Dec 2, 2020 at 8:26 p.m. UTCUpdated Dec 3, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. UTC

Ethereum art(CoinDesk archives)

Those new to crypto, such as the institutional investors recently buying into bitcoins digital gold narrative, might now be looking around for the next big thing.

With the long-anticipated arrival of phase 0 of the Ethereum 2.0 upgrade launching on Dec. 1, that could be the networks native token, ether (ETH). But analysts say ether should be judged on its own merits and not as a bitcoin replacement.

Ive always thought this digital asset space is huge and its not just bitcoin because there are going to be different applications for different things, Raoul Pal, CEO and co-founder of financial media group Real Vision, said in Real Visions documentary Ethereum An Investigation, which was released on Nov. 30. I think of the two [bitcoin and ether] as having a very nice combined asset allocation.

For Pal, an early bitcoin investor, the rationale seems even more plausible these days: As bitcoins price hits a new all-time high, the number one cryptocurrency by market capitalization is now more expensive and thus potentially a riskier bet for new investors.

It can be expected investors are looking for a new opportunity in crypto at affordable prices. Given that ether is trading roughly 59% below its all-time high of $1,432.88, it is tempting to believe theres a bargain to be had. Whats more, the Ethereum 2.0 upgrade to increase the networks scalability, security and energy efficiency has generated a lot of hype.

However, at least for now, analysts and traders who spoke with CoinDesk dont think ether will replace the FOMO over bitcoin.

For institutional investors, they are buying BTC for the digital gold narrative, Ryan Watkins, senior research analyst at Messari, told CoinDesk. ETH just isnt in that conversation yet.

Ether benefits from spillover and likely has more conversation around it from crypto-natives, Vishal Shah, founder of derivatives exchange Alpha5, told CoinDesk. For the uninitiated, [it is] hard to see how bitcoin is not the sole on-ramp.

Some analysts say that as more institutions pour money into bitcoin and push up its price, ether and other cryptocurrencies will gradually decouple from bitcoin.

Indeed, while bitcoin this week logged a record high price, ether isnt even close to its all-time high of $1,448.18. Data from CoinDesk shows the 90-day correlation coefficient between the prices of the top two cryptocurrencies, while still strong, has gradually weakened a bit since the summer from as high as 0.93 to nearly 0.7 at the beginning of December.

The thing about correlation is it can disappear at any time, Ashwath Balakrishnan, research analyst at digital asset research firm Delphi Digital, told CoinDesk. In that case, you want to understandthe core fundamentals of what you hold because if you hold ether as a proxy [to your] bitcoin exposure, and [when] prices decouple, you are now exposed to something very different.

Bitcoin has been used by many investors this year as a hedge against a drop in the purchasing power of U.S. dollars. Ether is considered the currency of the world computer, which aims to build an ecosystem of decentralized applications.

The close historical correlation between bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies may be due to how tiny the digital-asset ecosystem is relative to the global economy. The total market capitalization of crypto assets is estimated at $562 billion, a mere 1.7% of the S&P 500 stock indexs combined market cap of $32.2 trillion. With almost every crypto asset built on different fundamentals, non-bitcoin cryptocurrencies may be trending with bitcoin prices simply because the nascent market is still so small and insular.

Correlation data doesnt tell the whole story. Prices may move in tandem but the degree to which that happens is another matter. When the explosive decentralized finance (DeFi) boom hit the market during the summer, ethers price rallied to its highest in more than two years because most DeFi projects are built on the Ethereum blockchain. At the time, bitcoin was struggling to break a similar two-year record.

The market will have to wait and see what kind of real impact the ongoing Ethereum upgrade could have on its native currency because the final phase of the process is scheduled to be completed in 2023. But a major fundamental upgrade on the network underpinning ether could lead its price to move on its own fundamentals, instead of merely following bitcoins price.

The heart of ETH 2.0, which makes the entire system possible, is ether, according to a report by Messari. ETH will not only be Ethereums native store of value asset and fuel for transactions, but will also be Ethereums ultimate source of security from its role in the [proof-of-stake] system.

Thus, while bitcoin can be seen as somewhere between a store of value and a commodity on the asset superclass triangle, ether could ultimately become the first asset to be a combination of all three classes of assets: capital assets, commodities and stores of value.

When ethers price starts to be driven by its own catalysts, holding it as a proxy to having BTC exposure will not work as expected, Balakrishnan added.

See more here:
Why Ethereum and Bitcoin Are Very Different Investments - CoinDesk - CoinDesk

A California developer is trying to raise $1 billion to invest in Black and Latino communities. If successful, it would be one of the largest commercial real-estate funds ever to focus on minority neighborhoods.

Martin Muoto, chief executive of the real-estate firm SoLa Impact LLC, already runs three funds totaling $180 million. They focus on affordable housing and some commercial real estate in minority neighborhoods around South Los Angeles. The funds, which raised money from individual partners in large investors like the private-equity firm General Atlantic, have recorded double-digit average annual returns since the first fund launched in 2014.

Now, Mr. Muoto is trying to use a similar approach in cities across the U.S. that suffer from a shortage of affordable housing and from what he said are regulatory barriers that make it tougher to build. His new Black Impact Fund is focusing on large metropolises like Philadelphia and Atlanta, as well as midsize cities like Fresno, Calif.

SoLa has been investing in opportunity zones, a program created by the 2017 federal tax overhaul that allows investors to defer and reduce taxes if they reinvest capital gains in designated low-income communities.

Critics of the program say it sometimes misses the mark, like when states earmark neighborhoods where development is already taking place. That could give investors a significant tax break without creating many new jobs or more affordable housing in poorer neighborhoods.

Read this article:
Developer Aims to Raise $1 Billion for Investing in Minority Communities - The Wall Street Journal

A video being shared on social media makes the false claims that deaths linked to COVID-19 have stopped, the vaccine will be untested and that it will modify your DNA.

Reuters Fact Check. REUTERS

Shared 1,900 times on Facebook, the live video (here) shows a man speaking outside the Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham, UK.

The man makes multiple claims in the nearly one hour-long video, a selection of which will be covered in this fact check.

CLAIM 1 COVID-19 DEATHS CEASED IN JUNE

Speaking into a microphone, the man questions the mad urgency to develop a vaccine for COVID-19 because deaths from the disease allegedly ceased back in June (timecode 0:55).

However, this is not true. On June 1, the UK had recorded 38,263 deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test (here). By Nov. 29 this had risen to 58,443.

CLAIM 2 THE VACCINE WILL BE RUSHED AND UNTESTED

Immediately after this, the man questions why pharmaceutical companies and governments are rushing out a vaccine that hasnt even been tested properly.

While there has been an unprecedented global effort to find a vaccine to mitigate devastating impact the pandemic has had on society, this does not mean the vaccine will not be properly tested.

In a previous Reuters fact check, the MHRA, which is an executive agency of the UK governments Department of Health and Social Care, confirmed that any vaccine that is distributed will go through the necessary safety checks (here).

Based on the available published reports from the clinical trials, we dont currently anticipate any specific safety concerns with COVID-19 vaccines. We expect the general safety profile to be similar to other types of vaccines., the agency told Reuters at the time.

A COVID-19 vaccine will only be deployed once it has been proven to be safe and effective through robust clinical trials and approved for use.

CLAIM 3 THE VACCINE WILL CHANGE YOUR DNA

The man goes on to claim that the COVID-19 vaccine will alter a persons DNA. Its transhumanism, youll no longer be regarded as a human being, he claims (time code 3:55).

As a previous Reuters fact check explains, the vaccine will not genetically modify human DNA (here).

False. Deaths from COVID-19 did not cease in June. Any vaccine that is approved for distribution will have gone through the necessary clinical trials. The COVID-19 vaccine does not have the ability to alter a persons DNA.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.

Originally posted here:
Fact check: UK deaths linked to COVID-19 did not stop in June - Reuters

Big computers conquered chess quite easily. But then there was the Chinese game of go (pictured), estimated to be 4000 years old, which offers more degrees of freedom (possible moves, strategy, and rules) than chess (210170). As futurist George Gilder tells us, in Gaming AI, it was a rite of passage for aspiring intellects in Asia: Go began as a rigorous rite of passage for Chinese gentlemen and diplomats, testing their intellectual skills and strategic prowess. Later, crossing the Sea of Japan, Go enthralled the Shogunate, which brought it into the Japanese Imperial Court and made it a national cult. (p. 9)

Then AlphaGo, from Googles DeepMind, appeared on the scene in 2016:

As the Chinese American titan Kai-Fu Lee explains in his bestseller AI Super-powers,8 the riveting encounter between man and machine across the Go board had a powerful effect on Asian youth. Though mostly unnoticed in the United States, AlphaGos 2016 defeat of Lee Sedol was avidly watched by 280 million Chinese, and Sedols loss was a shattering experience. The Chinese saw DeepMind as an alien system defeating an Asian man in the epitome of an Asian game.

Thirty-three-year-old Korean Lee Se-dol later announced his retirement from the game. Meanwhile, Gilder tells us, that defeat, plus a later one, sparked a huge surge in Chinese investment in AI in response: Less than two months after Ke Jies defeat, the Chinese government launched an ambitious plan to lead the world in artificial intelligence by 2030. Within a year, Chinese venture capitalists had already surpassed US venture capitalists in AI funding.

AI went on to conquer poker, Starcraft II, and virtual aerial dogfights.

The machines won because improvements in machine learning techniques such as reinforcement learning enable much more effective data crunching. In fact, soon after the defeats of human go champions, a more sophisticated machine was beating a less sophisticated machine at go. As Gilder tells it, in 2017, Googles DeepMind launched AlphaGo Zero. Using a generic adversarial program, AlphaGo Zero played itself billions of times and then went on to defeat AlphaGo 1000 (p. 11). This incident went largely unremarked because it was a mere conflict between machines.

But what has really happened with computers, humans, and games is not what we are sometimes urged to think, that machines are rapidly developing human-like capacities. In all of these games, one feature stands out: The map is the territory.

Think of a simple game like checkers. There are 64 squares and each of two players is given 12 pieces. Each player tries to eliminate the other players pieces from the board, following the rules. Essentially, in checkers, there is nothing beyond the pieces, the board, and the official rules. Like go, its a map and a territory all in one.

Games like chess, go, and poker are vastly more complex than checkers in their degrees of freedom. But they all resemble checkers in one important way: In all cases, the map is the territory. And that limits the resemblance to reality. As Gilder puts it, Go is deterministic and ergodic; any specific arrangement of stones will always produce the same results, according to the rules of the game. The stones are at once symbols and objects; they are always mutually congruent. (pp 5051)

In other words, the structure of a game rules out, by definition, the very types of events that occur constantly in the real world where, as many of us have found reason to complain, the map is not the territory.

Or, as Gilder goes on to say in Gaming AI,

Plausible on the Go board and other game arenas, these principles are absurd in real world situations. Symbols and objects are only roughly correlated. Diverging constantly are maps and territories, population statistics and crowds of people, climate data and the actual weather, the word and the thing, the idea and the act. Differences and errors add up as readily and relentlessly on gigahertz computers as lily pads on the famous exponential pond.

Generally, AI succeeds wherever the skill required to win is calculation and the territory is only a map. For example, take IBM Watsons win at Jeopardy in 2011. As Larry L. Linenschmidt of Hill Country Institute has pointed out, Watson had, it would seem, a built-in advantage then by having infinitemaybe not infinite but virtually infiniteinformation available to it to do those matches.

Indeed. But Watson was a flop later in clinical medicine. Thats probably because computers only calculate and not everything in the practice of medicine in a real-world setting is a matter of calculation.

Not every human intellectual effort involves calculation. Thats why increases in computing power cannot solve all our problems. Computers are not creative and they do not tolerate ambiguity well. Yet success in the real world consists largely in mastering these non-computable areas.

Science fiction has dreamed that ramped-up calculation will turn computers into machines that can think like humans. But even the steepest, most impressive calculations do not suddenly become creativity, for the same reasons as maps do not suddenly become the real-world territory. To think otherwise is to believe in magic.

Note: George Gilders book, Gaming AI, is free for download here.

You may also enjoy: Six limitations of artificial intelligence as we know it. Youd better hope it doesnt run your life, as Robert J. Marks explains to Larry Linenschmidt.

Continued here:

Are Computers That Win at Chess Smarter Than Geniuses? - Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence

In The Queens Gambit, the recent Netflix drama on a chess genius, the main character is incredibly focused and driven. You might even say machine-like. Perhaps, you could go so far as to say shes a little bit like an incredibly single-minded Artificial Intelligence (AI) program like AlphaGo.

Hoping not to give any spoilers here, but in the drama, Beth eventually succeeds not just because shes a chess prodigy, able to see the board many moves ahead. She succeeds because she teams up with fellow players who give her hints and tips on the psychology and habits of her main Big Boss opponent.

In other words, she employs tactics, strategy, reasoning and planning; she sees more than the board. She reads the room, one might say. Emotions play a huge part in all she does and is key to her eventual triumph in Moscow.

And this is why were potentially in a lot of trouble in AI. AlphaGo cant do any of what Beth and her friends do. Its a brilliant bit of software, but its an idiot savantall it knows is Go.

Right now, very few people care about that. Which is why I fear we may be headed not just into another AI Winter, but an almost endless AI Ice Age, perhaps decades of rejection of the approach, all the VC money taps being turned off, lack of Uni research fundingall the things we saw in the first AI Winter of 1974-80 and the second of 1987-93.

Only much, much worse.

Im also convinced the only way to save the amazing achievements weve seen with programs like AlphaGo is to make them more like Bethable to see much, much more than just the board in front of them.

Lets put all this in context. Right now, we are without doubt enjoying the best period AI has ever had. Years and years of hard backroom slog at the theoretical level has been accompanied by superb improvements in hardware performancea combination that raised our game really without us asking. Hence todays undoubted AI success story: Machine Learning. Everyone is betting on this approach and its roots in Deep Learning and Big Data, which is fine; genuine progress and real applications are being delivered at the moment.

But theres a hard stop coming. One of the inherent issues for Deep Learning is you need bigger and bigger neural network and parameters to achieve more than you did last time, and so you soon end up with incredible numbers of parameters: the full version of GPT-3 has 175 billion. But to train those size of networks takes immense computational powerand even though Moores Law continues to be our friend, even that has limits. And were set to reach them a lot sooner than many would like to think.

Despite its reputation for handwaving and love of unobtanium, the AI field is full of realists. Most have painful memories of what happened the last time AIs promise met intractable reality, a cycle which gives rise to the concept of the AI Winter. In the UK, in 1973 a scathing analysisthe infamous Lighthill Reportconcluded that AI just wasnt worth putting any more money into. Similarly fed up, once amazingly generous Defence paymasters in the US ended the first heuristic-search based boom, and the field went into steep decline until the expert systems/knowledge engineering explosion of the 1980s, which also, eventually, also went cold when to many over-egged promises met the real world.

To be clear, both periods provided incredible advances, including systems that saved money for people and improved industries. AI never goes away, either; anyone working in IT knows that theres always advanced programming and smart systems somewhere helping outwe dont even call them AI anymore, they just work without issue. So on one hand, AI wont stop, even if it goes out of fashion once again; getting computers and robots to help us is just too useful an endeavour to stop.

But what will happen is an AI Winter that will follow todays boom. Sometime soon, data science will stop being fashionable; ML models will stop being trusted; entrepreneurs offering the City a Deep Learning solution to financial problem X wont have their emails returned.

And what might well happen beyond that is even worse not just a short period of withdrawal of interest, but a deep, deep freeze10, 20, 30 years long. I dont want to see that happen, and thats just not because I love AI or want my very own HAL 9000 (though, course I doso do you). I dont want to see it happen because I know that Artificial Intelligence is real, and while there may be genuinely fascinating philosophical arguments for and against it, eventually we will create something that can do things as well as humans can.

But note that I said things. AlphaGo is better than all of us (certainly me) at playing games. Google Translate is better than me at translating multiple languages, and so on. What we need are smart systems that are better at more than one thing can start being intelligent, even at very low levels, outside a very narrow domain. Step forward AGI, Artificial General Intelligence, which are suites of programs that apply intelligence to a wide variety of problems, in much the same ways humans can.

We're only seeing the most progress in learning because that's where all the investment is going

For example: weve only been focused on learning the last 15 years. But AI done properly needs to cover a range of intelligence capabilities, of which being able to learn and spot patterns is just one; there's reasoning, there's understanding, there's a lot of other types of intelligence capabilities that should be part of an overall Artificial Intelligence practice or capability.

We know why that iswere focused on learning because we got good traction with that and made solid progress. But there's all the other AI capabilities that we should be also looking at and investigating, and were just not. Its a Catch-22: all the smart money is going into Machine Learning because that's where we're seeing the most progress, but we're only seeing the most progress in learning because that's where all the investment is going!

To sum up, then: we may not be able to stave off a Machine Learning AI Winter; perhaps its an inevitable cycle. But to stave off an even worse and very, very destructive AI Ice Age, I think we need to widen the focus here, get AGI back on its feet, and help our Beths get better at a lot more than just chess or were just going to see them turned off, one by one.

Andy Pardoe, founder and managing director, Pardoe Ventures

See the original post here:

An AI winter may be inevitable. What we should fear more: an AI ice age - ITProPortal

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Klamath County Libraries continue to offer a variety of online activities throughout December intended for children, families and teens, according to a news release.

n Winter Performance Series: Saturdays at 3 p.m. from Dec. 5-19. Join library staff for three live video performances of music, magic, and more. Head to http://www.klamathlibrary.org/winterseries for more information and to sign up for the video link. For all ages.

n Oregons Amazing Animals! Dec. 14-31. Learn all about the creatures of Oregon from giant sloths of the distant past to the critters you can find in your own back yard with the Museum of Natural and Cultural History. Take home a fun, hands-on activity kit, and explore adaptations that help animals survive and thrive in Oregons diverse habitats!

Kits are available while supplies last at Bonanza, Keno, Merrill, Malin, Chiloquin, South and the downtown Klamath County Library beginning Monday, Dec. 14. The video component will be available on klamathlibrary.org from Dec. 14-31. For ages 4-12.

n Camp Write Stuff: Weekdays after school. Join fellow authors each morning to bounce ideas or just leverage a little friendly peer pressure to make yourself work on that fiction youve been putting off. Email Sarah at smiller@klamathlibrary.org for the link to join! For ages 12-18.

n Baby Bouncers Storytime Online: Tuesdays at 11 a.m. Join us each week for stories, games, and catchy songs! Register once at klamathlibrary.org/babybouncers or by emailing Katie at khart@klamathlibrary.org, and join in as much as you like! This story time is aimed at newborns through 18 months, but all are welcome.

n Teen Dungeons & Dragons: Tuesdays. We have everything you need to play just bring a healthy dose of imagination! We have three playgroups, which meet at different times on Tuesdays. Email Sarah at smiller@klamathlibrary.org to get your character started! For ages 12-18.

n Teen Gaming Hour: Thursdays at 4 p.m. Were finding the imposter, trading fruit and more every Thursday at 4 p.m. Join us each week for co-op gaming fun. Email Vesta at vkerns@klamathlibrary.org for the link to participate. For ages 12-18.

n Preschool Power Storytime Online: Fridays at 11 a.m. Come for stories, songs and more, live on Zoom. Register at klamathlibrary.org/preschoolpower or by emailing Vesta at vkerns@klamathlibrary.org, and join as many sessions as you like! Suggested for children 3-5. (Please note there is no Preschool Power on Friday, Dec. 25 due to the Christmas holiday.)

n Lemon Brick Road Studios Comics Club: Saturday, Dec. 12 from 12-3 p.m. Our ongoing comics club for artists and writers from sixth grade through high school senior hangs out online on the second Saturday of every month. Email Sarah at smiller@klamathlibrary.org or club advisor Professor Franny at franny.howes@gmail.com to get the link to join in.

n Teen Discord! Did you know the Klamath County Library has a Discord server for teens to hang out? Its true! The conversations happening there inspire quite a bit of our online events. Email Sarah at smiller@klamathlibrary.org for more info.

For more information call 541-882-8894, visit the Youth Services desk, or see the calendar at http://www.klamathlibrary.org/library-events-calendar.

Originally posted here:
Library hosts online family activities in December | Limelighter - Herald and News

Librarian Cherie Davis noted that the Dec. 11 deadline to bid on each of eight original paintings provided for an online auction benefiting the Ronceverte Public Library is fast approaching.

Focusing on Ronceverte area scenes, the paintings are the work of Ellen Fischer, a highly respected artist working in the southern and midwestern regions of the United States. Fischer donated the artwork, which feature minimum bids ranging from $150 to $300, depending on size. All proceeds from the auction will go to the library.

Fischers ancestry is from the Ronceverte area, and she comes frequently for reunions on Rockland Road and in the Teaberry Road area, Davis said in a press release.

The eight paintings are on display at the library in Ronceverte on U.S. 219 at W.Va. 63 West. They can also be viewed on the librarys Facebook page.

To bid, simply telephone or visit the library, telling the library attendant the amount of the bid and contact information, Davis said. Then, the bidder can check daily until 5 p.m. Dec. 11 to see what the high bids are and, if they need, make another bid. The winning bidder for each will be notified that evening.

Serving the Fort Spring and Irish Corner districts of Greenbrier County, along with adjoining portions of Monroe and Greenbrier counties, the Ronceverte Library is open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 4 p.m.

Auction bids may be made by calling 304-647-7400.

Email: talvey@register-herald.com

Excerpt from:
Online art auction to benefit Ronceverte Library | State & Region - Beckley Register-Herald

War on terror or Islamophobia? Business Standard Across cities, these institutes are either struggling to cope or looking to slowly reinvent themselves

Topics Library|Coronavirus|Lockdown

The National Library in Kolkata started allowing readers in from November 23 after a gap of almost eight months, albeit in small numbers. No more than 40 are being allowed in the main reading room against a capacity of 400, that too after they book their place online the previous day.

In the last few days, pressure from senior citizens has prompted the library to finally let them in. In the financial capital, the Asiatic Society of Mumbai's 216-year-old library is still closed to members or casual readers. A stocktaking exercise started here in March, with sorters and technicians ...

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Digital Editor

First Published: Thu, December 03 2020. 01:30 IST

Original post:
Hit by pandemic, libraries across cities are turning to a digital chapter - Business Standard

Community

Dec 2, 2020

WELLSBURG The Brooke County Public Library will show the PG rated film Rise of the Guardians at 5 p.m. Dec. 10.

Seating will be limited. Call (304) 737-1551 or visit wellsburg.lib.wv.us/newsletter2.htm to reserve a seat for the free screening.

Virtual evening Christmas

story hour set for Dec. 9

WELLSBURG Brooke County Public Libraries will hold a virtual evening Christmas story time on Zoom at 5 p.m. Dec. 9.

It will include a recorded reading of Piper the Elfs Big Surprise by author Colleen Driscoll. A bag with materials for an accompanying craft can be picked up at either library. For login information and to order the craft bag, call (304) 737-1551 or (304) 527-0860 or visit wellsburg.lib.wv.us.newsletter2.htm.

Ag department releases

West Virginia Grown directory

CHARLESTON The West Virginia Department of Agriculture has released the 2020 West Virginia Grown Member Directory, a list of West Virginia agribusinesses and supporting organizations that are a part of the program.

Developed in 1986, West Virginia Grown was designed to market West Virginia grown and made products to consumers.

A total of 191 state-based businesses place the West Virginia Grown logo on products they have grown or processed in the state.

For the complete guide, visit: https://agriculture.wv.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/WV-GROWN-DIRECTORYELECTRONIC.pdf. For information or to join the program, email WVGrown@wvda.us or call (304) 558-2210.

Gun drawing fundraiser

to benefit Boy Scouts Council

WINTERSVILLE A gun drawing benefiting the Ohio River Valley Council Boy Scouts of America is being sponsored by Professional Tire and Alignment, located at 91 Maplewood Ave, Wintersville.

The business will hold a live drawing Dec. 18. Tickets are a $20 donation and can be purchased at Precision Tire. Call (740) 264-7944 or the BSA Council Office at (304) 277-2660 and tickets will be mailed or e-mailed to the purchaser. There are five guns being offered. Each ticket has the possibility to win all guns.

Letters to Santa offered

WELLSBURG The Friends of Brooke County Libraries have arranged to send letters from Santa Claus to children.

The cost is $2.50, and the letters, which are addressed to each child and will be available until Dec. 14 by visiting either location or https://lettersfromsantabcpl.weebly.com.

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See the original post:
Brooke Library to show 'Rise of the Guardians' - The Steubenville Herald-Star

The Ferndale Public Library has taken its youth programming to a new level.

While the library has been offering story time events online since the pandemic struck, they were often pre-recorded. They recently began utilizing the Zoom app to make their COVID-19 era story time events more interactive and enjoyable for everyone involved.

And more valuable.

So much of what determines the kind of student a child is going to be are the pre-reading and reading skills that they learn,says Jordan Wright, head of Youth Services for the library.

Scheduled on Zoom for each Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. is Toddler Storytime, which is intended for children ranging in ages from 1 to 4 years old. Parent participation is required.

Also hosted on Zoom is Quarantine Corner, an interactive event for new parents. That event is held weekly each Tuesday at 2 p.m.

Well demonstrate best practices for reading to kids but we also wanted to give new parents some face time with each other. They can vent to each other about being new parents, Wright says.

One special event coming up is the Draw Your Own Monster workshop, scheduled on Zoom for Thursday, Dec. 10, at 6:30 p.m.

Friends and Michigan natives Kevin Singer, Joel Gullickson, and Brent Mosser recently launched the Monsters Rule! series of childrens books. Writers Singer and Gullickson will read their first book, The Legend of Long Leg Larry, followed by a question-and-answer session. Illustrator Mosser will then lead a Draw Your Own Monster session with the children.

This gets kids interested and active in reading but also gives us an opportunity to demonstrate to parents the best way to read to their children, Wright says.

Registration is required for the Ferndale Librarys Zoom events and can be accessed via their Facebook page.

Got a development news story to share? Email MJ Galbraith here or send him a tweet @mikegalbraith.

Read more from the original source:
Ferndale Library has new slate of online programs for kids and their parents - Concentrate