCarthy's death was announced in a statement by his publisher, Penguin Random House. "Cormac McCarthy changed the course of literature," Nihar Malaviya, the CEO of Penguin Random House, said in a statement. Two novels published in the 2000s — "No Country for Old Men" and "The Road" — drew wide acclaim and found favor in Hollywood. McCarthy published his final two novels in 2022: "The Passenger" and "Stella Maris," interconnected narratives that grappled with morality, science and faith.

Persons: Cormac McCarthy, Jim Spellman, WireImage, Pulitzer, John McCarthy —, McCarthy, Olivetti Underwood, Malaviya, James Wood, King James Bible, Melville, Conrad, Faulkner, Charles Joseph McCarthy Jr, Albert Erskine, William Faulkner, James Joyce, —, Joel, Ethan Coen, Viggo Mortensen, Stella Maris Organizations: Chelsea Cinemas, Penguin Random, Yorker, The New York Times, University of Tennessee, Random, Penguin Locations: New York City, Santa Fe , New Mexico, American, Providence , Rhode Island, Knoxville , Tennessee, Hollywood

☆ Cormac McCarthy, dark genius of American literature, dead at 89
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Rosalba O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The book was made into a movie - as were 2005's "No Country for Old Men" and 2006's Pulitzer Prize-winning "The Road." He granted a rare exception for Oprah Winfrey in 2007, telling her: "I don't think (interviews) are good for your head. In a statement, Nihar Malaviya, CEO of Penguin Random House, said, "Cormac McCarthy changed the course of literature. McCarthy was married three times, divorcing his third wife Jennifer Winkley in 2006. Writing by Rosalba O'Brien; additional reporting by Joseph Ax; editing by Diane Craft and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Cormac McCarthy, McCarthy, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, John McCarthy, Little, Oprah Winfrey, God, Charles Joseph McCarthy Jr, Cormac, Lee Holleman, Anne DeLisle, Faulkner's, Joel, Ethan Coen, Stella Maris, Nihar Malaviya, Jennifer Winkley, Cullen, John, Rosalba O'Brien, Joseph Ax, Diane Craft, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: YORK, Penguin Random, New York Times, Air Force, Thomson Locations: American, Santa Fe , New Mexico, Providence , Rhode Island, Tennessee, America, Europe, Knoxville , Tennessee, El Paso , Texas, Santa Fe, Texas

☆ Opinion | Cloisters U.: The Sounds of Silence in a College Class
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-11 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

To the Editor:Re “Universities, Meet Monasteries,” by Molly Worthen (Opinion guest essay, May 28):Dr. Worthen’s essay resonated deeply with me. I am a tutor and the incoming dean of St. John’s College, Santa Fe, one of the oldest colleges in America, a college with an enduring commitment to seminar-style discussion and the close reading of the Great Books. Without fanfare, year after year, St. John’s continues to offer a program of study that requires little more than a great book, a seminar table and the participants around that table. St. John’s is not a monastery, but it does provide a cloister where devices and the pull of the virtual world have no place. The education requires the students to be present to their thoughts, to the comments of their classmates, to the beauty of the texts.

Persons: Molly Worthen, John’s, Worthen Organizations: “, John’s, St Locations: Santa Fe, America

☆ Where to go this summer: A dozen destination ideas
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Marnie Hunter | Jane Levere | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Peru"Peruvians are welcoming travelers back with open arms," says travel one travel expert. And perhaps most importantly, the city offers excellent value, in part because it will be the winter/low season there during the Northern Hemisphere’s summer. It’s home to three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including megalithic temples that date to the 4th millennium BC. Although summer is the rainy season, Gellis says showers are often brief and intermittent. AlbaniaAlbania is a Mediterranean gem that’s likely to be less crowded this summer than Greece and Croatia, says Joao Donadel, another EMBARK Beyond travel advisor.

☆ Two killed in shootout between bikers in New Mexico
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Andrew Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TAOS, N.M., May 27 (Reuters) - Two people were killed and six wounded in a shootout during a motorcycle rally in Red River, northern New Mexico, on Saturday, state police said. Some of the wounded were transported to hospital in Taos, New Mexico, around 25 miles to the southwest, state police said on Twitter. Taos town banned alcohol sales after the shooting and called a curfew. The incident comes eight years after nine bikers were killed and 18 wounded in a shootout in Waco, Texas involving members of motorcycle groups such as the Bandidos and Cossacks. Reporting By Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Man charged with murder after 3 dead in New Mexico biker shootout
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Andrew Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Reto Mesmer/Handout via REUTERSTAOS, New Mexico, May 28 (Reuters) - A biker was charged with murder after a shootout between rival motorbike gangs at a motorcycle rally in Red River, northern New Mexico, on Saturday in which three gang members were killed and five wounded, police said. "It was just gangbanger on gangbanger," Johnson told a press conference in Red River, adding that no bystanders were injured. The confrontation began in Albuquerque, New Mexico's largest city, over a photo involving another gang, then spilled over to Red River's annual Memorial Day motorcycle rally, Johnson said. Red River Mayor Linda Calhoun advised local businesses to close. Reporting by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Andrea RicciOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Inside Santa Fe’s Priciest Zip Code
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( Jessica Flint | Photographs Brad Trone For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

In north-central New Mexico, in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, is the state’s capital, Santa Fe. The heart of the city—whose population is 89,008, according to census data—is its 400-year-old plaza. But outside of town, the 87506 ZIP Code has Santa Fe’s priciest residential real estate as ranked by median listing price, according to Realtor.com. ( News Corp , parent of The Wall Street Journal, operates Realtor.com.) The ZIP Code is a roughly 200-square-mile circle beginning just north of the plaza and extending about 35 minutes northeast and 45 northwest into open land, where gated communities like Las Campanas and large estates offer luxury country living while being close to the city’s culturally-rich energy.

The comments came a month after prosecutors dropped a criminal charge against Baldwin over Hutchins' death in 2021, citing new evidence. Prosecutors said additional testing was required to see if the hammer was modified, the source of the modification and what impact it might have on the firearm's performance. Ammunition found on the set was requested for testing for manner of assembly and origin of manufacture, prosecutors said. Prosecutors have yet to reveal how live rounds got onto the set of the low-budget movie production. "Rust" weapons handler Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is the only person still facing charges over Hutchins' death.

☆ Hyundai and Kia agree to $200 million legal settlement over theft issues
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Peter Valdes-Dapena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Korean automakers Kia and Hyundai have agreed to an estimated $200 million class action legal settlement over claims that many of the companies’ cars and SUVs are much too easy to steal. The settlement, which could cover up to nine million vehicle owners, provides a total of up to $145 million that will be distributed to owners whose vehicles have been stolen to help cover their out-of-pocket losses. Hyundai and Kia operate as separate companies in the United States, but Hyundai Motor Group owns a large stake in Kia, and various Hyundai and Kia models share much of their engineering. Hyundai dealers will also affix window stickers stating that the vehicle has anti-theft software installed. As part of the agreement, installation of the anti-theft software will now be done automatically along with any dealer service appointment without the owner having to specifically request it.

☆ Gun-loving Texas, where most households own a firearm, has become an epicenter of mass shootings
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Emma Tucker | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +23 min

CNN and the GVA define a mass shooting as a shooting that injures or kills four or more people, not including the shooter. They argue that more firearms and higher gun ownership increases public safety – a stance that continues to be at odds with gun violence experts and data. The area around the Robb Elementary School signs has become a memorial dedicated to the victims of the May 24 mass shooting. Mass shootings are just a piece of that, and the strategies that we’re laying out will impact mass shootings. They’ll also impact a lot of other types of gun violence and that’s absolutely critical to saving lives,” Horwitz said.

☆ High schools and colleges require students to pay mandatory fees to walk at graduation. Critics say this discriminates against low-income students.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Misha Valencia | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Most high schools and colleges charge students a graduation fee to attend the ceremony. Critics say these high, mandatory fees discriminate against low-income students. She told Insider that nothing had changed since she graduated; the school was still charging mandatory graduation fees. High schools and colleges across the US are charging students mandatory graduation fees — sometimes called a walking fee — to walk in their graduation ceremonies. For example, California and Minnesota have barred mandatory graduation fees in public schools.

☆ Argentina's ruling Peronist party wins provincial elections
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 14 - Argentina's ruling Peronist party posted strong wins in elections Sunday, appearing to hold control over three provinces just months ahead of presidential elections in which support for the party is flagging. The results come as a relief to President Alberto Fernandez's ranks as economic unrest has shaken the party's hold over the country. Fernandez has said he is not seeking re-election, however a Peronist coalition is still aiming to hold onto power. Although the outcome is good news for the party, its fate in the presidential elections will likely be decided in more populous provinces, such as Buenos Aires, Cordoba, Santa Fe and Mendoza. Reporting by Maximilian Heath; Writing by Kylie Madry; Editing by Sonali PaulOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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