Check Out the Social Media Marketing World [Conference]

Hey all,

Just wanted to put in a plug for this social media marketing world conference. For those who are interested in understanding the world of social media, this is a great conference to attend. 100+ workshops and sessions led by leading marketers from top brands including the likes of IBM, Cisco, San Diego Chargers, Experian, Tyson Foods, SAP, Priceline, Dell and so on.

SOME GOOD REASONS TO CHECK IT OUT:

1) Find practical workshops to help you setup and measure social strategies for your company/blog/website.

2) Don’t waste money testing things that you can learn from experience learned the hard way by those who went ahead of you.

3) Meet leading social strategist and marketers – pick their brain, go get those nuggets of wisdoms that will save you a ton of time and effort.

4) Dude, it’s San Diego. In April. Take a few days to go relax on the beach!

5) Full recording of EVERY SESSION available to you after the conference. This I think is the money items as you can review or go through sessions you missed. Share it with colleagues, get people on your company on board.

Ticket prices go up as time goes by so read more about it quick and sign up quicker if interested:
>> CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

SOME GOOD SPEAKERS:

Guy Kawasaki (author, The Art of Social Media)
Mari Smith (co-author, Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day)
Michael Hyatt (author, Platform)
Chris Brogan (co-author, The Impact Equation)
Jay Baer (author, Youtility)
Amy Porterfield (co-author, Facebook Marketing All-In-One for Dummies)
Mark Schaefer (author, Social Media Explained)
Joe Pulizzi (author, Epic Content Marketing)
Ann Handley (author, Everybody Writes)
Michael Stelzner (author, Launch)
Brian Solis (author, What’s the Future of Business?)
and more!

See Full Speaker List Here >> LINK HERE

SOME GOOD TESTIMONIALS!

Testimonials from some high caliber stars in marketing. This video is crazy long though.

SOME GOOD HIGHLIGHTS SHOTS

And here another crazy long video showing scenes from the last summit. Pretty cool, but as I am also a videographer, I think this video is way too long! ha! You guys need a consultant?!

>> READ MORE ABOUT THE SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING WORLD HERE <<

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9 11 / September 11 Quotes & Statistics [Infographic]

9-11 September 11 Firefighters9/11 September 11 Statistics Infographic

Let’s not forget the fateful day of 9 11. September 11, 2001.
Below is a Statistic Infographic of the World Trade Center events of 9/11.

  • Some Key Statistics of 9/11
  • 4 Planes, 19 Terrorist
  • 3 Major Attacks at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the Crash at Stonycreek Township which is believed to have targed the US Capitol Building / White House.
  • 18,000 Small Businesses were Destoryed or Displaced
  • The Collapse of the World Trade Center reached speeds of 120 miles per hour
  • 1,506,124 Tons of Debris removed from site
  • 2,000 First Responders Injured in the attacks
  • 36,000 units of Blood Donated at the New York Blood Center
  • 99 Days Fires Burned after the Attack

9-11 September 11 World Trade Center

  • 3,051 Number of Children who lost parents
  • 343 Firefighters & Paramedics who died
  • 125 People who died at the Pentagon
  • 92 People killed on Flight 11
  • 64 People died on Flight 175
  • 64 People died on Flight 77
  • 44 People died in Flight 93
  • 23 NYPD Officers lost in the attack

“Time is passing. Yet, for the United States of America, there will be no forgetting september the 11th. We will remember every rescuer who died in honor. We will remember every family that lives in grief. We will remember the fire and ash, the last phone calls, the funerals of the children,”
– President George W. Bush, November 11, 2001

911 September 11 World Trade Center

“Now, we have inscribed a new memory alongside those others. It’s a memory of tragedy and shock, of loss and mourning. But not only of loss and mourning. It’s also a memory of bravery and self-sacrifice, and the love that lays down its life for a friend- even a friend whose name it never knew.”
– President George W. Bush, December 11, 2001

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble, therefore we will not fear even though the earth be removed, though the mountains carried into the midst of the sea, though its waters roil and be troubled, though mountains shake with its swelling,”
— US President Barack Obama at the Ground Zero ceremony, reading Psalm 46.

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Sept 11, 2001 – World Trade Center, Remembering 9/11

Remembering 9/11 – Attack of the World Trade Center

911 - Sept 11 2001 - World Trade Center An early apology for dampening your day, but I am a strong advocate for the need for all people to remember the events of September 11, 2001. This was a historical moment in history, one that will be seared in our minds forever. As hard as it is to relive the experience, I think it is important that we remember the fragility of life and how in the aftermath of this horrible tragedy, everyone had to stop their hurried life to reexamine why they do what they do. Questions about the meaning of life, why suffering exists, questions about God and afterlife all became a real issue in the eyes of those not only living in the United States but around the world.

See first the details of the event, followed by my own experience that morning.

Details of the Sept 11, 2001 Attack on WTC

Early in the morning on Tuesday, September 11, 2001, nineteen hijackers took control of four commercial airliners en route to San Francisco and Los Angeles from Boston, Newark, and Washington, D.C. (Washington Dulles International Airport). At 8:46 a.m., American Airlines Flight 11 was crashed into the World Trade Center’s North Tower, followed by United Airlines Flight 175 which hit the South Tower at 9:03 a.m. Another group of hijackers flew American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m. A fourth flight, United Airlines Flight 93, whose ultimate target was thought to be either the United States Capitol or White House, crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania at 10:03 a.m, after the passengers on board engaged in a fight with the hijackers.

During the hijacking of the airplanes, the hijackers used weapons to stab and/or kill aircraft pilots, flight attendants and passengers. Reports from phone callers from the planes indicated that knives were used by the hijackers to stab attendants and in at least one case, a passenger, during two of the hijackings. Some passengers were able to make phone calls using the cabin airphone service and mobile phones, and provide details, including that several hijackers were aboard each plane, that mace or other form of noxious chemical spray, such as tear gas or pepper spray was used, and that some people aboard had been stabbed. The 9/11 Commission established that two of the hijackers had recently purchased Leatherman multi-function hand tools. A flight attendant on Flight 11, a passenger on Flight 175, and passengers on Flight 93 mentioned that the hijackers had bombs, but one of the passengers also mentioned he thought the bombs were fake. No traces of explosives were found at the crash sites, and the 9/11 Commission believed the bombs were probably fake.

On United Airlines Flight 93, black box recordings revealed that crew and passengers attempted to seize control of the plane from the hijackers after learning through phone calls that similarly hijacked planes had been crashed into buildings that morning. According to the transcript of Flight 93’s recorder, one of the hijackers gave the order to roll the plane once it became evident that they would lose control of the plane to the passengers.Soon afterward, the aircraft crashed into a field near Shanksville in Stonycreek Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania, at 10:03:11 a.m. local time. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, organiser of the attacks, mentioned in a 2002 interview with Yosri Fouda, an al Jazeera journalist, that Flight 93’s target was the United States Capitol, which was given the code name “the Faculty of Law”.

The World Trade Centers Collapse

Three buildings in the World Trade Center Complex collapsed due to structural failure on the day of the attack. The south tower fell at approximately 9:59 a.m., after burning for 56 minutes in a fire caused by the impact of United Airlines Flight 175. The north tower collapsed at 10:28 a.m., after burning for approximately 102 minutes. When the north tower collapsed, debris heavily damaged the nearby 7 World Trade Center (7 WTC) building. Its structural integrity was further compromised by fires, and the building collapsed later in the day at 5:20 p.m.

Widespread Confusion, a Traffic Controller’s Nightmare

The attacks created widespread confusion among news organizations and air traffic controllers across the United States. All international civilian air traffic was banned from landing on US soil for three days. Aircraft already in flight were either turned back or redirected to airports in Canada or Mexico. News sources aired unconfirmed and often contradictory reports throughout the day. One of the most prevalent of these reported that a car bomb had been detonated at the U.S. State Department’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. Soon after reporting for the first time on the Pentagon crash, CNN and other media also briefly reported that a fire had broken out on the Washington Mall. Another report went out on the AP wire, claiming that a Delta Air Lines airliner—Flight 1989—had been hijacked. This report, too, turned out to be in error; the plane was briefly thought to represent a hijack risk, but it responded to controllers and landed safely in Cleveland, Ohio. [Source: Wikipedia]

Casualties of Sept 11, 2001 – The Statistics

There were a total of 2,993 deaths, including the 19 hijackers: 246 on the four planes, 2,603 in New York City in the towers and on the ground, and 125 at the Pentagon. An additional 24 people remain listed as missing. All of the deaths in the attacks were civilians except for 55 military personnel killed at the Pentagon. More than 90 countries lost citizens in the attacks on the World Trade Center. In 2007, the New York City medical examiner’s office added Felicia Dunn-Jones to the official death toll from the September 11 attacks. Dunn-Jones died five months after 9/11 from a lung condition which was linked to exposure to dust during the collapse of the World Trade Center.

NIST estimated that about 17,400 civilians were in the World Trade Center complex at the time of the attacks, while turnstile counts from the Port Authority suggest that 14,154 people were typically in the Twin Towers by 8:45 a.m. The vast majority of people below the impact zone safely evacuated the buildings, along with 18 people who were in the impact zone in the south tower. 1,366 people died who were at or above the floors of impact in the North Tower. According to the Commission Report, hundreds were killed instantly by the impact, while the rest were trapped and died after the tower collapsed. As many as 600 people were killed instantly or were trapped at or above the floors of impact in the South Tower.

At least 200 people jumped to their deaths from the burning towers, landing on the streets and rooftops of adjacent buildings hundreds of feet below. Some of the occupants of each tower above its point of impact made their way upward toward the roof in hope of helicopter rescue, but the roof access doors were locked. No plan existed for helicopter rescues, and on September 11, the thick smoke and intense heat would have prevented helicopters from conducting rescues.

911 - Sept 11 2001 - World Trade Center FlagA total of 411 emergency workers who responded to the scene died as they attempted to rescue people and fight fires. The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) lost 341 firefighters and 2 FDNY paramedics.The New York City Police Department lost 23 officers. The Port Authority Police Department lost 37 officers, and 8 additional EMTs and paramedics from private EMS units were killed.

Cantor Fitzgerald L.P., an investment bank on the 101st–105th floors of One World Trade Center, lost 658 employees, considerably more than any other employer. Marsh Inc., located immediately below Cantor Fitzgerald on floors 93–101 (the location of Flight 11’s impact), lost 355 employees, and 175 employees of Aon Corporation were killed. After New York, New Jersey was the hardest hit state, with the city of Hoboken sustaining the most deaths.

Weeks after the attack, the estimated death toll was over 6,000. The city was only able to identify remains for about 1,600 of the victims at the World Trade Center. The medical examiner’s office also collected “about 10,000 unidentified bone and tissue fragments that cannot be matched to the list of the dead”. [Source: Wikipedia]

The Morning of Sept 11, 2001 – Shocked & Confused

I woke up to the sound of someone talking on the radio. The sun was already beating down through the bedroom window, another beautiful day I thought. Half alert, I was wondering why my roommate had the radio on. I had planned to sleep in a bit. Then I heard over the air-waves, someone speaking of a plane crashing into a building. For a second I thought I must have misheard. Planes being run into buildings? That’s crazy. I need more sleep. Then I heard it again, a plane has hit the world trade center. I am not dreaming. Something is going on. I jumped out of bed. My roommate and I ran out to flip on the TV and there it was. The country was in utter chaos. Everyone was confused. It was surreal, you don’t ever hear such words like planes, buildings, terrorists uttered in the same sentence. Our eyes were glued to the TV, looking at the burning tower, the people screaming, the people crying. It was as if the world stopped. Are the people out? What about those on the top floors? What in the world happened? Why is no one making it clear what happened?! By now everyone was on the phone calling their own families. Then it happened, the tower collapsed. We gazed in horror as New York was engulfed in smoke. The dust smoke crawled and expanded in and between all the buildings as if it had the intent to bury all in it’s path.

The thought of the lives of 3,000 some people, gone in an instant, was something impossible to even fathom or comprehend. What about their families? How many people left that morning as if it was just another day in their lives to only have their lives transformed in a blink of an eye? I don’t know about you, but in that moment my view of life itself became very focused. What is the meaning of life? What really matters in life? What happens after life? Why is this happening? What is evil? Why is there suffering? Emotionally this day would shake the foundations of many who witnessed what we would later call 9/11.

To be honest, it is only the next year as I attended a gathering memorializing the event, when it really hit me what kind of horrible event I had just lived through. I just hope that all those questions people had then, will not be forgotten and those who dared to ask such tough questions, chose to find answers. If they did not, I think that is a tragedy in itself. Don’t let such an event not change you for the better.

  • What is your memory of the Sept 11, 2001?
  • Did your life change at all due to the incident?
  • Did you ever grapple with questions like the meaning of life, suffering, afterlife or any other “life questions”?

Update Sept 13, 2011 – 9 11 Quotes & Statistic Infographic

Also Check out: Religion, the Greatest Source of Bloodshed, Persecution & War
Also Check out: Amazing Time-Lapse Video of One World Trade Center Being Built!

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Israel & Palestinian’s Media War on the Gaza Strip

Israel Palestinian Gaza Media
Israel Palestinian Gaza Media

There has been a lot of talk on the Media Wars in Gaza between the Palestinians and Israel. Both sides have kept a careful lip on what gets transmitted out to the public. Below I’ve tried to give a snapshot of the “media war” and how Israel and Palestinians go about controlling their message to the world.

Israel claims that opening their borders for journalist would put those in the terminals in danger. The government has long banned Israeli journalist from entering Gaza because of the concerns for their safety. However they had allowed foreign reporters to enter. Thus without access, the media has no reliable source or information.

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5.3 Billion Spend on Federal Political Candidiates

Today was election day! Hope everyone has gone out to vote! Not just for the presidential candidates but for all the propositions and local positions.

To be honest I don’t like writing about politics, but in the spirit of voting day here is another!

Media Spend by Candidates Breaks Reocrds
So as everyone knows a candidate’s spend on media will have a direct influence on how we view the candidates and ultimately who we vote for. So how much has been spent on this election?

The country will have spent $5.3 billion on federal political candidates. 27% higher than 2004. The presidential race? $1.5 billion by mid-October, on track to be closer to $2.4 billion by the end according to Center for Responsive Politics.

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China’s 2008 Beijing Olympics Media Part II : Beauty is King

As everyone has heard by now, it was later found that the cute little girl, Lin Miaoke, was lip syncing while the original girl, Yang Peiyi, was yanked from the program last minute told to sing from backstage because she wasn’t “flawless in image” according to the musical director of the olympics. The musical director said the reasons were for national interest and that the child on camera should be “flawless in image, internal feelings and expression. Lin Miaoke is excellent in these aspects”. “The reason why little Yang was not chosen to appear was because we wanted to project the right image, we were thinking about what was best for the nation,” said Chen Qigang. The interview appeared briefly on the Chinese news website Sina before it disappeared.

“What was best for the nation”. Do you believe what they did was best for the nation?

My first thought when I heard this news was thinking about what kind of message this sent to the two little girls involved as well as to the rest of the viewers. Yang Peiyi was basically told that if you aren’t pretty you can’t be on stage or in other words there is a limit to how far you can go if you don’t have the looks. Despite her incredible voice, it was her physical appearance that held her back. In an interview the General Music Designer slipped in saying she wasn’t attractive enough and had crooked teeth. This was indeed tragic as she is so young. What do you say to her when she asks why she isn’t being allowed to go stage but has to sing in a mic as another girl pretends to be singing?

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China’s 2008 Beijing Olympic Deception & Lies: Impact on Culture Part I

The 2008 Beijing Olympics was the most widely watched Olympics in history. It had all you could ask for. It had high drama, incredible feats, and one of the most beautiful opening and closing ceremony ever. I was completely in awe with the beautiful creativity in displaying all of China’s history and culture. Great job China.

However… coupled with such great display of the magnificence of Chinese culture, so was the display of some not so magnificent incidences. Lot of deception was carried out by the Olympic decision makers to put forth their best face. It’s a show, so much of it is understandable, but I strongly believe that actions the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) & the Olympic organizers carried out poorly contributed to its own culture and sent the wrong message to the very people they govern.

The list of what are being called “deceptions” or “lies” continues to grow. A wonderful little girl with a wonderful voice, Yang Peiyi, was yanked from the stage and told to sing backstage because the organizers wanted to have a more prettier girl, one “flawless in image” as mentioned by the music director, to be on stage. The new girl, Lin Miaoke, ended up lip syncing while the Yang Peiyi had to sing backstage during perhaps the biggest stage she would ever get a chance to participate in. CCP also claimed to have sold out the games but admitted later to hiring volunteers to fill up the empty seats. Organizers also showed fake digital fireworks making the firework display grander than it actually was to the rest of the world. Organizers also claimed and printed on their programs that the spectacular display of China’s ethnicity groups were actual people from those provinces while later saying that they were actually nearly all from the Han ethnic group that make up 90% of their population. CCP kept emphasizing harmony with its people while sanctioning away water and resources from the countryside farms to keep Beijing well stocked and pushing out migrant workers out of their cities. CCP praised the fact that the Olympic games were protest free while quietly jailing any dissenters and sending elderly protesters to work camps. Then there is the still unresolved matter of the Chinese Gymnastic team.

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Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley – More Than a Face: Media & Self-Image

More than a Face - Media Impact on Self Image

More than a Face - Media Impact on Self Image

Next Session: 8/22 @ 7:30-9PM
Gracepoint Berkeley Church – Alameda
2000 Northloop Drive. Alameda, CA 94502

Gracepoint Fellowship Church, a Berkeley church located near the UC Berkeley campus, is having free seminars / workshops called Life Matters. These are free courses that require no commitment or previous attendance. Some food is provided for free and the event is followed by a Board Game Night. They will have stack full of board games for people to stick around and play with one another.

The reason Gracepoint Berkeley Church’s Life Matter course is listed here is because they have a workshop called “More Than a Face”. This workshop address our media-based society and how the media shapes and affects our self-image. This specifically addresses how media affects the modern women’s self image. Though targeted to women, all is welcome. The will be showing clips from advertisements and movies and discuss the underlying messages that shape how we view beauty. These courses are also done throughout the UC Berkeley campus, in dorms and sororities.

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Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley – Impact of Media on our Worldview

 

Next Session: 7/25 @ 8:30-10PM

Gracepoint Berkeley Church – Alameda

2000 Northloop Drive. Alameda, CA 94502

 

 

Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley is holding their Life Matter courses again. Couple new courses as well as continuation of several popular classes. The media class is unfortunately not available but has been replaced by class that would touch on very similar topics. It’s called “Analyzing Popular Culture”. This class will talk about the content and medium through which popular culture comes to us and shapes our worldview. Media obviously plays a huge part in shaping the way we view life, view others and our ethics.

 

These courses are free, requires no commitment, and food is provided. Nice. Meet friendly people and discuss important matters about life!

 

Several of these courses dive directly into the impact of media on our culture and our worldview. In addition to “Analyzing Popular Culture”, “More than a Face” deals with how Media directly influences our view of beauty and impacts our view of self worth. If you haven’t seen the fantastic videos by Dove in regards to the perception of beauty see our previous posts: Distorted Beauty in Media & Media Impact on Children.

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Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley – Free Courses & Discussions on Media

 

Next Session: 5/16 @ 7:30-9:30PM

Gracepoint Fellowship Church – Alameda

2000 Northloop Drive. Alameda, CA 94502

 

 

New sessions start May 16th. Couple new courses as well as continuation of several popular classes. These courses are free, requires no commitment, and food is provided. Meet friendly people and discuss important matters about life!

 

Several of these courses dive directly into the impact of media on our culture and our worldview. “God in Media” touches about how specific worldviews are underly every film and how to dissect and understand the message. “More than a Face” deals with how Media directly influences our view of beauty and impacts our view of self worth. If you haven’t seen the fantastic videos by Dove in regards to the perception of beauty see our previous posts: Distorted Beauty in Media & Media Impact on Children. The new course on Worldview will also most likely touch upon how the way we view the world has changed in our time. Though not specific to Meda – it is clear that all forms of media from Music to Film, has had a huge impact on the way we perceive what is right and wrong and what is considered the norm. Of course it is a two way street in that as our perceptions change, so does the messages in TV & Movies as it caters to what we (or the directors & writers) believe.

 

You are not “required” to sign up and can drop in anytime, but if you are certain you would like to come you can sign up in the link below. It’s just courtesy so they can plan room allocations and food quantities. I’ll be there so just look for a “Paul”, would love to chat!

 

Course description snippets below. Go to the signup page for more info: Signup Page: Life Matters – Bay Area

 

  • Love & Respect
    • … Find out how the truth of Ephesians 5:33: “Husbands must love their wives and wives must respect their husbands,” can make a difference in every marriage.
  • Are you there God: in Media?
    • Learn about how different worldviews are presented to audiences of television, film, and news media. We’ll learn how to dissect creative decisions that were made to reach an “effect” and examine the underlying values and emotions that can often go unnoticed…
  • Tough Questions
    • Most of us have a picture of God in our minds that we have drawn, usually based on a series of ideas, feelings and past experiences from our life. We will explore and discuss answers to common questions people have about God, Christianity, the Bible and Jesus…
  • The World as We Know It
    • Framing Your Worldview DVD curriculum by world renown Rick Warren and Chuck Colson, this course will examine worldviews as they relate to the most important questions of our day. We will explore such key issues as truth, tolerance, terrorism, reconciliation and the purpose of life…
  • More Than a Face
    • In our media-based society where most of us have grown up watching hours of TV and movies and advertisements are everywhere we look, this session will explore how the media affects our self-image…

 

Ques? Leave a Comment.

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Sponsored by “Praxis” the Adult Group in Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley. Pastor Ed Kang & Kelly Kang lead this Berkeley Church located in 2000 North Loop Rd in Alameda CA. This Church serves UC Berkeley Campus and the Eastbay Area.

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Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley – Free Course on Media Worldview

 

Next Session: 3/25 @ 7:30

Gracepoint Fellowship Church – Alameda

2000 Northloop Drive. Alameda, CA 94502 

 

For the Bay Area Folks. Free Course in examining the different worldviews found in media especially on hollywood’s portrayal of God vs. Myths, Christianity vs. Atheism, and Life Values. This course is free and open to anyone who wants to check it out. There are several other courses called Stress Less, Love & Respect, Are you there God in Science, and Tough Questions.Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley – Life Matter Courses. There is a total of three sessions, but they don’t necessarily build on each other.Here is the excerpt from their signup page. The sessions are held in Alameda.

 

  • Are you there God: in Media? 
    • Learn about how different worldviews are presented to audiences of television, film, and news media. We’ll learn how to dissect creative decisions that were made to reach an “effect” and examine the underlying values and emotions that can often go unnoticed. Understand how to clearly critique today’s media outlets and the recent media trends present in our marketplace (such as the Disney Corporation)

Ques? Leave a Comment. 

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Sponsored by “Praxis” the Adult Group in Gracepoint Fellowship Church Berkeley. Pastor Ed Kang & Kelly Kang lead this Berkeley Church located in 2000 North Loop Rd in Alameda CA. This Church serves UC Berkeley Campus and the Eastbay Area.

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