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Ärende: Amateur Radio NewslineT Report 1929 - August 1 2014
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Greetings Y'all!
Amateur Radio NewslineT Report 1929 - August 1 2014
Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1929 with a release date of August 1
2014 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. The Amateur Radio Parity Act gains new
co-sponsors; the Internet of Things could impact United Kingdom hams;
Australian radio amateurs forced to temporarily share the 70 centimeter
band with commercial interests; hams respond to northern California
wildfire and changes coming to the famed Pennsylvania QSO Party. Find out
the details are on Amateur Radio NewslineT report number 1929 coming your
way right now.
**
RADIO LAW: AMATEUR RADIO PARITY ACT GAINS NEW CONGRESSIONAL SUPPORT
The just-concluded ARRL National Centennial Convention in Hartford,
Connecticut, helped to impart added energy into efforts to line up
co-sponsors for "The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014" also known as House
of Representatives measure H R 4969. Amateur Radio Newsline's Gary
Bernstein, N9VU, has the details:
--
H R 4969 was introduced in the US House of Representatives with bipartisan
support in late June. It asks Congress to direct the FCC to apply the
"reasonable accommodation" three-part test of the PRB-1 federal
pre-emption policy to private land-use restrictions regarding antennas.
The measures primary sponsor is Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger
of Illinois. It received initial co-sponsorship from Democrat Joe
Courtney of Connecticut. Four additional members of the House had since
signed aboard to co-sponsor the bill by July 24th. On July 29th, ARRL
Hudson Division Director Mike Lisenco, N2YBB, posted to Facebook that two
more House law makers had thrown their support to H R 4969. .
By way of background, right now present PRB-1 only applies to state and
municipal land-use ordinances. The FCC has indicated that it will not act
to provide the same legal protections from private land-use agreements --
often called covenants, conditions, and restrictions without direction
from Congress. As such, the Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014 is an
attempt by the League to muster the needed push to get the FCC to act on
this matter.
Speaking at the convention, ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, says
that there already is precedent for the FCC to act. He explains that the
Commission's so-called Over-the-Air Receiving Device rules currently
preempt private land-use agreements to permit the installation of
television antennas and satellite dishes. Based on this, Imlay suggests
that making the leap to reasonably accommodating outdoor amateur radio
antennas is within the FCC's regulatory scope. This, given the
established strong federal interest in effective amateur radio
communication.
On the other side, Imlay said the bill faces opposition from the Community
Associations Institute and an organization called Associa. The latter has
already suggested to Representative Kinzinger that he "re-think" the bill.
As such, Imlay says that a lot more co-sponsors are needed for this bill.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Gary Bernstein, N9VU, reporting.
--
The ARRL reports that Representative Courtney visited the ARRL Centennial
Convention on July 19 to speak with League officials and those attending
the event. A more in-depth look at the Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014
and how to support it is on the web at www.arrl.org/hr-4969 (ARRL,
Facebook)
**
RADIO OPINION: HAM TAKES ISSUE WITH AMATEUR RADIO PARITY ACT
While the ARRL has been very successful in getting HR 4969 before the
House of Representatives it appears as if not every ham is in favor of its
being passed into law. In an interview on the video podcast HamRadioNow,
viewer Mike Alexander, N8MSA takes what he calls a principled stand
against the measure.
N8MSA spends about 40 minutes explaining his point of view and answering
questions from moderator Gary Pearce, KN4AQ. You can see the interview in
episode 158 of the video podcast HamRadioNow at hamradionow.tv.
(HamRadioNow)
**
WORLDBEAT: UK REGULATOR CALLS FOR INPUT ON INTERNET OF THINGS
United Kingdom telecommunications regulator Ofcom has published a Call for
Input. This, to help it understand the actions required to ensure that
nation takes a leading role in the emerging Internet of Things.
According to Wikipedia, the Internet of Things can refer to a wide variety
of devices such as heart monitoring implants, biochip transponders on farm
animals, automobiles with built-in sensors, or field operation devices
that assist fire-fighters in search and rescue. Current market examples
include smart thermostats and washer/dryers that utilize wifi for remote
monitoring.
The Ofcom Call for Input seeks views to inform the U-K regulatory body's
understanding of these and other developments, enabling it to better
support the emergence of the Internet of Things. Many future devices will
be connected wirelessly and the availability of radio spectrum will be an
important enabler especially at 2.4 and 5 Gigahertz.
For this reason the Internet of Things could mean using Amateur and
Amateur Satellite Service spectrum for other services. The closing date
for United Kingdom hams and others to respond is October 1, 2014. (Ofcom,
Southgate)
**
RADIO LAW: TEMPORARY REASSIGNMENT OF COMMERCIAL SERVICES INTO AUSTRALIAN
AMATEUR 70CM BAND
Some bad news for hams living down under. This with word that a 400 MHz
and above spectrum review held in 2010 has identified a need for using
part of the 70 cm amateur band, on a temporary basis, for what the
Australian Communications and Media Authority or ACMA has termed the
orderly repacking of 400 MHz commercial services. Amateur Radio
Newsline's Stephan Kinford, N8WB, reports:
--
Specifically, the Australian Communications and Media Authority has
advised the nations ham radio community that as part of the ongoing 400
MHz band plan review that it will be necessary to temporary move some
commercial services into the 442.5 to 444 and 446.5 to 448 MHz segments of
the 70 centimeter band.
Commercial services will be assigned on a secondary basis with equal
status to the amateur service. The ACMA says that it will coordinate
frequency assignments to avoid interference issues with existing licensed
amateur services. Clubs that currently hold licenses for repeater links or
other purposes in these band segments were being advised to contact the
Wireless Institute of Australia for further information. The WIA is the
recognized national society serving that nations ham radio community.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Stephen Kinford, N8WB, reporting.
--
This ACMA says that this reassignment will be required starting now and
continuing through to the end of 2015. (VK2ASD, WIA)
**
PROPAGATION NEWS: VK 723 KHZ BEACON TEMPORARILLY QRT
The VK3FI 473 kHz CW beacon at Mildura, Australia, has been temporarily
taken off the air for some required maintenance and improvements. The
work includes the errection of a new antenna support and feeder cables as
well as relocating the home-made beacon into a rack assembly. According
to reports this work will likely take a couple of months after which it
will resume its nightly transmission from is location in the far north
west of Australia's Victoria state.
(VK3PC)
**
DX UP FRONT: LICHTENSTEIN SEPTEMBER 13 TO 20
In DX up front, DL2SBY will be active from Liechtenstein between September
13th and the 20th. Operations will be on 80 through 10 meters including
30, 17 and 12 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY. QSL to DL2SBY, direct, via
the bureau as well as through PayPal requests. (OPDX)
**
DX UP FRONT: TOGO SEPTEMBER 25 TO OCTOBER 3
The Czech DXpedition Team will be on the air from Togo between September
25th and October 3rd. Activity will be on 160 through 10 meters using CW,
SSB and some of the digital modes. The group also plans to take part in
the CQ World Wide DX RTTY Contest on September 27th and 28th. QSL's go
via OK6DJ, direct, via the bureau, eQSL, Logbook to the World, or using
the Oh QRS on ClubLog. (OPDX)
**
WITH NEWSLINE: A NEW VIDEO ADDITION AT WWW.ARNEWSLINE.ORG
Thanks to the work of Kevin Trotman, N5PRE and Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, we
have a new and highly visible addition to our website. If you take your
web browser to www dot arnewsline dot org, and start scrolling down, you
will see we have posted an abbreviated video version. This is actually the
same video we produce weekly for the TWiT-TV program Ham Nation and at our
recent BoD meeting we decided to make it directly available to all of you
as well.
Please note that due to the different production schedules, the video
version will be released a few days after the audio and text. Also, you
can only view it at our website; at least for now. We are sorry, but we
will not be able to provide automatic direct down linking for the
foreseeable. Of coarse you can also view it as a part of the TWiT TV
program Ham Nation. Please take a look and let us know what you think.
(ARNewsline)
**
RESCUE RADIO: MARITIME MOBLE SERVICES NET HANDLES LAND BASED EMERGENCY
Some good work by the Maritime Mobile Service Network as it helped in a
recent land based incident. We have more in this report:
--
The Maritime Mobile Service Network normally helps hams at sea but on July
24th it took on a land based situation. This after net control station
Ken Porter, A-C-zero-M-L, received a distress call from George Molnar,
KF2T, on 14.300 MHz which is the nets longtime home frequency.
Molnar told Porter that he had witnessed a tractor-trailer overturn on
Nevada Highway 318, approximately 26 miles south of US Route 93. The
location was in a deep canyon with no cellular telephone service or any
ham radio repeaters available in the area. As such HF radio appeared to
be the only communications.
Once he had the information, Porter called the Las Vegas Police Department
and told it about the incident and its location. The Las Vegas police in
turn notified Nevada State Highway Patrol. Porter remained on the phone
with the police in case the dispatcher required any further information.
It did not take long for troopers to arrive on scene. Thankfully there
were no injuries but the driver of the overturned truck was reported to be
somewhat in shock. Highway 318 remained blocked until the perishable
items from the overturned vehicle could be cleaned away.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, in the
Newsroom in Los Angeles.
--
The Maritime Mobile Service Network operates between the hours of 1600 to
0200 UTC daily on 14.300 MHz and most hams are aware that they will likely
find assistance on that frequency. (K4EDX)
**
RESCUE RADIO: HAMS RESPOND TO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA WILDFIRE
Northern California ham radio emergency communications teams were called
out on Saturday, July 26th. This in support of those fighting the El
Portal wildfire burning in Tuolumne County.
Hams were assigned to shadow Red Cross officials and provide
communications at an evacuation shelter in the town of Groveland. A
number of repeaters were linked to provide a direct communication channel
from the shelter to the Red Cross nerve center in Fresno. In all, the
hams who volunteered spent close to a full day before being dismissed and
returning home.
(ARNewsline from various Sources)
**
RADIO LAW: PRIVATE DRONE AIRCRAFT ORDERED GROUNDED BY CALIFORNIA
FIREFIGHTERS
A privately owned remote control drone aircraft shooting video of a
California wildfire has been ordered grounded. This after firefighting
officials feared it might interfere with efforts to contain the blaze
burning near the city of Sacramento.
According to news reports a California Department of Forestry and Fire
Prevention spokesperson said that the owner of the unmanned vehicle was
asked by Sheriff's Deputies to stop flying the drone so as to keep it away
from the low-flying aircraft being used to fight the Sand fire. The owner
was apparently operating the small 4-engine quadcopter craft so he could
check out the fire for his own personal viewing.
Cal-Fire spokesperson Lynne Tolmachoff said that this is the first time
her agency had encountered such a device during their firefighting
efforts, but she adds that she expects it may not be the last.
As previously reported, the Federal Aviation Administration is in the
process of investigating who may use drones and for what purposes. This
in order to develop guidelines and regulations concerning these radio
remote control devices.
And as previously reported, National Park Service Director Jonathan B.
Jarvis has signed a policy memorandum that directs his superintendents
nationwide to prohibit launching, landing, or operating unmanned remote
controlled aircraft including drones on lands and waters administered by
his agency. (Published news reports, ARNewsline archive)
**
HAM HAPPENINGS: AMSAT NA SYMPOSIUM OCTOBER 10 - 12
AMSAT-North America's 32nd Space Symposium and Annual Meeting will be held
October 10th to the 12th in Baltimore, Maryland. The location will be the
DoubleTree by Hilton at the Baltimore BWI Airport. The gathering will be
preceded by the AMSAT North America Board of Directors meeting for October
9th and morning of the 10th. A registration form for the Symposium and
all events may be downloaded at tinyurl.com/ANS208-SymposiumRegistration.
And SymposiumRegistration is spelled as one word. (ANS)
**
HAM HAPPENINGS: WRONG RETURN ADDRESS ON AMSAT-NA BALLOT ENVELOPES
And speaking about AMSAT North America, we received a message from that
organization to pass along to members who may be listening.
It seems that after the 2014 Board of Directors election ballots were
mailed, the group was notified by its printer that old stock return
envelopes were accidentally included. Unfortunately, these envelopes have
the old Silver Spring, Maryland address on them.
The good news is that the ballot postcard and other documents have the
correct Kensington, Maryland, address. As mail is being forwarded to the
new office address, and will continue to do so for several months, those
voting can use either the envelope included in the packet, or, your own
envelope addressed to The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation, 10605
Concord Street, Kensington, Maryland, 20895. Whichever method you choose
AMSAT asks that those voting make certain that their ballot is mailed in
time to be received by the September 15th deadline.
(WA4SCA, AMSAT-NA)
**
HAM HAPPENINGS: FISTS CW CLUB NORTH AMERICA REDUCES DUES STRUCTURE FOR
SENIORS
The North America chapter of the FISTS CW Club has reduced its dues for
members aged 65 to 80 to $10 annually. The only caveat is that those in
the 65 to 80 age group as well as those over 80 and under age 18 need to
supply their birth date when you join or renew to get this rate. More on
this change is on the web at fistsna.org. (KB1DSB, FISTS, NA)
**
HAM RAPPENINGS: MICHIGAN VHF-UHF SOCIETY BEING REACTIVATED
According to Roger Cox, W8IO, the Michigan VHF-UHF Society, based in the
Detroit area will soon be coming back to life. Cox says that he wrote to
the clubs current president Bob Lang, K8ZKJ who said that he was looking
for someone to take over and make the organization active again.
Cox then called a number of his friends who indicated their interest in
joining if the organization was to be revitalized. Cox is now proceeding
in doing so with the assistance of Tom Bosscher, K8TB, who will create a
mailing list for the group which holds the call AD8U, that it uses in
contests and grid expeditions. More information on this project can be
found on the web at wb0dgf.com/MichiganVHF.htm (Michigan VHF-UHF Cub)
**
HAM HAPPENINGS: 4,000 SCOUTS TO EXPERIENCE HAM RADIO AT SCOUT AIRFEST IN
ILLINOIS
The Rainbow Council Amateur Radio Committee of the Boy Scouts of America
will operate a Special Event Station during Scout Air Fest on August 8th
to the 10th. This as the K2BSA Amateur Radio Association has given the
Rainbow Council permission to operate as K2BSA during the event.
The camporee will take place on the grounds of the Lewis University
Airport in Romeoville, Illinois. High Frequency operations will be on 80
through 15 meters using CW, SSB and some digital modes. Talk in will be
on 70 centimeter FM and the Campfire talk-about will be on 2 meter FM.
With nearly 4,000 registered scouts expected to attend, Scout Air Fest
will one of the largest events of its type this year. More information
including specific frequencies and QSL information is on the web at
tinyurl.com/Illinois-Scouts. (Southgate, QRZ)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: RSGB APPOINTS G6JYB AS NEW SPECTRUM CHAIR
The Radio Society of Great Britain's Board of Directors has appointed
Murray Niman, G6JYB, to the position of Chairman of its Spectrum Forum.
Niman is no stranger to spectrum matters having held the post of RSGB
Microwave Manager, since January 2007. He succeeds the former Spectrum
Chair John Gould, G3WKL, who was recently elected as RSGB President.
(GB2RS)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: TWO HAMS HONORED BY ORDER OF CANADA
Two radio amateurs have been named to receive appointments to the Order of
Canada. Among the list of recipients are Veena Rawat, VA3ITU, and
Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, VA3OOG who also holds the United States
call KC5RNJ.
Rawat was honored as a Companion of the Order of Canada for her
contributions to telecommunications engineering and for leadership in
establishing a global regulatory framework for radio spectrum management.
Hadfield was recognized as an Officer of the Order of Canada for his
commitment to promoting scientific discovery and for sharing the wonders
of space exploration with the world. (RAC)
**
EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: NASA SEARCHING FOR HIGH SPEED MARS TO EARTH DATA
LINKS
NASA is asking for future assistance to help to get data back from its
science missions that are orbiting Mars and roaming its surface of the red
planet. Amateur Radio Newsline's Heather Embee, KB3TZD, reports:
--
The United States space agency is acting now to close a potential
communications gap that is set to occur in or around the year 2020. This
is because it currently has no plans to launch new orbiters capable of
taking over data relay duties from existing but ageing spacecraft that
will be circling Mars in 6 to 7 years.
NASA currently relies on the Odyssey and the Reconnaissance Orbiter to
along data radioed to them from the Curiosity rover. These two spacecraft
can send data back to Earth at a rate of about 2 Megabytes per Second
which is far faster than the data transfer speed that a rover can manage
by itself.
In the near future, these data relay duties are set to be taken over by
two newer spacecraft that are due to arrive at Mars later this year and in
2016. NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution satellite will go
into service this September and Europe's Exo Mars Trace Gas Orbiter craft
will arrive in 2016.
But after the arrival of its Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution
satellite NASA has no plans to launch any more Mars-bound science and data
relay orbiters. On the other side, there are plans to land more rovers on
the planet, potentially creating a problem retrieving data gathered by
these wandering robots.
Because of this the space agency is seeking input from universities and
companies about better ways to continue the high speed relay of data back
to Earth once the new orbiters eventually go dark. It adds that
commercial partners could help overcome this shortfall.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Heather Embee, KB3TZD, in Berwick,
Pennsylvania.
--
One possibility for the future might be the use of Laser based
communications. A system like this was tried in October 2013 during the
Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer mission. During that test,
data rates between the Moon and Earth hit 622 Megabytes Per Second. The
problem that even a system such as this would require sending an orbiter
so equipped to Mars which is not in the cards or in NASA's long term
budget right now.
(G7VFY, Southgate, SpaceWorld)
**
RADIO FROM SPACE: OPPORTUNITY MARS ROVER HOLDS RECORD FOR OFF WORLD
ROAMING
And speaking about its ongoing investigation of Mars, according to a NASA
report, the Opportunity Mars rover that landed on the Red Planet in 2004,
now holds the off-Earth roving distance record. This after accumulating
slightly over 25 miles of driving across the surface of the red planet.
John Callas is the Mars Exploration Rover Project Manager at NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. He says that Opportunity
has driven farther than any other wheeled vehicle on another world. He
says that this is so remarkable considering Opportunity was intended to
drive about one kilometer and was never designed for distance.
But what is really important is not how many miles Opportunity has managed
to cover, but how much exploration and discovery we have accomplished over
that distance. July's driving took the rover south along the western rim
of Endeavour Crater. The rover had driven over 20 miles before arriving at
Endeavour Crater in 2011, where it examined outcrops on the crater's rim
containing clay and sulfate-bearing minerals and radio relaying its
findings back to Earth.
(ScienceRecorder.com)
**
HAM HAPPENINGS: EURAO SUMMER 2014 YOUTH QSO PARTY
The European Radio Amateurs' Organization has announced a new on the air
QSO party this time with the motto: "give youth a chance." Similar to
Kids Day here in the United States, its purpose is to promote amateur
radio among young people, meet other hams around the world and to have
fun.
The event is slated for September 20th and 21st. In nations where
regulations permit, licensed radio amateurs are encouraged to invite and
supervise future operators to their home or club station so as to get
their first taste of ham radio. More on this event is on the web at
eurao.org. (EURAO)
**
DX
In DX, word that AI5P will activate two islands on a holiday style
DXpedition during the months of August and September. His tentative
schedule is to be on from Greneda from August 12th to the 22nd signing
stroke J3. From there he will move onto Tobago for a stint signing
portable 9Y4 from August 23rd through September 1st. Activity will be on
40 through 10 meters using mostly CW. QSL via AI5P.
RW6HS has contacted EP3SMH, who works for the Communications Regulatory
Authority of Iran, and was told that EP2MKO doesn't have a license. As
such he is operating without authority to do so.
Member of the Hotel India DX Club will tentatively be on the air as HI2DX
from Saona Island between November 19th and the 23rd. Activity will be
on 160 through 6 meters using CW, SSB and the Digital modes. They will
have 10 stations on the air using dipoles, verticals and other various
antennas. The QSL Manager M0URX for direct requests and bureau QSLs.
LW9EOC will be operational from San Andres Island as 5KZ0A between
November 26th and December 9th. Activity should be on 80 through 10
meters using CW, SSB and RTTY. QSL via his home callsign either direct or
via the bureau. Electronic QSL's go via Logbook to the World or eQSL.
LW9EOC will be active stroke HK-one from Columbia between October 22nd
and the 29th. Operations will be on all High Frequency bands using CW and
SSB. QSL via his home callsign either direct or via the bureau.
Electronic cards go via eQSL and Logbook to the World.
Lastly, DL2SBY will be active as S79KB from two islands in the Seychelles
between October 4th and the 18th. His operation will be on 20 through 10
including 17 and 12 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY with log being uploaded
onto ClubLog. QSL via DL2SBY either direct or via the bureau.
(This weeks DX courtesy of the Ohio-PennDX Newsletter)
**
RADIO SPORTS: THE PENNSYLVANIA QSO PARTY
And finally this week, the 2014 Pennsylvania QSO Party is slated for
October 11th and 12th and its already on the calendars of many contesters.
Now comes word of a major announcement from the events planners as we
hear from Amateur Radio Newsline's Mark Abramowicz, NT3V:
--
The era of the paper summary sheet is coming to an end with the arrival of
this year's PA QSO Party.
Michael Coslo, N3LI, party chairman, says the Nittany Amateur Radio Club
in State College, PA, sponsors of the party, decided it's time to do away
with the requirement that participants MAIL IN the summary sheet after the
party.
"We've had that requirement for years and now that we're here in 2014 in
the internet age not so many people really wanted to mail things in
anymore," Coslo says. "If a partier does want to mail it in, they still
have that option."
Coslo admits there's a bit of a risk here because those mailing in the
summary sheets usually sent a donation along to cover party expenses.
But he says they've come up with a solution.
"What we've done is we have opened an online store where people can make
donations if they see fit or also buy a promotional T-shirt and such," he
says. "And, I think all of this will make everybody's experience a lot
more pleasant."
Coslo says a link to the new PA QSO Party store can be found at the club's
website - that's www.nittany-arc.net. It links you to the PA QSO Party
site.
Coslo says he's hoping by dropping the mail-in requirement, that more logs
and completed entries will be submitted for the event this fall.
"The number of people sending in logs turned out to be about 50 percent of
the people who actually participated in the QSO party," he says. "In fact,
there are some people out there, I know who they are, that they would have
won their respective county or their respective section, had they sent in
their summary sheet and logs."
The PA QSO Party is the second largest of its kind in the country, topped
only by the California QSO Party which falls the first weekend of October.
Lots of PA contesters tell me they use the California event as a sort of
"tune-up" to check antennas and operating conditions.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Mark Abramowicz, NT3V, in
Philadelphia.
--
Again, the dates are October 11th and the 12th for the 2014 Pennsylvania
QSO Party. Be sure to make those dates down so that you don't miss this
year's event. (NT3V)
**
NEWSCAST CLOSE
With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, CQ Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio
Penn DX Bulletin, Rain, the RSGB, the South African Radio League, the
Southgate News, TwiT-TV, Australia's WIA News and you our listeners,
that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. Our e-mail address is
newsline (at) arnewsline (dot) org. More information is available at
Amateur Radio Newsline's only official website located at
www.arnewsline.org. You can also write to us or support us at Amateur
Radio NewslineT, 28197 Robin Avenue, Santa Clarita California, 91350.
For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors' desk, I'm Jim
Damron, N8TMW, saying 73 from Charleston, West Virginia, and we thank you
for listening.
Amateur Radio NewslineT is Copyright 2014. All rights reserved.
Have a day!
R\%/itt - K5RXT
--- GoldED+/W32 1.1.5-31012
--- D'Bridge 3.99
* Origin: K 5 R X T (Really Xtra Terrific) San Antonio, TX (1:387/22)
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