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maffew buildings posted:MGT Twitter suspension is good but that means how much while these psychos who aided a coup attempt continue to get a loving pass? I think its "a good thing," but its ultimately a drop in a bucket. It feels like Twitter just throwing out a bone.
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Jan 2, 2022 16:58
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Burning Beard posted:On a happy note, I bought my kid a Switch LIte for Christmas and she's already paid Tom Nooks loan off. And she doesn't want more debt so she's collecting bugs or whatever to buy new furniture. Goddamn Animal Crossing is the best Finance 101 thing ever designed. .....*thinks* I might actually pay five bucks for a Tom Nook murder simulator.
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Jan 3, 2022 03:08
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facialimpediment posted:Senator Kaine's stuck in it too: Weirdly enough, total throughput on 95 maxes out at 185k/day in Fairfax County. I'd have thought it'd be closer to 400k probably. https://www.virginiadot.org/info/resources/Traffic_2020/AADT_PrimaryInterstate_2020.pdf
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Jan 4, 2022 15:40
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Tiny Timbs posted:All of the above, plus VDOT has half its staff out due to covid. They also didn't bother prepping the roads for the storm because they only wanted to go through once and figured the rain would wash the sand/salt away. SOP is to use a brine solution pre-storm and then bring out the plows once 2" has fallen to avoid damaging the road surface. Temperatures over the weekend were in the 60s and there was near-certainty that the storm would start as a rain event, eliminating the effectiveness of the brine solution, which would have had manpower and resources dedicated to its application. I didn't see it in VDOT's response, but I'm guessing they salted once it shifted to snow but the temperature dropped too fast to be effective. Concurrently, the National Weather Surface had indicated at least 24 hours prior to the peak of the storm event that the track of the low had shifted to the north and east and began reinforcing their messaging that a serious event was about to take place. To wit: https://twitter.com/NWS_BaltWash/status/1477659004981571586?s=20 That said, on a good day, that stretch of 95 is so lovely that I would sooner gnaw my own arm off then enter it. poo poo is like the freeway sequence from the Matrix. And there is no alternate route if you need to get from Fredricksburg to the DC burbs unless you want to go 100 miles out of your way, which, thankfully, my dad instilled in me is prudent since I was a wee lad. Every time I've tried to get cute thinking it would be fine, I have paid dearly.
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Jan 4, 2022 17:46
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In PA, the Perfect Storm is the first snow of the year if it happens between like 11:30AM and 4PM with a shifting storm track. Same things happen that happened in VA, roads all turn to ice because the brine didn't get put down and everyone is already at work and school because we were only supposed to get flurries or something. By 1PM, everyone realizes that we're all hosed and we start the long slog home. Took me three and a half hours a couple years ago, 45 minutes of which were spent playing traffic cop at the low point of a curve directing people to go back out the way we came because 4 people got stuck going up the next hill.BIG HEADLINE posted:There's only one section of 95 worse than NoVA to Richmond, and that's the stretch from the top of the Beltway to Baltimore. Yeah, but 295 is like right there if you want to do 55 and cruise. NoVA, its Route 1, and I've made that gambit to incredibly poor results.
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Jan 4, 2022 17:59
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pantslesswithwolves posted:Also, yesterday's storm took out more trees and branches in DC than any other storm in any other season that I can remember, and that includes Hurricane Sandy and the 2012 Derecho. Holy poo poo
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Jan 4, 2022 18:21
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facialimpediment posted:Me during winter: Haha gently caress yeah!!! Yes!! Salt your roads and plow, this poo poo won't happen!!! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alkali%E2%80%93silica_reaction
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Jan 4, 2022 19:33
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Hyrax Attack! posted:Is it still a thing that in the Midwest the heavy salt use on the roads means the underside of cars are rusted to heck after a few years? Probably a dumb question but I read about how some unscrupulous dealers would ship used cars from Wisconsin to Arizona where buyers don’t think to check on that. Dunno about a few, but I would certainly insist on a visual inspection on the underside if you were thinking about something that had been driven in the Midwest. They don't call it the Rust Belt for nothing. Its one thing to get a snowstorm 2 or 3 times a year, its another to be in the top 10 in snowfall totals for metro areas in the US.
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Jan 4, 2022 20:16
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Lazy attempt at a ranking: 405 (LA), Boston, 95 (DC), Miami
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Jan 4, 2022 23:43
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pkells posted:Every state does it a bit differently, but if you google “(state) traffic count map” for whatever state your looking for you can usually find it. Echoing, but there is very little DOT stuff that isn't public domain.
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Jan 5, 2022 03:33
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Thoughts and prayers to NoVA goons for the impending weather catastrophe redux.
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Jan 6, 2022 14:08
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boop the snoot posted:I come back to the current events thread and within one day we are drinking pee There is a lot of Fox News recap poo poo, which I actually feel lovely about because I'm sure contributes to their interaction numbers.
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Jan 11, 2022 04:32
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That Works posted:I thought the Expanse show was excellent, the previous season was weaker but had to be based on the content of the book it was from. Space combat in the show is the best I've seen in any visual medium. poo poo owns. I thought it was a nice ending, and while I'm sad its probably gone, I'm sure it will continue to enter into the Top Gear->Grand Tour-> Peaky Blinders->Expanse rotation of things I put on when I'm trying to fall asleep.
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Jan 15, 2022 03:35
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Just saw my first Oz campaign ad, I kind of want to be sick.
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Jan 16, 2022 01:07
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Wingnut Ninja posted:https://www.navy.mil/uss-constitution/ I feel like Master and Commander is a seriously underrated movie. Not like Top Gun I guess, but I can see people getting a romantic feeling about a sailing ship like it.
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Jan 24, 2022 05:01
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facialimpediment posted:Well, one thing that's going to help is all the infrastructure f... uck I am going to be insufferably smug if this turns out to be the fault of lovely inspection practices by Michael Baker International. Also, apparently not a PennDOT owned structure but the City of Pittsburgh. Also, just pointing out that Lateral Cross Bracing is not a primary load path and repairs have obviously been made. You don't just go and slap a couple of ropes on it and call it a day without having done analysis. That is a very popular bridge in a very popular park in a major metro area that is heavily travelled. It is also weight posted, and I'm betting it was on a significantly reduceded inspection schedule.
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Jan 29, 2022 14:43
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CRUSTY MINGE posted:It's not. Pennsylvania took highway repair and maintenance funds and gave it to the cops instead. That is an incredibly simplistic view of how transportation infrastructure funding works in this state.
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Jan 29, 2022 15:07
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Marshal Prolapse posted:The funny thing is PA actually has a Rapid Bridge Replacement program. I did some work related to it (very peripheral). It was a Design-Bid-Build program for some 500 bridges that could be built with expediency. The Fern Hollow Bridge (Forbes Avenue over Frick Park) is a way different scenario. The fault is definitely not on funding. A catastrophic failure of a bridge of this type doesn't just "happen".
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Jan 29, 2022 15:11
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CRUSTY MINGE posted:You're right that it doesn't "just" happen. Rust takes time. Which is why there is an incredibly rigorous inspection program which goes beyond national inspection standards and I'm licensed to perform? I will almost guarantee that what caused this failure is that someone hosed up and should have closed the bridge and didn't. Vincent Van Goatse posted:Could you elaborate on this? It seems like an odd dichotomy because it seems like deficient maintenance funding could absolutely cause catastrophic bridge failures. Unless you mean another kind of funding altogether. Sure. All bridges have defects of some kind. All bridges over 20' are inspected every two years unless they are in such pristine condition that that interval can be extended if certain boxes are checked and they are pretty much in pristine condition. Bonus points if they aren't over water. Keeping bridges infinitely pristine is obviously infinitely expensive so there is a 12 year program to track and fund construction projects to manage that cost. e: Useful resource for National bridge inspection data (read: not locally owned bridges typically) https://bridgereports.com/ SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 15:21 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 15:15
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CRUSTY MINGE posted:That's a problem on a national scale. Like the Memphis I-40 bridge last year. It's not always just inspectors, it's their bosses who choose to ignore the warning signs too. And then whoever decides what projects get money. Right, so someone hosed up and didn't do their job.
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Jan 29, 2022 15:21
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That Works posted:For about 4 years iirc. At least the guy in the canoe was posting pics of it being broken and iirc was quoted as having reported it to Arkansas DOT at the time / tagged them in tweets of the damage etc. In Pennsylvania, if you are inspecting a bridge and you see something that could potentially result in failure such as this, you close the road and go up the chain until you hit 911 or someone answers the phone. Someone is losing their license and getting sued for this.
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Jan 29, 2022 15:26
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Vincent Van Goatse posted:Thank you. So it's still a huge problem, just not one where, to put it crudely, someone adjusted the maintenance funding slider too far down in the simulation? No, that definitely happened too. Just over the last several decades when the Pennsylvania government tied PennDOT's funding to the gas tax, and not "lol cops". CRUSTY MINGE posted:I hope you're right, but it's not like this bridge was unknown to the city/county, what with that picture tweet, the opening and closing of a file on it, etc. Odds are it'll be swept under the rug once all the victims' cars are replaced and a new bridge is installed. There is no loving chance of that happening. This is going to be used as a case study for decades. e: I'll wager my paycheck that there are 20 people at PennDOT running reports right now looking for similar structures and reading old inspection reports. SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 15:35 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 15:32
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CRUSTY MINGE posted:I don't doubt that people are reviewing records right now, I just doubt anything will come of it. National? No, but honestly might still have if Fetterman showed up wearing shorts. He basically lives down the street (<5 miles IIRC). But I know PennDOT, I know every bridge collapse since in the commonwealth since there was a DOT, and know what the response was. I also know the Chief Bridge Engineer, and that man is basically Napolean, the Bridge Engineer. e: I just asked someone I know what are the chances that he is currently standing menacingly at a lecturne with a bullhorn while his department is frantically running reports. The guess was probably 120%.
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Jan 29, 2022 15:40
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CRUSTY MINGE posted:I hope you're right. Also glad you have an insider perspective, and thank you for sharing it. You're welcome, happy to share. Sorry to get defensive, but I actually take pride in my work and the reason for doing it, and I think so does the majority of my industry. Cugel the Clever posted:We need to transition to a vehicle-miles-traveled tax before sales of electric vehicles become the norm so as to not gut infrastructure/transit funding where it comes from gas taxes. Especially as electrics are heavy as poo poo and even worse on road infrastructure than ICE cars. And tolling 8 bridges to fund their replacement, a proposal so dumb that between it and the COVID response it's going to almost guarantee giving the governorship to the Republicans this year, and probably cost the entire leadership at PennDOT their jobs. SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 15:51 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 15:48
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Marshal Prolapse posted:Yeah, I remember this occurring with I want to say the blue route, a section of it, near King of Prussia a few years ago. I just remember them closing it down out of nowhere and being surprised to see something like that happen so quickly. Which I should say is a very good thing. Also rule #1 for why you do not inspect lovely bridges on Friday Afternoons. e: A little after the fact, but I recall this being for a sinkhole because I remember cringing audibly. SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 17:53 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 16:02
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Platystemon posted:The HUMMER causes four hundred times as much damage to roads. and ~20 times less than a tractor trailer, which are 1,000x more prevelant on roadways. Passenger vehicles, regardless of type, are not "typically" considered for pavement and bridge design outside of specialized considerations. e: I should have said "are not typically the controlling design criteria for loading or fatigue and fracture design"
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Jan 29, 2022 16:10
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Marshal Prolapse posted:Yeah, but in the end the fact they did it and didn’t ick around us actually something to be quite happy. I meant more so for the inspector, because its a pain in the rear end to report emergencies at 4PM on a Friday without calling 911.
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Jan 29, 2022 16:18
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Platystemon posted:Yinz wanna see a cute cat? Look, we get it. The Bengals are good and the Steelers are bad. 
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Jan 29, 2022 17:07
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Stravag posted:You do actually love to see it I have a love/hate relationship with how this election is going to play out. I hope he crushes whoever comes for him, but there is a really scummy group of folks jockeying for the chance to go for him. Someone is going to toss some shade at his wife, and I hate that I can see it coming, but that guy better have life insurance.
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Jan 29, 2022 17:18
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Arrath posted:Thanks for the flashbacks of trying to get a hold of the FAA near the end of the day on a Friday. Ugh. 2.5 loving hours to get my boss on the phone because it was a marginal case and he had a Friday Golf League.
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Jan 29, 2022 17:55
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pantslesswithwolves posted:51 new posts and I think “oh poo poo, did Russia just invade Ukraine?” Nope, just another GIP derail, except this time it involves someone who absolutely knows their poo poo about the topic at hand. They started it e: In earnest, I don't know the bridge personally, nor the type. Just that it was built in 1973 and probably in Iron, so its probably a Fatigue and Fracture failure but I dont have access to any of the inspection data other than that it was posted for 26 tons (Google Maps). An F&F bridge that has a bridge posting is not just lightly inspected. I tried to get Google Earth views from the side, but couldnt find any. They are all from the top. I'm guessing concrete arch with Iron floor beams but I probably won't know that for a couple of days, especially since it is locally owned (to the knowledge of my limited research). e2: The age is important because Iron out of Pittsburgh in the late 50's and through the 60's was known as brittle. Meaning, prone to cracks and fissures to fatigue. SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 18:33 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 18:22
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Marshal Prolapse posted:Interesting, what was the reason for that? High carbon content, if I recall correctly (yes I edited, please move on). boop the snoot posted:I poured my piggy bank out into one of the potholes outside and it's still a pothole and to top it off someone came and stole my money Start a mix plant? SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 18:54 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 18:46
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boop the snoot posted:I poured my piggy bank out into one of the potholes outside and it's still a pothole and to top it off someone came and stole my money Cole, you live in one of the most pedestrian-centric zones in the United States and you make a poo poo ton of money.
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Jan 29, 2022 19:07
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Arrath posted:For gently caress sake Not empty posting, just posting that I'm thanful
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Jan 29, 2022 19:15
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Arrath posted:For me, it was trying to signal the beginning of a pre planned No Fly Zone/NOTAM through a phone number provided by those bastards, but it still took a good couple hours to get an answer and confirmation on the line. Yeah, I think you get the dillemma. "God damnit, do I have to go park this thing and put the cones out" SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 21:54 on Jan 29, 2022 |
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Jan 29, 2022 21:37
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piL posted:February 2022 Current Events: I don't know the bridge personally. I admit, it sounds stupid as a premise. I typed out my CV though and I think it works in my case.
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Jan 30, 2022 18:13
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SquirrelyPSU posted:In Pennsylvania, if you are inspecting a bridge and you see something that could potentially result in failure such as this, you close the road and go up the chain until you hit 911 or someone answers the phone. Someone is losing their license and getting sued for this. *taps sign* https://twitter.com/WGAL/status/1488256795143454722?s=20&t=Mujb1Fn2eoXDgYN8CdmaVw
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Jan 31, 2022 22:13
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SquirrelyPSU posted:*taps sign* PennDOT update, the bridge was last inspected 4 months ago: https://www.wgal.com/article/pittsburgh-collapsed-bridge-2021-inspection/38945429 e: Some background based on the photos I've seen and the articles I've read. The bridge type was as linked below (Steel k-frame, not an arch like I guessed over the weekend): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rigid-frame_bridge#/media/File:Otamusjoen_silta_2.JPG The picture of the rusted out cross bracing member turned out to be connected to one of the legs. I looked back at the photo and that leg anchor plate looks all kinds of mangled. It looks like the k-supports on one side gave out and the whole thing just rotated longitudinally about the other side, resulting in the relatively straightforward (and few) breaks in the deck, and the big gap between the one bank and where the bridge settled. Two things to be pointed out: 1) PennDOT has in fact identified the other 6 bridges that they own that share the structure type (I think I know where 3 are off the top of my head, and they are all in pretty good shape) and 2) The Load Rating was last revised in 2014 which is bulllllllllllllllllllshit. Whole thing stinks. 2e: Dave DiCello (@DaveDicello) does a lot of Pittsburgh landscape and infrastructure photography (his poo poo owns and if I had a house I'd have a bunch of it framed) and was on hand as they craning the articulated bus out of the ravine. https://twitter.com/DaveDiCello/status/1488297246059806734?s=20&t=TlhvapbwUNADRIgN3zaAgg SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 01:12 on Feb 1, 2022 |
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Feb 1, 2022 00:38
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I mean, the ignore button is like right there
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Feb 1, 2022 02:39
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Don't they use actuarial tables for literally everything? It would probably be one of the least ghoulish things that they've ever done. Or Fox News would turn on the medical insurance industry with a ferocity that rivals a pack of hyenas. That's a win-win in my book.
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Feb 1, 2022 14:08
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