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south sudan - search results
Cease-Fire Does Little to Squelch Fighting in South Sudan
Tracy - January 25, 2014
A cease-fire reached Thursday between followers of President Salva Kiir and his former Vice President Riek Machar was breached just one day later, the...
South Sudan, Central African Republic Try to Put an End to Killing and Chaos
Nick Chiles - January 11, 2014
Neighboring countries South Sudan and Central African Republic are still grappling with violence and strife among their leadership, leading the interim president of CAR, Michel...
South Sudan General Killed in Ambush; Pressure on U.N. to Inform Fleeing Civilians
Taylor Gordon - January 5, 2014
A South Sudanese general was killed in an ambush just outside of the rebel-held town of Bor Sunday just hours before the warring parties were...
South Sudan Peace Talks Face Delay
Tracy - January 4, 2014
Mediators said it was now unclear whether South Sudanese rebels would start face-to-face peace talks with the government on Saturday, dampening hopes of a swift...
After Deportation From Israel, Many African Migrants Suffering in South Sudan
Tereza Maoun, a 38-year-old mother of six, fled her home in Juba, South Sudan last week when clashes broke out at a nearby military...
South Sudan Rivals Set for New Year’s Day Peace Talks
Talks between South Sudan's government and rebels are due to start soon in Ethiopia, say observers. However there has been no immediate halt to hostilities,...
East African Leaders Press for Peace in South Sudan
ABS Contributor - December 27, 2013
African leaders who met in South Sudan to try to mediate the conflict that threatens to unravel the world's newest country said talks had...
South Sudan Poised Between War and Peace
South Sudan stands poised between two stark alternatives on Christmas Eve: an escalation of fighting as government forces prepare to launch an assault on...
South Sudan Conflict: A Test for the African Union
NAIROBI, Kenya - Even at this point - days after the trouble in South Sudan first erupted - there is much that is still...
President Obama: South Sudan on Precipice of Civil War
United States President Barack Obama has warned that South Sudan is on the "precipice" of a civil war, after clashes in the capital Juba...
Hundreds Killed in South Sudan as Conflict Intensifies After Coup Attempt
Nick Chiles - December 19, 2013
After the South Sudan president, Salva Kiir, announced Sunday that his government had put down a coup attempt led by his former vice president,...
3 Days of Violence in South Sudan Leaves Hundreds Dead, Wounded
The United Nations received reports from local sources in South Sudan on Tuesday that between 400 and 500 people had been killed and up...
South Sudan Puts Down Coup Attempt Engineered by Former Vice President
After spending the last several years feuding with its northern neighbor, Sudan, the nation of South Sudan is now finding its biggest enemy is...
Sudan Threatens to Close Oil Pipeline From South Sudan
ABS Contributor - May 28, 2013
Sudan President Omar al-Bashir said he will close a pipeline that carries oil from South Sudan if Juba continues to support rebels in its...
Omar al-Bashir Arrives For Talks in South Sudan
ABS Contributor - April 12, 2013
Sudan President Omar al-Bashir is visiting South Sudan today amid tight security . He heads a large delegation including the ministers of defense, interior...
Sudan, South Sudan Try to Resolve Conflicts to Get Oil Flowing
Nick Chiles - January 6, 2013
It appears that Sudan and South Sudan may finally have reached agreement over their border disputes to start oil flowing again in South Sudan. Sudan...
South Sudan Army ‘Shoots Down UN Helicopter’
The UN says a helicopter from its peacekeeping mission in South Sudan has been shot down by the army, killing all four crew, believed...
Run DMC’s Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels, Emmanuel Jal Attend South Sudan Business Gala
Stan - September 24, 2012
Tomorrow, Emmanuel Jal will be hosting a business gala dinner at Juba's Independence Hall. The Vice President of South Sudan, Dr Riek Machar will...
Sudan Hopes Gold Refinery Can Replace Oil Income Lost After South Sudan Secession
Nick Chiles - September 20, 2012
In an attempt to recoup the income Sudan lost when South Sudan seceded last year—and took three-quarters of Sudan's oil production with it—Sudan's President...
Alek Wek Returns to South Sudan on Anniversary
Nick Chiles - July 24, 2012
For the first time in seven years, supermodel Alek Wek returned to her homeland of South Sudan, visiting a refugee camp on the one-year...
South Sudan Runner Allowed To Compete In London Olympics
ABS Contributor - July 21, 2012
The IOC has cleared Guor Marial, a marathon runner born in what is now South Sudan, to compete under the Olympic flag at the...
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FIA F2 / Breaking news
Trident ready to take legal action against Ferrucci
Jack Benyon
Trident Motorsport says it is ready to proceed with legal action against ex-Formula 2 driver Santino Ferrucci – dropped from the team after being banned for two rounds – claiming it is owed €502,000 by the Haas Formula 1 junior.
Ferrucci was banned after colliding with his F2 teammate Arjun Maini on multiple occasions during the Silverstone weekend in July, including driving into him on the cool-down lap after the race.
The 20-year-old duly missed the next two rounds, at the Hungaroring and Spa Francorchamps.
At Silverstone Ferrucci was also seen driving his F2 car between paddocks without wearing a glove and also holding a phone, and was fined €66,000 by the FIA.
The American driver issued an apology after the Silverstone event citing a "mental lapse", and has since moved to IndyCar with Dale Coyne Racing, with which he competed in the last two races of the season.
He finished 20th in Portland and 11th in Sonoma.
He has not competed in F2 after receiving his ban, as Alessio Lorandi has taken his F2 seat with the Italian team.
A statement from the squad read: "Trident Motorsport informs to have obtained by the Court of Milan an order of payment for an amount of €502,000, plus interest and legal fees, against Mr. Santino Ferrucci and its guarantor, an American company represented by Mr. Michael Ferrucci, in relation to the driver's failure to pay the amounts due under the contract.
"Trident Motorsport confirms its intention to proceed with any legal action in order to obtain compensation for all damages suffered, well above the amount so far retained, as interim measure, by the Court."
Over a month after the Silverstone event, the Haas F1 team confirmed it would keep Ferrucci as one of its young drivers, and he has also been defended by his IndyCar team Dale Coyne Racing.
Ferrucci was unavailable for comment as this story was published.
HWA evaluating F2 entry in 2019
Matsushita pushing Honda for 2019 F2 return
Series FIA F2
Drivers Santino Ferrucci
Teams Trident
Author Jack Benyon
FIA F2 Next session
Honda junior Tsunoda secures F2 graduation with Carlin
Drugovich joins MP Motorsport for F2 move
De Vries nearly gave up on single-seater career
The year Leclerc fully revealed his star status
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President Donald Trump, left, embraces Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, during a campaign rally, Monday, Oct. 22, 2018, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Trump escalates immigration rhetoric at rally to boost Cruz
October 23, 2018 - 1:19 am
HOUSTON (AP) — President Donald Trump escalated his immigration rhetoric at a midterm rally in Texas on Monday, falsely accusing Democrats of "encouraging millions of illegal aliens to break our laws, violate our borders and overwhelm our nation."
With weeks to go before Election Day, Trump is seeking to drive Republican turnout with his hard-line immigration policies. He cast the November choice in stark terms before the Houston rally for Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, saying Democrats "have launched an assault on the sovereignty of our country."
Trump spoke before a massive crowd on behalf of his former foe, who faces a strong challenge from Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke. When the two competed in the 2016 Republican presidential primary, Trump would frequently deride his rival as "Lyin' Ted" but said in Texas that their relationship had come a long way.
"Nobody has helped me more with your tax cut, with your regulation," Trump said, also attacking O'Rourke, as a "stone-cold phony."
With the midterms drawing near, Trump has emphasized immigration, targeting a migrant caravan heading to the U.S. southern border. The president's focus on immigration politics comes as he seeks to counter Democratic enthusiasm in November. Trump believes that his campaign pledges, including his much vaunted — and still-unfulfilled — promise to quickly build a U.S.-Mexico border wall, are still rallying cries.
Trump is betting that his latest focus will further erode the enthusiasm gap that began to close during the debate over Brett Kavanaugh, Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court. But the approach offers both risks and rewards.
The hard-line rhetoric may be popular among the red-state rural Republicans who will play an outsized role in the top Senate contests. But it may further alienate the moderate Republicans and women in the overwhelmingly suburban races that will decide the House majority — including several in Texas, California and Florida that feature large Hispanic populations.
On Monday night, Trump called the caravan an "assault on our country" and suggested, without citing evidence, that "Democrats had something to do with it." He added: "We need a wall built fast."
Earlier Monday, Trump said the U.S. will begin "cutting off, or substantially reducing" aid to three Central American nations because of the caravan.
In Texas, an enthusiastic crowd packed into Houston's Toyota Center, wearing red Make America Great Again hats and waving signs, including some with the president's new catchphrase, "Jobs vs. Mobs."
Speaking before Trump took the stage, Cruz made clear that their conflict was behind them and that the two were working together. His biggest applause came when he predicted that "in 2020, Donald Trump will be overwhelmingly re-elected."
A series of elected state officials were among the warmup speakers, as well as Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump and son Eric Trump, who told the audience that "we are driving the Democrats absolutely nuts."
Trump gleefully used his latest attack line against Democrats, saying, "Democrats produce mobs, Republicans produce jobs." He declared Democrats would be a "big risk to the American family," and went after some of his favorite targets, including Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, California Rep. Maxine Waters, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
The president stressed tax cuts, the strong economy and the hurricane response in the state. He repeated his pledge for a new middle-income tax cut of about 10 percent, though he offered few details on the plan. Trump said they would be "putting it in" next week, though Congress is not in session.
Trump also criticized so-called globalists, declaring, "You know what I am? I'm a nationalist."
Trump's Texas stop is part of a campaign blitz that is expected to last until Election Day.
Although political relationships tend to be fluid, Trump's appearance for Cruz is notable, given that the two were bitter enemies during the 2016 primaries. After Trump insulted Cruz's wife and father, and Cruz refused to endorse Trump at the Republican National Convention, it was far from clear that the two would ever put it all behind them.
But they started rebuilding in the closing days of the campaign and have worked together since Trump took the White House.
The White House views Cruz as a loyal vote for his agenda. Trump promised he would come to Texas after the Senate race grew closer than expected, with O'Rourke out-fundraising Cruz and drawing large and enthusiastic crowds around the state. Cruz, who is leading O'Rourke in the polls, said over the summer that he would welcome Trump's support, though he has brushed off any suggestion he'd need Trump to win.
During the 2016 Republican primary, Trump assailed Cruz as a liar and "dishonest politician," insulted his wife's appearance and promoted unsubstantiated claims that Cruz's father had links to President John F. Kennedy's assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald.
Trump on Monday did not voice any second thoughts about labeling Cruz the son of a presidential killer, telling reporters, "I don't regret anything."
Cruz gave back as good as he got in 2016. He savaged Trump as a "pathological liar," an "amoral bully" and a "sniveling coward." After Cruz lost the primary, he gave a speech at the Republican National Convention in which he did not endorse Trump and instead called on Republicans to "vote your conscience," drawing boos from the crowd. But he announced his support about a month before Election Day — and won points in Trump's camp for not withdrawing after the "Access Hollywood" tape was released in which Trump bragged about groping women.
Associated Press writer Steve Peoples in New York contributed to this report.
Assassination of John F. Kennedy
Primary elections
United States general election
2018 United States general election
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Empire Season 1
Lucious Lyon's reign as the head of Empire Entertainment has been unchallenged for years. But all that changes when he learns he has a disease and must choose one of his three sons to take over: Andre, Jamal or Hakeem. Complicating matters is their mother and Lucious' ex-wife, Cookie, who emerges from prison to claim her share.
Genre: Drama, Music, TV Series
Actors: Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Jussie Smollett
Director: Lee Daniels, Danny Strong
The Avengers and their allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe.
Actors: Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Tom Holland
What Happened To Monday
In a world where families are limited to one child due to overpopulation, a set of identical septuplets must avoid being put to a long sleep by the government and dangerous infighting while investigating the disappearance of one of their own.
Country: United Kingdom, France
Actors: Noomi Rapace, Glenn Close, Willem Dafoe
Two sisters vacationing in Mexico are trapped in a shark cage at the bottom of the ocean. With less than an hour of oxygen left and great white sharks circling nearby, they must fight to survive.
Actors: Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine
Hollywood Dirt
Hollywood arrives en force to Quincy, the small town where the secret Crown Cola billionaires live. They want to film about the billionaires and how they made their fortunes.. Summer Jenkins, who was the town pariah, joins forces with the scout, Ben, and finds filming locations, extras, liasons with the town officials and house owners, etc. When Cole Masten arrives, they hate each other, but sparks fly. Cole is running from a nasty divorce, yet is captivated by Summer. Summer is dying to leave town to get away from the gossip. This is a great story about Southern customs, a Southern girl, and a Hollywood star who finds his lady.
Actors: Emma Rigby, Johann Urb, Marco Dapper
A former rodeo champ befriends a young man with a propensity for violence.
Country: United States, Canada
Actors: Jon Bernthal, Christopher Abbott, Imogen Poots
The Lodgers
1920, rural Ireland. Anglo Irish twins Rachel and Edward share a strange existence in their crumbling family estate. Each night, the property becomes the domain of a sinister presence (The Lodgers) which enforces three rules upon the twins: they must be in bed by midnight; they may not permit an outsider past the threshold; if one attempts to escape, the life of the other is placed in jeopardy.
Actors: Charlotte Vega, David Bradley, Moe Dunford
After 20 years abroad, Mark Renton returns to Scotland and reunites with his old friends Sick Boy, Spud, and Begbie.
Actors: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller
Lyndon Baines Johnson aligns himself with Jack Kennedy, rises to the presidency, and deals with the civil rights struggles of the 1960s.
Actors: Woody Harrelson, Michael Stahl-David, Richard Jenkins
Trailer: Empire Season 1
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Label: Puzzle Productions
The Loco-Motion
Reet Petite
Let's Twist Again
You're Sixteen
Teenage Idol
Hello Mary Lou
(What A) Wonderful World
If I Were a Carpenter
Do You Wanna Dance
Moon River (From "Breakfast at Tiffany's")
Unchain My Heart
Surfin' Safari
Whatever Will Be Will Be
A Woman in Love
Misirlou (From "Pulp Fiction")
And I Love You So
Remember You're Mine
Are You Lonesome Tonight
Rubber Ball
Walk Right Back
Peter Gunn
You're Driving Me Crazy
Gee Wizz It's You
Don't Treat Me Like a Child
My Kind of Girl
James Bond Theme (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Walkin' Back to Happiness
Big Bad John
Wonderful Land
When the Girl in Your Arms Is the Girl in Your Heart
Orange Blossom Special
Midnight in Moscow
Little Miss Lonely
Jambalaya (On the Bayou)
Must Be Madison
Cindy's Birthday
Sharing You
Tell Me What He Said
When My Little Girl Is Smiling
Dance On
Guitar Tango
Save the Last Dance for Me
Wille and the Hand Jive
Travellin' Light
The Savage (Remastered)
Theme for a Dream
On the Rebound
More Than I Can Say
Well I Ask You (Worth)
Shadoogie (Remastered)
Wild in the Country
You'll Answer to Me
Elevator Rock
Gonzales (Remastered)
Marie's the Name His Latest Flame
Lipstick on Your Collar
Tower of Strength
Gee Whizz It's You
Blue Star (Remastered)
Drums Are My Beat
Baby Take a Bow
Perfidia (Remastered)
Our Favourite Melodies
Among My Souvenirs
Shiralee (From Shiralee)
Soul Bossa Nova
Pistol Packin
Three Steps to Heaven
Ain't Misbehavin'
Someone Else's Baby
Seven Little Girls Sitting in the Back Seat
Tell Laura I Love Her
Theme from a Summer Place
Standing on the Corner
The Rumble (Remastered)
What Do You Want
The Train of Love
MacDonald's Cave
Man of Mystery
Pretty Blue Eyes
Running Bear
Let's Talk About Love
You Got What It Takes
Do You Mind
Fall in Love with You
Sweet Nothin's
My Old Man's a Dustman
Cradle of Love
Quartermaster's Stores (Remastered)
Robot Man
Suddenly There's a Valley
A Mess of Blues
The Stranger (Remastered)
Because They're Young
Nine Times out of Ten
How About That
Dreamin'
Rockin' Goose
Twistin' Postman
Beechwood 4-5789
Strawberry Fair
Goodness Gracious Me
My Heart Has a Mind of It's Own
Boogie Bossa Nova (Boogie Stop Shuffle)
Just Because (Remastered)
Counting Teardrops
Midnight (Remastered)
Unchained Melody (Remastered)
Blue Jean Bop
Funnel of Love
Queen for Tonight
Garota De Ipanema
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Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #6 Revisions of revisions
With the years some english people came to believe that God prepared another world language. Though Spanish and Chinese or Sinitic languages (Sino-Tibetan language family: Mandarin, Wu, Min, Gan, Hakka, Xiang, and Cantonese sharing the common literary language wenyan) are bigger world languages, they do think that
English is that world language. And one reason is because of the preservation of the word. {Why should God’s Word be restricted to English?}
Because often those people not knowing enough the other languages and not able to compare them with the original Greek, Aramaic and Hebrew language, they like to place their own language in the first place, not seeing that in many of Bible editions in their language words were not always translated exactly or not seeing that certain words where changed in names in place to taking it for the things they meant in the original language.
In the past some English scholars knew that sometimes the Hebrew and Greek way of saying things could be too complicated for some English speaking people, of which approximately 330 to 360 million have that language as their first language. They did find God His Word so important they wanted all people, young and old, educated and not schooled ones, to be able to come in contact with those precious words. Looking at the level of reading they wanted to adapt the language of the text to such levels.
The translators wanted to keep the Divine Author in view but found it important to bring over His message. They looked at the meaning of what was said in the original text and translated or defined loosely what was meant. The (more or less) free rewording of an expression or text, as an explanation, clarification, or translation gave way to different paraphrased Bible translations.
Outside cover of Revised Version of Bible, bound in leather with a full yapp, Published by Oxford in 1885.
Others looking at such loosely translated versions started to attack those translations and got the wheel going with lots of discussions saying this or that translation was a corrupted one. Also reasons for a new translation gave the impression to others that they should doubt the sincerity of the translation. as such Muslims got food to call the Bible corrupted, looking at sayings in prefaces, like the scholars’ introduction of the Revised Standard Version of The Bible produced in 1971 as proof of this. {Christian Scholars Admit To Corrupting The Bible} In the Preface are these words:
The King James Version has grave defects…these defects are so many and so serious as to call for revision.
Under The Milky Way writes
Muslims find these statements by Christian scholars to be self-incriminating. For Christian scholars to say that the King James Version of the Bible has grave defects which require revision is taken as a self-evident admission that either the Revised Standard Version (RSV) or the King James Version (KJV) of The Bible or both have been intentionally distorted with the intention of fabricating false teaching. {Christian Scholars Admit To Corrupting The Bible}
Though this translation was called to be the first and the only officially authorised and recognised revision of the King James Version in Britain, having the Old Testament edited four years later than the New Testament, which saw the light in 1881. The Apocrypha got printed in 1894. Brooke Foss Westcott and Fenton John Anthony Hort, whose texts formed also the basic for the New World Translation (NWT) where the best known of the translation committee members. Their stated aim was
“to adapt King James’ version to the present state of the English language without changing the idiom and vocabulary,”
“to adapt it to the present standard of Biblical scholarship.”
To those ends, the Greek text that was used to translate the New Testament was believed by most to be of higher reliability than the Textus Receptus used for the KJV. The readings used were compiled from a different text of the Greek Testament by Edwin Palmer. {Palmer, Edwin, ΚΑΙΝΗ ΔΙΑΘΗΚΗ. The Greek Testament] with the Readings Adopted by the Revisers of the Authorised Version. London: Simon Wallenberg Press, 2007. ISBN 1-84356-023-2}
This version was adapted and revised as the “Revised Version, Standard American Edition” or getting names as American Revised Version, the American Standard Revision, the American Standard Revised Bible, and the American Standard Edition, but at the end of the 20th century commonly known as the American Standard Version (ASV). Here-fore Philip Schaff had recruited scholars from different denominations (Baptist, Congregationalist, Dutch Reformed, Friends, Methodist, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Protestant Episcopal, and Unitarian) who began work in 1872 to complete it 29 years later.
The Revised Version (both the 1885 and the American Standard Version of 1901) are some of the Bible versions that are authorized to be used in services of the Episcopal Church, the Church of England and the Anglican Communion. For the American version was chosen to bring in again God’s Divine Name and where normally the tetragrammaton stood in the original text, it is consistently rendered Jehovah in 6,823 places of the ASV Old Testament, rather than YHWH or rather than LORD as it appears in the King James Bible.
That choice of omitting God’s Name would become more important in later years, several editors afraid of publishing God’s Holy Name and therefore preferring to print the ‘meaningless’ word ‘Lord’ (in later years even omitting the big capitals) so that people could not see the difference between the Lord Most High, the Adonai Elohim Hashem Jehovah, and God His son, the other lord between the many lords.
During the mid-20th century again a revision appeared on the market wanting
“to put the message of the Bible in simple, enduring words that are worthy to stand in the great Tyndale-King James tradition.”
In a first stage a New Testament (first edition), 1946 (originally copyrighted to the International Council of Religious Education), six years later followed by the Old Testament and thus offering the full ‘Protestant Bible’. A Catholic version was accomplished with the Apocrypha in 1957. Again receiving some modification and a Modified edition (1962) followed by the RSV Catholic Edition (RSV-CE), (NT 1965, Complete Bible 1966). those editions got again revisions with publications in 1971, 1973, an Apocrypha expanded edition (1977) and a RSV Second Catholic (or Ignatius) Edition (RSV-2CE) in 2006.
In later years, the RSV served as the basis for two revisions – the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of 1989, using gender-neutral language, and the Protestant evangelical English Standard Version (ESV) of 2001.
A revision in 1973 ordered the books in a way that pleased both Catholics and Protestants, dividing the library into four sections:
The Old Testament (39 Books)
The Catholic Deuterocanonical Books (12 Books)
The additional Eastern Orthodox Deuterocanonical Books (three Books; six Books after 1977)
The New Testament (27 Books)
Four years later that ‘Common Bible’ got the Apocrypha expanded to include 3 Maccabees, 4 Maccabees, and Psalm 151, three additional sections accepted in the Eastern Orthodox canon (4 Maccabees again forming an appendix in that tradition), although it still does not include additional books in the Syriac and Ethiopian canons. This action increased the Common Bible to 84 Books, making it the most comprehensive English Bible translation to date with its inclusion of books not accepted by all denominations. The goal of the Common Bible was to help ecumenical relations among the churches.
Facing all those revisions of revisions this Summer the non-profit publisher Crossway released what they are describing as a “permanent” English biblical translation which has sought to be “as literal as possible” while maintaining clarity of expression and literary excellence, but still shall need some updating. But such updating sometimes can bring wrong texts.
17 years after it was first authorized by Crossway, its publisher, the translation oversight committee changed just 52 words across 29 verses — out of more than 775,000 words across more than 31,000 verses — for what they called the final “permanent text” edition. The board then voted, unanimously, to make the text “unchanged forever, in perpetuity.”
“The text of the ESV Bible will remain unchanged in all future editions printed and published by Crossway—in much the same way that the King James Version (KJV) has remained unchanged ever since the final KJV text was established almost 250 years ago (in 1769),”
Crossway stated on its website.
One difference: While the ESV copyright is held universally by Crossway, the KJV copyright held by the Crown of England is only valid in the United Kingdom. So modified versions of the KJV have been popping up in the United States and elsewhere for several hundred years. (Christian Today has explored whether copyrights help or hurt Bible translation.)
The publisher’s intended goal was
“to stabilize the [ESV], serving its readership by establishing the ESV as a translation that could be used ‘for generations to come,’”
The editor desires for
“there to be a stable and standard text that would serve the reading, memorizing, preaching, and liturgical needs of Christians worldwide from one generation to another.”
This September they wrote:
“Our goal at Crossway remains as strong as ever to serve future generations with a stable ESV text. But the means to that goal, we now see, is not to establish a permanent text but rather to allow for ongoing periodic updating of the text to reflect the realities of biblical scholarship such as textual discoveries or changes in English over time.”
That way the same will happen to the ESV as to the KJV that people are going to think they have it about the same Bible translation, though might have a totally different version.
What happened in the past is that many people each time a new revision came unto the market, certainly with a different name several Christians reacted strongly against the new text. Lots of church members prefer a text that doesn’t and won’t ever change, not a text that is on the path of continual improvement. This also comes mainly because several denominations stick to only one Bible translation and do not, like several non-trinitarian groups, have a roster of different Bible translations to look at, taking every time an other version as standard for the next year, having their members to think about the essence of the text and not pinpointing to human doctrinal teachings or limiting themselves just to one Bible version.
Tremper Longman III, a member of the New Living Translation (NLT) committee said
But making a translation permanent ignores the need for updates that reflect scholars’ advances in their understanding of the text, as well as the continuing development of English as a living language.
He continued
“Most translators and linguists would say that such an approach to translation is actually less accurate in terms of communicating the thought of the ancient writer to a modern audience.”
A collection of Bibles in Taiwanese. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
People should always remember that language is a living thing and by the years words may change meaning or additional (new) words may be better suited to bring over the meaning of those old writing, of which researchers still get more and new insights. Longman also remarks
“The English language changes, and my guess is that over the years even this particularly type of translation will sound more and more stilted, just as the KJV does to modern readers.”
Bible translations to polish language by Czesław Miłosz. On the left Five Megillot, in center Book of Job, on right Psalms (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Publishers are aware that the copyrights of a publication are limited in time and as such it is more profitable to create a whole new Bible version to keep the money coming into the till. At certain times there are also new preachers of high position who want to have their notes presented in a bible version they feel good with in a language of the time they are living in, what again demands a new Bible translation, under a new name.
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #1 Pre King James Bible
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #2 King James Bible versions
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #3 Women and versions
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #4 Steps to the women’s bibles
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #5 Further steps to women’s bibles
Lord or Yahuwah, Yeshua or Yahushua
People Seeking for God 7 The Lord and lords
Another way looking at a language #6 Set apart
Trusting, Faith, Calling and Ascribing to Jehovah #13 Prayer #11 Name to be set apart
Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God
The Bible and names in it
Let us recognise how great God is
Written to recognise the Promissed One
Background to look at things
Religious people and painful absence of spring of living water
2001 Translation an American English Bible
Some Restored Name Versions
The most important translation…
From Mary Harwell Sayler’s article Lent: Let the Bible readings begin!
Further related articles
The inspiration of Scripture
The Preservation of Scripture
The Challenge of Translating
English Bible Translations
Infographic on English Bible Translations
How Trustworthy Are Bible Translations?
Advice for The Church (Part 3 – Translation)
What Makes A Bible Translation Good?
Where was the Bible before 1611? How can we know God endorsed the KJV?
The King James Bible and the Restoration
The King James Removed Verses?
Study the Word for More Than Words
The Bible or The Watchtower?
What is the New World Translation?
Brief Introduction to the Greek Text of the New Testament
I believe the King James Bible is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice.
King James Only?
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Six Reasons To Not Follow “King James Version-onlyism”
New Testament Textual criticism
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Manuscripts in the Old Testament Synagogue
Which is the best English Bible?
128 Source Greek Text for NT Translation
133 Komma Johanneum in die King James Version.
ESV Men’s Devotional Bible
Top Five Premium ESV Bibles for Christmas 2015 (plus two)
The English Standard Version of the Bible
ESV Classic Reference Bible (ESV1) in Burgundy Goatskin by R. L. Allan & Son
ESV Journaling Bible: Interleaved Edition in Natural Brown Cowhide
ESV Heirloom Thinline Bible in Brown Calfskin (Crossway)
Bible Reviewer: ESV Single Column Journaling Bible
Crossway Reverses Decision to Make ESV Bible Text Permanent
Does the ESV Honour the Holy Spirit?
ESV for “Joe the Bus Driver”
(Lost in) Permanent Translation
New International Version Bible at 50 Years
Book Review, “Guys Slimline Holy Bible,” Tyndale House publishers
Girls Slimline Holy Bible
Sanctuary: A Devotional Bible for Women, New Living Translation
Bible Review: Tyndale Select Reference Edition
Neither Conservative or Liberal … Let’s Be Just!
Lent: Let the Bible readings begin!
Was Dr. John R. Rice a Heretic?
Straightway
Applying God’s Holy Word
How to Study Your Bible…a book review
Basic Principles for “Doing Theology”
Synod Dunnville 2016 (7)
Hebrew Word of the Week: bet-sefer
Ancient Hebrew Papyrus Seized from Looters, But Is It Authentic?
Hebrew Antropogenesis | Mighty Hebrew University
Incredible New Way to Learn Hebrew: Introducing- Hebrewvision
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Why does God call Jesus “God” in Isaiah 9:6, if he is not actually God?
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Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #7 Jewish versions
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Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #7 Jewish versions | Belgian Biblestudents - Belgische Bijbelstudenten said:
[…] Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #6 Revisions of revisions […]
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #8 Selective Bibles and selective people | Belgian Biblestudents - Belgische Bijbelstudenten said:
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #10 Journaling Bibles and illustrative women | Belgian Biblestudents - Belgische Bijbelstudenten said:
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #11 Muslim Idiom Translations | Belgian Biblestudents - Belgische Bijbelstudenten said:
Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #12 God Himself masters His Own Word | Belgian Biblestudents - Belgische Bijbelstudenten said:
English Bible History by John L. Jeffcoat III and Dr. Craig H. Lampe | From guestwriters said:
Lost gospels or apocryphal writings | Bijbelvorser = Bible Researcher said:
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[…] Old and newer King James Versions and other translations #6 Revisions of revisions speaks about modified versions of the KJV which have been popping up in the United States and elsewhere for several hundred years. […]
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5th Apr 2011Posted in: Blog 0
Spring Series Update
As part of our final preparations for race day, we have been competing in the official Little 500 Spring Series events. These competitions are an excellent means of seeing how we stack up against our competitors as the race comes closer and closer.
The first of these events was Individual Time Trials (ITTs), held last Wednesday. ITTs are an all-out 4-lap time trial, just you against the clock.
Tom Laser ended up 7th after absolutely smoking his heat. The Little 500 community has certainly taken notice of our secret weapon.
I took 15th after a disappointing run. My hip’s still bothering me from a crash last Monday but I just couldn’t get in the zone.
Matt Green finished 51st, fighting some sort of illness to still end up in a solid position. We know he’s a top 15 rider when healthy, so right now the focus will be on figuring out what’s wrong with him.
Andrew Ramos capped off the night in 59th, an extremely impressive showing for his first ever time trial. That puts him well ahead of most rookies, and there’s no doubt that he’s going to show up big time on race day and for years to come.
Saturday was Miss ‘n Out, a bracket-style elimination event. Riders are seeded according to their ITT results, and placed into heats based on those seeds. In each round, you start off with 5-8 other riders, and after each lap the last rider across the line is out. This continues until 2 or 3 riders are left, depending on how far in the tournament you are.
Ramos was placed in a difficult opening round heat and unfortunately was not able to advance out. He did, however, demonstrate excellent pack riding skills and an innate knowledge of positioning that will be key on April 16th.
Green was knocked out in the quarterfinals after getting boxed in by 3 riders from Sigma Chi. Still on antibiotics, the focus remains on getting him healthy.
I was the last one eliminated in my quarterfinal heat after I slowed down heading into the finish line thinking I was in good shape. Unfortunately, my attempt to conserve some energy got me nipped at the line.
Laser was the last Beta standing, eliminated in the middle of a very competitive semifinal heat. That being said, only two rookies total advanced to the semifinals, so we are excited to see him thriving on the cinders.
Moving forward, Team Pursuit is this Saturday. We will be taking the track for our 15-lap team trial at 3:12 PM, EST. After an average showing in the first two events, we are looking to hit it hard.
In other news, our alumni support over the past week has been absolutely incredible. We have raised an astonishing $3,000+, which will allow us to have some amazing equipment for the race. 11 days…can’t wait!
in _kai_,
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Print-and-Play games: Featuring bees, drugs and deep space dreams
By Jupiter Hadley On Feb 12, 2018 0
Have you ever wanted a tabletop game to play with friends or even on your own, but wished you had it right now? Instead of ordering and waiting for your game to arrive, would you simply like to have it available this second? Well, there are plenty of print-and-play tabletop games you can pick up and play as fast as your printer can print them, and here are a few I recommend.
Scoundrels by Randy O
Scoundrels is a three-to-six–player tabletop game all about being pirates of the seven seas! You must take risks to earn rewards while becoming a well-known pirate for all the wrong reasons. Getting ahead of other players is a challenge in the world of pirates, especially when it comes to infamy. Being the most known pirate is the goal of the game; this is measured in tokens and treasure cards. You can only draw new cards after everyone has gone, so need to balance the cards you have for defense with the amount of treasure you want to hold — so the next player doesn’t take you out. You start off with some cards — swords, sails and cannon — but you need to find a way to collect and then bury your own treasure. You do not want to run out of defenses and become a sunken ship yourself!
Becoming a pirate is risky as it is, but this game really puts you into the shoes of an oceanic villain, forcing you to risk it all, do dastardly deeds and try to get rid of your pirate enemies! You can pick up Scoundrels for just $5 USD over on Itch.io — and it is well worth that small amount of loot.
BuzzPutt by Brian Wolf
BuzzPutt board
BuzzPutt is a one-to-four–player golf game where you play as adorable bees! There are three pre-made putt putt courses for you and your friends to play on. Each person selects a bee and its matching ball, then places their ball on the starting point of the board, with an arrow pointing towards where they want to move.
Then you roll the dice and pick a shot (basically a stroke in golf) based on what you have rolled. You can now move your ball that far. If you land on certain tiles, such as the honeycomb tiles, it costs more movement points to move out. If you end up out of bounds, you must end your turn and start your next turn on the last tile you touched. Once everyone is at the end, you can move onto the next course. BuzzPutt is currently in the prototype stage, so it only has three courses. However… it is possible to cut out the board game tiles and create your own custom-designed courses with them!
BuzzPutt provides a simple, easy-to-play game full of adorable little bees for free!
Agent Decker by Manuel Correia
Agent Decker is a single-player, mission-based, deckbuilding game which has you gathering gear and skills as a secret agent! You have just graduated from spy school and now have five different missions to take on. Your first mission is more of an introductory mission, but as you continue they become increasingly challenging. Each of the missions require you to infiltrate buildings and complete tasks.
The first one, for example, is to get inside of a building and retrieve a hostage. You need to gather some resources to be able to complete the mission. Your starting deck has two different cards in it – punch and hide, which in turn give you an attack or stealth resource respectively. These help you take on obstacles in the enemy base. You are then challenged to take down different obstacles on each turn. Once you have overcome an obstacle, your turn is over and you must discard your hand and draw one anew. You also interact with the last obstacle in the line, increasing alarm. If you raise fifty alarm points, the game is over.
After your move, you need to move all the cards across the table and place a new one down at the end. Cards move at different speeds — some faster or slower than others — so you need to study them and see where they should go in the lineup.
Agent Decker is a well-thought-out, free game which will keep you planning ahead and taking on interesting missions!
Tribes of Balbur by Miniboss
Tribes of Balbur
Tribes of Balbur is a tabletop game for two to four players where you try to survive within your tribe. Gods punish anyone who doesn’t show them the most respect, especially Rak-Yargar, the all-seeing god. He only spares those who make a monument in his honor. Each tribe wants to make this monument to gain the favor of Rak-Yargar — and eliminate the other tribes to control the land once and for all.
You make this monument by exploring the map and collecting resources. Being on the same part of the map as another player forces you both to roll a die — whoever has the highest roll dominates the land. Resources are at different locations and all require different rolls of various dice to earn them. The player to create their monument first wins this game!
Tribes of Balbur has a unique and whimsical art style complete with some monster crowns. The game doesn’t take long to set up and is a fun little playthrough for you and your friends — all for free.
House Rules by CLD
House Rules is a four-to-six–player board game where you and your friends make up the rules! Players travel around the board, following these player-made rules, to earn star tokens. Once somebody collects five star tokens, they have won the game. These tokens are earned either by specific player-made rules or by making it around the board.
Each player is handed some blank cards to make up the rules on. These rules can be anything — a reward, a limitation, a challenge — and you can even create little mini-games to play with everyone. House Rules also comes with some suggested rules if you have trouble thinking of some yourself and there is a deck of ‘board rules’ which are pre-set for the game. Once you have all your rule cards created, you can start the game.
House Rules is pretty easy to pick up — you just roll your dice, move to that space, pick up whichever type of rule card is listed and follow that rule. Then you continue on until you get your star tokens!
The idea of being able to come up with the rules and really feel like you have helped create the game is pretty neat. You can really customize this game to your liking by adding whatever obstacles or rewards you see fit into the ‘Player Rule’ deck. House Rules is free to download, so pick it up!
Pass the Buck: A Game of Corporate Responsibility Management by Carol Mertz
Pass the Buck: A Game of Corporate Responsibility Management is a three-to-five–player card game where you must work your way up the corporate ladder through bluffing! You have tasks in your hand which you need to complete in order to gain promotions and become the C.E.O. You and your friends work as corporate employees, tasked with different jobs. There are various departments that determine your ability to complete these tasks and a level, which shows your job title. You need to take your turn to get rid of the tasks in your hand by completing them one by one or by passing them off to your opponents, who may be better suited for the work you don’t want to do.
Passing off your tasks in the Delegator phase instead of completing them is the more efficient way to play, however players need to be in the correct department to get your unwanted task. If the player is in the wrong department and you suspect it, you can call HR to give them a penalty.
Pass the Buck: A Game of Corporate Responsibility Management is packed with humor — as long as you pass work to others, you will be promoted in no time! This game is just $5 USD.
On The Run by Play On The Run
On The Run is a three-to-six–player, turn-based strategy card game which sees you begin in the midst of attempting to skip town after robbing a bank. You and the other players have robbed a bank in a small town, so it will come as no surprise that you want to vacate the area! You all need to wait for the train to leave this place, however, the police are looking for you and already have an overwhelming amount of evidence.
Along with the evidence, your fellow players want to throw you under the bus to save their own skin. You must gather money while avoiding jail so that you can escape far away to your own personal paradise!
There are three types of cards in this game: Evidence Cards, Action Cards and Strike/Prison Cards. Each player starts off with five evidence cards as well as five coins. Coins can be used to pay for bail or bribe people, and are needed to complete the game. To win, you must have twelve coins and end your turn out of jail.
The police have a set of Evidence cards, which stay in the evidence locker (as well as some coins). You do not want your personal evidence cards to match those inside the evidence locker, as that will make you more likely to be convicted for the crime.
Action cards are where the game begins, and you have a few different types of actions cards to play with. These allow you to steal, throw players into jail, get out of jail, switch up the evidence… basically anything to get your friends arrested! You must use these to get the upper hand and work on skipping town quickly!
On The Run is a free, challenging game to take on, as there are loads of players competing directly against you. If you are up for the challenge and don’t mind your efforts being undermined and plans foiled, then grab some friends and see if you can pin the crime entirely on them!
Freight Wars by Nick Turner
Freight Wars Tiles
Freight Wars is a two-to-three–player game where you can procedurally generate your game tiles before you print them, giving you a completely unique game set. As a Victorian industrialist looking to build a transportation network, you can place roads, rivers or railways to connect towns to other places, as well as block off the routes of your opponents.
First, you must choose which mode of transportation each player should use. One should use roads, one rivers and the other, trains. Then, you must shuffle the cards and hand them out to various players. Each player should get a town card, as well as two other cards dealt to them.
Players place tiles so that the modes of transportation connect to the tiles already placed on the table. These tiles need to match up for every mode of transportation to be placed, then the player can draw another tile from the deck so they always have three cards. Players can also skip a turn by discarding all of their tiles to draw a new hand.
After all of the tiles are placed, players must count up how many connections they have between towns. There are different points depending on how good the transport links are between different places. This can be seen in more detail in the rules of the game.
Freight Wars is a super-unique game that is easy to pick up and understand, fun to play and free!
Pusher Kings by Terriv
Pusher Kings
Pusher Kings is a funny two-player card game in which you struggle to maintain control of the drug market in your town! This game is not a deck builder, so both players play from a pre-set deck.
Each player gets a hand of seven cards (with at least one ‘pusher’ card in their hand) before the game starts. You must flip cards to use them, only using specific cards for your turn.
There are a few different card types: Pushers, Henchmen and Actions. Pushers sell the drugs and can be used once per turn. Once you flip the card over to use them, you gain money, which can only be spent during that turn. Once the turn is over, the money disappears. Pushers cannot attack, defend, or take damage and only one can be used per turn.
Henchman have different costs, abilities and attributes. They are used to gain power in the town and can be attacked. Henchman also cost a fair amount of money each, so you need to be able to pay them to use them on your turn. The first turn you draw a henchman, you have to have them flipped, so they cannot be played right away.
Action cards are not flipped but instead discarded. There are only two of each action card in the deck, so you need to play them wisely — each action is immediate and costs resources to play. These can be used to harm players’ henchmen or the player themselves.
Each player has ten health points, so once they have been harmed enough to reach zero, the game is over.
Pusher Kings has some really awesome artwork drawn on the cards! This free card game does not have deck-building aspects, so it is an easy game to pick up and play with your friends.
The Astronomer by Alayna M Cole
The Astronomer
The Astronomer is a single-player tabletop game where you manage your resources to build a airship and drift off into the stars. You have always dreamed of becoming an astronomer — but instead became a scientist, studying the stars and constellations from your home.
As your life continued, the world around you became more hostile, with humans causing chaos and natural disasters taking up what was left. You have made the decision to leave this world and go to the stars — where you have always wanted to be.
Creating an airship is no easy task and you need to start by creating machines to produce the materials needed to become airborne. You need to gain money, staff and time to make it off this Earth before it’s too late. Different mayors come in and out of power, affecting your work, so you need to plan ahead and take on whatever comes in the way of your factory and building your aircraft.
In this current day and age, The Astronomer might hit a little close to home, but if you’re interested then you can pick it up for just $1.99 AUD.
Please note: A previous and less concise version of this article was, until recently, published on a third-party website, however it has since been removed. In addition to being rehosted, this version has been edited and added to.
#Agent DeckBuzzPuttFreight WarsHouse RulesOn the RunPass the Buck: A Game of Corporate Responsibility ManagementPusher KingsScoundrelsThe AstronomerTribes of Balbur
Jupiter Hadley 274 posts 4 comments
Jupiter Hadley is a indie game enthusiast who specializes in Game Jams. She records thousands of games a year on her YouTube channel and writes for various websites online. If you wish to contact Jupiter, you can find her on twitter @Jupiter_Hadley or support her on Patreon. You can find all of her work at www.Jupiterhadley.com
The Big Boss Battle Best 50 Board Games We’ve Ever Reviewed — 2018 Edition!
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The world now has an Ebola vaccine, in historic EU approval
The vaccine is 97.5% effective in protecting against the Zaire species of Ebola, according to the World Health Organization.
The European Medicines Agency granted special approval for an Ebola vaccine called Ervebo.
Ervebo has proven remarkably effective in clinical trials conducted in Africa.
An Ebola outbreak has killed more than 2,000 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo since August 2018.
Health regulators in Europe have issued the world's first approval for a vaccine against Ebola, and it's estimated to become widely available in 2020.
The European Medicines Agency granted a conditional marketing authorization this week that allows the U.S. pharmaceutical company Merck to market the vaccine, called Ervebo. Conditional marketing authorizations help to fast-track the approval process for drugs and therapies that treat "unmet medical needs." That's important when fighting often-deadly viral diseases like Ebola.
Since August 2018, Ebola has killed more than 2,000 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Besides the 2014 West African outbreak that killed more than 11,000 people, the 2018 DRC outbreak is so far the deadliest on record. And the number of cases continues to rise. But experimental vaccination programs have helped curb infection rates. In these programs, Ervebo was strikingly effective, showing an estimated protective efficacy of 97.5 percent, as the World Health Organization reported in April.
"Finding a vaccine as soon as possible against this terrible virus has been a priority for the international community ever since Ebola hit West Africa five years ago," Vytenis Andriukaitis, commissioner in charge of Health and Food Safety at the EU's European Commission, said in a statement. "Today's decision is therefore a major step forward in saving lives in Africa and beyond."
Ervebo protects against a particularly infectious ebolavirus species called Zaire, one of four species known to infect humans. Zaire can also infect animals, like macaques. In 2005, researchers at the Public Health Agency of Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory developed an Ebola vaccine that protected macaques 100 percent of the time. But lack of funding and regulatory hurdles meant it'd take years, maybe decades, to prove the vaccine was safe and effective in humans.
Then the 2014 West African outbreak struck. With the need for an effective vaccine made clear, Merck obtained the license to Ervebo, known as rVSV-ZEBOV-GP, and soon the vaccine was being administered to people in Guinea as part of a clinical trial. The vaccination strategy there was to inoculate people who'd been in contact with others who'd been infected with Ebola. This is called ring vaccination.
But while ring vaccination was effective in preventing the spread of Zaire, it remains unclear just how long the protective effects last. That's a critical question for, say, health workers who get vaccinated to protect themselves against infection that might occur months later. There are also other ebolavirus species that other vaccines would need to address, such as the deadly Sudan species.
In addition to the conditional marketing authorization issued by the European Medicines Agency, the World Health Organization has "prequalified" the Ervebo, meaning it meets standards for safety and efficacy.
"[Prequalification] is a historic step towards ensuring the people who most need it are able to access this life-saving vaccine," WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in the announcement. "Five years ago, we had no vaccine and no therapeutics for Ebola. With a prequalified vaccine and experimental therapeutics, Ebola is now preventable and treatable."
In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration is expected to decide on approval in March 2020.
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20 MOST LIKELY TO BLOW UP IN 2020
All Metal Everything January 5, 2020
THE WAVE CRASHES UPON US THIS YEAR.
Written By Noah Motion
20. Roy Oro
Though 2019 saw zero releases from Roy; we have good reason to believe 2020 will be very different. One of the first low-key artists we found through our blog; his song Judgment has aged like wine and is still featured on our Spotify playlist to this day. We have insider knowledge that 2020 is going to be a big year for the Los Angeles bound creative so we’ve made a bold prediction that this little known artist is going to put himself on the map by the end of the year. Come back to this list in December and see if our predictions pan out.
19. Pezzhead
If you’re a fan of All Metal Everything you know we’ve been fucking with Pezzhead since day one. Our first video release on our channel last year was his song “College” and it’s gathered a few thousand views since then. His numbers have shown steady growth and we believe he’s well on his way to becoming a staple in the scene. His next release under Darktone Records is expected to perform very well and we’re excited to share his energy with the world.
18. Aly Vorhees
Aly is well on her way to becoming an aesthetic icon in the scene. Her voice is extremely unique in a scene of guttural screams; she manages to stand out amongst the crowd. 2020 will be a year of steady growth for the Florida native and we’re excited to see what she makes of it.
17. Dana Dentata
With a major co-sign from Marilyn Manson; Dana has become an icon in the alternative fashion scene with her music steady climbing up on peoples’ rotations. She recently toured with Ghostemane in Australia and New Zealand and clearly has friends in high places. Her internet clout got significantly bigger in 2019 so we think 2020 will be another year of building her empire. Dana is someone to watch and if there’s anything we’ve learned from her it’s “Trust No Dick”.
16. Jugger
The Toronto native is set to blow up this year with the likes of WondaGurl behind him. Jugges has labeled his style “DeathTrap” and we think it fits perfectly. 2019 we saw him get released from jail to great success. We’ve been covering him since early last year so if you’re not up on Jugger now is the time.
15. INSVNEXYX
We found insvnexyx (pronounced ?!) late in 2019 but he has quickly rose to the top of the list of artists to watch out for. One of the few Italian trap metal artist in the game; insvnexyx latest porject “(Black Parade)” displays a wide range of sounds and emotions. The scene is just beginning to be solely a rage genre towards something with more emotional depth and the Italian trapper does it perfectly. This next year we’ll see international/non-english trap metal begin to take a center stage.
14. Bvdlvd
Hailing from London, BvdLvd (pronounced “Bad Lad”) made some serious noise in 2019. His song “ENVY” was a hugely hyped single and as of this article has reached 370K views on his own YouTube. Ever since then he has dropped nothing but gaseous bangers. Member of the UK based collective LOVE SEPTEMBER; BvdLvd has a crazy year ahead of him.
13. Prxjek
Prxjek is not just a trap metal artist. Jek has established himself as one of the most versatile musicians on this list and always surprises us with each release. Whether it’s the insanely heavy “Be Silent When The King Is Speaking” or his emo rap ballad “Antisocial” or even his boom bap record “Scatterbrain”; Prxjek puts all his passion into it leaving no stone unturned. 2020 is going to be another great year for the Florida native.
12. Nick Prosper
One of early adopters of the trap metal sound; Nick Prosper got his start a few years ago in an NYC metal band as the vocalist. When he turned to Hip Hop he experienced great indie success and is still a staple to this day. For the past couple of years he has switched to more melodic emo trap stylings but has indicated his desire to go back to a heavier sound. We think that this would be great for the scene and especially great for Nick. He feels at ease when he’s aggressive; Dead Youth Anthem is a classic underground trap metal song. His growth as a musician is undeniable and we think 2020 is going to be a fantastic year for the NYC native.
11. 7XVN
We’ve been following 7XVN since the very beginning and his career has done nothing but skyrocket. Even while he’s away for months at a time completing his basic training for the Military; people listen to his music on repeat and show no signs of stopping. After having beef with Prxjek over IG - the two made amends and eventually Prxjek gave 7xvn the cosign. Ever since then his passionate fanbase has devoured through his music and shared it all across the world. If he manages to put together a project with his busy schedule this year; 2020 might be the year of 7XVN.
10. Drownmilli
2019 has been a great year for Drownmilli. Despite the incarceration of his music partner and friend Burnkas, his releases this past year have been consistent and steadily improved each time. His latest as of this article “War Outside” show Drown experimenting with different genres and pushing himself creatively to great success.
9. SosMula (Solo Artist)
Obviously, City Morgue has blown up and has sold out shows overseas. They have recognition from some of the biggest players in the game and performing at the same level as acts like Ghostemane and Rico Nasty. However, this year, the duo are planning to release solo projects. ZillaKami has long been the face of the rap group; bolstering his iconic grills and dreadlocks. We believe that SosMula has sometimes gotten the short end of the stick in terms of overall popularity. 2020 might change that. Their latest project “As Good As Dead '' showcased some of SosMula’s craziest bars to date. He is versatile, lyrical and has an authentic grittiness that we can’t get enough of.
8. Loko wit tha Mask
Chicago native Loko Wit Tha Mask is poised to be a sensation. His video for “Hot Shit” is sitting at 120K as of this article and every song he’s released since has been an anthem. I’ve been bumping Loko on the regular and people always come up and ask who he is. His ability to craft trap metal music that even the most quiet people can get into is impressive. Not to mention his look; he recently got a tattoo over his eyelid and shit looks crazy af. If there’s anyone who is committed to building this scene and helping us all succeed it’s Loko. We recommend keeping your eyes open for his rise.
7. PrincessBri
From Ottawa, Canada; fairy trap artist PrincessBri made waves in 2019. Her latest project “Little Baby Bitch” performed excellently with a Zheani feature to top it off. The combination of clean vocals with heavy hitting production has the potential to hit with a super wide audience.
6. Lil Keyu
New York native Lil Keyu has been popular for a couple years now. She has friends in high places and her Instagram is one of the most popping in the scene. Her aggressive style and hard nose charisma makes her viral potential very high in the coming year. We’re excited to see what happens.
5. Gizmo
One of the earliest trap metal artists in the scene. Hailing from Rhode Island, Gizmo might be one of the state’s most successful Hip Hop acts. He has been on a steady rise these past few years and is just now reaching a breaking point in his career. His move to Los Angeles seems to have put him in higher places and we’re excited for it. With some of the highest production quality in the game; we could see Gizmo doing exponential numbers by the end of 2020. He’s in an incredible position to do so and is why he’s number 5 in our most likely to blow list.
4. Zheani
The Australian artist Zheani has 2 songs with over a million views and continues to garner 6 figure viewings whether she publishes on her own channel or through the TRASH YouTube. Her audience is international and passionate about her and her work. Her first bout with international fame came when she exposed Die Antwoord for being serial manipulators and chronic abusers to those they worked with and anyone who got into their orbit… and she did it all through a diss track. Because she used her art to expose her abusers; Zheani is held in a higher regard by her followers than the average artist. We believe all of these strengths put together are the right mix for an explosive 2020 and are excited to be able to be apart of that experience in whatever small way we can be.
3. Nascar Aloe
In December 2018 Nascar aloe had less than 10K followers on IG. As of this article he has just reached 100K and has 2 videos sitting at 1Million views. To be fair, by most underground standards Nascar has blown up. But, in my view, I could see Nascar performing with the majors by the end of this year. And, in a few years, he could be an A-List punk rock icon. So we’ve put him at 3 because we know what he is truly capable of. 2020 will be another great year for the Cambodian Punk.
2. Jack Acid
After a year of relative silence from the Phoenix native; Jack Acid is back on the scene with a complete vengeance. His latest release “Gutless” made its debut on the World Star Hip Hop YouTube and as of this article has garnered over 100K views. We have been covering Jack since the early days of our blog and of everyone has experienced the craziest, completely organic growth. We’re excited for our number 2 pick for most likely to blow in 2020.
1. GCSY
Known as the inventors of “trap metal”; Cameronazi and Subjectz have been slept on by mainstream press. Their latest release “Born Out the Pit” showcases the best the rap duo has to offer. A heavy hitter track with a catchy hook - GCSY are our number 1 most likely to blow in 2020. What else do I need to say? GOD CAN’T SAVE YOU
SPECIAL SHOUT OUT
NYCL Kai
With cosigns from the City Morgue team (he was the opener for their first headline show in NYC which we documented at length on our YouTube and website) NYCL_Kai shows great promise for the coming year. He is showing steady growth on his social media which will prepare him for a stronger push hopefully by this summer. 2020 is going to be another great year for the NYC underground scene.
Bobby Vylan
2019 was a quiet year for Bobby Vylan but recently he made the cut to tour with Nascar in the beginning of 202 with Death Tour and others. The UK artist is both charismatic as he is innovative and with a couple more releases this year we see his huge potential.
Previous ArticleNew York Rapper Burnkas Arrested in Missouri
HOLY FAWN’s “Death Spells” is Pure Art
Dylan ‘N’ Alice are the Nu Metal Revival
Origin Event: Death Grips
All Metal Everything July 17, 2018
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Category Archives: Chiang Rai
by Bangkok Glutton | 02/18/2016 · 12:31 pm
Chiang Rai Interlude
The ingredients for saa pak, a Northern Thai salad
It’s been a while since I posted, and for that I apologize. I have an excuse: I have been working, and so unused to actually having to do something productive with my days that I have been unable to do almost anything else. Whatever free time I have had lately has been spent eating and obsessing over Beyonce’s “Formation” video. Writing anything beyond what I’m being paid for has been too tiring to contemplate.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that I didn’t have the time for a quick weekend jaunt up to Chiang Rai. Because if the opportunity presents itself to taste my aunt Priew’s cooking yet again, obviously I will take it. And my friends will take it too! We all headed up to Chiang Rai, determined to eat as much of our way through my hometown as possible.
One of our first stops was at Chiwit Tamada (“ordinary life” in Thai), which I’ve always thought was a strange name for this place. That is because it is not ordinary at all. It is frankly beautiful, a burgeoning restaurant/cafe/spa/Ralph Lauren ad that now takes up two renovated colonial-style houses by the river, set in lush gardens that would make any green thumb weep in appreciation. As a result, everyone and their second cousin who has ever trekked up to the Golden Triangle wants to go there, and the line is out of this world. To snag a table here without a reservation, be prepared for a long wait, for either a seat or for your food. All the same, the fact that it remains so packed — in a town where the locals are usually too cheap to eat out — says something about how truly transporting the surrounds are.
Lunch at Chiwit Tamada
Naturally, no trip up North is a trip well trodden without some khao soy. We thought we might try something new by darkening the door at Sarika, a Muslim curried egg noodle specialist located on the way to the airport. Here, the broth is extremely thin — more like a regular bowl of soup noodles and less like a curry — which makes it a lot less satisfying for those of us who are drawn to the dish for its coconut milk-enriched taste. A lot more popular with our table was the khao mok gai, a Thai-Muslim chicken biriyani that actually had some flavor in the turmeric rice and in the chicken meat, thanks to a healthy smattering of deep-fried shallots, a sweet chili dipping sauce and a bracing oxtail soup metallic with chilies.
Sarika’s chicken biriyani
But of course the main event was aunt Priew’s house. I have a couple of dishes I request every time I go there, and this time, aunt Priew was kind enough to give a cooking demonstration of both. One dish, saa pak, is only available in the cold season and incorporates 12-15 different types of (mostly seasonal) greens, including mango leaves, slivered Thai eggplant, macerated water olives and a very tart local tomato that is hard to find anywhere else. What really makes this dish, however, is the dressing: the flaked flesh of a grilled fish (in this case, tilapia), with the pounded flesh of roast chilies, shallots and garlic. It’s a real labor of love to make this dish because it’s so time-consuming.
Saa pak
The other dish I always request is gang pak pung, a sour, clear soup based on a broth brewed from sour fermented sausage (naem) and bulked up with the (again seasonal) bud-like vegetable known as pak pung. Aunt Priew tells me the most important part of this dish, surprisingly, is the naem used to flavor the broth, not the vegetable itself.
The main ingredients for gang pak pung
The finished ingredient looks like this:
The table was heaving with plates of food by the time aunt Priew was finished cooking. Besides the vegetable salad and sour soup, we also had nam prik nam pak, a chili dip of pureed pickled vegetables that I’ve written about before:
Then there is gang gradan, said to have been invented when someone set out a soup during the “intense” Chiang Rai cold season and awoke to find that soup frozen through. Being a cost-conscious Northerner, they cut it into slices and served it. Voila, gang gradan.
In actuality, I think this dish has Chinese origins. The dish resembles the jelly kha moo (pig’s trotter terrine) that my husband’s Chinese-Thai family likes to eat at family gatherings, garnished with Tabasco and, of course, lots of Maggi. My friend Tawn tells me his father is fond of making a dish known as moo nao (“cold pork”), which has Teochiew origins. There are probably variations of this dish all over the world.
For dessert, we had something that my father is always requesting from aunt Priew: khao niew na nga (black sesame sticky rice), which is a two-parter: the rice itself, mixed with roasted black sesame seeds, and the accompaniment, blocks of pulverized sesame mixed with sugarcane juice for a very, very slight and fleeting sweetness.
No meal is complete, of course, without some moo yaw (steamed Vietnamese-style pork pate), sai oua (Northern Thai sausage) and sticky rice. Completely stuffed, we managed to toddle our way back to our rooms at the Wiang Inn, but not before a long walk downtown in an attempt to feel less like walking sai oua ourselves.
Addicted to that feeling of fullness, I have since been consoling myself by stuffing my face with more food than I’ve had in weeks. I hope that this means I’m turning a corner, and that the wintertime blues will soon be behind me. I have Chiang Rai to thank for that.
We are already planning our next trip up North:
Northern Thai sausage at Wannapa in “downtown” Chiang Rai
Filed under Asia, Chiang Rai, Thailand
Dishes to Try Up North
Pak ki hood, blanched and served alongside nam prik
Believe it or not, I am not going to write about kanom jeen nam ngiew or the Steelers today. I know, I know. I know this makes you sad. But I must branch out. Show all my brilliant colors. Spread my wings.
So instead, I will ramble on semi-incoherently about my childhood in the era of Rama VI, back when rickshaws ruled the North and people foraged in the jungle for food. My fascinating reminiscences include memories of being abandoned at the post office as my nanny chatted up her then-boyfriend, and being menaced by a homicidal goose tethered to a pole in the middle of her front yard. Did you know geese are thoroughly unpleasant creatures? Now you do.
I also remember my Aunt Priew, who lived right next door to my grandmother’s house — easily accessible from our yard once you managed to jump over a tiny hill of ferocious red ants. Somehow, I never really made the jump and was bitten every time I tried. Yet day after day would find me once again testing the anthill because my Aunt Priew is a tremendous cook, possibly the best cook of Northern Thai food in the kingdom. Roasted lin fa (sky tongue) beans, julienned and stir-fried with glass noodles or paired with a fatty raw larb; a touch of magorg, or water olive, added to a fiery nam prik num (roasted green chili dip) — my aunt is full of these little touches with the local produce that set her dishes apart from the rest. Now if I could just convince her to open a restaurant …
These are some of the Northern Thai dishes that are worth the long trek up to the tip of the country. They go just as well with khao suay (jasmine rice) as they do with khao niew (sticky rice). Try them for a real taste of Northern Thai food:
(Note: Please forgive the photos. They are a little … blurry. No, it wasn’t the wine.)
Gaeng om, Northern-style
Gaeng om, sort of
Unlike the light, prickly Isaan gaeng om, the Northern Thai version is — like much of the rest of Northern food — richer, meatier and fattier. The curry paste is that for a typical gaeng muang (Northern curry), with a couple of additions. There is lemongrass, galangal, dry chili, shrimp paste and garlic, plus pla sarak (kind of like pla salid, but bigger) and bakwan, which, if not Sichuan peppercorn, is something very similar, with the same tongue-numbing effects.
The tongue-numbing peppercorn bakwan
This paste is then fried in oil and augmented by fresh chilies, pork innards, bruised lemongrass and red shallot bulbs, and kaffir lime leaves and stewed, and then garnished with dill and coriander. It has a lingering meat taste that is very Northern.
Gaeng gadang
Pork “jelly” with pork rinds
Some dishes seem like they were engineered by mistake. Puff pastry is one; this is another. It’s basically a gaeng muang focused on kaki (fatty pork leg) and/or moo sam chan (three-layer pork), left out in the cold. It’s a distinctly “cold season” dish because traditionally it was left out overnight to congeal; today, it is chilled in the refrigerator and served in slices like a terrine. Very unusual and very porky.
Northern Thai “salad”, or saa pak
This is hands-down my favorite dish up North, but something that, aside from a few vendors in the Chiang Rai wet market, is very difficult to obtain. The reason could possibly be the 10+ types of local leaves (pak puen muang) required for a real saa pak (“spicy leaves”).
Greenery includes thinly sliced brinjals, young mango leaves, water olive leaves, pak pu ya (“grandfather-grandmother leaves,” a kind of edible blossom), plus sliced shallots and chopped fresh tomato. It is then tossed, like a chopped or Caesar salad, with flaked fish meat which has been grilled or boiled (with lemongrass and kaffir lime leaf to lose the fishiness), plus nam prik num (roasted green chili dip) and sliced water olive.
This is a dish I am going to try to recreate at home with plain old lettuce, onions, tomato and avocado. I think it could give me a little taste of home, even in the middle of Bangkok.
Filed under Asia, Chiang Rai, curries, food, food stalls, markets, Northern Thailand, Thailand
by Bangkok Glutton | 12/03/2010 · 8:07 am
The Ugly Face of Chauvinism
I have inexplicably agreed to be on a panel at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand to discuss foreigners cooking Thai food. While I am happy to do it, I am also a little apprehensive. This is the grad student who had to give her presentations sitting down in order to keep from passing out or vomiting. This is the friend who hates talking on the phone because that form of communication is too immediate and invasive. This is one of your speakers, guys! Hopefully I have moved beyond panic attacks and am now at peace with being a gibbering idiot.
Another reason I’m worried? Because I am a great big hypocrite.
Let me explain. I have been writing a street food guide for the past year, a project I have been super-quiet about because I don’t want to jinx it (yes, I am that type of person). It’s called “Bangkok’s Top 50 Street Food Stalls” and it will be out early next year (knock on wood. Fingers crossed. Turn around three times). In it, I detail different types of stalls — yummy duck porridge; buoyant oyster omelettes; exuberant iced coconut milk desserts; extravangantly stuffed flat noodles.
And not a mention of a northern Thai noodle dish, anywhere.
I know what I’ve done. I know there is ample khao soy and kanom jeen nam ngiew to be had on the city’s streets. Believe me, given my issues with northern Thai food I have tried almost all of them. But I feel like 1.) the best ones are branches of Northern Thai institutions, so why not go to the real one, and 2.) there are so many other great stalls out there. Really, though, there is no excuse. I am guilty of culinary chauvinism. I don’t want to believe Bangkokians can make a decent bowl of khao soy, much less approach the personal Freudian nightmare that is nam ngiew.
And, I am sorry to say, this is not my only prejudice. As long as I’m laying it all out there: watching the movie “Invincible”, I was struck by how Mark Wahlberg (who plays an Eagle) had a girlfriend (Elizabeth Banks) who was a Giants fan. Uh, WTF?! Because there is no, no, never, ever, never any way I would go within two feet of a Cleveland Browns fan. Sure, some of them may be nice and all, but to date or even marry one? Are you kidding me? (This from the person who still cannot show her face at Bully’s because she almost got into a fist fight with a Cardinals fan two years ago. He was almost 50! I could have taken him).
People tell me about close friends, open-minded in every other way, who turn into Asia’s answers to Glenn Beck when it comes to the issue of foreigners cooking Thai food. It can’t be done: farang lack the upbringing, the tastebud training, the turbo-charged metabolisms, the innate love of the color fuchsia. We laugh at this, but I’m the same. I have my blind spots too.
So I want to make amends before I go on this panel. Here are the Northern Thai places I go to in Bangkok when I know I won’t be going up North for a while:
People desperate for good Northern Thai noodles in front of Nam Ngiew Pa Suk
You know what this is
Nam Ngiew Pa Suk (Soi Phiphat, 300 m from Silom, on the right side)
Not surprisingly, this is the branch of the venerable stall in Chiang Rai. It also serves khao soy (which I find kind of bland) and khao ganjin, or what my friend calls “crazy purple Shan rice”: rice steamed in pork blood and garnished with deep-fried garlic and fresh coriander. But the nam ngiew is almost as thick, rich and meaty as the original, and very popular, unlike many other Bangkok stalls where it’s the nam ngiew that is neglected in favor of the more well-known egg noodle dish.
Maan Mueng (Ramkhamhaeng 112)
This is a good Northern Thai restaurant overall. They do everything well here: super nam prik num (roasted green pepper dip), nice gaeng ho (a sort of “goulash” of leftovers including glass vermicelli noodles and pork), and yes, a good khao soy. The nam ngiew is sort of unusual here — a thick fermented bean base that has a deep undertow of near-fishiness. I love it. A shame it’s so far away.
Maan Mueng's nam ngiew
So there. Two places I go to again and again. And not in the hopes I find something to complain about, either. I would have tried for three, but let’s not push it.
Have a good weekend. Unless you are a Baltimore Ravens fan.
Filed under Asia, Bangkok, Chiang Rai, food, food stalls, noodles, Northern Thailand, restaurant, Thailand
What nam ngiew means to me
Proper pork nam ngiew at Pa Suk in Chiang Rai
(Photo by @SpecialKRB)
Everyone has a dish that reminds them of their childhoods. This — and the “last meal” that a person would select were he or she able to choose — are two of the most illuminating things you can know about a person, telling you how they see themselves, and how they grew up. I’m not the only person to think this (although there is no “childhood meal” book — I mean, we have the TGI Friday’s menu for that); in 2007, photographer Melanie Dunea asked some of the most famous chefs in the world what meal would be their preferred parting shot, and the result was “My Last Supper”.
It turns out chefs are as varied as regular people when it comes to what they want, and the setting: Daniel Boulud likes Versailles, Gordon Ramsay likes home. Jacques Pepin, characteristically elegant, wants a hot dog; BLT chef Laurent Tourondel, a Krispy Kreme doughnut. Some even chose soundtracks, with U2 making an appearance (why? If it’s post-“Unforgettable Fire”, I shake my head and judge).
I really don’t know what my last meal would be. I used to say a cold lobster with mayonnaise; sometimes I think I prefer meatloaf with a side of mac and cheese. But neither of these dishes says anything about me. The dish that figures most prominently in my childhood, and the one I keep coming back to again and again in Bangkok (like a culinary Don Quixote, or an idiot) is kanom jeen nam ngiew, a Northern Thai dish of minced pork and/or beef and dried ngiew blossoms.
Nam ngiew at Yui Lee on Sukhumvit Soi 31
It is a widely accepted fact that good Northern Thai food is hard to find in Bangkok. This is not just a bunch of Northerners pissing and moaning about Central people mucking around with beloved old favorites (although there is some of that). For some reason, something is lost in translation that isn’t when it comes to any other region in Thailand, be it Isaan or Southern Thai. It’s not heat: actually, Northerners cannot compare to Southern Thais when it comes to spicy food. I think it’s the shortcuts that people are tempted to take with northern food, which features a lot of cut or shredded herbs and painstakingly put-together pastes (plus a lot of fatty cuts of pork to combat the “cold” weather). I cannot tell you how many nam ngiew noodles I have had missing the dried dok ngiew, or ngiew flowers, which resemble sawed-off broomsticks. The fact they still serve it without essential ingredients suggests laziness, and disrespect to the customer.
Yet I haunt every food stand serving nam ngiew, and order it at restaurants when I know I shouldn’t; against all logic, I want to find The One that will bring me back home. Home to New Castle, Pennsylvania, where I wanted to dine on cavatelli (“cavads”) like everyone else in my predominantly Italian-American town, and look forward to wedding soup or pasta fagioli (pronounced “fazool”) on holidays. Home, where I would see my dad in his pajamas stuffing his own sai oua on the floor of our kitchen and feel unaccountably embarrassed. Home, where my dad would have to refer to nam ngiew as “Thai spaghetti” to get us to eat what he cooked after a 14-hour work day. And it does resemble bolognese, after a fashion (possibly a reason why I LURVE spaghetti bolognese). But it’s much, much better — meaty and rich and a little bit macho, and, if you’re from Chiang Rai, skimpy on the girly tomatoes that effete Chiang Mai-ers use to balance out all that heft (Chiang Mai people, I jest. My mom’s family is from Chiang Mai).
So where is the best place to get this very special dish? My house, where I keep two bags of sauce at all times. Also, Chiang Rai’s Pa Suk, which probably has the best nam ngiew on earth (sorry, Chiang Mai). The sauce comes in pork or beef versions (beef is VERY beefy), with fermented rice noodles (kanom jeen) or regular guay thiew (rice noodles). Also, they offer a wide variety of pork rinds (kaab moo) because no bowl is complete without them.
Beef nam ngiew at Pa Suk
But where in Bangkok? Ah, well, other people are probably better guides. (This one is good.) But I urge you to do something really crazy. You can do it yourself. Alas, the Duangnet family recipe is out of bounds. But if you don’t mind the tomatoey Chiang Mai style, here is the recipe from my great-aunt, Jiao Sri na Chiangmai.
Nam Ngiew (for 10)
Preparations:
1. Nam Prik: Grind the following together well
Dried pepper, 30 pieces
Dried Bird Chillis, 30 pieces
Shallots, 0.2 Kilo
Garlic, 0.1 Kilo
Shrimp paste (Kapi), 0.1 Kilo
Lemon Grass, 3 pieces (stems)
Salt, 1 tablespoonful
Grilled dried pickled bean paste, 0.2 Kilo
2. Next, boil until slightly soft:
Pork spare ribs, cartilage parts, 1 Kilo, cut into 1 inch pieces. Save cooking liquid.
To cook:
Fry “Nam Prik” in hot vegetable oil in a big pot until it “smells good” (the inside of your nose tickles). Add 1 Kilo of ground pork and the cooked spare ribs. Stir until cooked. Add the soup from the cooked spare ribs. Then add 1 Kilo of cherry tomatoes, add cooked pork blood in pieces and 0.1 Kilo of dried “Ngiew Flowers”. Add 0.2 Kilo of Black Tao Jeao.
Boil in medium temperature until well blended. Before serving on kanom jeen, add fish sauce and lime juice to your taste.
Serve with:
Deep fried chopped garlic
Chopped shallots
Cut shallots
Cut limes
Cut pickled greens
Ground deep-fried dried chillis
Filed under Asia, Bangkok, beef, Chiang Rai, food, food stalls, noodles, Northern Thailand, pork, Thailand
Road trip up north, Part Deux
Before I lull you back to sleep with my blatherings on how I spent the past weekend, I wanted to show you what Northern food really should look like, thanks to @SpecialKRB’s great pics.
Goniew in Nakhon Sawan's stewed duck
Last of the khao soy at Khao Soy Islam in Lampang
Nam ngiew at the incomparable Pa Suk in Chiang Rai
Pa Suk's khao ganjin
Whenever I go up north, I always make sure that I have both khao soy and kanom jeen nam ngiew — they are like the bookends to Northern Thai food: one fatty and rich, the other dense and pungent. To my mind, Chiang Mai has the best khao soy (the stalls in Chiang Rai are far too bland), but the only place to have nam ngiew is Pa Suk in Chiang Rai, where it’s made properly, with few tomatoes and with plenty of chili.
Contemplating a vat of beef nam ngiew
A trip home also isn’t the same without a gigantic breakfast of deep-fried pork, young crushed green chilies (nam prik num) with accompanying boiled veggies, saa pak made of a young fern available only during the rainy season, Northern Thai sausage (the famous sai oua), and macerated roasted eggplant, a Northern Thai version of baba ghanoush (the thum kanoon, or pounded young jackfruit, wasn’t available for some reason. And we had to actually steal the pork larb from the elders’ table). I love these dishes and actively seek them out whenever I am anywhere that claims to serve Northern Thai food.
Northern breakfast buffet
What we did not actively seek out, but what managed to find us, courtesy of a highway-side minimart: an appalling line of new-flavored Pringles chips that will set your hair on end. Tasting like a mix between bubble gum and room deodorizer, these chips (which are, no doubt, only available in Thailand) riff on the Thai fondness for the borderline between salty-sweet: lemon-sesame, blueberry-hazelnut, and most horrifying of all, softshell crab. It was the first, second, and third times, respectively, I was unable to finish a single potato chip.
In your darkest nightmares
A blow to the tastebuds to be sure, but we rebounded in Tak with a riverside trip to Kieng Thai, a lovely open-air restaurant popular with whisky-swilling local officials and famed for its clear — and authentic — spicy lemongrass soup, or thom yum (I’m no fan of coconut milk in the broth). Also devoured: tiny deep-fried Thai sardines, lightly poached fish with a lime-chili dipping sauce, a spicy-tart yum (salad) of mushrooms and raw fermented pork (naem), a whole river catfish and stir-fried morning glory with chilies.
Lunchtime in Tak
Filed under Asia, Chiang Rai, food, food stalls, noodles, Northern Thailand, pork, restaurant, Thailand
Road trip up north, Part I
Waiting on a bowl of noodles in Nakhon Sawan
A terrible, unexpected thing happened that necessitated a trip up north (what a horrible sentence, I know. It will have to make do). What this … happening … underlined was that, if you can forgive the old saw, life is short, and that it should be spent doing the things that make you and the people you love happy.
So that is what we did. Maybe this was just an elaborate rationalization that people like us concoct in order to feel good about eating our feelings, but when faced with the tiny little fishballs adorning the snow-white egg noodles at Goniew in Nakhon Sawan after a crappy 24 hours and a long road ahead, the way of least resistance is also the tastiest.
Duck stewing in a vat at Goniew
Goniew is a marvel in more ways than one (and easily found. Ask anyone in Nakhon Sawan and they will tell you where it is). Not only does it offer some of the tastiest, cutest little fish meatballs around, but it also serves up a gorgeously braised bowl of duck noodles, duck and barbecued or crispy pork on rice, and a decent Hainanese chicken rice. It also offers daily noodle specials (our day, an unusual choice: duck beak noodles). And it is open at 7 in the morning, an oasis in the desert of highway minimarts after a 4:30 wakeup call with no breakfast in sight and a heavy heart.
Khao soy at Khao Soy Islam
To me, khao soy is one of the more interesting dishes in Thailand. Often mistaken for something Burmese, people are sometimes puzzled as to why they can’t find something similar to this dish in Burmese restaurants. But it’s actually “Haw”, a Chinese-Muslim group originally from Burma that gradually settled in parts of northern Thailand, bringing with them this delicious soupy mix of spice and starch. Their Muslim heritage explains why the dish, if authentic, comes in only beef or chicken, and the Chinese part possibly explains the inclusion of egg noodles. Strangely, the “Haw” attained a reputation for bland food despite the invention of khao soy. Even now, northern Thais call something bland “haw”.
Certainly not “haw”: the thick, pungent stew-like concoction available at Khao Soy Islam in Lampang, famed for its horse-drawn carriages and the coin-shaped rice cakes cooked in watermelon juice. Both chicken and beef versions are similarly earthy, almost musky, but the beef — which appears to have been marinated in something strong and aromatic — is almost gamy, thick with spice.
A steamerful of ganjin in Chiang Rai
Finally, at our destination, Thailand’s northernmost city and my birthplace: a quick, hurried meal at Pa Suk, the city’s best and most well-known purveyor of that hard-to-produce noodle delicacy, kanom jeen nam ngiew. It’s hard to go wrong with either the pork and beef versions (pork is milder and fattier, beef more pungent), and both kinds are full of strength and authenticity — finally, after months of weak-kneed imitations back in the capital! But my favorite is khao ganjin, modeled after the Shan dish in which rice is cooked in pig’s blood and steamed in banana leaves. Here, it is served with green onions and deep-fried garlic oil, a punctuation point to the perfect “welcome home” meal.
Pork nam ngiew at Pa Suk
Filed under Asia, beef, Chiang Rai, chicken, duck, fish, food, food stalls, noodles, Northern Thailand, pork, Thailand
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Millrite DRO Part II
This is the final part of the 3-axis DRO that I installed on a Millrite knee mill. The first half of the thread, showing the x- and y-axis, is here:
http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/showthread.php?t=33062
The Z-axis install was the biggest challenge of all. Again, this is a mill that was designed before DRO's were even imagined, so Burke apparently thought it elegant to design the mill's base as a conical section, sloping away from the Z-axis ways, and tapering inward up toward the turret base. You can see the extent of the curved casting here:
The problem is that you need to mount a 2" wide glass scale flat against the casting somehow. I was hoping to use an endmill in the magnetic drill press and bore/mill a flat on each end of the casting where the scale would mount, but not only was the curve so severe that I couldn't get the endmill started, but when I measured it out, the glass scale was going to sit backwards about 1/4". Considering that the reader head (which is going to travel on the knee) has to be flat and parallel within 4 thou across the entire length (16"), that's just not going to work.
So I ended up scraping a strip on the casting that was flat enough to keep the Z-axis scale within the constraints of the reader head.
A the time, I had been doing a lot of hand scraping, so I started with a fresh scraper blade. But it turned out that scraping vertically, below and behind the mill table, just wasn't going to happen. I had bought a Biax power scraper earlier last Summer, but my few attempts taught me that power scraping was a much different skill than hand scraping: the Biax is like a hand-held jack-hammer, and if the angle of the carbide blade is too shallow, it just skips off the work. If it's too deep, the blade will shatter. But two hours of trying to manually scrape vertically up convinced me that this would be a good time to learn to power scrape, albeit not under the best possible conditions.
In any event, with some perseverance, a lot of Dapra Canode Blue, and a couple of coffee cups of cast iron later, I got a reference plane scraped along the Z-axis like this:
After another 20 hours of so of scraping, I actually started to get some spotting
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did."
At one point during the scraping process, I saw a miniature reference master on Ebay, and thought it would make my life easier. It was advertised as "beautifully hand-scraped." Look at how it blued-out
The reason this job was especially time-consuming was that I was scraping in at the bottom by about 1/8" -- that's a lot of metal to remove. But my strategy was to get the bottom planar, and work it up towards the top, where it leaned inward:
... and eventually, several coffee cups of Meehanite later, the reference plane blued like this:
wierdscience
It's getting there looking good so far.
Simpler way to deal with the tapered castings though is to fab a drill jig that locates and clamps on the dovetail. Use it to drill the mounting holes and use a counter bore to spotface the mounting pads.Then make standoffs to follow the landscape.That saves the finish and paint along with a lot of work
I just need one more tool,just one!
It was kind of sad that the reference plane was going to be hidden, because it really did have that pretty glittery appearance that people love on freshly scraped surfaces:
Forrest, McGyver and the other scraping experts might notice that I don't have the cross-hatching that you normally want on a scraped surface. Because I was scraping next to the Z-dovetails, I could only change the orientation of the scraper by around 20° each way. Didn't really matter -- I just needed to get the reference plan flat enough for the reader head to ride up the Z-axis without pulling off the glass scale.
Now that the Z reference was done, the last part was committing to the final mounting points. The general idea is that this bracket was going to be mounted on the knee, and the mounting ears would tap into the 6 mm screws on the Z-axis reader head:
This involved a lot of trial and error: you can't let the knee cause the reader head to bottom-out at the ends of the glass scale -- it will ruin it. So I had to try a bunch of potential scale and bracket mounting points. I ended up with the glass scale further down, and the bracket at the very bottom of the knee.
The final part was dropping the mounting holes determined by the knee travel. The magnetic drill press was great for this:
It made me a little sad tapping through that scraped surface:
Last edited by lazlo; 02-03-2009, 12:00 AM.
...and the final product:
By a convoluted set of Machinery Karma events, I ended up stumbling across a pristine Excello mill right as I was finishing the Jenix install on the Millrite, so the Bridgeport J-Head servo retrofit I posted here was the only time I got to use it
Originally posted by wierdscience
Simpler way to deal with the tapered castings though is to fab a drill jig that locates and clamps on the dovetail. Use it to drill the mounting holes and use a counter bore to spotface the mounting pads.
That's a great idea Darin. The problem is that the casting drafts inwards a lot too. After I got that section roughed in, I tried making some spacers to get the glass scale up over the compound (backward and inward) curve, but I would have needed a 4-axis CNC machine to make them. But the biggest issue is that I needed enough clearance for the Z-axis scale to fit behind the Y-axis reader head, with the table wound all the way back. This is a 3/4 sized Bridgeport, so everything is shrunk down -- it was a tight fit!
The other approach I've seen is to mount flat beams across the Z-axis dovetails, above and below the knee travel, and make an outrigger for the Z-axis scale. But there's no extra room on the Millrite to do that
Originally posted by lazlo
That's where a slim line scale comes in handy.Trouble is getting a DRO mfg to substitute a single slim line into a mill package.They all want you to buy separate scales and monitor.
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Professor, Designer, Husband, Father, Gamer, Bagpiper
Interesting Video: Free is a Lie
by 6 years ago 1 min read
Lance Weatherby posted a link to this video on his blog, and I agree with him that it's interesting and worth watching.
While the presenter (Aral Balkan) is a bit over the top in his analysis of Google (e.g., I really don't think Project Tango is a grand conspiracy by Google to secretly map the inside of everyone's house), I do think the point he gets to later in the video (when he shifts from the implications of our ceding our data to the big 4 - Google, Apple, Facebook and Twitter - to his thoughts on user experience) are interesting. His point about the main problem with the "Free" alternatives are insightful.
It's worth a watch! Here's the description of the video, from youtube:
It's time for a design revolution in open technology. Companies like Google and Facebook that dominate the Internet promise us free services in exchange for the right to watch and study us; to mine and farm us. Like quarries, like livestock, we are natural resources to be exploited in a brave new digital world of corporate surveillance that threatens our most fundamental freedoms.
There are open alternatives but they are too difficult for most of us to use.
It is time to bring design thinking to open source and build beautiful, seamless open consumer products that are easy to use and which respect our fundamental freedoms.
{% youtubes upu0gwGi4FE %}
Blair MacIntyre
HomeKit, Google, Facebook, Privacy and the Internet of Things
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USCHO.com Fan Forum | board.uscho.com > College Hockey > Women's College Hockey
View Full Version : Women's College Hockey
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Beyond Cancer Podcast – Episode #3: Coping Through Creativity
Tara Shuman didn’t necessarily set out to be a blogger, let alone a book author. Yet in the throes of a cancer diagnosis she turned to writing as an outlet.
Tara Shuman
Abby Morgan also turned to blogging. A painter since an early age, and an art teacher, writing carried less pressure than painting. “I don’t want everything that I do – any creative outlet I do – to have to be about cancer. I don’t want it to take over my identity,” Morgan says. “But it is hard to not have it be a part of the things that you create because cancer influences you in such a deep way.”
Hear how Abby and Tara used their creativity to cope with – and communicate about — their cancer by listening to the podcast episode below or click “download” to listen later. Subscribe options are also available via iTunes, Google Play, the Stitcher app, TuneIn app, and RSS.
Abby Morgan and her husband, Tom
The Beyond Cancer podcast series features cancer survivors sharing how they’ve navigated the physical side effects, emotional challenges, and different dynamics of life during and after cancer treatment. Visit the Beyond Cancer page for more episodes and Dana-Farber’s podcast page for more information on other cancer podcast series.
https://media.blubrry.com/danafarberpodcasts/p/blog.dana-farber.org/insight/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/BC_Ep3_Creativity_FIN.mp3
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TDSAT | TRAI cannot frame Regulations with retrospective effect in the absence of any provision to that effect in TRAI Act
Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT): Justice Shiva Kirti Singh, (Chairperson) while not granting any interim relief to the petitioners upholds that the amendment Regulations 2018 cannot have retrospective operation.
The two respondents, Tata Communications Ltd. and Bharati Airtel Ltd., are owners of facilities called Cable Landing Operations. For these, they are entitled to levy three distinct charges: (1) Access Facilitation Charges (2) Co-Location Charges (3) Operation and Maintenance Charges. Prior to June 2007, the charges were based purely on a contract basis. In 2007, TRAI issued “International Telecommunication Access to Essential Facilities at Cable Landing Stations Regulations, 2007” (2007 Regulations). This introduced the requirement of framing of Cable Landing Stations – Reference Interconnect Offer (RIO) calculated on cost-based method. Such RIOs for all the three charges were required to be submitted to TRAI, the Regulator for approval.
On 21.12.2012, TRAI fixed all the three charges vide Notification brought into effect the “International Telecommunication Landing Stations Access Facilitation Charges and Co-Location Charges Regulations, 2012”.
The respondents filed writ petitions in Madras High Court as the charges fixed by the TRAI were lower to the earlier charges.
The petitioners prayed for interim relief against demands made by the respondents on the ground that if the amendment Regulations of 2018 prescribing the same rate of charges which were applicable earlier from 01.01.2013 are treated as retroactive and effective from 01.01.2013.
Counsel for the Petitioner, Venkat Raman relied on a judgment of Zile Singh v. State of Haryana, (2004) 8 SCC 1, the amendment Regulations 2018 have used the word “substitute” for replacing the Schedules of 2012 with that of 2018, this shows that the intention of the Regulator was to give effect to the new schedules from 01.01.2013.
Counsel for the Respondent submitted that the word “substitute” will not make any difference by relying on a judgment of Sri Vijayalakshmi Rice Mills v. State of A.P., (1976) 3 SCC 37. He further submitted that as per Section 36 of the TRAI Act, 1997, TRAI being a delegate has no authority to frame Regulations with retrospective effect.
The Court observed that the exercise of determining charges by TRAI is like the determination of tariffs and not procedural. It creates rights and liabilities for the concerned service providers and hence cannot be retrospective in absence of provisions to that effect in the TRAI Act.[Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. v. Tata Communications Ltd, M.A. No. 270 of 2019, decided on 07-11-2019]
Published on November 21, 2019 November 21, 2019 By Devika
Case BriefsSupreme Court
Supreme Court | TRAI and TDSAT to determine preliminary issues before CCI can decide competition issue
Supreme Court: A Bench comprising of A.K. Sikri and Ashok Bhushan, JJ. dismissed an appeal filed against the judgment of Bombay High Court whereby it held that Competition Commission of India had no jurisdiction to pass order in the instant matter as the issues were covered by Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 and Telecom Regulatory Authority Act, 1997 and the appropriate forum was the Telecom Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT).
In the present matter, the Court was faced with determining the width and scope of the powers of the CCI under the Competition Act, 2002 pertaining to telecom sector vis-a-vis the scope of the powers of TRAI under the TRAI Act, 1997.
Factual Matrix
On 21-10-2013, Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. was granted a licence under Section 4 of the Telegraph Act by the Department of Telecom (DoT) for providing telecommunication services in all 22 circles in India. Soon thereafter, RJIL executed interconnection agreements with existing telecom operators including Airtel, Idea and Vodafone. RJIL requested these companies to augment Point of Interconnection (POIs) for access as the capacity already provided to it was causing huge POI congestion, resulting in call failures on its network. According to RJIL, these companies intentionally ignored the aforesaid request.
Subsequently, in November 2016, RJIL filed information under Section 19 of the Competition Act before the CCI, As per RJIL, the respondent service providers, along with Cellular Operators Association of India, formed a cartel and acted in an anti-competitive manner which is prohibited by the Act. The CCI passed order dated 21-4-2017 under Section 26(1) as per which it came to a prima facie conclusion that case for investigation was made out and directed the Director-General to cause investigation in the case. Aggrieved thereby, respondents filed writ petitions before the High Court which quashed the order of CCI on the ground that CCI lacked jurisdiction to entertain such complaints/information filed under Section 19 as such matter falls within the exclusive jurisdiction of another regulatory authority, namely, TRAI.
Challenging this order passed by the High Court, the appellants were before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court considered the matter on following points:
(a) Jurisdiction of CCI
After noting salient features of Competition Act and TRAI Act, the Court concluded that as TRAI is constituted as an expert regulatory body which specifically governs the telecom sector, the aforesaid aspects of the disputes were to be decided by TRAI in the first instance. These were jurisdictional aspects. The High Court was right in concluding that the concepts of “subscriber”, “test period”, “reasonable demand”, etc, arising out of TRAI Act and the policy so declared, are the matters within the jurisdiction of TDSAT under the TRAI Act. Only when the jurisdictional facts in the present matter were determined by the TRAI against the respondents, the next question would arise as to whether it was a result of any concerted agreement between the respondents. It would be at that stage the CCI can go into the question as to whether violation of the provisions of TRAI Act amounts to ‘abuse of dominance’ or ‘anti-competitive agreements’.
(b) Whether TRAI has the exclusive jurisdiction to deal with matters involving anti-competitive practices to the exclusion of CCI altogether?
The function that is assigned to CCI is distinct from the function of TRAI. It is within the exhaustive domain of CCI to find out as to whether a particular agreement will have an appreciable adverse effect on competition within the relevant market in India. Such functions not only come within the domain of CCI, but TRAI is not at all equipped to deal with the same.
The Court, thus, did not agree with the appellants that CCI could have dealt with this matter without availing the inquiry by TRAI. It also did not agree with the respondents that insofar as the telecom sector is concerned, the jurisdiction of the CCI under the Competition Act is totally ousted.
In incidental issues, the Court decided that the petitions field by other companies before the Bombay High court were maintainable. When such jurisdictional issues arise, the writ petition would clearly be maintainable. In view of the above discussion, the Court dismissed the appeal while upholding the decision of the High Court. [CCI v. Bharti Airtel Ltd., 2018 SCC OnLine SC 2678, decided on 05-12-2018]
Published on December 7, 2018 December 11, 2018 By Devika
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Amendments to existing lawsLegislation Updates
The Telecommunication Interconnection (Amendment) Regulations, 2018 [Highlights]
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has amended the Telecommunication Interconnection Regulations, 2018 (1 of 2018).
Salient features of the amendments are :-
In regulation 6 of the Telecommunication Interconnection Regulations, 2018 (1 of 2018) (hereinafter referred to as the principal regulations), after sub-regulation (3) the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:-
“Provided that the port charges and infrastructure charges, for all ports provided before the 1st February, 2018, shall continue to be payable as per the terms and conditions which were applicable to them before the 1st February, 2018.”
For regulation 8 of the principal regulations, the following regulation shall be substituted, namely:-
“Request for augmentation of POIs –
(1) Every service provider shall provide to the interconnecting service provider, at interval of every six months, its forecast of busy hour outgoing traffic, for the succeeding six months, at each POI and the first such forecast shall be provided within sixty days of the commencement of the Telecommunication Interconnection (Amendment) Regulations, 2018 and thereafter on the 1st April and 1st October every year.
(2) A service provider may request the other service provider for additional ports at a POI, if the projected utilisation of the capacity of such POI, calculated in the manner as contained in schedule II to these regulations, at the end of sixty days from the date of placing the request, is likely to be more than eighty-five percent and such projected utilization of the capacity of POI shall be determined on the basis of the daily traffic for the preceding sixty days at the POI during busy hour:
Provided that the service provider shall request for such number of additional ports which is likely to bring the utilization of the capacity of such POI, at the end of sixty days from the date of making request, to less than seventy-five percent.”
In regulation 9 of the principal regulations, in sub-regulation (1), for the words “five working days”, the words “seven working days” shall be substituted;
In regulation 9 of the principal regulations, in sub-regulation (2), for the words “three working days”, the words “five working days” shall be substituted;
In regulation 9 of the principal regulations, in sub-regulation (3), for the words “five working days”, wherever occurring, the words “ten working days” shall be substituted;
In regulation 9 of the principal regulations, in sub-regulation (4), for the words “three working days”, the words “ten working days” shall be substituted;
In regulation 9 of the principal regulations, in sub-regulation (5), for the words “five working days”, the words “ten working days” shall be substituted;
After schedule I to the principal regulations, schedule II has been inserted.
Published on August 23, 2018 August 24, 2018 By Auroshree
Cyril Amarchand MangaldasExperts Corner
TRAI v. CCI: Whose Jurisdiction is it anyway?
The Indian telecom sector has witnessed continual activity in the recent years, with the entry of new players such as Reliance Jio, consolidation between existing players such as Vodafone and Idea Cellular and the exit of incumbent players such as Telenor and Tata Teleservices. This constant transformation has intensified the battle between industry players to garner market shares and attract consumers. In addition to competing in the marketplace, telecom operators have also been fighting legal battles on competition issues such as cartelisation and predatory pricing as well as on telecom issues such as interconnection. Given that the issues at the core of these matters relate to both competition and telecom laws, a turf war has arisen between the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the Competition Commission of India (CCI) re jurisdiction.
Notably, CCI had, through a letter to TRAI last year, highlighted its competence to look into matters relating to predatory pricing. The letter was a result of a consultation paper issued by TRAI in February 2017 on anti-competitive concerns in tariffs by Telecom Service Providers (TSPs).[1] In his letter, the CCI Chairperson stipulated that “issues and questions for consultation relating to delineation of relevant market, assessment of dominance and predatory pricing” are “issues of determination for the Commission”.[2]
Responding to CCI, TRAI stressed that it had the experience and capability to examine all matters, including competitive issues, falling within the purview of tariffs.[3] In line with its assertion, pursuant to the Telecommunication Tariff (Sixty-third Amendment) Order, 2018 (the Amendment Order)[4], TRAI has recently amended the Telecommunication Tariff Order, 1999 (the Tariff Order), to regulate tariffs offered by TSPs on the basis of competition law principles. Through the amendment, TRAI has introduced concepts of “significant market power” and “predatory pricing” in the Tariff Order.
According to TRAI, such regulatory powers are set out under the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997 (the TRAI Act), which requires it to take “measures to facilitate competition and promote efficiency in the operation of telecommunication services so as to facilitate growth in such services”. To further this mandate of facilitating competition, TRAI in its Amendment Order has provided guidance on non-predation, through the insertion of the following definitions:
(a) “Non-predation” has been defined as not indulging in predatory pricing by a service provider having significant market power;
(b) “Significant market power” has been defined as a TSP holding a market share of at least 30% in the relevant market, which is to be determined on the basis of either subscriber base or gross revenue. The Amendment Order simultaneously recognises that the concept of ‘SMP’ flows from the concept of ‘dominance’ under competition laws;
(c) “Predatory pricing” has been defined as the provision of a telecommunication service in the relevant market at a price which is below the average variable cost, with a view to reduce competition or eliminate the competitors in the relevant market—Interestingly, the Amendment Order also refers to the definition of “predatory pricing” under the Competition Act, 2002 (the Competition Act) to emphasise that intent is the key;
(d) “Relevant market” has been defined as the market which may be determined by TRAI with reference to the relevant product market for distinct telecommunication services (such as Wireline Access Service, National Long Distance Service, International Long Distance Service) and the relevant geographical market;
(e) “Relevant product market” has been defined as the market in respect of a distinct telecommunication service for which the licensor grants licence to the TSP;
(f) “Relevant geographic market” has been defined as a market comprising the respective licence service area for which the licensor grants licence to the TSPs to provide distinct telecommunication services.
In addition to requiring the TSPs to conduct a self-check of tariffs at the time of reporting it to TRAI in order to ensure that there is no predation, the Amendment Order also confers suo motu powers on TRAI to examine tariffs to determine the occurrence of any predatory pricing, thus extending its jurisdiction to ex-post abusive conduct. In case of predation, a penalty not exceeding INR 50 lakhs per tariff plan for each service area can be imposed by TRAI.
Post the introduction of the Amendment Order however, officials of TRAI have clarified that dominant operators may match tariffs offered by a new entrant, and such actions would not be seen as predatory.[5]
On the other hand, the Competition Act established a sector agnostic regulator to prevent practices having adverse effect on competition and to promote and sustain competition in markets. The Competition Act sets out specific prerogatives of CCI to prohibit anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominance. The abusive practices identified include predatory pricing. However, affording due consideration to the market dynamics, the Competition Act requires CCI to holistically examine such conduct. The in-depth examination required by CCI includes the delineation of the relevant market on the basis of factors such as end-use, pricing, consumer preferences, regulatory barriers, transport costs, etc.[6] Subsequently, CCI is required to make a determination of dominance giving due regard not only to the market share of the enterprise, but also to its size and resources, economic power, entry barriers, countervailing buyer power, market structure, etc.[7] Similar to clarifications from TRAI officials, the Competition Act also provides for a carve-out against predatory pricing if such pricing has been adopted to “meet the competition”.
However, contrary to the bright-line test of 30% under the Amendment Order, CCI’s decisional practice repeatedly cautions against adopting a blanket market share test for detection of dominance. As noted by CCI’s Chairperson in the letter to TRAI, market interactions should ideally be assessed on a case-by-case basis without any presumptions based on a formulaic framework.[8] CCI’s holistic approach is evidenced by its recent orders in the telecom sector, where it has approved mergers of key telecom players, despite the significant aggregate market shares, after having weighed in factors such as buyer power, increased switching, absence of switching costs, presence of other players, dynamic nature of the market, etc.[9]
The difference in the regulatory frameworks gives a preview of the contrasting approach to be adopted by the regulators for the same contravention and the conflicting regulatory views that the industry is likely to witness in the coming months. Moreover, while contrasting views may make compliance by TSPs difficult, similar findings may also lead to double jeopardy.
The regulatory conflict has already surfaced before courts, with the Bombay High Court finding that the Competition Act itself is not sufficient to decide and deal with the issues arising out of the provisions of TRAI Act and the contract conditions, under the relevant regulations.[10] The appeal to the Bombay High Court had been filed against a prima facie order of the CCI finding that TSPs, such as Airtel and Vodafone, had cartelised to deny adequate point of interconnections to Reliance Jio to thwart its entry into the telecom market. The decision of the High Court has now been appealed to the Supreme Court.
While the way forward is unknown, this fight for regulatory supremacy can only end with the CCI and TRAI joining forces to coordinate and consult with each other in matters that involve questions of competition and telecom laws. This will also be in line with the intent of the legislators who foresaw this situation and included a provision[11] under the Competition Act for a reference of matters inter se CCI and other statutory regulators.
Anshuman Sakle is a Partner with the Competition Law Practice at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas and can be contacted at anshuman.sakle@cyrilshroff.com. Arunima Chandra is a Senior Associate with the Competition Law Practice at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas and can be contacted at arunima.chandra@cyrilshroff.com.
[1] Available at http://www.trai.gov.in/sites/default/files/Consultation_paper_03_17_feb_17_0.pdf.
[2]Available at https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/info-tech/turf-war-rages-between-cci-and-trai-over-telecom-tariffs/article9791247.ece.
[3]Available at http://www.financialexpress.com/industry/trai-tells-cci-it-has-power-to-settle-competitive-telecom-tariff-issues/798026/.
[4] Available at http://trai.gov.in/sites/default/files/TTO_Amendment_Eng_16022018.pdf.
[5]Available at http://www.livemint.com/Industry/O00tAdsmeBgcObcQSE42uO/Telecom-firms-free-to-match-Reliance-Jios-cheap-tariffs-ru.html.
[6] Sections 19(6) and (7) of the Competition Act.
[7] Section 19(4) of the Competition Act.
[8]Available at http://www.livemint.com/Industry/uzSqE22Uk4Lgt1jX8PjCOJ/CCI-to-Trai-Consult-us-on-predatory-pricing-issues.html.
[9]Vodafone/Idea, Combination Registration No. C-2017/04/502; Bharti Airtel Ltd./Tata Teleservices Ltd., Combination Registration No. C-2017/10/531.
[10] Vodafone India Ltd. v. Competition Commission of India, 2017 SCC OnLine Bom 8524.
[11] Sections 21 and 21-A of the Competition Act.
Published on August 14, 2018 September 1, 2018 By Auroshree
Hot Off The PressNews
Recommendations for in-flight connectivity approved
Telecom Commission has approved almost all the TRAI’s Recommendation on In-flight Connectivity in its meeting on 01-05-2018. With this, the airlines and the TSPs can offer voice and data services in India Airspace once an aircraft reaches an altitude of 3000 metres. It is expected that it will take 3 to 4 months to operationalise the service. In line with earlier decision of Committee of Secretaries, In-Flight voice and data services shall be provided through Indian Satellites or through satellites approved by Department of Space for communication purposes, with gateways in India. A separate category of licensee called In-Flight Connectivity Provider shall be created with a token license fee of Re. 1. Such facility of voice and data connectivity shall also be extended to ships and other moving vehicles (Earth Stations in Motion).
[Press Release no. 1530998, dt. 02-05-2018]
Published on May 5, 2018 By Auroshree
Case BriefsHigh Courts
Writ Petition filed by Star India dismissed for want of maintainability
Delhi High Court– Dismissing the writ petition filed by the petitioner challenging the orders of Telecom Disputes Settlement & Appellate Tribunal’s (TDSAT) on the ground that the procedure adopted by the TDSAT in making the orders and the jurisdiction exercised in issuing the directions contained therein is beyond the powers of TDSAT under the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Act, 1997, the bench of R.S Endlaw J., held the petition to be not maintainable. The Court observed that jurisdiction cannot be exercised by this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution owing to the availability of alternative remedy of appeal under Section 18 of the TRAI Act
The petitioner had filed the petition as it was asked by the TDSAT to disclose the agreements it had entered into with Multi System Operator (MSO). The matter was listed before the TDSAT on 12 January. This Court while reserving its judgment in the present case, in an earlier hearing had directed the tribunal to defer the hearing scheduled on 12.01.2016 to a date after three weeks. Gopal Jain, Senior Counsel appearing for the petitioner contended that TDSAT has in the impugned orders stepped out from its adjudicatory role into regulatory function which under the TRAI Act is of the TRAI and not of the TDSAT. Per contra the counsel for respondent 4 on being asked the stand of TRAI contended that TDSAT in the impugned orders has interpreted the Regulations and TRAI did not find any fault with the impugned orders. Considering the contentions of both the parties, the Court was only concerned with the maintainability issue.
The Court relied on Dinkar Kumar v. Union of India 2014 SCC OnLine Del 2288 and Commissioner of Income Tax v. Chhabil Dass Agarwal (2014) 1 SCC 603 wherein it was held that the High Court will not entertain a petition under Article 226 on the exceptional grounds of violation of principles of natural justice or the order being wholly without jurisdiction or the vires of the Statute being under challenge, if an effective alternative remedy is available to the aggrieved person or the Statute under which the action complained of has been taken itself contains a mechanism for redressal of grievance. Thus, owing to the alternative remedy this petition was dismissed. [Star India Private Ltd. v. Noida Software Technology Park Ltd, 2016 SCC Online Del 6690, decided on 22.01.2016]
Published on January 27, 2016 February 9, 2016 By Editor
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Archive for 15 mayo 2011
(Tradúzcase al español con “Google Translate”)
Un caso entre millones
The print media’s current life-or-death struggle with its Internet nemesis is something which affects many literate people over 40. In view of the basically shallow and solipsistic nature of Internet journalism, it is in our interest to wish the print media a viable degree of success – which will enable us to continue to benefit from their valuable services for at least a few years to come. Après cela, le déluge, naturellement!
A seemingly minuscule, parochial and ephemeral print newspaper article offers food for thought on this topic. It is addressed to a few hundred thousand “broadsheet” supporters – a fraction of the 4 million inhabitants of the “tiny” Australian State of Victoria and a mere dot compared to the world’s current 7 (?) billion human occupants. This brief human interest background fill-in article, inspired by an extremely parochial State election budget, actually provides a handful of fuel for the argument in favour of the continuance of the print media.
Minimum options even above the minimum wage is the unprepossessing title of Melissa Fyfe’s minor 310 word contribution to The Age (Melbourne, Australia – venerable sister to The Sydney Morning Herald, which is also struggling to remain afloat) for today: Sunday, 15 May 2011. (You can follow Ms Fyfe on Tweet if you wish on:: twitter.com/melfyfe.)
“Victor Barrientos is 67. His desires are simple. Buy a house, slow down, spend time with family – these are his thoughts as he cleans Melbourne Airport, and, when he knocks off that job, helps his wife clean a school.
But as an unskilled labourer, these dreams remain far-off possibilities. Mr Barrientos is paid $16 an hour plus an airport allowance and works a total of 11 hours a day, six days a week.
With his wife’s cleaning wage, the family earns about $72,000 a year. The El Salvadorean refugee, who came to Australia 22 years ago, is struggling.
”It’s very hard to save on this money. We can’t save,” says Mr Barrientos, whose two daughters, studying at university, live at home. ”The petrol, the food – everything is so expensive. So many bills – telephone, internet, electricity, gas. There’s not enough money to cover all the things we need.”
Last week, Mr Barrientos listened to the post-budget debate over middle-class welfare. He and his wife earn less than half that of a family on $150,000, the cut-off for some federal government family benefits.
While he refuses to judge those who complained about the budget, he just points out they receive ”good money” and ”they have no reason to say it is still not enough”.
”I know [higher income earners] have good qualifications, but the majority of people are on a very low income. We are struggling.”
With the minimum wage case starting tomorrow, and research from the Australian Council of Trade Unions showing that Australians have a fundamental misunderstanding of wealth distribution in this country, Mr Barrientos asks that people keep in mind those at the bottom ranks of the income scale.
”We have to look after those who are struggling and support them because we are the people who run the country,” he says.”
A touching family story. But apart from the attempt to make a very local political point, much more important and even uplifting information can be inferred from Ms Fyfe’s report on Mr. and Mrs. (ex Señor and Señora) Barrientos’s story.
This is, in fact, another specific success story of the millions of human beings and families who have taken the huge risk of uprooting themselves from difficult or unbearable conditions of life to give themselves and their families a better future. And a success story also for the countries which have accepted them. It is obvious that, basically, the Barrientos family, in spite of their parochial (and hopefully ephemeral) Australian (Victorian ) problems, have SUCCEEDED – and are to be congratulated – in their major life adventure and that their children and grandchildren will be grateful for the courageous decision they made 22 years ago.
Maybe Ms Fyfe (or her colleagues) could look past the 2011 Victorian State Budget and do some further research on this very positive story.
In USA, Canada and Australia (in particular) there must be millions of similar success stories. In Europe, ditto, but the economic and social environment there and future prospects are much more complex.
Señor y Señora Barrientos:
Les felicito por su valiente decisión de arriesgarse a la aventura de la emigración y espero que sus problemas financieros sean leves y pasajeros. En todo caso, y pase lo que pase, sus hijos y nietos se lo agradecerán. Les mando un saludo muy cordial de otro inmigrante mucho menos valiente y más “chiqueado”.
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/minimum-options-even-above-minimum-wage-20110514-1enk2.html
Etiquetas:el Salvador, la emigración a Australia, la emigración a EEUU y al Canadá, Melissa Fyfe, The Age Melbourne
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Finding Venus
Vocal Freedom
Caroline Waters
Venus Envy: CD
Includes a download of the album Venus Envy
Please choose a price: $ USD ($12.00 or more)
Please pay at least $12.00
"With professionally produced original grooves and street-wise beats laying the foundation for her socially conscious and deeply introspective lyrical style, it seems Caroline has found a way to connect with anyone and everyone...
Moving from hip-hop to latin jazz and even to a violin solo in the midst of a bouncy R&B number, Caroline Waters is a talented, multi-faceted artist not to be overlooked. The fact that she writes all her own material, designs her own artwork, and controls her artistic destiny only adds to the allure." LA SPLASH MAGAZINE
All Content © 2019 by Caroline Waters. All Rights Reserved. Web Design by Caroline Waters. Photos by Aina O'Kane, Eva Groven and Scott Owens.
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City of Lights: The Trials and Triumphs of Ilyse Charpentier
Corcitura
Deadmarsh Fey
Reviews & Critical Praise: City of Lights
Books In My Belfry
~ A Writer's Life For Me
Tag Archives: bombastic
Posted by Melika Dannese Hick in Author Spotlight, Deadmarsh Fey, Missives, Updates
aderyn wood, admiration, adult, aesop, afresh, Agatha Christie, age, aidan r walsh, Air Jaws, aldrea alien, alexa grave, alexander grant, alice in wonderland, alice sabo, Aliens, all my heart, all of my heart, all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us, alliance, allies, almost as if the weight of her years were pressing against me like a great mountain of corpses that would collapse onto me if I so much as looked at her the wrong way.” Gryffyn looked as though he w, alveric, always treated as a servant, amaze, amazed, amazing, Amazon, Amazon UK, amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com, amreading, amy mcnulty, ancient evils, and destruction—a voice crafted of darkness and the death of worlds.” Flesh and bone and hearts unknown, and everyone, and has returned bearing tales of creatures called Jagged Ones that claim to be of the Fey and can somehow conceal themselves while standing in the full light of the moon. What they want with Lockie, and I enjoyed answering these questions so much. Many, and it becomes savagely clear that these Jagged Ones and the Dark Wreaker they serve are not only after Lockie and Travers, and the Curse That Walks The Earth. And then there is the foe named Blood Wood, and we’d be none the wiser till it had us by the throat! We can’t see a foot in front of our faces, andrea domanski, anduril, andy peloquin, angel, angels, anglo-saxon, anguish, anne rice, annihilate, annihilation, Anniversary, anorffen, answer the call, antestheria, applause, aragorn, architect, are true. And if there is truth in these outlandish stories, ariadne's thread, arianrhod, arthur, arthur machen, arwen, as Laura phrased it, as were the fiends who allowed themselves to be Hosted.” “But that happened in a wilder age, ashley capes, assumption, asunder, august, Augustin Boroi, aunt betsy, australia, australian, australian shark chorus, authentic, author, Authors, autonomy, autumn, avatar, awestruck, ” Bellows shot in. “You’re not allowed in church!” The Jagged One squinted at him. “Sez who?” “Says God!” Carver tsked. “I thought you Christians welcomed everyone.” “We make exc, ” Carver muttered. “I don’t know how else to explain this, ” Incendiu snarled. “They were all children, ” Roger argued. “Do not make the mistake of thinking present society is so highly advanced that they have forgotten their baser instincts, back from the dead, baggins, bagheera, bait, barber of seville, base motives, battlecry, beach, bear, beautiful, beginning, belkin, bellows, belong, beloved, below, bent, beowulf, best friend, best wishes, betrayal, better angels, beyond, beyond the forest, biased, bide, big, big boys, bill shakes, biologist, bird and baby, birth certificate, birthday, bite, black, black cats, black winged beast, blade and rose, blank wall, blazing, blind, blog, Blog Tour, blogger, bloggers, bloglovin, blogs, blood, blood and ashes, blood suckers, blood will drown the earth. And Roger and his entire family will fulfill the prophecy of fey’s older, blood wood, blood-soaked, bloodshed, bloom, blue prometheus, blue water, blue water white death, blues brothers, boarding school, boat, bombastic, bond, book, book addict, book feature, book giveaway, book nerd, book of mormon, booknerd, books, Books In My Belfry, booksinmybelfry.com, boom, boris kos, born vampire, boromir, Bottomless, boxer, brainstorming, bram stoker, brandon, bravo, brian o'sullivan, bride, brilliant, British, broke, brother, Brother?” the beast mocked. The dragon’s voice paralyzed Roger where he stood. Hearing it sapped his strength, brothers, brothers and sisters, brothers grimm, bruce, bubbly, business, bust, but a winged nightmare attempting to break free of its underground prison? Enlisting the aid of a monster equipped with enough inborn firepower to blast his enemies into oblivion might be as suicidal , but an unholy trinity known as the Bear, but as that interview is quite extensive, but did so sideways. A clear membrane coated its eye, but I could feel her age, but Roger, but when Roger arrives, c. d. gallant-king, c. l. schneider, C. S. Lewis, cable tv, cage, caged, calling, canon, carnifex, caroling, carpet diem, carte blanche, Carver, cat, catharine glen, cathartic, catholic, cats, caverns, cctv, cede, celebration, celts, center stage, chance, changed. The grounds are unkempt, chaos, character classes, characters, Charles Dickens, charpentier, chesterton, chevrefoil, childhood, children, children of light, children of vampires, chilled, chime, china, chivalry, chocolate, chocolate chip, choppy, chris fallowes, chris fallows, chris weston, christened, christians, christina ochs, Christmas, christmas carols, christmas in august, christmas in july, christopher percy, chucked, chumming, church, cianien bloodstone, City of Lights, City of Lights by melika lux, city of lights: the trials and triumphs of ilyse charpentier, clarity, classic, classical, clicking, clues, cnn, coalition, Coffyn, collapse, comedic fantasy, Comedy, comic, comic book, community, composed, conceal, concentration, confessional, confusion, conquest, conservation, constant source of inspiration, Constantinos, constructive criticism, contemporary fantasy, contest, conventional wisdom, conversation, cooked, copies, copyright, coquette, corcitura, Corcitura feature, corpses, corruption, corruption of honor, cottage, count, count orlok, Count Rakmanovich, Count Sergei Rakmanovich, courtly love, coven queen, Cover, cozy, crackbrained, craig a price jr., craig aird, create, creative fiction, creepy, cries blood, crime and punishment, cross fire, cruelty, CS Lewis, curiosity, curse, cut, cutting his teeth, cutwater, cutwater island, d. h. dunn, d. p. prior, d. p. wolliscroft, daft, damned souls, dance hall, dance of romance, dancing in the dust, danger, dangerous, dannese, dark, dark ages, dark fantasy, dark lord, dark night of the soul, dark oak, dark of winter, dark one's mistress, dark side, dark tide, dark water, dark wreaker, darkblade assassin, darkling, darkness, dashing, daughter of atlas, David Copperfield, david gowey, david mullin, david oliver, david p macpherson, dawn of darkness, days of endless night, dead bride, dead shrimps, deadliest, Deadmarsh, Deadmarsh Fey, deadmarshes, deal, dean rencraft, death, death merchants, death of worlds, debbie taylor, deborah kerr, december, decision, dedication, deeds in which village children made sacrifice to an otherworldly beast and were never seen or heard from again, deep, deeper, defeat, demand, demon, demon-haunted, demonic, demons, demons of the deep, denial, depth, depths, derangement, desire to weave stories, desolate, destiny, destruction, details, devastatingly brilliant, devil, devilry, devils, devin madson, devour, devourer of the world, dialogue, dianne bylo, die, dignity, dimensioner's revenge, diminish, Discovery Channel, disover, disposable, distraction, ditty, diva of the paris stage, diver's suit, divine, dk girl, dnf, dogs, doldrums, don't look back, donald trump, doom, dorothy dreyer, Dostoevsky, dostoyevsky, double blinds, Dracula, draculaesque, Dragon, dragon eye, dragon fate, dragon school, dragon shade, dragona rise of the wyverns, dragons, dramatically, dramatis personae, drandeur, dread, dread grandeur, dream, dream-sagas, dreamlike, dreams, dresses, driving force, drowning, druids, dude, dunedain, dungeoneers, dungeons and dragons, dunsany, duology, dwellers, dwellers of darkness, dwellers of darkness children of light, dyrk ashton, e. j. taylor, E. T., eagle and child, earth, Eastern Europe, ebb, ecstatically, eddas, ego, Eiffel Tower, elessar, elevator, elevator pitch, elmo, elvish, email, embellishments, emblematic, emerald dodge, emma stone, emotional, emotions, encourage, end song, enemies, enemy, engand, England, englishman, enlightened, enraptured, enrich, enveloped, envoys, epic, epic fantasy, epistolary, Eric Bradburry, erlkonig, erudite, ET, eternal night, Europe, European, evangeline, everl'aria, everyone, evidence, evie, evil, Excerpt, exhausted, exhilarated, exile, experience, exploitation, exploring, extraordinary, eye of arianrhod, eyes, Facebook, faces in the mist, facilitator, fade, faeries, fair and foul, fairy cakes, fairy tales, faith, fall, fallen, fallen age, fallen empire, fallen kingdom, false bay, family, fangs and fins, fantastic, fantastical, fantasy, fantasy hive, fantasy is escapist, fantasy novels, farewell and adieu, fascinated, fast typist, fate, Fated, fated to die, father, fathomless, Faust, favorite, fearies, fearless, feast, feast in the forest, feature, featured, featured at Jean the Book Nerd’s great site, feedback, feel, feelings, female author, female vampires, female werewolves, female writers, fey, fiction, Film, filming locations, films, Fin de siècle, Find Me, finding dory, finding home, finding nemo, fire's song, fire-breather, firecracker, fireplace, firing, first love, first novel, five, flesh, flesh and blood, flickering, flickering within that gigantic orb… “Why should I not know what he’s really called?” “Tell a man your name and he will have power over you forever, flow, flowers, flying saucer, flying sharks, foe, Folies Bergère, food network, foodtv, foot, for his savagery had no end.” “I’ve seen its other side. I know what lives here, forest, forever, forever grateful, forever love, forever my love, forfeit, forged in flames, forgotten relics, forsaken kingdom, foundation, four novel, fox news, fragile nights, France, Franz Schubert, freaky, free, free reign, free will, freebie, freedom, freeing air, French, french flag, French wine, friday, friends, Friendship, frodo, frodo baggins, frustrating, fudge, full circle, fun, fundamental, Fuseli, fylgja, fyodor, gabriel michaelson, gaja j. kos, game of thrones, gamut, Gandalf, gandalf the grey, gardener, gargantuan, geist, genius, genres, george r. r. martin, german, german lieder, germanic, Germany, ghast, ghost electricity, ghosts, gift, giganitc, giveaway, gk chesterton, glamour of evil, glimpse, gloomy, glories, glorious, glory, gnomic, goal, God, godforsaken, goethe, gollum, good and evil, good gad, good vs evil, gooderads, goodread, Goodreads, Google, goose, goose is cooked, gothic, gothic novel, governess, grabs, Grand Tour, gravitas, great book, great god pan, great white, great white shark, Greece, green flashing like St. Elmo’s fire. All these colors danced not a foot in front of Roger’s face, green with envy, greenery, Gretchen am Spinnrade, grey beard, grey wolves, Greydanus, grim reaper, groaza, gryffyn, guardian spirit, guardians, guides, guillermo del toro, Guinness, gustav mahler, guv, guy fieri, gwendolyn pendraig, h p lovecraft, h. g. wells, had ever been anything to fear. Nearly each summer of his young life had been spent in that manor on the moors, hallmark, hallmark channel, halloween, hamilton, hamlet, hammer, hand-write, handily at hand, hannah sullivan, hansel and gretel, hard work, harmony, harsh, has inexplicably grown and glares at Roger as if he is trying to read the boy’s mind. Roger’s eldest cousin, hasty, hate, haunted, haunting of hill house, havelock, having wild adventures with his cousin, hazard, he finds everything, he was The Bottomless, he who fights, heart, heartache, heartbeat, heartland, heaven, heaven and earth, hell comes to hogtown, help, henry corbin, henry fuseli, henry james, here be dragons, here there be dragons, hermit, hermitlife, hero, hero forged, heroes, heroism, high barrens, high fantasy, high school, higher self, higher selves, highland, hindsight, hinterland, historical fiction, historical romance, History, hobbit, hobbit size, hobbiton, hollow, home, home is behind, hope, hopes, hopes and dreams, horrifying, horror, horror herald, horrorfest, hosted, hosting, hot, Hotmail, house, hues, huge, hugh jackman, hugo vickers, hugo weaving, hugs, human beings, Humor, Hunger Games, hungers of life and all that matters, hunter, hybrid, hybrid vampires, i am death, i am fire, i am fire i am death, I shout, I thought it would be a good idea to share them with you today in a separate post. I hope you enjoy this little glimpse into Deadmarsh Fey. Best wishes, ian gregoire, Ian McCarthy, ian mckellan, ian mckellen, iceland, iconic, idea, ignite, ill tiding, illegal, illegible, ilyse, Ilyse Charpentier, imaginal, imaginal realm, imagination, imbued, impact, impacted, imprisoned, in tune, in which a dashing Englishman woos mademoiselle Charpentier, in-depth, incendiu, incorporate, incredible hulk, indecisive, Indie, infected, infinity, infused, inkling, inklings, inner lives, inorganic, insatiable, insights, inspiration, inspirations, inspired, instill, insurmountable, integrity, intense, interjections, internet, Interview, invite, iron fey, iron reveals, irrevocably, irv, isobel, isobel vickers, Italian, Italy, itinerant writing, ivan turgenev, j. a. alexsoo, j. d. hallowell, j. e. mueller, j. elizabeth vincent, J. R. R. Tolkien, j. r. rasmussen, j. zachary pike, ja andrews, jack, Jack the Ripper, jacob sannox, jagged, jagged ones, JAWS, jawsome, jawsomeness, jc kang, jean, jean booknerd, jean valjean, jeffrey l kohanek, jeffrey russell, jennifer ellison, jeramy goble, jess watkins, jesse teller, jingle bells, jingle sharks, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, john william waterhouse, johnny cash, jon, jordan c robinson, joseph sheridan le fanu, josh erikson, jot, joy, JRR Tolkien, julian, june carter cash, jungle book, Jurassic Park, just keep swimming, justin lee anderson, k bird lincoln, k l ling, k m alexander, kascher's quartet, katniss, kayleigh nicol, keith mcardle, kevin wright, kind, Kindle, kindle giveaway, king arthur, kingshold, Kip, Kipling, kirsten m corby, Knightley, knowing thine enemy, knut hamsun, kurintor nyusi, l. l. mcneil, la la land, La Perle de Paris, la petite coquette, lad, landed, languages, laptop, latest, laura, laura m hughes, lava, lead, lead to the rath and your fate will be shown… cover Deadmarsh. The name struck terror into the hearts of all who heard it. But to Roger Knightley, leave, lee conley, legend, legendarium, legends, legends of elera voices, Leonora, Leonora Bianchetti, lepers, leroy nichols, les miserables, lesser, let off the lead, lethal, letter, liath luacra, library, lie, lieder eines fahrenden gesellen, lies, life, lifeline, light, light dawning, like the greater evil we faced later on, likeminded, lin manuel miranda, lineup, link, Links, lion the witch and the wardrobe, lips, lirazel, list, little dream, lives, Lockie, loggerheads, logistical, London, longing, longing for home, longings, lord byron, lord dunsany, lord of the rings, lords of asylum, lorri moulton, LOTR, lots of tears, Louisa May Alcott, Louvre, Love, love in one act, love of reading, Luc, luck, luminous, lunch, lux, Lux Aeterna, lynn's books, lyrics, m. s. olney, mabinogion, mabus, machen, mad skillz, maddie, made him feel as though his mind had been crushed between slabs of stone. There was chaos in it, Madelaine Bradburry, madness, magic, magic's betrayal, magician's nephew, magnificent, mahler, main character, majestic, malazan, malevolence, manipulation, Manon Larue, manor, many thanks to the fabulous (and sharktastic!) Laura M. Hughes for giving me this opportunity. I hope you will all enjoy reading about, marble, marianne ratcliffe, marilyn peake, marilyn vix, marine biologist, mark lawrence, marked, mashup, masquerading, master, master coffyn, masterclass, masterpiece, matt heppe, matt larkin, matthew thompson, maul, Maurice Charpentier, maxim, me, meagan hurst, meager, meaningful, meanings, meant to be, media, meg cowley, megan mackie, melancholy, melika, Melika Dannese Lux, Melika Lux, melokai, membrane, mental angels, merlin, message in a bottle, method, michael baker, michael r baker, michael sliter, middle-earth, mike morris, miles and flora, mimicked, mind, mind behind the mind, mind palace, miraculously, miranda, miranda honfleur, mirror writing, mirroring, moartea, moarteans, modern times, monikers, monocle, monty python, moon, moonlight roses and murder, moonstone, more things in heaven and earth, moria, morlocks, moroda, moss, most wonderful time of the year, mother, motherhood, motivation, mountain, Movies, mr. micawber, mr. murdstone, mug, Music, musical, my beloved, my calling, my dream, my life, my love, mystical, myth, mythology, myths, names, napkins, narnia, nature, nature of evil, nazri noor, nebulous, ned marcus, neither Deadmarsh the house, nerd, net galley, netflix, netgalley, never looked back, new, new interview, new picture, new release, New York, new zealand, news, nia rae, nicholas kotar, nicholas malebranche, night, nightmare, nightmarish, ninny, no looking back, no sparkling, nor Deadmarsh the family, norse, norse mythology, north york moors, northleach, norway, Nosferatu, not one foot! Why are you not afraid?” “Because I am the monster lurking in the shadows, notebook, notes, novel, novelist, novels, now, now dresses like a duchess and wears round her neck a strange moonstone given to her by someone known as Master Coffyn, now face-to-fey, nudged, oblivion, obsessed, ocean, odds, of darkness, off his nut, offshore, oil slick, old salt, older, ominous, on borrowed luck, on location, one i love, opaque, opera, or the world.” “There are more things in Heaven and earth…” Uncle Gryffyn muttered. “Now ain’t the time to be quotin’ old Bill Shakes, orange, orconomics, original, orion, orlok, oswald, other worlds, otherness, otherworld, out of nowhere, outlet, overwhelming, Oxford, pages, pale, palming the ace, pan, panic, panther, paper, Paperback, paranoia, paranoid, Paranormal, parc monceau, parents, Paris, Parisian, passionately, path, patrick leclerc, Paul Celan, pdf, peace, Penny Dreadful, penny dreadfuls, pepe the prawn, peppy, perfect day, performance, perilous, perilous realms, personal, perspective, perspicacious, peter jackson, peter quint, petrik leo, pews, phil parker, phil williams, philosopher, phoenix, phoenix descending, phrased, pianist, pict, picture, piece, pilgrimage, pilgrimages, pirates of the caribbean, pistachio, pit, place of slaughter, plausible deniability, play, plethora, plots, plowed, plumbing, poet, poetic edda, poetry, pointy hat, Polidori, politics, pool, pop culture, portraits, possessed, post, powers of music, prayer, pre-raphaelites, precious, preferably, premiered, press, prime time, primetime, professor fertig, project, projects, promo, promotion, prophecy, protagonist, pseudonym, psychological, publication, publicity, publishing, puckie, puddleglum, pumpkin, pun, pure magic, questions, quick-fire, quickfire, Quint, quites, quote, quotes, r. m. mulder, rafflecopter, ragna, random, ranger, rapture, rapturous, raskolnikov, rath, raucous, ravan thrall, raymond st. elmo, readers, reading, real, real name, realm of mindweavers, realms, reaper, recent reads, red sister, reddit, reflection, reflection of yourself, regret, reign, religion, renaissance, research, respect, reveal, revenge, Review, reviews, reward, rex, richard iii, richard lucas, richard writhen, riddled with fear, ring, rivalry, riveting novels of psychological suspense, roaring fire, roasted, robert shaw, robocopter ski patrol, rocks, roger, Roger cannot fathom, Roger discovers that Coffyn has overtaken Lockie. The boy is deceitful, Roger Knightley, Roger Knightley. Evil is evil no matter the century, Roger must find a way to end the battle being waged across worlds before the night of Lockie’s eleventh birthday—two days hence. If he fails, Roger seeks to unravel the tapestry of lies woven round his family’s connection to the death-haunted world of Everl’aria—and the Dark Wreaker who calls it home. The deeper Roger delves into the , rohirrim, roiling emotions, role playing, romance, romance novels set in historic France, Romania, Romanian, romantic fantasy, ronald tibu, room, rosalyn kelly, rosina, rossini, rotsby, round pegs, rove, rudyard kipling, ruination, ruled, rural, rural england, russell cullison, Russia, russian, ryan gosling, s. a. corey, s. c. flynn, s. k. randloph, sacrifice, sacrirfice, sadness, saga, sagas, sagas germanic, sale, salt, samara, samir, samwise gamgee, sanderson, sangue de vita, Sangue di Vita, sarah k. l. wilson, saucer, sauron, sausage, sausage sandwich, savagery, savoir faire, scarper, scary, scary vampires, scene, scene stealer, scenes, schadenfreude, schubert, science-fantasy, scotland, scream, scribd, scrubland, scythe, sea, Sea World, seal, seal island, sean astin, sean cunningham, seared, searing beauty, seasonal, seasonal reads, secret doorways, secrets, seized, selection, self publishing fantasy blog off, self-published fantasy blog off, semicolon, serenaded, Sergei, Sergei Rakmanovich, series, serious, servant of rage, seven hundred years, seventeen, sez, sez who, shadow magic, shadows, sham, shaq, shaquille o'neal, shark, shark attack, shark bite, shark chorus, shark elevator pitch, Shark Week, sharkbait oo-ha-HA!, sharking, sharkland, sharkland forever, Sharks, sharktastic, sheltering, shere khan, shield of kings, shifts, shire, shirley jackson, shiver, shores of the heart, shrieking, siblings, silence, silly, silver-tongued devil, singer, singing, sinisterly, sir frank dicksee, sister, sisters, site, sixteen, skill, skillz, skye, sneaky, snippet, snuffbox, snug, social media, solace lost, soldier, solidified, son, song, songs of insurrection, songs of the wayfarer, sonya m black, soprano, sorcerer's isle, sorcerous rivalry, Sorina Boroi, sorrow, soul, soul render, soul-restoring, soul-searching, soulmate, soulmates, souls, South Africa, space time continuum, special, special meaning, specials, spfbo, spfbo2018, spill, spinning silk, spiritual, spoiler, Spooky, spring, spring-heeled jack, square holes, squirrel, st. elmo's fire, standchen, startle, states, status quo, steal of a deal, steampunk, steer the ship, Stefan, Stefan Belododia, Stefan Ratliff, stephen spielberg, stephenie meyer, steve thomas, steven erikson, steven mckinnon, steven spielberg, stole his will, stone, storm wielder, story, story arcs, story reading, storytelling, storyweaving, stratosphere, struggle, stumbling block, stunning, sub-genres, success, suffered, summer, sunday, supernatural, supernatural thriller, superstition, support, suppressing, surf, surfer, surfer dude, susan hill, Suspense, suzanne rogerson, sviddheim, swathing, sweeney todd, sweet, swimmers, swimming, sydney, Sylvi, symphony of the wind, t j muir, T-Rex, t. cook, t. l. branson, Tags#AmWriting, Tags100, taiwan, Taken, taking care of, talk, talking animals, talking cat, talking cats, tall tales, TAPS, tears, techniques, teeth, temporary derangement, ten, terrifying, terror, that's what I'm tolkien about, the apples of idunn, the bastard from fairyland, the crown of stones, the crushed peak, the darkness within, the dead sagas, the Deadmarsh heir. This year should have been no different, the end begins, the exercise of vital powers, the expanse, the family cat, the fantasy hive, The Fellowship of the Ring, the finder of the lucky devil, the first fear, the forbidden city, the game bird, the great hearts, the great restoration, the greatest showman, the hidden face, the hidden ones, the innocents, the ivy cottage, the king of elfland's daughter, the knight's order, the last whisperer, The Lord of the Rings, the lost sentinel, the manhunters song, The Marriage of Figaro, the Moarteans christened him Groaza. Others called him The Devourer of the World. And to those on Sviddheim, the more he begins to suspect that the tales of dark deeds done in the forest behind Deadmarsh, the most wonderful time of the year, the power of music, the red hourglass, the ring, the rose crown, the sangrook saga, the seeds of dissolution, the servants long gone. Kip, the silver chair, the song of the siren, the stars were right, the tainted crown, the tempest guild, the thousand scars, The Trials and Triumphs of Ilyse Charpentier, the turn of the screw, the very beginning, the white people and other weird stories, the Wolf, theatre, then drew back to reveal hues infinitely more searing than before—so vibrant it was painful for Roger to look into them. Orange pulsating like a lava flow, theophany, these vampires don't sparkle, This selection of quotes will appear in a very personal interview on Friday, thorny, thousand scar, threatening, threats of sky and sea, three decades, three tons, three tons of him, thrilled, Thriller, throat, through a glass darkly, thunder the shadows are stirring, tibu, tidings, tiger lilly, tiller, time machine, timothy c doyle, tiny tim, Tolkien, tollers, Tollers and Jack, tom-tom, tome tender, too. Joining forces with an ally whose true nature remains hidden, top 10, topics, toppled, torched, total fantasy, Toulouse Lautrec, Tour Eiffel, tradition, tragedy, trahaearn, train, trainwreck, trajectory, traumatic, travel, travers, tree stump, trials, tricksy, triggered, trilogy, tristan and isolde, triumph, triumphant, true, true bliss, true love, truest sense, truly belong, trust, truth, truth or darkness, tsked, turn of phrase, Turn of the Screw, TV, Twilight, Twitter, two tons, TY Arthur, type, typing, typist, Tyrian purple, ufo, UK, una voce poco fa, unattainable, uncle silas, unconditional, undead, under everest, under ordshaw, underbelly, unfolded, uninspiring, unique, universal, universal studios, universes, unstoppable, untangled, until the horror within his cousin lashes out, untold, unusual, up for grabs, updates, urban fantasy, uriah heep, USA, valet, vampire fiction, Vampire Hunter, vampire mythology, vampire mythos, vampires, vampiresses, vampiric, vampiric equality, vampiric transformation, vampirism, vamps, vampyre, varney, varney the vampire, varney the vampyre, Vasily Markolovick, venue, verge, verin empire, vickers, victoria, Victorian, victorian age, view of the world, villains, violinist, virgil, vitriol, vivid, vivid imagination, Vladec, Vladec Salei, vocal coach, vocation, voice, volsung saga, vortigern, Vrykolakas, Wales, wanderer, wandering, war, wards and wonders, warmth, warnings and visitations, water's surface, way of the world, we ride the storm, weak-minded, weapon, web site, website, weighing, weirdoes, welsh, welsh mythology, went by many names. When he invaded Everl’aria, Werewolf, werewolf transformation, what of the rumor that it was not an earthquake which rocked the moors surrounding Deadmarsh sixteen years ago, what’s been slumbering for so long.” A hollow pit opened up where Roger’s heart was supposed to be. “How would you know that?” “I woke it up.” He blinked in surprise and was even more st, when the kingdom falls, whiskey and dragon fire, white death, white shark, Whitechapel, who has taken over the teaching of Lockie at a school in Wales called Nethermarrow. And soon after he crosses the threshold of Deadmarsh, who might be the deadliest of them all. Racing against time, widget, wilder, Wilkie Collins, william c tracy, william ray, william shakespeare, wine, winners, winter, wip, wisdom, wish, witch, witch spelling, wizard, wolf, woman in white, womb, wonderful, wondrous, Wood, woods, work, worldview, worst enemy, worth fighting for, wraxhall, wreaker, wrenching, write what you dream, writer, writer's block, Writers, writing, writing life, writing method, writing process, YA, year, years, yellow glistening brighter than a city made of gold, yes, yet the boy knows he needs all the help he can get if there is to be any hope of defeating not only the Dark Wreaker and his servants, yo ho yo ho a writer's life for me, york, Yorkshire, Young Adult, young author, young female author, young love, Young Protagonists, young writer, your home, YouTube
Melika Dannese Hick has been an author since the age of fourteen and writes dream-sagas that incorporate a variety of different genres, including historical fiction, suspense, thrillers with a supernatural twist, and epic/dark fantasy. She is also a classically trained soprano/violinist/pianist, who holds a BA in Management from Saint Leo University and an MBA in Marketing from Regis University.
If she had not decided to become a writer, Melika would have become a marine biologist, but after countless years spent watching Shark Week, she realized she is very attached to her arms and legs and would rather write sharks into her stories than get up close and personal with those toothy wonders.
Melika and her husband, Julian, make their home in London, with occasional journeys into the Shire. To learn more about Melika, her books, and latest writing projects, please visit booksinmybelfry.com
A Very Personal Interview + Book Giveaway
Posted by Melika Dannese Hick in Author Spotlight, Deadmarsh Fey, Fun Stuff, Giveaway Announcement, Missives, News, Updates
13, 15, 18, 1888, 1890s, 1894, 1975, 19th century, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2019, 24601, 30th anniversary, 40, 700, 8, a book addict's bookshelves, a fragment of life, a host of ills, a keeper's tale, a less enlightened time, a lot, a warden's purpose, a wizard should know better, a wizard's forge, a woodley, a. m. justice, a. m. rycroft, a. z. anthony, aaron c. cross, aaron hodge, aaron-michael hall, ache, adam watson, adaptations, added bonus, aderyn, aderyn wood, admiration, adult, aesop, afresh, Agatha Christie, age, aidan r walsh, Air Jaws, aldrea alien, alexa grave, alexander grant, alice in wonderland, alice sabo, Aliens, all my heart, all of my heart, all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us, alliance, allies, almost as if the weight of her years were pressing against me like a great mountain of corpses that would collapse onto me if I so much as looked at her the wrong way.” Gryffyn looked as though he w, alveric, always treated as a servant, amaze, amazed, amazing, Amazon, Amazon UK, amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com, amreading, amy mcnulty, ancient evils, and destruction—a voice crafted of darkness and the death of worlds.” Flesh and bone and hearts unknown, and everyone, and has returned bearing tales of creatures called Jagged Ones that claim to be of the Fey and can somehow conceal themselves while standing in the full light of the moon. What they want with Lockie, and I enjoyed answering these questions so much. Many, and it becomes savagely clear that these Jagged Ones and the Dark Wreaker they serve are not only after Lockie and Travers, and the Curse That Walks The Earth. And then there is the foe named Blood Wood, and we’d be none the wiser till it had us by the throat! We can’t see a foot in front of our faces, andrea domanski, anduril, andy peloquin, angel, angels, anglo-saxon, anguish, anne rice, annihilate, annihilation, Anniversary, anorffen, answer the call, antestheria, applause, aragorn, architect, are true. And if there is truth in these outlandish stories, ariadne's thread, arianrhod, arthur, arthur machen, arwen, as Laura phrased it, as were the fiends who allowed themselves to be Hosted.” “But that happened in a wilder age, ashley capes, assumption, asunder, august, Augustin Boroi, aunt betsy, australia, australian, australian shark chorus, authentic, author, Authors, autonomy, autumn, awestruck, ” Bellows shot in. “You’re not allowed in church!” The Jagged One squinted at him. “Sez who?” “Says God!” Carver tsked. “I thought you Christians welcomed everyone.” “We make exc, ” Carver muttered. “I don’t know how else to explain this, ” Incendiu snarled. “They were all children, ” Roger argued. “Do not make the mistake of thinking present society is so highly advanced that they have forgotten their baser instincts, back from the dead, baggins, bagheera, bait, barber of seville, base motives, battlecry, beach, bear, beautiful, beginning, belkin, bellows, belong, beloved, below, bent, beowulf, best friend, best wishes, betrayal, better angels, beyond, beyond the forest, biased, bide, big, big boys, bill shakes, biologist, bird and baby, birth certificate, birthday, bite, black, black cats, black winged beast, blade and rose, blank wall, blazing, blind, blog, Blog Tour, blogger, bloggers, bloglovin, blogs, blood, blood and ashes, blood suckers, blood will drown the earth. And Roger and his entire family will fulfill the prophecy of fey’s older, blood wood, blood-soaked, bloodshed, bloom, blue prometheus, blue water, blue water white death, blues brothers, boarding school, boat, bombastic, bond, book, book addict, book feature, book giveaway, book nerd, book of mormon, booknerd, books, Books In My Belfry, booksinmybelfry.com, boom, boris kos, born vampire, boromir, Bottomless, boxer, brainstorming, bram stoker, brandon, bravo, brian o'sullivan, bride, brilliant, British, broke, brother, Brother?” the beast mocked. The dragon’s voice paralyzed Roger where he stood. Hearing it sapped his strength, brothers, brothers and sisters, brothers grimm, bruce, bubbly, business, bust, but a winged nightmare attempting to break free of its underground prison? Enlisting the aid of a monster equipped with enough inborn firepower to blast his enemies into oblivion might be as suicidal , but an unholy trinity known as the Bear, but as that interview is quite extensive, but did so sideways. A clear membrane coated its eye, but I could feel her age, but Roger, but when Roger arrives, c. d. gallant-king, c. l. schneider, C. S. Lewis, cable tv, cage, caged, calling, canon, carnifex, caroling, carpet diem, carte blanche, Carver, cat, catharine glen, cathartic, catholic, cats, caverns, cctv, cede, celebration, celts, center stage, chance, changed. The grounds are unkempt, chaos, character classes, characters, Charles Dickens, charpentier, chesterton, chevrefoil, childhood, children, children of light, children of vampires, chilled, chime, china, chivalry, chocolate, chocolate chip, choppy, chris fallowes, chris fallows, chris weston, christened, christians, christina ochs, Christmas, christmas carols, christmas in august, christmas in july, christopher percy, chucked, chumming, church, cianien bloodstone, City of Lights, City of Lights by melika lux, city of lights: the trials and triumphs of ilyse charpentier, clarity, classic, classical, clicking, clues, cnn, coalition, Coffyn, collapse, comedic fantasy, Comedy, comic, comic book, community, composed, conceal, concentration, confessional, confusion, conquest, conservation, constant source of inspiration, Constantinos, constructive criticism, contemporary fantasy, contest, conventional wisdom, conversation, cooked, copies, copyright, coquette, corcitura, Corcitura feature, corpses, corruption, corruption of honor, cottage, count, count orlok, Count Rakmanovich, Count Sergei Rakmanovich, courtly love, coven queen, Cover, cozy, crackbrained, craig a price jr., craig aird, create, creative fiction, creepy, cries blood, crime and punishment, cross fire, cruelty, CS Lewis, curiosity, curse, cut, cutting his teeth, cutwater, cutwater island, d. h. dunn, d. p. prior, d. p. wolliscroft, daft, damned souls, dance hall, dance of romance, dancing in the dust, danger, dangerous, dannese, dark, dark ages, dark fantasy, dark lord, dark night of the soul, dark oak, dark of winter, dark one's mistress, dark side, dark tide, dark water, dark wreaker, darkblade assassin, darkling, darkness, dashing, daughter of atlas, David Copperfield, david gowey, david mullin, david oliver, david p macpherson, dawn of darkness, days of endless night, dead bride, dead shrimps, deadliest, Deadmarsh, Deadmarsh Fey, deadmarshes, deal, dean rencraft, death, death merchants, death of worlds, debbie taylor, deborah kerr, december, decision, dedication, deeds in which village children made sacrifice to an otherworldly beast and were never seen or heard from again, deep, deeper, defeat, demand, demon, demon-haunted, demonic, demons, demons of the deep, denial, depth, depths, derangement, desire to weave stories, desolate, destiny, destruction, details, devastatingly brilliant, devil, devilry, devils, devin madson, devour, devourer of the world, dialogue, dianne bylo, die, dignity, dimensioner's revenge, diminish, Discovery Channel, disover, disposable, distraction, ditty, diva of the paris stage, diver's suit, divine, dk girl, dnf, dogs, doldrums, don't look back, donald trump, doom, dorothy dreyer, Dostoevsky, dostoyevsky, double blinds, Dracula, draculaesque, Dragon, dragon eye, dragon fate, dragon school, dragon shade, dragona rise of the wyverns, dragons, dramatically, dramatis personae, drandeur, dread, dread grandeur, dream, dream-sagas, dreamlike, dreams, dresses, driving force, drowning, druids, dude, dunedain, dungeoneers, dungeons and dragons, dunsany, duology, dwellers, dwellers of darkness, dwellers of darkness children of light, dyrk ashton, e. j. taylor, E. T., eagle and child, earth, Eastern Europe, ebb, ecstatically, eddas, ego, Eiffel Tower, elessar, elevator, elevator pitch, elmo, elvish, email, embellishments, emblematic, emerald dodge, emma stone, emotional, emotions, encourage, end song, enemies, enemy, engand, England, englishman, enlightened, enraptured, enrich, enveloped, envoys, epic, epic fantasy, epistolary, Eric Bradburry, erlkonig, erudite, ET, eternal night, Europe, European, evangeline, everl'aria, everyone, evidence, evie, evil, Excerpt, exhausted, exhilarated, exile, experience, exploitation, exploring, extraordinary, eye of arianrhod, eyes, Facebook, faces in the mist, facilitator, fade, faeries, fair and foul, fairy cakes, fairy tales, faith, fall, fallen, fallen age, fallen empire, fallen kingdom, false bay, family, fangs and fins, fantastic, fantastical, fantasy, fantasy hive, fantasy is escapist, fantasy novels, farewell and adieu, fascinated, fast typist, fate, Fated, fated to die, father, fathomless, Faust, favorite, fearies, fearless, feast, feast in the forest, feature, featured, featured at Jean the Book Nerd’s great site, feedback, feel, feelings, female author, female vampires, female werewolves, female writers, fey, fiction, Film, filming locations, films, Fin de siècle, Find Me, finding dory, finding home, finding nemo, fire's song, fire-breather, firecracker, fireplace, firing, first love, first novel, five, flesh, flesh and blood, flickering, flickering within that gigantic orb… “Why should I not know what he’s really called?” “Tell a man your name and he will have power over you forever, flow, flowers, flying saucer, flying sharks, foe, Folies Bergère, food network, foodtv, foot, for his savagery had no end.” “I’ve seen its other side. I know what lives here, forest, forever, forever grateful, forever love, forever my love, forfeit, forged in flames, forgotten relics, forsaken kingdom, foundation, four novel, fox news, fragile nights, France, Franz Schubert, freaky, free, free reign, free will, freebie, freedom, freeing air, French, french flag, French wine, friday, friends, Friendship, frodo, frodo baggins, frustrating, fudge, full circle, fun, fundamental, Fuseli, fylgja, fyodor, gabriel michaelson, gaja j. kos, game of thrones, gamut, Gandalf, gandalf the grey, gardener, gargantuan, geist, genius, genres, george r. r. martin, german, german lieder, germanic, Germany, ghast, ghost electricity, ghosts, gift, giganitc, giveaway, gk chesterton, glamour of evil, glimpse, gloomy, glories, glorious, glory, gnomic, goal, God, godforsaken, goethe, gollum, good and evil, good gad, good vs evil, gooderads, goodread, Goodreads, Google, goose, goose is cooked, gothic, gothic novel, governess, grabs, Grand Tour, gravitas, great book, great god pan, great white, great white shark, Greece, green flashing like St. Elmo’s fire. All these colors danced not a foot in front of Roger’s face, green with envy, greenery, Gretchen am Spinnrade, grey beard, grey wolves, Greydanus, grim reaper, groaza, gryffyn, guardian spirit, guardians, guides, guillermo del toro, Guinness, gustav mahler, guv, guy fieri, gwendolyn pendraig, h p lovecraft, h. g. wells, had ever been anything to fear. Nearly each summer of his young life had been spent in that manor on the moors, hallmark, hallmark channel, halloween, hamilton, hamlet, hammer, hand-write, handily at hand, hannah sullivan, hansel and gretel, hard work, harmony, harsh, has inexplicably grown and glares at Roger as if he is trying to read the boy’s mind. Roger’s eldest cousin, hasty, hate, haunted, haunting of hill house, havelock, having wild adventures with his cousin, hazard, he finds everything, he was The Bottomless, he who fights, heart, heartache, heartbeat, heartland, heaven, heaven and earth, hell comes to hogtown, help, henry corbin, henry fuseli, henry james, here be dragons, here there be dragons, hermit, hermitlife, hero, hero forged, heroes, heroism, high barrens, high fantasy, high school, higher self, higher selves, highland, hindsight, hinterland, historical fiction, historical romance, History, hobbit, hobbit size, hobbiton, hollow, home, home is behind, hope, hopes, hopes and dreams, horrifying, horror, horror herald, horrorfest, hosted, hosting, hot, Hotmail, house, hues, huge, hugh jackman, hugo vickers, hugo weaving, hugs, human beings, Humor, Hunger Games, hungers of life and all that matters, hunter, hybrid, hybrid vampires, i am death, i am fire, i am fire i am death, I shout, I thought it would be a good idea to share them with you today in a separate post. I hope you enjoy this little glimpse into Deadmarsh Fey. Best wishes, ian gregoire, Ian McCarthy, ian mckellan, ian mckellen, iceland, iconic, idea, ignite, ill tiding, illegal, illegible, ilyse, Ilyse Charpentier, imaginal, imaginal realm, imagination, imbued, impact, impacted, imprisoned, in tune, in which a dashing Englishman woos mademoiselle Charpentier, in-depth, incendiu, incorporate, incredible hulk, indecisive, Indie, infected, infinity, infused, inkling, inklings, inner lives, inorganic, insatiable, insights, inspiration, inspirations, inspired, instill, insurmountable, integrity, intense, interjections, internet, Interview, invite, iron fey, iron reveals, irrevocably, irv, isobel, isobel vickers, Italian, Italy, itinerant writing, ivan turgenev, j. a. alexsoo, j. d. hallowell, j. e. mueller, j. elizabeth vincent, J. R. R. Tolkien, j. r. rasmussen, j. zachary pike, ja andrews, jack, Jack the Ripper, jacob sannox, jagged, jagged ones, JAWS, jawsome, jawsomeness, jc kang, jean, jean booknerd, jean valjean, jeffrey l kohanek, jeffrey russell, jennifer ellison, jeramy goble, jess watkins, jesse teller, jingle bells, jingle sharks, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, john william waterhouse, johnny cash, jon, jordan c robinson, joseph sheridan le fanu, josh erikson, jot, joy, JRR Tolkien, julian, june carter cash, jungle book, Jurassic Park, just keep swimming, justin lee anderson, k bird lincoln, k l ling, k m alexander, kascher's quartet, katniss, kayleigh nicol, keith mcardle, kevin wright, kind, Kindle, kindle giveaway, king arthur, kingshold, Kip, Kipling, kirsten m corby, Knightley, knowing thine enemy, knut hamsun, kurintor nyusi, l. l. mcneil, la la land, La Perle de Paris, la petite coquette, lad, landed, languages, laptop, latest, laura, laura m hughes, lava, lead, lead to the rath and your fate will be shown… cover Deadmarsh. The name struck terror into the hearts of all who heard it. But to Roger Knightley, leave, lee conley, legend, legendarium, legends, legends of elera voices, Leonora, Leonora Bianchetti, lepers, leroy nichols, les miserables, lesser, let off the lead, lethal, letter, liath luacra, library, lie, lieder eines fahrenden gesellen, lies, life, lifeline, light, light dawning, like the greater evil we faced later on, likeminded, lin manuel miranda, lineup, link, Links, lion the witch and the wardrobe, lips, lirazel, list, little dream, lives, Lockie, loggerheads, logistical, London, longing, longing for home, longings, lord byron, lord dunsany, lord of the rings, lords of asylum, lorri moulton, LOTR, lots of tears, Louisa May Alcott, Louvre, Love, love in one act, love of reading, Luc, luck, luminous, lunch, lux, Lux Aeterna, lynn's books, lyrics, m. s. olney, mabinogion, mabus, machen, mad skillz, maddie, made him feel as though his mind had been crushed between slabs of stone. There was chaos in it, Madelaine Bradburry, madness, magic, magic's betrayal, magician's nephew, magnificent, mahler, main character, majestic, malazan, malevolence, manipulation, Manon Larue, manor, many thanks to the fabulous (and sharktastic!) Laura M. Hughes for giving me this opportunity. I hope you will all enjoy reading about, marble, marianne ratcliffe, marilyn peake, marilyn vix, marine biologist, mark lawrence, marked, mashup, masquerading, master, master coffyn, masterclass, masterpiece, matt heppe, matt larkin, matthew thompson, maul, Maurice Charpentier, maxim, meagan hurst, meager, meaningful, meanings, meant to be, media, meg cowley, megan mackie, melancholy, melika, Melika Dannese Lux, Melika Lux, melokai, membrane, mental angels, merlin, message in a bottle, method, michael baker, michael r baker, michael sliter, middle-earth, mike morris, miles and flora, mimicked, mind, mind behind the mind, mind palace, miraculously, miranda, miranda honfleur, mirror writing, mirroring, moartea, moarteans, modern times, monikers, monocle, monty python, moon, moonlight roses and murder, moonstone, more things in heaven and earth, moria, morlocks, moroda, moss, most wonderful time of the year, mother, motherhood, motivation, mountain, Movies, mr. micawber, mr. murdstone, mug, Music, musical, my beloved, my calling, my dream, my life, my love, mystical, myth, mythology, myths, names, napkins, narnia, nature, nature of evil, nazri noor, nebulous, ned marcus, neither Deadmarsh the house, nerd, net galley, netflix, netgalley, never looked back, new, new interview, new release, New York, new zealand, news, nia rae, nicholas kotar, nicholas malebranche, night, nightmare, nightmarish, ninny, no looking back, no sparkling, nor Deadmarsh the family, norse, norse mythology, north york moors, northleach, norway, Nosferatu, not one foot! Why are you not afraid?” “Because I am the monster lurking in the shadows, notebook, notes, novel, novelist, novels, now, now dresses like a duchess and wears round her neck a strange moonstone given to her by someone known as Master Coffyn, now face-to-fey, nudged, oblivion, obsessed, ocean, odds, of darkness, off his nut, offshore, oil slick, old salt, older, ominous, on borrowed luck, on location, one i love, opaque, opera, or the world.” “There are more things in Heaven and earth…” Uncle Gryffyn muttered. “Now ain’t the time to be quotin’ old Bill Shakes, orange, orconomics, original, orion, orlok, oswald, other worlds, otherness, otherworld, out of nowhere, outlet, overwhelming, Oxford, pages, pale, palming the ace, pan, panic, panther, paper, Paperback, paranoia, paranoid, Paranormal, parc monceau, parents, Paris, Parisian, passionately, path, patrick leclerc, Paul Celan, pdf, peace, Penny Dreadful, penny dreadfuls, pepe the prawn, peppy, perfect day, performance, perilous, perilous realms, personal, perspective, perspicacious, peter jackson, peter quint, petrik leo, pews, phil parker, phil williams, philosopher, phoenix, phoenix descending, phrased, pianist, pict, piece, pilgrimage, pilgrimages, pirates of the caribbean, pistachio, pit, place of slaughter, plausible deniability, play, plethora, plots, plowed, plumbing, poet, poetic edda, poetry, pointy hat, Polidori, politics, pool, pop culture, portraits, possessed, post, powers of music, prayer, pre-raphaelites, precious, preferably, premiered, press, prime time, primetime, professor fertig, project, projects, promo, promotion, prophecy, protagonist, pseudonym, psychological, publication, publicity, publishing, puckie, puddleglum, pumpkin, pun, pure magic, questions, quick-fire, quickfire, Quint, quites, quote, quotes, r. m. mulder, rafflecopter, ragna, random, ranger, rapture, rapturous, raskolnikov, rath, raucous, ravan thrall, raymond st. elmo, readers, reading, real, real name, realm of mindweavers, realms, reaper, recent reads, red sister, reddit, reflection, reflection of yourself, regret, reign, religion, renaissance, research, respect, reveal, revenge, Review, reviews, reward, rex, richard iii, richard lucas, richard writhen, riddled with fear, ring, rivalry, riveting novels of psychological suspense, roaring fire, roasted, robert shaw, robocopter ski patrol, rocks, roger, Roger cannot fathom, Roger discovers that Coffyn has overtaken Lockie. The boy is deceitful, Roger Knightley, Roger Knightley. Evil is evil no matter the century, Roger must find a way to end the battle being waged across worlds before the night of Lockie’s eleventh birthday—two days hence. If he fails, Roger seeks to unravel the tapestry of lies woven round his family’s connection to the death-haunted world of Everl’aria—and the Dark Wreaker who calls it home. The deeper Roger delves into the , rohirrim, roiling emotions, role playing, romance, romance novels set in historic France, Romania, Romanian, romantic fantasy, ronald tibu, room, rosalyn kelly, rosina, rossini, rotsby, round pegs, rove, rudyard kipling, ruination, ruled, rural, rural england, russell cullison, Russia, russian, ryan gosling, s. a. corey, s. c. flynn, s. k. randloph, sacrifice, sacrirfice, sadness, saga, sagas, sagas germanic, sale, salt, samara, samir, samwise gamgee, sanderson, sangue de vita, Sangue di Vita, sarah k. l. wilson, saucer, sauron, sausage, sausage sandwich, savagery, savoir faire, scarper, scary, scary vampires, scene, scene stealer, scenes, schadenfreude, schubert, science-fantasy, scotland, scream, scribd, scrubland, scythe, sea, Sea World, seal, seal island, sean astin, sean cunningham, seared, searing beauty, seasonal, seasonal reads, secret doorways, secrets, seized, selection, self publishing fantasy blog off, self-published fantasy blog off, semicolon, serenaded, Sergei, Sergei Rakmanovich, series, serious, servant of rage, seven hundred years, seventeen, sez, sez who, shadow magic, shadows, sham, shaq, shaquille o'neal, shark, shark attack, shark bite, shark chorus, shark elevator pitch, Shark Week, sharkbait oo-ha-HA!, sharking, sharkland, sharkland forever, Sharks, sharktastic, sheltering, shere khan, shield of kings, shifts, shire, shirley jackson, shiver, shores of the heart, shrieking, siblings, silence, silly, silver-tongued devil, singer, singing, sinisterly, sir frank dicksee, sister, sisters, site, sixteen, skill, skillz, skye, sneaky, snippet, snuffbox, snug, social media, solace lost, soldier, solidified, son, song, songs of insurrection, songs of the wayfarer, sonya m black, soprano, sorcerer's isle, sorcerous rivalry, Sorina Boroi, sorrow, soul, soul render, soul-restoring, soul-searching, soulmate, soulmates, souls, South Africa, space time continuum, special, special meaning, specials, spfbo, spfbo2018, spill, spinning silk, spiritual, spoiler, Spooky, spring, spring-heeled jack, square holes, squirrel, st. elmo's fire, standchen, startle, states, status quo, steal of a deal, steampunk, steer the ship, Stefan, Stefan Belododia, Stefan Ratliff, stephen spielberg, stephenie meyer, steve thomas, steven erikson, steven mckinnon, steven spielberg, stole his will, stone, storm wielder, story, story arcs, story reading, storytelling, storyweaving, stratosphere, struggle, stumbling block, stunning, sub-genres, success, suffered, summer, sunday, supernatural, supernatural thriller, superstition, support, suppressing, surf, surfer, surfer dude, susan hill, Suspense, suzanne rogerson, sviddheim, swathing, sweeney todd, sweet, swimmers, swimming, sydney, Sylvi, symphony of the wind, t j muir, T-Rex, t. cook, t. l. branson, Tags#AmWriting, Tags100, taiwan, Taken, taking care of, talk, talking animals, talking cat, talking cats, tall tales, TAPS, tears, techniques, teeth, temporary derangement, ten, terrifying, terror, that's what I'm tolkien about, the apples of idunn, the bastard from fairyland, the crown of stones, the crushed peak, the darkness within, the dead sagas, the Deadmarsh heir. This year should have been no different, the end begins, the exercise of vital powers, the expanse, the family cat, the fantasy hive, The Fellowship of the Ring, the finder of the lucky devil, the first fear, the forbidden city, the game bird, the great hearts, the great restoration, the greatest showman, the hidden face, the hidden ones, the innocents, the ivy cottage, the king of elfland's daughter, the knight's order, the last whisperer, The Lord of the Rings, the lost sentinel, the manhunters song, The Marriage of Figaro, the Moarteans christened him Groaza. Others called him The Devourer of the World. And to those on Sviddheim, the more he begins to suspect that the tales of dark deeds done in the forest behind Deadmarsh, the most wonderful time of the year, the power of music, the red hourglass, the ring, the rose crown, the sangrook saga, the seeds of dissolution, the servants long gone. Kip, the silver chair, the song of the siren, the stars were right, the tainted crown, the tempest guild, the thousand scars, The Trials and Triumphs of Ilyse Charpentier, the turn of the screw, the very beginning, the white people and other weird stories, the Wolf, theatre, then drew back to reveal hues infinitely more searing than before—so vibrant it was painful for Roger to look into them. Orange pulsating like a lava flow, theophany, these vampires don't sparkle, This selection of quotes will appear in a very personal interview on Friday, thorny, thousand scar, threatening, threats of sky and sea, three decades, three tons, three tons of him, thrilled, Thriller, throat, through a glass darkly, thunder the shadows are stirring, tibu, tidings, tiger lilly, tiller, time machine, timothy c doyle, tiny tim, Tolkien, tollers, Tollers and Jack, tom-tom, tome tender, too. Joining forces with an ally whose true nature remains hidden, top 10, topics, toppled, torched, total fantasy, Toulouse Lautrec, Tour Eiffel, tradition, tragedy, trahaearn, train, trainwreck, trajectory, traumatic, travel, travers, tree stump, trials, tricksy, triggered, trilogy, tristan and isolde, triumph, triumphant, true, true bliss, true love, truest sense, truly belong, trust, truth, truth or darkness, tsked, turn of phrase, Turn of the Screw, TV, Twilight, Twitter, two tons, TY Arthur, type, typing, typist, Tyrian purple, ufo, UK, una voce poco fa, unattainable, uncle silas, unconditional, undead, under everest, under ordshaw, underbelly, unfolded, uninspiring, unique, universal, universal studios, universes, unstoppable, untangled, until the horror within his cousin lashes out, untold, unusual, up for grabs, updates, urban fantasy, uriah heep, USA, valet, vampire fiction, Vampire Hunter, vampire mythology, vampire mythos, vampires, vampiresses, vampiric, vampiric equality, vampiric transformation, vampirism, vamps, vampyre, varney, varney the vampire, varney the vampyre, Vasily Markolovick, venue, verge, verin empire, vickers, victoria, Victorian, victorian age, view of the world, villains, violinist, virgil, vitriol, vivid, vivid imagination, Vladec, Vladec Salei, vocal coach, vocation, voice, volsung saga, vortigern, Vrykolakas, Wales, wanderer, wandering, war, wards and wonders, warmth, warnings and visitations, water's surface, way of the world, we ride the storm, weak-minded, weapon, web site, website, weighing, weirdoes, welsh, welsh mythology, went by many names. When he invaded Everl’aria, Werewolf, werewolf transformation, what of the rumor that it was not an earthquake which rocked the moors surrounding Deadmarsh sixteen years ago, what’s been slumbering for so long.” A hollow pit opened up where Roger’s heart was supposed to be. “How would you know that?” “I woke it up.” He blinked in surprise and was even more st, when the kingdom falls, whiskey and dragon fire, white death, white shark, Whitechapel, who has taken over the teaching of Lockie at a school in Wales called Nethermarrow. And soon after he crosses the threshold of Deadmarsh, who might be the deadliest of them all. Racing against time, widget, wilder, Wilkie Collins, william c tracy, william ray, william shakespeare, wine, winners, winter, wip, wisdom, wish, witch, witch spelling, wizard, wolf, woman in white, womb, wonderful, wondrous, Wood, woods, work, worldview, worst enemy, worth fighting for, wraxhall, wreaker, wrenching, write what you dream, writer, writer's block, Writers, writing, writing life, writing method, writing process, YA, year, years, yellow glistening brighter than a city made of gold, yes, yet the boy knows he needs all the help he can get if there is to be any hope of defeating not only the Dark Wreaker and his servants, yo ho yo ho a writer's life for me, york, Yorkshire, Young Adult, young author, young female author, young love, Young Protagonists, young writer, your home, YouTube, ziroonderel Hi Everyone, ~Melika “This beast
Today, I’m sharing with you the most intensely personal interview I have ever done. When I was first sent these questions, I never thought answering them would help me make peace with feelings I’d been unconsciously suppressing for many years, but I am so thankful that this was the case. I’ve learned a lot about myself over the last few days because of this, days that have been painful yet necessary for me to heal in many areas of my life and find joy again where before there was nothing but sadness and confusion. And speaking of joy…this interview has given me, truly, for the very first time, a venue to share my feelings with you all about the amazing man, my beloved soulmate, who has changed my life in so many glorious and magnificent ways since we’ve been together. I hope you enjoy not only reading about him, but also about a few important books that have touched my heart, some of my inspirations, including one legendary panther, and many other things, both serious and silly!
I’d like to take a moment to say a special thank you to Jean, of Jean The Book Nerd. You couldn’t have known how these questions would affect me when you sent them along, Jean, but I will be forever grateful that you did, and also for how kind, caring, understanding, and wonderfully generous you’ve been to me throughout this entire process. Thank you so much!!! *hugs*
Additionally, Jean is hosting a giveaway of not only Deadmarsh Fey, but also my supernatural thriller, Corcitura. You can enter for a chance to win a Kindle copy of each novel by clicking here.
And now, without any further delay, onto the interview…
What was the single worst distraction that kept you from writing this book?
It wasn’t a distraction, but taking a wrong storytelling direction kept me from writing Deadmarsh Fey for an entire year. 2013 was spent working on what would become the fourth book in Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light (the series Deadmarsh Fey launched), only I didn’t know this at the time, which was why writing this book out of sequence felt very wrong, not to mention terribly frustrating. There were things happening in this novel that I had no explanation for, and an untold history of how this world my characters found themselves imprisoned in had come to be.
When my mind cleared enough for me to be able to envision the trajectory Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light, needed to take, I realized that these stories—begun as prequels to a fantasy series I’d started writing in 2003, a series in which some characters from Deadmarsh Fey were my main adult protagonists—had taken on lives of their own, and were now demanding to be told, and unless I gave in, I’d never be able to understand what had affected the characters in those original books so strongly when they were children, and molded them into the adults they became. And then the Dark Wreaker burst onto the scene, with a horde of devils in his wake, and changed everything.
Even though the experience I underwent in 2013 was incredibly frustrating, I do not regret the time I spent working on that fourth book. What was written in it (and the novel is fully written, though it will alter dramatically when all is said and done) laid the foundation for nearly every myth and legend—even inspiring a number of significant events in Deadmarsh Fey—that I would have never known how to interweave throughout the series if I hadn’t written that fourth book first.
Has reading a book ever changed your life? Which one and why, if yes?
Yes, Crime and Punishment, when I was seventeen. I had always enjoyed reading, but it wasn’t till I lost myself in this masterpiece that it truly became a passion—and opened up avenues I never would have considered traveling down, nor had the courage to do so, till I made the acquaintance of this book. The masterful way Dostoyevsky painted with words astounded me. I was absorbed by the rich psychological portraits he was able to delineate with a few strokes of the pen, and all the force of his imagination. Since then, only this year, in fact, thanks to my beloved, I have been exposed to other writers who remind me of him, most notably Knut Hamsun and, very recently, Ivan Turgenev, both of whom have that same lyrical touch, an equal genius for capturing the essence of a human soul and sketching it into life upon the page. Though the canvasses they painted their visions upon are much smaller, their portraits are no less penetrating and brilliant. And yet, while Crime and Punishment was over 700 pages, I remember wishing it had been longer, and I missed the characters, even Raskolnikov—whom I had intense sympathy for, which just shows how adept at evoking pathos and emotion Dostoyevsky was, getting me to feel compassion for a man who had done such terrible things—when my time with them in 19th century Russia was over. Much like my experience reading David Copperfield five years before, it was as though I’d lived alongside these characters, suffered with them, endured their trials, even felt the panic of the net closing in around one character in particular… My emotions ran the gamut; I was inspired, exhausted yet exhilarated, and found myself with an insatiable longing to create that only writing could fulfill. I don’t believe in coincidences, and know it was no accident I read this book on the heels of a paradigm-shifting moment in my life—and that it proved to be the final push in the right direction I needed.
From a very young age, I’d wanted to be a marine biologist, even though I always seemed to be scribbling down stories on whatever scraps of paper—sometimes napkins and tissues, honestly—were near at hand, and began working on my first novel when I was fourteen. To me, writing has forever been and will forever be a key that unlocks hidden doorways into other worlds, and I felt I was being called to dedicate my life to exploring these universes of the imaginal realm—and making them my own. Yet it wasn’t until the winter of 2001 (a few months before reading Crime and Punishment), as I sat in a darkened theatre, enthralled and enraptured by my first glimpse of Middle-Earth, that light shone onto the path I was meant to take. I owe this illumination to Gandalf and the words of wisdom he spoke to Frodo in the caverns of Moria, when hope was at its lowest ebb:
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.”
In my heart, in that moment, I knew what I was being asked to decide. And so I made my choice—never looked back.
Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published.
Writing a book is an intense, often quite solitary, endeavor. While you are lost in the creation of it, and especially when the work is done, you can’t help wondering, with a mix of hope and dread, if anyone will love the book as much as you do. Yet once the story has been released into the world, it ceases to be yours alone, and you must, however wrenching it might be, let the characters—and this tale you’ve poured your being into—fend for themselves. As the poet Paul Celan once said, “a poem, as a manifestation of language and thus essentially dialogue, can be a message in a bottle, sent out in the—not always greatly hopeful—belief that somewhere and sometime it could wash up on land, on heartland perhaps. Poems in this sense, too, are under way: they are making toward something.” Should this not be what every writer, whether of poetry or novels, strives for? This concept of the “heartland” affected me deeply when my beloved shared it with me a few months ago, because Celan’s words crystalized what I’d always felt. With each book I have written, but most passionately regarding Deadmarsh Fey, my goal, my wish, has been that my characters, and these realms they populate, would resonate with readers and move them in meaningful ways, hopefully changing them for the better, and making them think differently about their inner lives and the world around them.
And that is why my most rewarding experience since being published has been how people have reacted to Deadmarsh Fey. From these reviews, it is obvious that many readers have understood the book, “gotten” it, as it were, and let themselves be seized by my story. And, what’s more, are incredibly excited to discover what happens next in this saga known as Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light. All this fills me with joy, because it shows that my message in a bottle, for these readers, at least, has washed up on the shores of their hearts and struck a chord within their souls that I hope will reverberate for many long years to come.
In your new book, DEADMARSH FEY, can you tell my Book Nerd community a little about it and why they should read your novel?
Every novel in Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light is told in a different voice, written from the perspective of a new protagonist through whose eyes we see the story. In Deadmarsh Fey, the eyes belong to Roger Knightley, ten years old and cousin to Havelock (Lockie), the Deadmarsh heir. Roger is a firecracker, and though but a child, is a well-read one (reared on the mystical and often blood-soaked legends from both sides of his lineage, Welsh and English), which has resulted in his having an extremely vivid imagination. Sometimes, this can be problematic, but it means that Roger hasn’t yet been poisoned against the fantastical, or robbed of his sense of wonder. Since he has no trouble accepting the inexplicable at face value, he is quicker to understand and recognize the dangers the creatures tearing out of the Otherworld and into our own pose to himself and his family than the adults—and those who supposedly have all the answers—surrounding him. He also has a wry bent to his personality, and a stubborn streak, that help and hinder him in various ways as the book progresses. And he’s obsessed with dragons. You’ll have to read the novel to discover if this proves fatal to him, and others, or not.
Regarding the heart of the story, the events in Deadmarsh Fey, though cloaked in the garb of fantasy, are truly about fighting for those you love, and all you hold dear. This is the supreme driving force behind Roger’s actions and those of his friends and allies. It’s not just about survival, or stopping the Dark Wreaker—a nebulous entity who has bedeviled the Deadmarshes for seven hundred years—and his army of Jagged Ones and blood-tied horrors, both fair and foul, from being unleashed upon this earth, but about saving the very souls of those who are most important to you, those you’d sacrifice everything for. And that is something that has appealed to me far longer than I can remember, not only in storyweaving, but in life.
Also, whether we are aware of it or not, each of us has a fundamental longing for “home.” By that, I don’t mean a dwelling, but a deep ache in the heart to find the place we truly belong. When it comes to my writing, my “home” has always been in these Otherworlds I have created—perilous realms infected by a darkness hell-bent on destruction…yet these realms are not hopelessly desolate, but seared with beauty and light, peopled by characters who heed the call to lay everything on the line for a chance(sometimes infinitesimal) to defeat the evil that threatens to annihilate everything they love, for they have realized that their world, though fallen—and not so dissimilar to our own—is worth fighting for. When reading my books, especially Deadmarsh Fey, I hope you lose yourself in these worlds, that you let go and journey along with the characters, grow attached to them, possibly even become them if only for a brief while—seeing in them a reflection of yourself. And if by doing so you discover what your “home” is, then that is reward enough, for it will mean I have made the best use of the time that was given to me.
What was the most surprising thing you learned in creating your characters?
That I had to trust them enough to let them have free reign. They knew better than I did where to take the story…because it was theirs, and they were living it. All my characters were extremely vivid in my imagination when I began writing the book (save for one or two who materialized out of nowhere mid-novel and drastically changed the course of events), but Kip, and especially Carver, presented themselves to me almost fully formed. I didn’t have to do much of anything with those two, besides let them take center stage and steal whatever scene they were in, which Kip did with dignity and gravitas that would have made the ancestral fylgja, guardian spirit of his family, proud—and Carver did with enough demonic savoir faire to make the devil himself turn green with envy.
I know many people might find it hard to believe, or even slightly crazy, that characters an author creates can became separate flesh and blood entities from his/her imagination, but at a certain point, my characters did, demanded to be let off the lead, and I had no choice but to comply. Trying to maneuver events in an inorganic way, forcing things to go in the direction I thought was best, rather than what the story and characters were calling for, would have stalled the book and turned it into something completely different, and much less cohesive—not to mention deadly dull. To a much, much lesser degree, the characters in my last novel, Corcitura, asserted themselves, too, but never had this happened with such immediacy as it did in Deadmarsh Fey, to the point where I feel that I was just the facilitator for this book. Roger and Company were the real storyweavers, and once I realized this, I passed the tiller into their hands, and let them steer the ship where they willed.
Why do you feel you had to tell this story?
There was no way I couldn’t tell this story. Once I made the decision to write Deadmarsh Fey, once my year of confusion had come to an end and I determined the course this saga would take, I was seized. There’s no other way to describe the intensity of emotion that came over me. Not long afterward, once the characters had nudged me out of the way, the book began, essentially, writing itself. I love my first two novels, I always will, but there is something different about Deadmarsh Fey, something unique, that I didn’t experience when writing these earlier books. With this novel, I discovered what I was meant to write—fantasy, or rather, dream-sagas, as my beloved has christened them. There is a quote by J. R. R. Tolkien, who has been a defining force and inspiration not only on my writing, but also in my life, that struck me when I first heard it more than a decade ago, because I agree with him completely: “Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory.” I’ve always understood him to mean that fantasy writers craft what we do not to escape our world, but to understand it. By losing myself in my invented universes, worlds that mirror our own in strange and startling and often unsettlingly familiar ways, I feel I have found where I truly belong, finally fulfilling the gnomic wisdom Gandalf spoke to Frodo, and, unknowingly, to me, those several years ago.
What was the most magical thing that happened while creating Roger?
This was an especially hard question for me to answer, and intensely personal. I started out with one response, which I still think is partially valid, but a few days ago, it came to me—quite suddenly, shockingly, and with no small degree of heartache—that Roger and I had a much deeper bond than I’d realized until something of a personal nature happened to me this week that brought painfully intense emotions I’d been unknowingly suppressing rushing to the surface. It wasn’t a pretty picture when this happened, but it was necessary, and cathartic, and gave me tremendous clarity about this character and what he really means to me—and revealed why I had always felt so much love, tenderness, and compassion toward Roger when I was creating him, and do till this day.
To begin with, I originally believed the most magical thing that had happened when I wrote Roger into being was that I became him in so many ways. It was a natural thing to have occurred—and I’m sure many authors feel the same way about their creations—since Roger was my main protagonist. But he always, strangely, felt more like my own flesh and blood than any other character I’d ever created before, and it wasn’t only because Deadmarsh Fey is told in third person, restricted, which means I, perforce, had to see everything through Roger’s eyes—all that was glorious and nightmarish, good and evil, one more often than not masquerading as the other and making it nearly impossible to distinguish friend from foe. Yes, I had to put myself into the shoes of this ten year old English child who was obsessed with dragons. Yes, I had to imagine what his reactions to things literally out of this world would be. And yes, most imperative of all, I had to know him better than I knew myself, and needed to do so in order to make him live and breathe on the page and be real not only to me, but to anyone who ever chose to read his story and journey by his side into the perilous realm he called home.
But it wasn’t until very recently that I realized, with the force of a punch to my heart, just why Roger had always been so dear to me. Without delving into too much detail, for over a decade, I endured a very desolate period of misdiagnoses and wrong information regarding a health issue that has a chance to be fully resolved in the coming weeks, and was told throughout these preceding years that many things I had always dreamed of, many joyous events most women, I imagine, would want to happen in their lives, would not be possible for me to experience. During this extended dark night of the soul, my books became a lifeline, an outlet into which I could pour my heart and being, and never more did I do this than with Deadmarsh Fey…because of Roger, even if the full realization of why wasn’t brought home to me till seventy two hours ago when I finally understood the reason it felt so right for me to have always thought of him as my flesh and blood, although I never phrased it like that to myself till then, nor had I been aware that any name needed to be given to the feelings unconsciously caged within my heart.
After an intense few days of soul-searching, anguish, and tears—lots of tears—I finally understand why Roger is so precious to me, and why I feel so close to him, even still. In him, I saw the son I hoped to have one day, and believed I never would be able to. Revealing this to my beloved (who was with me when the dam holding back my suppressed emotions broke), reflecting upon it, and discussing how it had affected me without my knowledge, until the events of this week triggered clarity of mind, touched him deeply and opened up a way of thinking that made immediate and incredible sense to me, and allowed me to realize that I can now let Roger go. Watching this literary child of mine mature and grow in successive books will be vital for me—and part of the healing process, I suspect—but I understand, now, that while I will always love Roger, and he will forever be in my heart, my love doesn’t have to be confined to just my literary son. One day, it can be given to the real child whose very existence need no longer be a nebulous and unattainable dream.
If you could introduce one of your characters to any character from another book, who would it be and why?
I considered having Roger meet Smaug, but quickly came to my senses. Tolkien’s beast isn’t exactly the nicest of souls (Need I bring up the whole “I am Fire! I am Death!” thing?), and having a dragon-mad child obsessed with conscripting a fire-breather, any fire-breather he could get his hands on, into one insane scheme after another—a child determined not to take no for an answer—would have resulted in Roger being torched into a little pile of ash in two seconds flat.
Then I contemplated initiating a meeting between Roger and Puddleglum from C. S. Lewis’s The Silver Chair (my third favorite Narnia book after The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Magician’s Nephew), but Roger would have gotten fed up with the marsh-wiggles’s doldrummy woe-is-me-ness after about 6.9 minutes.
In the end, I settled on Bagheera of Jungle Book fame, who just so happens to have earned a passing, and incredibly sarcastic, mention from Master Coffyn in Chapter 19 of Deadmarsh Fey. I’ve been fond of Bagheera for most of my life, ever since I first saw the animated Jungle Book when I was a very young child. He’s just so lordly and majestic, wise and, let’s be honest, awesome. Another reason for my admiration is that I love cats, especially black ones, but because I’m slightly allergic to them, I have had to express my affection for these beautiful creatures from a distance by putting them into my novels, hence the reason Kip plays such a huge and pivotal role in Deadmarsh Fey.
And that brings me to why I’d want Roger and Bagheera to meet. Kip definitely has his own distinct personality—he presented himself to me almost fully formed, as I mentioned above, after all—but while I had many inspirations for my cat, this panther was a defining influence on him. Roger and Kip share a tremendous bond—a bond initiated before the events in Deadmarsh Fey take place and solidified as the story progresses—and Roger having a chance to get acquainted with a character I consider to be Kip’s literary older brother would be a visceral reinforcement of what the boy already knows, that even though Kip is, as Roger thinks at one point, a “compact little animal,” the cat, like Bagheera, has a panther’s heart, strong and fierce and fearless, and would never back down from defending those he loves when they are threatened, be it by a Jagged One or Shere Khan, it matters not. And here’s something that didn’t occur to me until this very moment…Mowgli and Roger are the same age, and, though endearing, are each quite a handful—not to mention that there are forces at work that would love nothing more than to see both boys dead—so if Kip went along to this meeting, ye gods would he and Bagheera have loads to commiserate about!
My current project is the sequel to Deadmarsh Fey—set seven years later—and the second novel in Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light. Several times in Deadmarsh Fey, I mentioned the Vickers family, particularly Isobel, the youngest daughter, who is Roger’s contemporary and good friend. Near the end of the novel, Isobel’s and her family’s link to the Deadmarshes, and the beings hunting them, is hinted at, and, to a certain extent, revealed to Roger in a shocking way. What he discovers leads directly into book two, Isobel’s story, which takes place on a desolate rock called Cutwater Island. Here there be sharks, and demons of the deep. And a creature whose memory is as fathomless as its desire for revenge.
Once the sequel to Deadmarsh Fey has been completed, I will be working on the next two novels in Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light. All the books already have titles, but these are rather sensitive, so I’m holding them in reserve till I announce the publication of each novel.
Have you ever been really freaked out by something on the internet? If so, what?
Oh, good heavens, YES! And fairly recently, too! I blame my beloved. It was entirely his fault! Imagine me pointing an accusatory finger at him right now. To be fair, though, I went along enthusiastically when he suggested we watch scary videos on YouTube. It’s nice to shiver with the one you love, which was the motivation behind this temporary derangement of ours. We started out quite innocently enough with UFO videos, which were more strange and interesting than scary, and ridiculously tame compared to what came next…
After we’d reached marginal utility in the flying saucer department, this video suddenly—and very sinisterly, in hindsight—materialized on the suggested videos sidebar. It was called, “Top 10 Most Shocking and Unexplainable Happenings Ever to Be Caught on Camera!” or some other such bombastic, and impossible-to-resist, title. By that point, feeling a little disappointed that the UFO videos had failed to scar us for life, we were game for anything, and also kind of high on ourselves, I have to admit, for apparently having such nerves of steel. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that our attitude toward the supernatural in that moment could be boiled down to, “Us? Us? Get scared by that? HA!” and so we (stupidly) clicked on this new devilry, to use a turn of phrase coined by Boromir (And we all remember what happened to him…).
To say we made a mistake is the understatement of the millennium. This video, this Ring-esque horrorfest masquerading as CCTV footage, reduced us to quaking little puddling messes, what with its ghosts shrieking out of hotel rooms, its phantom orderlies flashing by in the ER, the spectral girl wearing a blood red dress appearing in the middle of an alley somewhere in Taiwan, a “possessed” woman—who let out primal shrieks every five seconds as if she were being internally roasted alive by a legion of devils—contorting and flailing about in a supermarket aisle; a brace of freaky, seven foot tall men without eyebrows, dressed all in black and bearing an uncanny resemblance to the Blues Brothers, wandering around lobbies…and the pièce de résistance of Fright Night 2018—a skin-shivering, blood-curdling, knee-knocking, absolutely TERRIFYING clip of a girl in an elevator in China, I believe—I have no intention of opening myself up to a second near hysterical fit for accuracy’s sake by rewatching this abominable video—that was so unsettling because she seemed to be gibbering at someone, frightened of someone, arguing with, hunted by, and having a very disturbing conversation with someone…only nobody was there! Gooseflesh is breaking out all over me as I type this! And then the narrator butts in and says, in a calm and totally detached voice, that this girl was discovered dead in a vat a few days later, her clothes neatly folded on the ground, and that this story was the inspiration for the film Dark Water, which, needless to say, my beloved and I have no intention of ever watching. Sleep being elusive for one interminable evening was quite enough, thanks very much. Give us June Carter and Johnny Cash songs, Monty Python sketches, and political videos for our YouTube dates any night of the week. We’ve learned our lesson, and how! *shudders*
If I came to your house and looked in your attic/closet/basement, what’s the one thing that would surprise me the most?
If you looked in my attic, you’d be stunned by the overwhelming plethora of pumpkins and scarecrows and Christmas decorations that are stuffed in there. If you looked in my closet, you’d see a lot of clothes and dresses that I keep forgetting I own. I mean this; over the last few months, I’ve discovered not one, but two rather fetching dresses that I had no memory of ever buying. The tags were even still on them! If you looked in my basement, I’d be really surprised, because I don’t have one…that I know of! What’s it like? Are there Morlocks living down there? Tell me, Jean! I’m sensing the beginnings of a new novel, here…
Most horrifying dream you have ever had?
A seven foot tall E.T. dressed as the Grim Reaper, emerging from my bathroom in the dead of night with murderous intent, scythe in hand. I was about five years old when I had this dream, and E.T. and I didn’t make peace until fairly recently. Now I’m quite fond of the freakish yet adorable little tree stump, but our relationship was a bit strained for several years, to say the least.
Which incident in your life has totally changed the way you think today?
Meeting my beloved has not only changed the way I think about everything—my past, my present, my future, my joys and sorrows, setbacks and triumphs—but has irrevocably changed my life, as well. Loving him, and receiving his love in return, has made me a fuller person—complete—and has led to me knowing myself better than I ever did before. I find it astonishing how in tune we are. Here’s just one of many examples I can share…we have the same crazy and unbelievably random (And I mean RANDOM! I’m thinking of one in particular right now that knocked us both flat by proving just what a couple of complete born-to-be-together weirdoes we truly are) thoughts, and blurt them out at the exact same moment! I have lost count of how often this has happened, but it’s pretty much a daily occurrence, and has been for quite some time.
Being in tune in so many ways has been a hallmark of our relationship since our earliest days. Our very first conversation had sparks shooting off between us when we both revealed a mutual love for the Eddas, everything Germanic and Saga-inspired…and I confessed to him my obsession with JAWS and sharks in general—and he didn’t flinch! He’s exposed me to so many wonderful things, some of my favorites being music—he has fantastic taste—and philosophers, the one impacting me the most to date being Henry Corbin, whose ideas matched up so perfectly with concepts I had been mulling over for thirteen years but never had a name for till my beloved shared this luminous thinker with me. Our oneness of spirit has grown deeper with each passing hour as we’ve shared our lives with each other—all the important things and the silliest ones, too, and been there for each other in the best and worst of times—and we’ve continuously discovered, more and more every day, how beautifully and miraculously our souls, and thoughts, chime in harmony. And it’s uncanny how he knows exactly what articles to send me, because no matter what they’re about (from the sagas to politics, and everything in between), I devour them and find myself forever exclaiming, “Yes! Yes, that’s what I was thinking! This is what I have always believed!” and tapping into a wellspring of inspiration that has long lain dormant, till he shares with me something he knew I’d love, knew would be the spark needed to kindle my thoughts and ignite them into being. This happened just last week, and because of what I read in the essay my beloved sent me, because the thoughts of the writer echoed in my soul and literally roused the Bear hibernating there, a story arc which I’d been struggling with for over a year found resolution, came full circle, and changed the course of one of the books in Dwellers of Darkness, Children of Light entirely.
Another thing I find absolutely wondrous is how he’s opened my mind to so many things I was very closed off to before, very biased against, in fact, and made me view the world, especially history, differently. Yet he’s also reinforced beliefs I already held, making them stronger and richer and more defined in my heart and soul. He encourages me and I him to become the people he and I were put on this earth to be, which I think is a rare and beautiful aspect of our relationship, and something we are blessed to share. And even in areas where our beliefs diverge—religion, for example, which has never been an issue for us—we still have commonality, because we both have an appreciation and respect for the Divine, and see it at work in our lives. We enrich each other—never tearing down, always building up, for we realize how precious a gift love is, and are very grateful to have found one another at long last. We’re passionate advocates of each other’s writing, too. His background is philosophy, and I am not being biased when I say he’s brilliant, and not just in this field, but in many other areas, as well. Just don’t get him going on Richard III or he’ll recite the entire Shakespearean tragedy from the beginning! My little playful ribbing aside, every time we speak, each moment we’re together, I am continually inspired in every way, and I cannot even begin to tell you how having his unconditional support and love across all areas of my life has changed it, and me, so profoundly.
I’m amazed anew every day by all of this—amazed anew each day by him—and am incredibly, eternally, grateful to have him in my life, to have been blessed with such a glorious soulmate, whom I love with all my heart. He truly is the greatest gift God could have ever given to me.
City of Lights is an IBD Award Winner!!
Buy Deadmarsh Fey from Amazon.com (Click Image)
Buy Corcitura from Amazon.com (click image)
Buy City of Lights from Amazon.com (click image)
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Deadmarsh Fey Critical Praise: 5 Star Review from Tome Tender
10 Quotes From Deadmarsh Fey
Corcitura Feature
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Missives
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November 16, 2019 / 9:03 PM / 2 months ago
Henley hit with bizarre eight-stroke penalty in Mexico
FILE PHOTO: Russell Henley of the U.S. hits off the second tee during third round play of the 2018 Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, U.S. April 7, 2018. REUTERS/Brian Snyder
(Reuters) - Russell Henley incurred a bizarre eight-stroke penalty in the second round at the Mayakoba Classic on Saturday after realizing that one of the balls he had played was different from the rest.
The three-times PGA Tour winner was signing balls for fans when he noticed the discrepancy and received a two-stroke penalty for each of the holes he played the different ball.
“(Henley) suffered a 2-stroke penalty on holes 9-12, 8 strokes in total, for breach of Rule 20-3,” the PGA Tour announced in a tweet.
“As Henley signed balls for fans he noticed one ball had a slight difference from the ball he uses. He didn’t know how it got in his bag.”
Under the “One Ball Rule” used on most professional tours, golfers must use the same brand and make of ball throughout a round.
With the eight strokes added, Henley shot a six-over-par 77 and missed the cut.
He carded 66 in the opening round and without the penalty would have been within striking distance of the lead.
Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina, editing by Ed Osmond
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Target settles in racial disparity hiring lawsuit
By CSA Staff - 04/05/2018
Target Corp. has settled a complaint that includes grievances from more than 10 years ago.
The retailer agreed to pay $3.7 million to settle a potential class-action lawsuit over allegations that its use of criminal background checks in the hiring process disproportionately kept African-American and Latino applicants from getting a job, reported the StarTribune.
As part of the proposed settlement, eligible African-American and Latino applicants who, since May 2006, were denied employment from a Target store due to a criminal-background check will be eligible for “priority hiring.”
In addition, independent consultants will work with Target to recommend potential changes to its guidelines for using criminal history in hiring decisions, and the retailer is giving $600,000 to five organizations that work to help individuals with criminal backgrounds find employment, the report said.
Report: High-end fashion brand ‘targets’ discounter in counterfeiting suit
10 Things to Know About Hiring and Onboarding a Seasonal Workforce
Starbucks to temporarily close U.S. stores for racial-bias education
Sephora pauses for diversity training June 5
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AVALANCHE ABC’S – Part 1
September 6, 2017 September 6, 2017 noneedtoyelle 4 Comments
September, a month where hope in the hockey world is abundant. The ice is fresh, the players rejuvenated, and the fans are drooling for meaningful hockey. The rookies hit the ice in mere hours and the vets are not far behind. In other words, much like a kid excited to go back to school, we are all restless in anticipation.
In Avsland we are no different. We are ready to hit the classroom with both apprehension and zest for what’s to come. Before the season starts we here at Burgundy Rainbow have your preseason syllabus ready. So sharpen your #2 pencils and have a seat. Here’s what you can expect to learn from your 2017-2018 Colorado Avalanche.
A – Andrighetto
Sven Andrighetto burst onto the scene last year after being traded at the deadline for Andreas Martinsen. As an Avs he posted 16 points in 19 games playing largely on a line with Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon. The big question surrounding Andrighetto this season will be can he keep up production over a full season as a Top 6 forward? Is he the guy who posted 17 points in 44 games with Montreal or the guy that nearly matched that in 19 with Colorado. If the truth lies somewhere even in the middle of those numbers the Avs will have gone a long way in their quest for help in their forward corps.
B – Bednar
Some say that Jared Bednar was thrown to the wolves last year and should be given more time to turn himself into the Calder Cup winning manager he was with the Lake Erie Monsters. Some say no matter what, the situation that occurred last season was too horrendous and that he should be on a short leash. This year Bednar will not have the same excuses that fans lavished upon him for last seasons performance. The coaching staff is now his own, he had ample time to both plan and execute what he wanted the offseason to look like, and he has a younger and more talented roster to work with. This year will be a make or break year for his tenure with the Avs as well as his credibility around the league as an NHL bench boss.
C – Confidence
48 Points. Let me repeat 48 points. How does one come back from that disaster? There are many factors that lead to seasons of epic failure, but one is that as losses add up confidence drops. So the question facing this year is: where does a younger roster turn to for a solid injection of confidence? I think the answer lies with the youth movement. Call me naive, but we are talking about sports here. There is something powerful that a youthful exuberance can provide. The players we are adding to the roster this year have the skill, that is unquestioned. I’m looking for our younger players to be hungry and seize their opportunities that are being afforded them. Play hungry and play confident.
D – Developement
Look, no one expects this years Colorado Avalanche to raise Lord Stanley’s Cup. It would be a mild accomplishment for this team to finish out of the Central Division cellar. But this seasons success will not be determined by where they end up in the standings. This seasons success will be determined by whether or not the front office sticks to it’s mantra of #youngerandfaster over the long haul of an 82 game season. The roster has been trimmed and there are open spots for young players to prove that they can compete and grow as players in the NHL. Last season was not fun, but we got to see growth in players like Anton Lindholm and JT Compher. This year I would expect that no fewer than 13 players on ELC’s are given an opportunity to play regular minutes. Remain committed to riding the wave with these younger and more talented players. Resist the urge to sign the Jared Cowan’s and Rene Bourque’s and let that opportunity go to the Chris Bigras’ and the AJ Greer’s. If only a few of these players turn out to be legitimate NHL talents this season will be considered a success.
E – Erik Johnson
For Erik Johnson it’s very simple. Stay healthy….profit. The condor flies high when it doesn’t have a gimpy wing. EJ has been a lynch pin for a shaky defense and one thing is certain, there is no replacement on our roster or in our pipeline for what he brings to the table. Last years collapse may have been unavoidable, but to me it’s no coincidence that the collapse started eerily closely to EJ’s injury. He is the only Avalanche defender who is capable to propping up a young talent (Barberio, Zadorov, etc) without sacrificing the integrity of the true top defensive pairing. Here lies the rub: he has completed a full season just 3 times in 9 seasons in the NHL. Cheers to health and happiness (mostly health), Condor.
F – Fast
The anchor has been lifted, the ship ordered full steam ahead. And this has me excited. We can expect a team that plays the game at a much faster level this year. Gone are the days of the USS Sloth led by Iginla, Beauchmin, & the myriad of boat anchors aboard that ship. In it’s place I think we can look to this season being the year of the USS Roadrunner. By Joe Sakic’s own admission the team will look to pick up the tempo this year. The days of plodding defenders are gone, replaced by quick twitch faster puck moving defensemen. If you look at the talent on this roster and you look to the players you would expect that this style of play will benefit it seems to be a no brainer. Two players in particular: Nathan Mackinnon and Tyson Barrie should be drooling at the idea of using their speed and skill to create scoring chances this year.
G – Growth
Growth and development often go hand in hand. For me I see them being a little different. When I think about development I think about the bottom rung of the improvement scale, you take something, see what you’ve got and see how you can make that into something tangible. When I think about growth I think about taking the next step forward. Players I expect to see grow are players who have shown that they have the skill to be NHL’ers, but can they take the next step forward? I’d like to see growth this year from a few key players. I’d like to see Nathan MacKinnon become a superstar center. I’d like to see Mikko Rantanen push for 30 goals. And, I’d like to see J.T. Compher solidify himself as a team leader and a 3rd line NHL center. That won’t be enough to make this team a contender, but it will be enough to provide a light at the end of a long, dark tunnel.
H – Hope
I want the 2017-2018 season to end with a feeling of hope for things to come. I hope that by seasons end we can go into an offseason hopeful for competition across all roster spots when the next seasons camp breaks. I hope to go into next offseason feeling as if Joe Sakic is the right man for the job he currently holds. I hope next offseason to be dreaming of playoff chances in 18/19. I hope that the talk is of adding around the edges and not that of trading a star player because of roster deficiencies. I want to have the thing I haven’t had since MacK’s rookie season; HOPE.
I – Investment
Hockey is a business. Whether we or the players like it or not doesn’t make that fact any less true. For too many years the Avalanche have been investing in safe stock. They have been giving up on assets (draft picks) that could have a nice future return in exchange for short term low return stopgaps (aging slow veterans). If done once or twice, and in the right situation, that’s fine, but as a general philosophy it’s probably not the way to go. The Avs have a couple of decent players on the roster that could be traded for draft picks, I’d like to see my them be more proactive than reactive in the trade market this year. The days of waiting for the perfect offer need to make way for finding an acceptable offer and pulling the trigger. Invest in the infrastructure and future of your team and stop adding short term “fixes”.
J – Jost
I wrote above about hope. Tyson Jost is the glimmering light that I can already see at the end of the tunnel. He is the player that the future outlook of this team can rest it’s shoulders on. And he is in a perfect position this year to be properly developed. A roster spot is all but a certainty at this point. He will ply is trade on chartered planes rather than chartered buses. But he is also on a team of little expectation. He doesn’t need to be a savior this year in order for the Avalanche to make the playoffs. He can start on the 3rd line as a center as see where the results take him. But the best part for Jost is that if he earns the promotion there won’t be anything standing in his way. In other words, he can learn and adjust at his own pace but opportunity abounds.
K – Kerfoot
The summer of the NCAA Free Agent finally blew through Colorado. After years of watching top collegiate seniors choose other destinations, the Avalanche were finally able to wrangle a couple of their own. Alex Kerfoot and Dominic Toninato both signed ELC’s with the Avs. Why? These guys want to play in the NHL and the Avalanche can offer them a clear path to do so. Not many collegiate players who make it to UFA are ticketed for sure fire NHL jobs right away. Colorado is no different in this regard, but what Colorado can offer is the ability to compete for that job immediately. The best part of these signings from an organizational perspective is that it breeds competition for jobs, jobs that are actually available if you earn them. The best part about these signings for me is that both guys knowingly signed up for the fight.
L – Landeskog
Will the real Gabe Landeskog please stand up? Are you the Gabe that took the league by storm his rookie year en route to be a play driving power forward with 1st line capabilities? Or are you the Gabe Landeskog we have seen the last couple seasons who is trending towards play driving defensive stalwart who is best fit to anchor a shut down defensive forward line? I know that points are not the be all and end all, but his downward trend in production gives me pause for concern. On his best day, Landy can be matched up pound for pound with anyone in the league. I think he still has that ability and drive to succeed. But we cannot go another season of our best winger producing at less than a 1/2 point per game level.
M – Makar
Every now and then a shiny new toy comes around that gives you goosebumps just thinking about how much fun it will bring. You stay up all hours of the night dreaming about how much better life would be if you had that toy. For most Avs fans the 2017 NHL Entry Draft produced THAT toy. With the 4th selection in the draft Colorado took Cale Makar. I know that player comparisons are stupid and more often than not don’t come close to fruition, but when you get your hands on an asset that is mentioned in the same breath as the NHL’s current top offensive defenseman, Erik Karlsson, it’s okay to buy into the hype. Cale Makar will not sniff the NHL this year, or maybe next, but for a brief moment we can be very excited to watch a player of his skill level develop and wonder “what if?”.
(This is part 1 of a 2 part series, please check back this weekend for letters N-Z)
← Daily Cupcakes: News & Links 9/6/17
Avalanche New Sweater Numerology →
Avalanche Review 2018-19 Tyson Jost: The Streaky Enigma
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Avalanche Review Game 9: Avs 4, Flyers 1, Road To Rantanen
October 24, 2018 rudo3 0
4 thoughts on “AVALANCHE ABC’S – Part 1”
AceODale
A – ttitude
B – eing
C – onsistent
D – evelops
E – ventually to
F – un
G – ames
“USS Roadrunner”
By god that’s Kyle Cuminskey’s music.
americanario
Meep, Meep!
Pingback:Return of the Yelle’ins: Process Check – Burgundy Rainbow
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Back from the dead: Notley's oil cut sends Canadian crude prices, energy stocks skyrocketing
Western Canadian Select soars by 44 per cent
Victor Ferreira
The U.S. just became a net oil exporter for the first time in 75 years
Oil is going crazy after OPEC, Russia agree to slash 1.2 million barrels a day
Alberta Premier Rachel Notley’s announcement that her province would be cutting crude production by 325,000 barrels per day sparked a rally in Canadian oil prices Monday, giving energy investors a reprieve after months of pain.
Notley said on Sunday that Alberta would be cutting crude production by 8.7 per cent beginning in January in an attempt to deal with the massive oversupply that led to Canadian oil being traded at an historic low of US$13.27 per barrel in mid-November.
A divided oilpatch reacts as Notley cuts output and industry shares pain
How the oil crisis in Alberta is boosting crude prices around the world
Alberta orders oil producers to cut 325,000 barrels a day to ease crisis
On Monday, Notley’s decision reversed the course and sent Western Canadian Select up more than 35 per cent to trade at US$29.95 per barrel. On Friday, Canadian oil closed at US$21.93.
Alberta’s oil producers immediately benefitted from the good news on Monday, closing among the Toronto Stock Exchange’s top performers. Shares of Athabasca Oil Corp. up more than 12 per cent to $1.16, while Cenovus Energy shares rose more than 11 per cent to $10.99. Crescent Point Energy Corp. and Baytex Energy Corp. also saw big gains.
Further help could be on the way for the sector, too, according to Ninepoint Partners portfolio manager Eric Nuttall, who expects OPEC will announce their own shut-in of at least one million barrels per day at a summit on Thursday.
“I think this is the beginning of (investors) returning to the sector, provided a positive outcome at the OPEC meeting,” Nuttall said. “If there is a cut of at least one million barrels per day … then I think you’ll see WTI rally to over US$60 and you could have a 50 per cent rally in many of these (stocks) simply because they’ve fallen so dramatically.”
While the rally was the first of note for the sector in months, Nuttall wasn’t ecstatic. Sure, a 10 per cent increase in share prices is great for investors, but not when those very same stocks had already fallen by 50 per cent earlier this year, he said.
Since the beginning of July, when most of the firms hit their 52-week highs, Cenovus’s stock has plunged by more than 20 per cent. Crescent Point, meanwhile, has seen losses of more than 55 per cent in that same time frame. As oil prices began to decline, Nuttall said, investors began “hate selling” the stocks when they could no longer stand to see the red on their screens every day.
The rally seems to have only affected upstream producers. Downstream producers such as Husky Energy Inc. and Suncor Energy Inc., who are often insulated from fluctuations in Canadian oil prices, did not benefit like their upstream competitors from Notley’s intervention and only gained 2.5 and 0.5 per cent respectively.
Both companies, which had been making significant profits despite widened differentials, had voiced their opposition to any intervention from Alberta, arguing in favour of a free market.
Executives of upstream oil companies such as Cenovus and Canadian Natural Resources, however, had urged Notley to intervene for weeks, saying they couldn’t transfer the oil they were producing without sufficient pipeline space, leading to hundreds of thousands of barrels clogging up warehouses. As a result, Canadian oil was sold for a widened discount in comparison to West Texas Intermediate, which closed Monday at US$53.08 per barrel.
“They were basically giving away the oil,” Eight Capital analyst Phil Skolnick said. “I believe in free markets, but in this case, this is not government dictating. It’s the government being an advocate for the health of the industry.
Notley’s production cut is temporary and will act as a bridge to Canada ramping up crude by rail exports and expanding Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline by the end of 2019 — two further reasons why investors should think that both oil prices and energy stocks will see their growth sustained, Nuttall said.
When both changes have taken effect, producers will no longer need government intervention and should be able to efficiently send crude to the U.S. According to Skolnick, exporters will be able to send 380,000 barrels per day through Line 3. After adding an additional 120,000 barrels per day by the end of 2019, Canada will be able to export 240,000 in total by rail.
Of course, the ultimate catalyst for the industry would be the development of the Trans Mountain or Keystone XL pipeline — but both remain in limbo.
“When you think it’s getting better, there’s something that slaps it right in the face,” Skolnick said.
Email: vferreira@nationalpost.com | Twitter: VicF77
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Telus likely picked up market share in the quarter as strong results offset pricing pressure
New subscribers beat estimates, rising by a third to 186,000 during the three months
Telus chief executive Darren Entwistle.Canadian Press
Financial Post Staff
Telus Corp. said wireless expansion helped it achieve almost double-digit earnings growth during this year’s second quarter compared with the same period in 2018.
Earnings before interest, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, increased by 9.8 per cent to $1.4 billion, the Vancouver-based company reported. Revenue rose by 4.2 per cent to $3.6 billion compared with a year ago, it said.
The company also credited growth on lower income taxes, “including a $121 million benefit from the revaluation of the deferred income tax liability for the multi-year reduction in the Alberta provincial corporate tax rate.”
New subscribers beat estimates, rising by a third to 186,000 during the three months. Wireless customer additions jumped 45 per cent to 154,000 including 82,000 mobile phones and 72,000 other mobile devices.
Darren Entwistle, president and chief executive officer, called the results “strong” because of “robust subscriber net additions,” and “customer loyalty.” Customer losses, or churn, was just 1.01 per cent in the wireless unit, helping the figure for mobile phone, internet and TV units hit 1.05 per cent, the company said.
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Ciitbank analyst Adam Ilkowitz said while comparability remains an issue due to a different subscriber reporting methodology, “it would appear that promotional activity during the quarter helped Telus take market share.”
Desjardin analyst Maher Yaghi noted that pricing metrics were in line with expectations, they are still under pressure.
Mobile phone average revenue per user, a key metric, was down 1.2 per cent due to competitive pressure as the company countered unlimited plans offered by rivals.
“We believe ARPU could be affected in the next few quarters as overage fees fade away with the introduction of unlimited plans,” Yaghi said.
“We are continuing to build on our track record of providing investors with the industry’s best multi-year dividend growth program,” the CEO said in a statement, noting that the company has returned $17 billion to shareholders or about $28 a share since 2004 and is targeting annual dividend growth of 7 per cent to 10 per cent to 2022.
It’s “underpinned by our expectation of strong cash flow generation and growth from Telus over this period.”
Telus, which began in Alberta and British Columbia before expanding nationally, shows strength in Canada’s west. Like all of the country’s telcos, it faces daunting distance and infrastructure hurdles while competing for customer dollars amid some of the world’s highest prices for wireless phone and internet services.
“We continue to make the right strategic investments to drive sustainable and profitable subscriber growth across our diverse and expanding product portfolios,” Doug French, executive vice-president and chief financial officer said.
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Senator Jim Tedisco
Note: The Times Union is not responsible for posts and comments written by non-staff members.
Live from the state Capitol, it’s Gracie!
By Jim Tedisco on May 30, 2013 at 4:01 PM
Gracie with NY Post State Editor and Talk 1300 Host Fred Dicker
My Corgi Amazing Grace “Gracie” visited the NYS Capitol today to promote our 3rd Annual NYS Animal Advocacy Day which will be held this coming Tuesday, June 4th from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the Well of the Legislative Office Building.
Gracie was a powerful lobbying force who visited with many legislators and staff members and stopped by the LCA room to meet with members of the media. New York Post State Editor and Talk 1300 radio show host Fred Dicker even put Gracie on the hot seat to talk about the latest issues!
Gracie held her own in the interview
I’m proud to be the sponsor of Animal Advocacy Day along with Senator Greg Ball. The event will again be emceed by Steve Caporizzo from Pet Connection. This year’s event will feature the families who adopted Hudson and Pearl, the pit bull puppies left by a railroad track in Albany,
Gracie making nice with Assemblyman Pete Lopez.
Not since Buster’s Law have we had such a dastardly case of animal cruelty as what happened to Hudson and Pearl being left for dead by the railroad tracks. Fortunately, the Nash and Kittle families who adopted the dogs and Dr. Bowersox who created an artificial paw for Hudson, have turned tragedy into triumph and we will be recognizing them as symbols of all the good things people are doing to stand up to animal cruelty.
Animal Advocacy Day is a free, bipartisan event that is open to the public and will enable animal supporters to network, share information and lobby their legislators to raise awareness of the need to protect pets and people from abuse. There will be over 30 exhibitors including rescues, shelters, and animal advocacy groups.
We have an obligation as a government to protect all members of our family, including those who have no voice.
Animal Advocacy Day matters because it’s about more than just protecting our four-legged friends, it’s about keeping people safe from harm. Just as important as strengthening our laws, Animal Advocacy Day aims to educate the public and law enforcement about the value of our companion animals and the importance of enforcing existing laws.
Gracie visiting with Assemblyman John McDonald.
According to the ASPCA, 62 percent of American households have a pet. Studies have shown companion animals can provide a variety of positive health benefits, including providing comfort and assistance to seniors and people with disabilities. They help police, fire departments, and search and rescue efforts to keep citizens safe. It’s been widely reported that a military canine went in with U.S. Navy Seal Team 6 when they took down the world’s most notorious terrorist, Osama Bin Laden.
As research indicates, violence against animals is a bridge crime that can, and has, led to violence against people. Serial killers Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, and David “Son of Sam” Berkowitz all started out as animal abusers before they began preying on people. There’s often a direct correlation between domestic violence and animal cruelty.
Buster’s Law created the felony category of “aggravated cruelty to animals,” punishable by up to two years in prison and a $5,000 fine. The law was named after an 18-month-old tabby cat that had been doused with kerosene and burned to death by a Schenectady teen. Prior to this bill becoming law, animal cruelty resulted in only misdemeanor penalties, if any charges were imposed at all.
Since the 1997 arrest that inspired the creation of Buster’s Law, the perpetrator who abused that helpless cat has been imprisoned for various crimes, including attempted rape, sexual abuse and unlawful imprisonment of a 12-year-old girl.
Gracie meeting with Sen. Kathy Marchione.
Just this year, the legislature passed Ape’s Law to make it a felony to kill a police animal, as a response to the heroic sacrifice of the K-9 named Ape who was killed protecting law enforcement in Herkimer. The New York State Attorney General recently announced he is going to be prosecuting and assisting local law enforcement in stopping animal cruelty.
As legislators, we can walk and chew gum at the same time. We’ve taken significant steps to pass three consecutive on-time budgets, cut taxes for middle class families and begin to help get New York working. We’ve expanded the DNA database to help catch criminals and exonerate the innocent, and now we have an opportunity to advance additional public safety measures including protecting our pets from abuse and ensuring animal abusers don’t go on to hurt people.
For more information on NYS Animal Advocacy Day, visit the event’s page on Facebook.
Jim Tedisco -- Member New York State Assembly
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frankpiedmont on A stake through the heart of NY’s tax & spend vampires
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Cryptocurrency Analysis: Ripple – Part 1
Matt Johnes, 11 months ago 13 min read 733
This article was contributed by @CollisAventinus (Alexander Bokhenek), a blockchain scientist at ModernToken.
There are two important modes of thinking in classical stock trading:
Technical analysis, which applies a set of statistical tools to reason about possible future price movements based on the price history
Fundamental analysis, that tries to evaluate the worth of stock based on the objective metrics of the corresponding company, recent news, etc.
The theory behind technical analysis — the statistical tools — is the same between all markets. But estimates of the actual worth of the asset work very differently based on asset class. Crypto assets are tricky in that sense: seemingly homogenous environment, a cryptocurrency exchange, lists all the tickers together, regardless of whether they are closer to:
A currency
Medium of exchange
A commodity (utility tokens)
Or a head-on security.
The underlying worth of a particular crypto asset will likely have to be calculated in different ways, based on the knowledge of its internal mechanics.
In this series of articles we present approaches to assessing crypto assets based on their underlying class, as stepping stones towards a better understanding of the nature and intrinsic value of the financial instruments available for trading cryptocurrency on the exchanges via TradeSanta.
Following the recent news about the partnership that Swift is entering with R3, we picked Ripple’s XRP as an example of a popular trading token concealing an underlying layer of an enterprise venture. It presents a decent case of a mixed medium of exchange / utility token class promoted and distributed by a strong centralized business. We open with an analysis of the project as a whole, while the current metrics and state of affairs will be covered in the next article.
Ripple started in 2012 as a payment network for fast money transfers, including cross-border payments in multiple currencies. One of its primarily targeted market niches was an attempt to compete with SWIFT, banking on final settlement in seconds, regardless of the kind and size of payment,— and no chargebacks.
At present Ripple is a blockchain payment network based on its own original protocol, which was designed as a replacement to legacy payment and settlement system. It supports custom tokens and has its own fully on-chain decentralized exchange (DEX): users can create token exchange orders and other users can consume them in their transactions. Users can also create objects such as trust lines, cross-country payments and payment channels, which requires reserving XRP to create an object and burning XRP to send a transaction, thus giving XRP utility value.
From the beginning the main focus of Ripple was to ensure more efficient transactions between the world’s financial institutions. Its underlying technology is RippleNet, the blockchain ledger, but some of the end-products that Ripple offers abstract away the blockchain components.
The main products are a token-free banking solution for streamlining settlement (xCurrent) and a blockchain solution for on-demand liquidity (xRapid). According to the Ripple’s own words1, “users of the Ripple protocol are not required to use XRP as a medium of exchange or as a store of value” since the two entities are independent of each other. Combined, the product roster is:
Ideated as a SWIFT competitor, xCurrent is “a global real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system that enables banks to message, clear and settle their transactions” which can be integrated with blockchains, but doesn’t require it. The Ripple-Labs Interledger Protocol (ILP) is the backbone of the xCurrent and enables interoperation between different ledgers and networks. It is designed to satisfy the risk, privacy and compliance requirements of each bank, but doesn’t necessarily involve XRP Ledger.
xRapid is a Ripple’s blockchain-based solution, designed to provide banks and payment providers with access to on-demand liquidity using XRP to reduce costs and enable real-time payments. A typical cross-currency payment with xRapid involves converting the source currency to XRP through a bank participating in RippleNet, sending XRP via the XRP Ledger, and then converting XRP to target currency through another bank connected to RippleNet.
xVia is a simple lightweight API for sending and receiving payments, without the need to use XRP coin.
There is also the ledger itself, which can be interfaced with directly (for instance, through a client) as a traditional blockchain network. Both XRP token and records representing mutual account balances between banks (i.e. within xCurrent) exist together on Ripple Network.While the products may step away from the ledger, Ripple is still first and foremost viewed as a blockchain company, with its enterprise solutions being rather a stepping stone for the customers towards full-scale blockchain adoption. XRP token, while having little connection to some of the products, is still affected by the company’s general success. At the end of the day, every product is a way for Ripple to achieve crypto market penetration for its ledger, which is in turn fueled by the token.
Tech summary
Ripple Ledger is account-based (as opposed to UTXO-based, it is like Ethereum and unlike Bitcoin) and scales to up to 1500 tx/s. This throughput beats first generation blockchain payment systems, is on par with the current state of the market, and is still much lower than VISA.
The blockchain ledger is permissionless in a sense that anybody can connect to a network and transact, but ordinary nodes cannot easily participate in consensus. The network is based on the Ripple Consensus Algorithm, in which each node in the network chooses its own set of nodes to reach a consensus on transactions. Despite formally being presented as a permissionless network, Ripple cannot be secure without a centralized authority curating the trusted validator list, as there is no way for nodes to determine trustworthy validators and there is also an additional requirement for validator sets to have an intersect, further cementing the need for a centralized maintainer. This leaves the network highly centralized, with no apparent way to decentralization without a major architecture rework. In addition, regular network participants are also not economically incentivized to become validators, since transaction fees are burned instead of being distributed to network maintainers,– which further cements centralization.
Overall, it is sufficiently fast for current and close future operations, but remains centralized and therefore may lose in the long run to a solution with stronger claims to decentralization. On the other hand, Ripple’s degree of control may be well worth it for more conservative banks and financial insitutions that could later on request their own validator nodes be added to the recommended list.
XRP usage and supply
There are three general situations when XRP coin is used:
Burning a small amount of XRP tokens as a transaction fee for XRP transfers. It is implemented mostly as spam protection, i.e. the fee may grow with network load. xCurrent and xVia are not affected by it (as long as they deal in fiat), but xRapid explicitly involves an XRP transfer with a fee. The current and historical burn rate have been negligible to the total supply so far.
Reserving XRP tokens for creating an account or a payment channel, which freezes a fixed amount of the token. Naturally, only affects users of Ripple Network outside of the three products. This effect creates demand for the token proportional to the number payment channels and accounts.
Converting a fiat-representing token to XRP, sending XRP, and converting XRP to another fiat-representing token in the course of an xRapid transaction. The demand is therefore short-lived (as the entire operation is generally settled within 30 seconds), but combined, it could become substantial if it goes to scale.
The total lifetime supply of XRP is 100 billion, out which currently about 52.4 billion XRP are controlled by Ripple Labs, with the bulk of it locked away in an escrow that releases 1 billion every month. The founders – Chris Larsen, Arthur Britto and Jed McCaleb – directly received 20 billion XRP coins, although they allegedly have either sold or donated to charity the majority of their coins. Their ability to sell is constrained by average daily volume of XRP trading (on Ripple DEX), which is enforced by Ripple Labs acting as a broker while physically controlling the accounts. This prevents the founders from affecting the market price of XRP by selling big amounts of their holdings in limited time frames.
The 1 billion XRP that is released from lockup each month is intended for either selling or incentivizing potential partners and existing stakeholders. If the entire sum is not spent, the remainder is put back into the lockup. In the table below we can see that the majority of released XRP remained unspent in 2018. Overall, Ripple has seen a huge spike in trading volume in Q1 2018 due to remaining inertia from the end of 2017, while through the rest of the year the volume was somewhat stable.
The table below tracks cryptocurrency token release results quarterly: 1 billion XRP comes out of escrow each month, and is then sold directly (in unlimited amounts, column 2) or on Ripple DEX (with limits measured in percentage of daily exchange volume, columns 3 and 4). The XRP unsold at the end of the quarter is put back in escrow (last column).
2018 Direct sales Programmatic sales
(as sell orders on Ripple DEX) Overall exchange volume
on Ripple DEX XRP coins put back
Q1 $16.6 million $151.1 million $160.0 billion 2.7 billion
Q2 $16.87 million $56.66 million $45.3 billion 2.7 billion
Who invested in Ripple?
Another aspect of the company’s well-being is its institutional and investor support: it can be evident of traction the company is gaining in the business world.
The Ripple project has 29 investors in total with mainly two rounds of seed and angel investments4. The first one started in October 2012, when Jesse Powell invested $0.2 M. Half a year later some crypto whales like Andreessen Horowitz, FF Angel LLC, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Pantera Capital, Vast Ventures and Bitcoin Opportunity Fund have joined the round by investing $2.5 M5. The following month Google Ventures and IDG Capital Partners added their $3 M6. Six months later another seed round was conducted, attracting $3.5 M from Core Innovation Capital, Hinge Capital (Venture51), Camp One Ventures and IDG Capital Partners again.
After a year and a half of inner struggles and defending XRP market, Ripple Labs proved to be standing firm for long, and the second big investment round followed. May 2015 ended for Ripple Labs with $28 M from AME Cloud Ventures, China Growth Capital, and other high-level VCs7. Then, in autumn, the company attracted $4 M more from Seagate Technology, Santander InnoVentures and CME Ventures. 2016 has certainly become the most successful year so far in terms of investments for Ripple. In January Japaneese SBI Holdings put ￥3 bil (~$25 M) seed into Ripple, and September Series B resulted in the biggest investment amount for the company — $55 M from various giants such as Standard Chartered, Accenture and SCB Digital Ventures.
How Ripple grows its business?
Growth plan is vital for the future of the company: it defines token and product sales and drives adoption. Establishing partnerships has always been at the backbone of Ripple business strategy. All Ripple partners are members of the RippleNet — the Ripple’s global network of payment providers connecting various payment networks of financial institutions, digital asset exchanges and corporate entities. Ripple states that there are “over 100 customers on the network now and more than 80 are banks that span every corner of the globe”, including “11 of the world’s biggest banks”.
Ripple partnerships can be divided on the basis of product implementation and XRP coin usage:
1. xCurrent partners
Approximately 120+ financial Institutions now use Ripple’s xCurrent system, the most notable are Santander and American Express. The Ripple strategy is to eventually transfer xCurrent partners onto the xRapid System. Key advantages for utilizing xRapid over xCurrent are source liquidity, a 40-70% cost savings, real-time payments and near instant 2-3 second transactions.
2. xRapid partners
A list of companies, financial institutions and banks in the xRapid sandbox8, which are testing, accepting (XRP) and/or utilizing the xRapid System via the XRP Ledger, includes more than 30 companies worldwide. Among this list are such prominent banking giants as Banco Santander, Scotiabank, Nordea, NAB (National Australia Bank), Barclays, RBC (Royal Bank of Canada), and MTOs like Western Union, Mercury FX, Cambridge Global Payments and MoneyGram. Six more are even accepting XRP, including FlashFX (Australia) and Asia MTM (Hong Kong).
Due to the lack of one official resource of RippleNet participants, we turn to the community-created ones. There are numerous lengthy lists of Ripple partnerships with the biggest one containing 181 Ripple partners and 16 Ripple-affiliated organisations. This January Ripple announced 13 more partnerships, claiming to ‘officially surpass the 200 mark’.
The participants of RippleNet currently operate in over 40 countries across six continents. Several interactive community-created maps and visualisations of Ripple partnerships illustrate the vast reach of Ripple9, and it doesn’t seem to slow down even after the recent announcement about SWIFT partnership with R3, enabling “Corda’s network participants to authorize and settle payments with the help of a gateway called GPI Link”. SWIFT has been piloting blockchain solutions since spring 2017, and a year later published positive results of the PoC on Hyperledger Fabric.
The long-lasting Ripple’s public ‘rivalry’ with SWIFT has escalated when in November 2018, the Ripple CEO explicitly confirmed Ripple’s plans to beat SWIFT banking network. And although this partnership might strengthen the SWIFT’s position in the fintech blockchain race, Ripple could still benefit from the rise of XRP coins demand since R3’s Corda Settler also uses XRP to settle transactions.
The company also takes measures to maintain the Ripple brand image as the FinTech pioneer. In May 2018 Ripple started the Xpring initiative that “supports businesses that would see material benefit from building on the XRP Ledger” to broaden the network and increase XRP adoption. A month later the company also announced a University Blockchain Research Initiative, committing more that $50 M to support academic research and technical development into blockchain and other FinTech topics.
These are the essentials for the enterprise, its ledger, and the token. They represent the more static aspects of the company that are not likely to change drastically in the foreseeable future. In the next article, we will continue the cryptocurrency analysis by turning to the current events and metrics that could be characteristic of the present well-being of the XRP token.
1. This post is now deleted from the official website
2. 1 billion is unlocked each month from January 2018, unspent amount is placed back in the escrow queue (avg 0.9 bil. is placed back YTD)
3. Of this amount, 11 billion is already spent, ~5.3 — have limits on sales *either court-ordered or enforced by Ripple Labs)
4. Data sources & links to the publications: gtgox.com, Crunchbase, Wikipedia
5. The estimated amount varies: Crunchbase has a different investor list with a different amount
6. Crunchbase’s list of investors and seed amount also differs from Wikipedia
7. Again, Crunchbase has a different list of investors
8. Sources: List of Ripple Partnerships in relation to XRP, 10 companies confirmed using or testing XRP
9. However, the data integrity is questionable since there is limited public disclosure from the company, and some partners may use Ripple products on only a fraction of their coverage, which cannot be traced and is not reflected in aggregated info
Tags#analysis#cryptocurrency#TradeSanta
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| I Recommend That You Approach Her With Care
All entries for January 2007
How To Sue A Peasant
It’s amazing what you learn from your seminar reading sometimes…
So it turns out that in the Elizabethan and early-to-mid Stuart period (especially c.1580 until c.1640) the English liked nothing more than suing each other. Seriously. All the bloody time! Lacking a police service to deal with those who upset the status quo, and without such other modern recourses as aggrieved blogging, letters to the Daily Mail, or a retaliatory drive by shooting, the villagers, townsfolk, yeomen, gentry, nobles and wenches of the early modern period often resorted to litigation in their attempts to respond.
Some slights would make sense today. Stealing livestock.
Mild-to-severe street violence.
And, of course, personal insults, or defamation as it was called in those days.
Thus sheep thief gets hit with two law suits, and ginger gets hit with one. However as sheep thief also got hit by ginger, he is well and truly the loser in this scenario.
Back then it was really quite severe to insult someone. Naturally being horribly sexist, the men got their cases of defamation dealt with in proper legal courts, whilst women had to make do with the Church courts, which didn’t seem as grown up and involved vicars.
This was a dangerous thing as the records record that one particular vicar was such a model of dignity and vicar-ness that he sued one parishoner 26 times in six years. 26! You can almost imagine how it went…
They couldn’t even spell properly in those days (spot the error)!
So with all these lawsuits flying around people became really worried that this meant the end of all civility and decency. People who started lawsuits were treated with disdain. But they still started lawsuits. Some people, probably including our vicar above, were using what was known as vexatious litigation, that is just suing to annoy someone. How bloody annoying you can imagine. Well, at the time it wasn’t annoying, it was seen as a clear sign that SOCIETY ITSELF WAS FALLING APART!!! They feared there would be riots and chaos as no one would love their neighbour anymore!
Funnily enough, it was this attitude which meant society didn’t fall apart. See, because litigation was such a bad thing whenever a lawsuit was threatened the community would run around and try and prevent it happening. This usually meant making the parties sit down and talk it over with someone there to mediate. The local clergy were useful for this, even if they did appear to have very bad facial hair and were very very skinny.
Often this was enough. The people involved in the lawsuits were just like everyone else. They didn’t like litigation either and often dropped it when they calmed down or realised it would cost loads to actually continue the suit. There were no annoying TV adverts for companies offering “No win, no fee” back then. Some would argue this is a good thing.
Traditionally mediation would take place over some food and drink. Those church ales that clergy were alawys brewing came in useful for a purpose other than enlivening the Sunday sermon.
If this didn’t work then there could be forced arbitration which was like when the priest told them to behave but with a more scary authority figure telling them to behave and them having to by law. Or they could go through with the suit and be disapproved of forever after.
And that was the great thing – most people didn’t want any lawsuits so they tried to avoid getting involved with one, and tried to stop any they found out about. Except there was still a massive rise in litigation (at least one lawsuit per household per year, every year for 60 years). It made no sense! As it turned out people were calming down from about 1600, but the rising population meant more people to have lawsuits with so the fall didn’t occur until all them had calmed down too.
Bunch of whiny hypocritical hippies.
: 31 Jan 2007 23:33 | Tags: History | Comments (14) | Close comments | Report a problem
Movement In NI?
Writing about web page http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6308175.stm
Well well well, Sinn Fein have decided to back the Police Service of Northern Ireland, a move which was predicted but whose implications throw up some interesting possibilities.
The Republican objection to the police is longstanding and understandable. Bloody Sunday was merely the worst of the various incidents which turned the Catholic population from mild suspicion to outright hatred and distrust. It didn’t help that members of the then RUC colluded with loyalist terrorists to kill Catholics who were a nuisance. Whilst some were Republican terrorists themselves, some were people who merely annoyed the loyalists, like the lawyer Pat Finucane whose representation of IRA suspects in court earnt him an assassination in front of his wife and children. The response of the IRA to such incidents was to shoot police officers which bred a vicious cycle. My mum’s cousin was a Catholic RUC member who was shot whilst out on patrol one day in Northern Ireland. He survived but the officer he was with was killed.
But the change of heart by Sinn Fein comes admist reform and change. the question now is whether there will be some reprisals from Republicans beyond the shouting of “Traitor!” at Adams, and whether the DUP will return to powersharing. Ian Paisley has no doubt been dreading this moment. Since the second ceasefire in the 1990s Sinn Fein and the associated members of the Provisional IRA have been moving closer and closer to being a cooperative, legitimate party. Though not always inevitable, once the Good Friday Agreement was signed this was always a highly likely outcome. Hotheaded young radicals might like to weild guns and shout slogans, but when they grow up and realise they can make more difference (and get arrested less) in politics then they shift to more peaceful means. The electoral success Sinn Fein have seen since the IRA publically renounced violence has only fuelled their push to democracy. The PSNI move is designed to get more SDLP voters, and get more political power. In itself this isn’t a bad thing to most reasonable people – better to have the dissenters shouting rather than shooting?
So this becomes a test for Paisley. If his objections to Sinn Fein have always been about protecting the Protestants from harm, about maintaining law and order then he should come back to the table and talk. He should get the power sharing assembly working. Surely with the passing of his big objection over Sinn Fein and the PSNI should signal reproachment. Maybe it will. But part of me suspects it won’t, that a new excuse could be found. I’ve never truly believed that Paisley’s stance wasn’t tainted by racism. I won’t call it sectarianism as that has strangely acquired a position which isn’t as poorly looked upon as racism. Had a Protestant celebrity picked on a Catholic one for their faith on Big Brother we wouldn’t be having the same broo-ha-ha we have seen over the racism. Paisley has subjected Catholics and the Irish from the Republic to appalling racism over the years, and if he finds something else to object to about Sinn Fein, having banged on about their police stance for the last year or two since decommisioning, then I truly hope people will open their eyes and see him as the racist his is.
And Sinn Fein had better behave too. Just because they’ve done a ‘good thing’ for moving along the peace process doesn’t take away from the fact that they’ve done it several years later than it should have been done in the first place. Once more they come out of events looking good for doing something which is a little overdue for a political party wanting to play by the rule of law. But progress is progress and anything is better than police officers like my relative being shot in the street. Let’s see what happens.
: 28 Jan 2007 23:48 | Tags: Politics And Other Things No One Cares About | Comments (3) | Close comments | Report a problem
Writing about web page http://www.guardian.co.uk/cartoons/martinrowson/archive
One World Week finally threw something up other than food under curtains in the Union (joke) – thank you, thank you, thank you to whoever was responsible for booking Guardian, Independent, etc etc cartoonist Dr Martin Rowson to give a talk on political cartoons and their history. It was probably the most fascinating talk I’ve heard in my time here. Sorry lecturers, but this was brilliant.
Dr Rowson has a ridiculous number of plaudits and honours to his name. He’s London’s official cartoonist. He’s won cartoon of the year. And judging from the talk today he is well informed on the history of cartoons, from Hogarth, Gillray and Low, to his contemporaries like Steve Bell.The talk could easily have been three or four times as long and (numb bum from sitting on the floor aside) it wouldn’t have made a difference. It was one of the most informative hours of my life. He presented us with his philosophy and his methodolgy, albeit not in an in depth, “I use these pencils” kind of way (I admit, I asked him about those details afterwards).
His philosophy was one which I felt was perfectly balanced. Whilst admitting there are contradictions to beware of, he articulated an idea (I’d hesitate to say doctrine though manifesto would fit) that in politics those who you are drawing are people who have enough presumption to want to rule our lives. Thus they are themselves legitimate targets to be satirised. Dr Rowson insisted he never picks on anyone less powerful than himself. This lead him to an interesting discussion of the Danish cartoons – he feels the cartoons themselves were wrong because they picked on people weaker than the cartoonists – poor Muslim immigrants in Denmark – but the over the top reaction distracted and derailed the debate. To his mind the protests almost justified the cartoons. Almost, but not quite. It is a fascinating perspective that many people in that debate never thought of. The position of the artist overlooked. Guess it takes an insider to see such things, and yet I was completely in agreement with him.
Martin Rowson on Bush in Iraq.
He covered a lot of topics – a brief history of cartooning which could have been longer, and which I think he would have made longer of he’d had more time, and which got me really thinking about my course (this happens to us historians). He went into the rivalries amongst cartoonists (they steal from each other all the time which was funny). He dealt with 9/11 and Blair and Iraq.
Hogarth’s ‘Gin Lane’, one of the most important cartoons of all time.
Cartoons are seen as things which are meant to be funny, something which both frees and limits them. The Guardian should continue its podcast obsession and get Dr Rowson to give his talk (or a version of, it was rather visual with lots of his art and the art of those who inspired him) in a form which can be downloaded and heard further afield.
I have a lot to think about now, which is nice.
: 23 Jan 2007 17:38 | Tags: Cartoons Hero Worship OWW | Comments (4) | Close comments | Report a problem
UK OK?
This is the cake no one wants:
The cake is the 300th birthday cake of the signing of the Act Of Union 1707 which decreed that from that day forth the people who had previously lived in Scotland and England would have to pretend to like each other and not rape and pillage each other’s borderlands. Due the nonexistence of a proper Act Of Union with Wales, English and Welsh people are still technically allowed to rape and pillage each other’s borderlands as demonstrated by the massive spanking which London gets everytime Charlotte Church decides to visit.
The Act Of Union abolished the Scottish parliament of the time and is generally seen by historians as having been an excuse for the Scottish MPs to fanny around in London pouring scorn on thw whole place by declaring the inhabitants soft, and their city “crap” in relation to the cold, harsh climes (and indeed climbs) of Edinburgh and its hills. Naturally they couldn’t possibly live in Edinburgh when doing this as none of the London soft poofs would hear them! Thus a long tradition of Scots with something to say going to London was established.
The Act Of Union can seem at times like a massive parent who forced two children who don’t really like each other to play in the same room. This doesn’t stop the children having their own toys (read: international football and rugby teams) nor does it prevent one from bursting into tears when the other one wants to play with its North Sea oil. But as children do, over time they grew up. The stage they currently seem to be at is the mid teens age. Neither has really come to completely accept that they are related, that they’ve known each other for years and years, and that secretly they are fond of each other in that special way you can be fond of someone you’re allowed to punch occasionally. This analogy also explains why places like Stoke-on-Trent exist – they are the teenage acne which has afflicted the faces of these country siblings.
So the anniversary of the pair being put into the same playpen (thus the anniversary of the beginning of a long series of retrievals of the toys both have thrown out of the playpen over the years (cf. Scotland signing a different peace treaty with Russia)) has gone past with not too much fuss. Most of the fuss has been over whether the two will play together much longer. But it would be silly to separate them. Neither truly appreciates that the other needs it in a psychological way. The pair work well together. Sure, they bitch and fight and will never admit to liking each other in public, but that’s the point of siblings sometimes.
So no cake. No party. Everyone carries on without making a fuss or doing anything so vulgar as celebrate. But there’s no massive counter protests. No scramble to lash out on this symbolic day. Neither side appears to care. They probably don’t. No one cares about how they got their family (mostly because it involves thinking about parent sex and that is wrong). They just did. It’s very very…
...British.
Hollyzone Needs A New Look
The title says it all. I want to change things here, not contentwise obviously because I can only write in one style (poorly spelt/grammatically dubious whinges, rants and waffles), but it needs something new. Something different. New year, new look.
The sidebar needs a big overhaul, it looks too clunky and isn’t nice and smooth. Plus I cannot get my goddam lastfm chart to work at the moment but that’s more likely to be the interweb or me being incompetent than anything else.
So, any suggestions? No? Damn.
Now all I need is the time and the CSS superpowers…
: 14 Jan 2007 19:00 | Comments (12) | Close comments | Report a problem
Fictional Beast Sausages
Hahahaha, I’m pro-EU at heart and this Warwick Boar column shows it… sort of. Also sorry about linking to the website so much when it’s not been updated in a while. Apparently it will be at some stage. It’s award winning, y’know!
I have to lay my cards on the table, both now and for future reference. Due to an excess of Irish DNA sloshing around in my genes I am intrinsically inclined to view the idea of the European Union as a good idea. Now I also, inexplicably, think that eating sponges is a brilliant idea but I’ve not done that since I was a small child (when mum replaced the half eaten sponge with a much less enticing flannel) whereas I still think Europe is a good idea. The only problem with it is continuing and unabated existence those assorted nutjobs elected to and working at the EU itself. Living in Eurosceptic Britain means a constant diet of exaggerated EU nonsense, like the fictional straight bananas which were rumoured to be forced upon us in the 1990s, but quite often reports of the EU’s bouts of madness are fairly close to the truth.
The latest disconnection from common sense comes from a fairly logical system which has been in place and beneficial for a while. The EU has strict rules on naming of products. Parma ham must be from Parma, Cornish pasties from Cornwall. Some have objected to this, but remember that the grape growers of the Champagne region will fight, almost to the death, the stop others using their sacred, and expensive, name. It’s not unreasonable when it’s a traditional dish, and one whose reputation is worth protecting. I know people from Cornwall who find the idea of a Cornish pasty being made here in the Midlands as sacrilege. Most Irish will tell you that Guinness tastes better in Dublin than in Britain, travel and/or production abroad can negatively affect stuff.
So far so good. But what happened when the EU noticed the existence of Welsh Dragon sausages last week? A total collapse of any reason. The poor makers got told off and forced to alter their name to Welsh Dragon Pork Sausages because their product doesn’t contain any dragon. Let’s review that. The sausages did not contain the meat of a fictional animal which everyone knows to be fictional, but clarification was needed anyway. At this stage the Europhile is banging their head against the desk screaming “Why must you make us laughing stocks?”. Even if there are morons who might think the sausages actually contained dragon what’s the worst that could happen? They get a little disappointed that it taste of pork? Personally I’d be inclined to slap them and tell that to be grateful it doesn’t taste of chicken like snails, frogs and humans.
Overly literal bureaucrats with a poor view of the average Joe/Jose/Llywelyn’s intelligence are the bane of any system. It makes me wonder what happens when they notice me – how much trouble am I going to get in for not being a spiky evergreen plant? What sanctions will be imposed on my existence for the lack of a few red berries protruding from my scrawny frame? God knows what damage they could wreak on account of my surname, fill me with old people and shove me into the sea?
You don’t win people round by making out that you consider them to be morons, even morons object to being blatantly tagged in such a way, once they’ve worked out the meaning of all those big polysyllabic words you’ve used. So come on EU, let’s stop treating people like idiots and then I’ll stop looking like an idiot for not cursing you with all my being. And for heavens sake, don’t throw me into the sea! The sponges out there aren’t the same as the ones at home.
: 12 Jan 2007 11:00 | Tags: Boar Column | Comments (4) | Close comments | Report a problem
"Hello, Guinness Book Of Records…
The Careers Service never did get to grips with me. A warwick Boar column which says more about me than them.
Sometimes, at very irregular intervals, I am gripped by a sudden and overpowering sense of destiny. In these moments, which fade all to soon, I see a bright shiny light emanating from the future calling to me in dulcet tones, “This is the job which you will be happy doing in the future…”. Invariably this fades as soon I realise things are a little more complicated than they seem. Practicalities, the most effective destroyer of dreams, emerge blinking into the sunlight and piss royally on the ticker tape parade in my head. Questions flood forth – is the volume of paperwork and risk of being stabbed compensated for by how cool the police riot uniform is? Does the lack of decent pay and necessity of marking essays overshadow being a lecturer who gets to talk loudly about stuff they’re interested in? Does having no discernible musical talent, or drug habit, really preclude me from being a rock star?
So I was a little surprised to have inspiration strike me once more earlier today, and I remain surprised at how little my enthusiasm has waned. And it’s all because of you, dear readers. I know there is a general scepticism in some areas about the Boar and its approach to to facts (insofar as facts can exist in one’s mind after you have had to endure a seminar on post-modernism) but quite often the facts in this newspaper are checked with sources and people who might know the answer, or are authoritative enough to quote, and not find ourselves getting sued for the resulting article. This is mostly done because printing outright lies is apparently illegal and not allowed. We would appreciate if someone could tell the News Of The World this.
In the minutes before my flash of inspiration I was witness to several members of the editorial team trying to make contact with the Guinness Book of Records to check some facts for us. And then it struck me. I want the job on the other end of the phone. I want to answer calls with “Hello, Guinness Book of Records, which astounding feat or event can I amaze your tiny mind with today?”. Imagine putting someone on hold whilst you check who holds the record for the most toe nail clippings collected, or the longest river of marshmallow ever created. Considering some of the stuff that makes it into the Guinness Book of Records, it couldn’t be too boring a job, could it? I guess you’d need the emergency services on the other line, if only for when someone rings up and tries to break a record down the phone to you and only end up breaking limbs.
Alas, a setback soon reared its ugly, and not record breaking, head. There is no such Guinness Book of Records phone line, only email. Now this is not to say there couldn’t be a phone line. Hardly anyone knows there isn’t one. And this could be another fun job – setting up a rogue phoneline to distribute complete bollocks in lieu of real records. The downside that there appears to be no way of making any money from such a scheme is currently the only thing stopping me. So here’s your record for the day – Most pigeons stuffed up one nostril: 11, by Dame Judi Dench on the set of The Shipping News in 2001.
Oh come on, you’d stick pigeons up your nose too if you found yourself cast in that film.
The Price Of Fame
Whilst watching the news yesterday I stumbled across one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard. The report in question was about paparazzi hounding of Kate Middleton, Prince William’s girlfriend. She was greeted, upon leaving her house on her 25th birthday, by a swarm of photgraphers who then proceeded to follow her down the street taking photos photos from close range. It all looked completely undignified and distressing. Then, when she had gotten away, one moronic snapper had to gall to justify his actions by saying “She’s famous, she should expect this”.
If only they were so retro…
The absurdity of this statement goes beyond the usual crap you get from media types. He was essentially saying that she has given them the right to intrude so directly into her life by being famous. But has she? Kate Middleton works for a high street retailer doing something so boring and admin-like that I don’t even know what it is. She does not go to showbiz parties; she does not work in a job which exposes her face, her voice, her thoughts to the world; she would never in a million years be in any way media notable if it wasn’t for her boyfriend. And just because of who she fell for (a process we have no control over) she is ‘famous’ and deserving of harrassment?
People become famous these days for either being good at something we like, good at getting famous, or for the sort of spurious, out-of-their-control reasons which Miss Middleton has experienced. Fame for the latter two groups is a simple thing, one group craves it and the other gets it whether they want it or not (most likely the latter). But the media has created both these groups from the first group – the charismatic, extrovert, talented and popular actors, singers, footballers, etc, who became famous for what they did or had. Looking back decades Charlie Chaplin was the world’s most famous man because he made the best movies in the world. These days you can get a similar level of media saturation by being a rather insignificant musician with a drug habit, model girlfriend and the attention of the media. People can’t make themselves anymore, the media makes them for us. And this will include those who do not want to be made.
Interest in the potential future monarch’s partner is understandable but the level of interest, the depth of the media’s invasion is excessive. I really don’t know who wants to see a picture of a young woman having her birthday ruined by paparazzi. There have always been people were coy about the spotlight, famous cases like Greta Garbo for instance, but they were exceptions because they were important. Garbo was a legendary actress, an icon who had voluntarily put herself in front of millions as an actress but always made clear that offscreen she was a private person. She could do this because there wasn’t such an invasive press in those days – what press invasion she experienced surprised her and made her more reclusive. Were she alive today it seems unlikely that she would follow the same career path at all.
There are a lot of talented actors, singers, etc, who we are being deprived of because they don’t want to play the media game which will cost them any privacy. Whilst I admit to being as intrigued by the private lives of celebrities I like, I can quite easily cope without knowing or seeing photos if it will prevent them from being harassed. We run the risk of having a media world entirely populated by the fame hungry, who may or may not have talent, rather than those who would actually be any good at acting, singing, etc. We’re going to end up with the famous people we deserve – fame hungry and mostly talent deficient. And Kate Middleton is going to end up with a harassment she doesn’t deserve.
For crying out loud, she works in retail admin!
Science And History
Guess I should put up a few more of those lousy Warwick Boar columns which I spew out from time to time (I have no idea what to write about at the mo, I need ideas!). This one is a good reason why historians shouldn’t buy New Scientist.
If there’s one thing that’s inherently adorable about scientists it’s that they are, by and large, made up of the more optimistic members of the species. Coming to university with big ideas about changing the world, discovering cures for stuff, and theories for making the world better and improving humans with laser powered implants. Those who continue in science after bachelors are the real optimists, remaining in possession of a faith in science despite all the 9am lectures and lack of reading weeks that university can throw at them. Want proof? Try the latest New Scientist magazine. Celebrating 50 years of the magazine it invited scientists to make predictions for the world in 2056. The vast majority are optimistic, some wildly so. Some talk excitedly of the imminence of the discovery of life on Mars, healthy people over 100 being the norm, and we can all talk to animals and become vegetarian as a result. One dementedly optimistic man thinks we’ll be able to buy a tee shirt with the equations from the unified laws of physics printed on them, though let’s be honest, even in 50 years we’re not going to be that geeky en masse, are we? Are we?
Naturally, in response to this wave of forcast innovation, the Boar has decided to allow a historian (easily the most cynical and pessimistic sort of student you will find on campus) to write about this event. Believe me, it is hard to handle when you realise that, in contrast to science and its remaining aura of loftiness and difficulty, the most profound thing to be uttered about your subject was in fact uttered about ten years ago by Dame Shirley Bassey. She’s seen it before, and she’ll see it again, it’s all just a little piece of history repeating. And we have. Everyone loves making scientific predictions about wonder inventions but the truth is most advances are rarely foreseen, and when they do arrive most people’s first instinct will be to see how they can a) break them, b) write sarcastic articles about them, or c) use them to distribute porn.
We don’t make many predictions in the Humanities but in the spirit of things here are some. One of those pseudo-scientific humanities like Psychology, or Sociology, or both, will have a unified theory of why people act like berks in groups when they are so reasonable as individuals (the Football Crowd/Armchair Fan Theory). They are also hopefully going to find out how the human mind adapts to difficult challenges like finding a room in Social Studies. Actually that might be one for the scientists, can they work out just how many dimensions are at work in that warren of corridors?
The Philosophy department are looking forward to the first entirely post modern degree in which it really doesn’t matter what mark you actually get, if you think you got a first then that’s as valid a mark as what your tutor gave you. Attempts to start the first Foucauldian degree were actually began about three years ago but then the department involved were told off for causing unnecessary suffering, not all of it physical. The History department will be combing forces with the Music Centre (which is expected to cover at least 80% of campus by 2056) to produce the first module in the utterings of Welsh divas. And all courses will have laser powered seminar tutors rather than phd students, mostly because undergraduates are less likely to complain about someone who can melt their face with a glance.
It’s the future and it’s coming. As for myself, I am going to go and look forward to the future by discovering alien life, unifying the laws of physics (it can’t be that hard, surely?), and eating bacon whilst I am still incapable of empathising with it.
Politics And Other Things No One Cares About (57)
Boar Column (15)
Hero Worship (9)
(Untagged) (177)
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Elliott: solid performance in challenging conditions
ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott says the bank’s flat full-year cash profit reflects a challenging operating environment however ongoing efficiency improvements and the bank’s business mix offset weakness in Australia.
Speaking to bluenotes on video, Elliott said many factors contributed to a tougher global environment, including global trade tensions and lower interest rates.
"We’ve put a lot more effort into rethinking what we’re doing, who we’re doing it with and our cost-base.” - Elliott
“It’s been a challenging year to see real top-line growth,” he said. “But we’re pleased with the progress we made.”
ANZ’s cash profit on a continuing bases was flat at $A6.47 billion. The statutory profit after tax was $A5.95 billion in the full year, a 7 per cent decrease.
Click here for a transcript of this video
Elliott said a focus on efficiency of capital and resourcing has helped the bank prepare tougher conditions.
“For the last four years, we’ve talked about simplification… capital efficiency… and productivity,” he said. “Those things really did benefit the group this year and we’ve continued to focus on those to set us up for longer-term success”
Elliott said the bank had been preparing for the tougher environment for some time: “We’ve put a lot more effort into rethinking what we’re doing, who we’re doing it with and our cost base in particular.”
He emphasised the bank was able to keep costs flat or down again this year – difficult in the environment but appropriate for the times.
Elliott said the outcomes of regulatory changes and the Royal Commission hit the Australia business all at once which, together with some operational missteps, lead to a weaker result than its Institutional and New Zealand counterparts.
“We’ve had to make a lot of changes in that business in a really short period of time and that does [impact] business momentum.”
However, Elliott says the Australia division is improving with competitive product offerings, increasing share and market volume, and the rapid response allowed by the bank’s Agile structure.
He also explained the decision to hold the dividend steady while reducing franking to 70 per cent.
You can hear more of the conversation in the video above.
Banking ANZ results
ANZ results
FULL COVERAGE: ANZ’s full-year 2019 result
Everything you need to know about ANZ’s 2019 full-year result in one place.
INFOGRAPHIC: ANZ’s 2019 full-year result
Jill Campbell | Head of Investor Relations, ANZ
Review the highlights of ANZ’s full-year result in an easy-to-read infographic.
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The Forum for Cities in Transition
Cities working together to lead transition from conflict
The Founding Call to Action
FCT Former Secretariat
FCT Cities
Derry-Londonderry
Mitte (Berlin)
FCT Conferences
2010 Mitrovica
2011 Derry-Londonderry
2012 Kirkuk
2013 Kaduna
2014 Belfast
2016 Bulgaria
2019 Online via Zoom
FCT Academy
FCT – Management International University
FCT- The Networking Institute
Tag: FCT 2013
FCT 2013 speech by Alhaji (Dr) Mukhtar Ramalan Yero (Executive Governor of Kaduna State, Nigeria)
4 November 2013 31 October 2016 Forum for Cities in Transition
Speech by Alhaji (Dr) Mukhtar Ramalan Yero (Executive Governor of Kaduna State, Nigeria)
Opening Ceremony of the 4th Forum for Cities in Transition Conference
Murtala Mohammed Square
Kaduna, Nigeria
I am very pleased and honoured to be part of this very important occasion which is the 4th International Conference for Cities in Transition. God in his infinite mercy has brought us here and to him we must render our gratitude. We are but instruments in the hands of God. May He continue to use us as the Instrument of peace and progress in Nigeria and the world over.
Let me specially welcome our distinguished dignitaries, Their Excellencies, Arc. Mohammed Namadi Sambo, FNIA, GCON, Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria and General Abdulsalami Alhaji Abubakar GCON, Former Military Head of State and Grand Commander of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Your presence here today and the presence of other notable personalities which include former Governors of the State, Distinguished Senators, Members of the National and State Houses of Assemblies, as well as our revered Traditional and Religious Leaders, is a demonstration of our firm resolve to sustain peaceful and harmonious relationships between and amongst the diverse people of Kaduna State in particular, and the country in general. My warm welcome also goes to the participants of the conference particularly the foreign participants for keeping faith with the conference by travelling from their respective countries to Nigeria. I welcome you all on behalf of the Government and the good people of Kaduna State. We indeed felt honoured by the choice of Kaduna as the venue to host this very important event of international importance.
As you are aware, Kaduna State is a rainbow of vibrant diversity, a mini Nigeria with diverse ethnic groups with predominantly Muslim and Christian population. It should also be noted that Kaduna, due to its strategic position, as the capital of the old Northern Region, has always played host to a variety of interest from both the North and even beyond, who rightly or wrongly, believe that Kaduna is the place from which messages of whatever hue and cry could be effectively conveyed to the entire country.
I believe that plurality of ethnic and religious groups, ideally, should not be a problem. Diversity and pluralism are known to be the basis of cosmopolitan and complex societies such as ours. It is only where ethnicity and religion are made means of narrowing people’s participation in political, economic, and social spheres that problems manifest in various forms. However, Kaduna State geographical area has for sometimes occupied a position of volatility in the history of ethno-religious tensions in Nigeria with great consequences which includes ethno-religious divide of the city. This unfortunate development has far reaching consequences to even the generation unborn.
It is against this background that we in Kaduna State whole heartedly embraced the hosting of this conference, aimed at promoting peaceful and harmonious co-existence through exchanging ideas and promoting understanding, with the ultimate aim of encouraging resolution of conflicts through non-violent methods in order to unify polarized cities in the world, Kaduna inclusive, therefore, the activities of this conference is consistent with our primary and fundamental responsibility which is the provision of security and welfare of the people. Hence, our focus has remained in the promotion of peace, unity and progress in Kaduna and the country in general.
Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, you would agree with me that many concerned individuals, societies and associations and various Fora have discussed the insecurity, bombings, murders and mayhem that have visited our towns and States, which have been questioning our corporate existence as a nation. Many have proffered solutions. I therefore, charge this Conference to synthesis our peculiar circumstances with a view to proffering actionable proposals for tackling these challenges at the family, ward, Local Government, State and national level.
On this note, I wish to seize this opportunity to strongly appeal to all the people in the State and even beyond to allow peace to reign, as we must not allow emotions and sentiments to override us. There is need to tolerate one another in the interest of national peace and integration. This call is very crucial because the interest of the nation is above any personal or sectional interest.
Finally, I thank you all for finding time to grace this occasion. It is my hope, that our interest and objective for hosting this Conference would be realized in order to make our world a better place. I wish our participants a fruitful deliberation and happy stay in Kaduna. May God Almighty guide and grant us journey mercies back to our respective destinations.
ARTICLES Alhaji Mukhtar Ramalan YERO, FCT 2013 Leave a comment
FCT 2013: Remarks by Professor Padraig O’Malley
Remarks by Professor Padraig O’Malley
Your Excellency, Vice President Sambo; Your Excellency, Governor Yero, and all assembled Excellencies,
This is an auspicious — indeed, not just auspicious but a groundbreaking occasion for the Forum for Cities in Transition to have the privilege, as a result of the Kaduna Forum for Cities in Transition and Kaduna State, to conduct the fourth annual conference of the Forum here in Kaduna.
We are profoundly grateful for your hosting us.
Adding to the groundbreaking occasion is the presence of six Nigerian cities and four others from the rest of Africa.
To Kaduna State, we are profoundly grateful for underwriting the cost of this conference, because without your generosity we would not be here — and we will remember that and hope you have set a precedent for other cities.
Your Excellency, Governor Yero, we thank you and we will not forget.
And to the many hundreds in the balconies who have made the journey here this morning for this historic occasion, we are humbled by your presence and hope our endeavours do you, the people, justice.
It is our hope that at the close of the conference we can announce that the Kaduna FCT has established a Nigerian FCT, with the Nigerian cities who are participating in this conference as its founding members, making Kaduna the peace centre of Nigeria and the hope that a Nigerian Forum will contribute to healing the divisions among Muslims and Christians that has enmeshed Nigeria in religious conflict for decades.
To all Nigerians here, I want to say that these cities can do together what they cannot do individually — one Nigerian city can help another, bonded by their similarities, their difficulties, their divisions — and their commitment to healing those divisions.
The Forum for Cities in Transition wishes to pay a special welcome to our Balkan cities — Mostar, Sarajevo and Srebrenica — cities torn apart by horrific violence during the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
And a special welcome as well to our delegation from Baghdad, a city where daily bombings erase human life instantaneously, pre-empting any kind of reconciliation between Sunni and Shia in the process, with the result that we are beginning to witness Iraq slip slowly, but with frightening speed, into a full-scale civil war, with neighbour turning on neighbour, with every possibility that Iraq will become another Syria.
Many of our delegates made arduous journeys to secure their visas and we appreciate the lengths you went to and for your patience in order to participate in this conference, and we hope you will leave here believing that your efforts were well worthwhile.
There is an official agenda, which you have — and there is an unofficial agenda — the unofficial one is of your own making.
You will have ample opportunities to meet and get to know each other during the week, to mix and not only share your narratives of conflict, but to explore ways in which you can help each other further reconciliation among your diverse communities who were once in conflict — and some who still are.
At the opening of every conference, I make a point of emphasising that this is not just a conference; it is a conference that produces outcomes — and I stress that word.
Each conference is linked to the previous one; so Kaduna 2013 is linked to Kirkuk 2012 to Derry-Londonderry 2011 to Mitrovica 2010 to Boston 2009.
The sums of your cities has created a chain that links you and enables you to engage in continuing interaction, reinforcing that you can do together what you cannot do alone.
Most importantly, as I said, this conference is about outcomes.
Each participating city will be asked at the close of the conference to make a specific commitment that will be completed before next year’s conference. To carry out a project that will further reconciliation in its own city or help another city lower on the ladder of transition and needs your help.
The diversity of ethnic groups, nationalities, religions and culture that are assembled here will produce a synergy that will bond you in the common pursuit of finding ways to further reconciliation and healing in each others’ cities.
You will work hard, you will learn much, and you can translate that learning into outcomes that will assist you on the journey to equality of services for all of your citizens, tolerance, respect for human rights, dignity for all — and will reinforce your understanding that you are all cities in recovery from great trauma, and that you must pursue a continuous process of healing; that otherwise you will slip back into conflict.
On behalf of the Forum for Cities Secretariat — Nancy Riordan, Candyce Carragher, Allan Leonard, Quintin Oliver and myself, we wish you success in your endeavours, and we are here to assist you in every way we can.
PRESS STATEMENTS FCT 2013, Padraig O'MALLEY Leave a comment
FCT 2013 Northern Ireland interviews (BBC Radio Ulster)
Karen Patterson (BBC Radio Ulster) interviews Tim Attwood (FCT Belfast) and Michael Doherty (FCT Derry-Londonderry) about their forthcoming travel to Kaduna, Nigeria, for the annual conference of the Forum for Cities in Transition:
Mark Patterson (BBC Radio Foyle) interviews Michael Doherty separately:
AUDIO, PRESS COVERAGE FCT 2013, Michael DOHERTY, Tim ATTWOOD Leave a comment
Kaduna to host Cities in Transition conference (WorldStage News)
28 October 2013 28 October 2013 Forum for Cities in Transition
Kaduna to host Cities in Transition conference
by Innocent Senyo
WorldStage News: Kaduna State (Nigeria) is to host the fifth edition of the global conference of the Cities in Transition scheduled for between November 4 to 8, the Chief of Staff to the Governor and Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Yahaya Aminu has said.
Aminu, while addressing a news conference along with the Director of the Forum of Cities in Transition, Prof. Padraig O’Malley, said that about 92 international delegates and 12 African countries that has passed through one crisis or the other are expected to attend and share experiences at the conference.
According to him, delegates are expected to attend the conference from Iraq, Isreal, Palestine, Albania, Bosnia and Harzegovina, Cyprus, Ireland, South Africa, Liberia, South Sudan, Ethipia, Rwanda among others.
He said that participants will also be expected from Nigerian cities with history of crisis such as Warri, Ife/Modakeke, Kano, Shagamu, Nasarawa, Bauchi, Plateau etc.
Also speaking, Prof. O’Malley who is the convener of the conference explained that the Forum for Cities in Transition was formed to create a platform for reconciliation between communities that have suffered from conflict and are divided along ethnic and religious lines and create dynamics that serve as catalyst for change.
He said further that the Cities in Transition conferences are held yearly in cities that are divided by conflict, adding that participants who are drawn from conflict stricken areas of the world come together to share experiences and mutual similarities before making commitments and resolutions to resolve the crisis and bridge the divides.
He said “the Forum for Cities in Transition (FCT) is set out to create a platform for reconciliation between existing conflict inflicted societies and communities. This is based on the fact that cities in transitions in countries divided by conflict are in better position tom help other cities in similar situation as each city is at a different stage of transition.
“Apart from Kaduna, we have 12 cities across 12 continents, 14 cities across Africa, six cities in Nigeria and seven African countries involved. They have common problems ranging from policing, garbage collection, housing, road construction, the provision of health and welfare services to identifying flash points and interfaces that trigger violence”.
Kaduna State Governor H.E Mukhtar R. Yero welcomes the inauguration of the FCT 2013 Local Organisation Committee, by the State Chief of Staff, Alh. Yahaya Aminu, at Government House Kaduna.
Hadeeza Remawa (ACAI Events) at inauguration of FCT 2013 Local Organisation Committee.
Inauguration of Local Organising Committee (LOC) for FCT 2013 Conference Kaduna.
Pastor James Wuye and Imam Mohammed Ashafa (Kaduna Interfaith Center), at inauguration of FCT 2013 Local Organisation Committee.
PHOTOS, PRESS COVERAGE FCT 2013 Leave a comment
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CitizenMetz
Carbon Consciousness & Action
Did Pope Francis Call for a Gasoline Boycott?
Much of the media attention on Pope Francis’ recent encyclical focused on its recognition of the causes of global warning and the impact that the Pope might have on international and domestic climate politics, Less publicized, but possibly more impactful in the long term, is the Pope’s call to consumers to wield their purchasing power as a force for change.
Pope Francis writes:
“A change in lifestyle could bring healthy pressure to bear on those who wield political, economic and social power. This is what consumer movements accomplish by boycotting certain products. They prove successful in changing the way businesses operate, forcing them to consider their environmental footprint and their patterns of production. When social pressure affects their earnings, businesses clearly have to find ways to produce differently. This shows us the great need for a sense of social responsibility on the part of consumers. ‘Purchasing is always a moral – and not simply economic – act.’ Today, in a word, ‘the issue of environmental degradation challenges us to examine our lifestyle.” (Laudato Si, Para. 206)
The education and mobilization of consumers to reduce their carbon purchases has barely begun. The vast majority of consumers have no idea how much CO2 they emit, nor any sense of moral responsibility to reduce their CO2 emissions, other than perhaps owning a car that gets more than 20 mpg. Lack of leadership has been a principal driver of consumer apathy. Until the Pope spoke out, there have been virtually no high-profile persons or organizations calling on citizens to examine their lifestyles and to curtail their carbon purchases. Read more…
Posted in Campaigns, Climate Change, gasoline, Protest Movements and tagged Activism, Campaigns, carbon and lifestyle, CO2 reduction, Consumer carbon education | Leave a comment
Gasoline and Cancer: New Research Confirms Links
Recent scientific studies confirm links between exposure to air pollution from gasoline and diesel with cancer and other diseases.
It has long been known that some of the ingredients within gasoline cause cancer. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a program of the World Health Organization, classifies benzene, a principal ingredient of gasoline, and 1,3 butadiene, a component of gasoline exhaust, as Group 1 carcinogens (chemicals which cause cancer in humans).
Now, new research in peer-reviewed scientific journals from around the world is finding that people exposed to high levels of vehicle exhaust or to gasoline vapors are at significantly higher risk of getting cancer.
A 2015 study shows elevated risk of eye cancer for children living closer to busy roads. A 2014 study from Texas shows that children living in census tracts with high levels of vehicle pollution were more than 50% more likely to have cancers of the brain and central nervous system. The Texas study follows 2013 epidemiological research from UCLA showing that children born on streets with higher levels of traffic and vehicle exhaust have substantially increased risk of leukemia and cancers of the testicles, ovaries, and eyes. These findings correlate closely with a study from Italy showing significantly elevated leukemia risk for children exposed to benzene from vehicle exhaust.
People living near or working in gas stations also have cause for concern. A 2012 study from Thailand demonstrated substantially higher cancer rates for those living near gas stations. A 2014 study of gas station attendants in Brazil showed much higher frequency of chromosomal abnormalities, a frequent precursor. A 2011 study from Spain demonstrated elevated levels of cancer-causing benzene as far as 100 meters from gas stations.
Many other health risks are associated with vehicle exhaust, including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and heart disease. One study found that people living near polluted roadways were twice as likely to die from a heart attack as those living in cleaner areas.
Gasoline is a cancer-causing agent whose use creates serious health risks to all people, and particularly children, who are exposed to vehicle exhaust or to gasoline vapors. People who live or work in areas with high levels of vehicle exhaust are at especially high risk, as are those who regularly fill their vehicles with gasoline.
Eliminating the widespread use of gasoline and diesel will result in significant public health benefits.
Posted in gasoline, health, toxics and tagged Cancer, carbon and lifestyle, Gasoline, Health
The Gasoline Purge
Many people don’t like using gasoline, but feel that they are unable to live their lives without it. Is it possible to wean oneself off gasoline?
Most people can’t stop using gasoline overnight. A realistic goal for most everybody is making a consistent effort to cut gasoline consumption, and to buy a plug-in electric or plug-in hybrid car when replacing one’s current car.
The average American drives about 13,500 miles per year in a gas-powered car, and consumes about 540 gallons of gas and emits about 10,500 pounds of CO2 per year doing so.
If one has a gasoline car, the best way to cut gasoline consumption is to drive less. Avoiding the use of one’s car by taking the bus, bicycling, and carpooling are the best strategies for reducing one’s gasoline use.
For most drivers, the biggest opportunity to reduce consumption comes when one is ready to trade in one’s old car. Electric and plug-in hybrid cars are rapidly improving, and offer solutions for most budgets and driving needs. Chevy Volts offer 40 miles of electric driving with a gasoline motor that provides effectively unlimited range when the batteries are drained. Used Nissan Leafs now start at about $10,000 and offer about 75 miles driving range, sufficient for a commuter or second car. New options, including plug-in SUVs, are coming into the market in almost every segment, providing for a wide range of choices. Switching to an electric car or a plug-in hybrid can reduce one’s gasoline consumption by 75-100% in one shot. Getting an electric car and solar panels at the same time can allow a person to drive without polluting and without paying for fuel.
By contrast, buying a new gasoline-powered car is buying into years of throwing 10,000 pounds or more of CO2 into the air every year and to handing over $1500 or more every year to the oil companies.
The key is to make a consistent effort to reduce one’s gasoline consumption, especially when purchasing a car. If we can make large reductions in our gasoline these changes, and lead our friends, neighbors, and co-workers to do so as well, we can make an important contribution to reducing the climate crisis.
Posted in Campaigns, Carbon, CO2, Electric Cars, gasoline, Stigmatizing Carbon Use and tagged Campaigns, Carbon, Carbon Pledge, carbon reduction, Carbon Strategies, CO2 reduction | Leave a comment
Reducing Gasoline Consumption Key to Stopping Arctic Oil Production
Seattle activists’ spirited campaign to stop Shell from exploratory drilling in the Arctic is grabbing world headlines and focusing attention on the climate impacts of exploiting the Arctic’s enormous petroleum resources. Opponents of Arctic drilling cite sound science projecting that the exploitation of Arctic oil will push global temperatures well over the 2o C threshold for a livable planet.
Shell defends its drilling in the Arctic as necessary to meet growing demand for gasoline. And demand for gasoline is growing. According to the U.S. Energy Information Agency, Americans used, on average, 375 million gallons of gasoline every day in 2014, and are projected to use even more in 2015, despite a more fuel efficient fleet of cars and a much better selection of electric cars. In 2013, Americans used more petroleum than China, India, France, and Germany combined.
The consumption of gasoline is ultimately financing the exploration and drilling for oil. Without the steady cash flow provided by growing consumption of gasoline, enormously capital-intensive projects such as Arctic oil exploration would become financially untenable and grind to a halt.
The reduction of oil consumption scarcely registers for climate activists. Other than supporting politically unfeasible carbon taxes, the environmental community has essentially no program to reduce gasoline consumption, the real driver behind the quest for more oil production.
What would a program to reduce gasoline consumption look like, especially if carbon taxes are, for now, off the table? Read more…
Posted in Campaigns, Climate Change, CO2, gasoline and tagged Activism, Campaigns, carbon reduction, chevy volt | Leave a comment
Is the Electric Car Tipping Point All About Cost?
A recent Bloomberg article “Big Oil Is About to Lose Control of the Auto Industry: A Pollution-free Revolution Is Coming,” reports that prices of batteries for electric cars are falling fast, that cost parity between electric and gasoline cars is likely to occur within a decade, and that worldwide electric car sales totaled 288,500 (0.5% of total sales) in 2014, five times the total in 2011. The author posits that demand for gasoline is flat and gas prices are low in substantial part because of the increasing market share of low and zero-emissions vehicles.
Meanwhile, a report from auto website Edmunds.com suggests that green cars sales are highly dependent on gas prices. According to Edmunds, hybrid and electric vehicle sales in the first quarter of 2015 declined relative to the same period last year because of lower gas prices. Edmunds also reported that only 45% of people trading in a hybrid or electric vehicle in 2015 bought another one, down from 60% in 2012.
The relative cost calculus of gas and electric cars will likely be murky for many years, given the patchwork of subsidies available at the time of car purchase, the fluctuating prices of gasoline and electricity, and concerns about the battery longevity and resale value of electric cars. Consumers that are not moved by environmental concerns and social pressures are unlikely to consider electric vehicle purchases until the cost advantages of electric car ownership are clear and well established, probably 5-10 years after rough cost parity is achieved. The cost advantages of electric cars will depend on economies of scale—the more electric cars sold, the less expensive they will be.
The number of consumers who buy electric cars for moral and social reasons (assuming rough cost and convenience parity) will therefore be a critical factor in determining the speed of the transition from a gasoline-powered fleet to an electric fleet.
“Engineering” of consumer sentiment to reject gasoline and embrace electric-powered cars must go hand-in-hand with the chemical and mechanical engineering of the electric car. The engineering of public disapproval of gasoline usage is still in its infancy. Few people today would criticize a person for driving a gasoline powered car of average fuel efficiency. Consumers feel no social or moral pressure to avoid the use of gasoline, and therefore no need to spend a few extra dollars on an electric car.
A successful campaign educating the public about the vast quantities of carbon pollution emitted by the family car, and asking citizens to take responsibility for avoiding that pollution, could go a long way towards ushering in the era of the electric car, and the demise of gasoline.
Posted in Advertising, Campaigns, Electric Cars and tagged Campaigns, carbon and lifestyle, Carbon Strategies, Climate Campaign
Interview with Rob Shirkey, Proponent of Gas Pump Warning Labels
Rob Shirkey
In my last post, I discussed a new initiative from Canada to mandate the inclusion of warning labels on gas pumps. Today, I interview the guiding force behind the campaign, Robert Shirkey, Executive Director of Toronto-based Our Horizon. The text below is a summary of our interview, not a transcript.
Q. How do you assess consumer consciousness regarding gasoline?
A. The act of pumping gas is normalized, habitual, and automatic. We scarcely even think about gasoline, and have complacent about using it. We need to bring the conversation about gasoline and carbon reduction closer to the end user.
To the extent we think about the global warming problem, we tend to think of it as a problem caused by industry, not by ourselves.
The goal of the sticker campaign is to shake up the complacency with which we view gasoline and create demand for alternatives.
While our goal is not to create guilt, if the end user does feel guilt, that helps establish conditions where change comes from. Change comes from dissatisfaction with the status quo.
Q. Are there sufficiently viable alternatives to gasoline right now? Is it fair to ask people not to use gasoline before there are viable alternatives?
“If you make them want it, then you get to build it, then they will come.” If we keep on buying the old internal combustion engine, then it will take longer for better alternative vehicles to come to market. If you can signal to a producer broader market interest, you are signaling to them an opportunity to produce at greater economies of scale.
The sticker will create a thirst for better alternatives. You make people want it first.
As long as consumers are complacent, we will not get the alternatives we want. Complacency doesn’t drive change. Consumers’ distance from the global warming problem perpetuates the status quo. If consumers become dissatisfied with the status quo, they will demand better alternatives.
Q. Why have the mainstream environmental organizations not asked their membership more directly not to drive gasoline-powered cars?
A. There is an ideological blindspot, a disconnect.The narrative popular with many activists is that there are big, bad evil corporations responsible for global warming.
If there is a narrative that we are all conflicted, that we are all part of the problem, it is harder to go to a protest and shake your fist. The real enemy is inertia and the status quo in which consumers are comfortable using gasoline.
Sure, there are some bad apples in the petroleum industry, but our challenge is systemic inertia, not cartoonish big, bad corporations. This narrative is more complex, but more honest. I think it will be more effective.
Q. Where do things stand with labeling in San Francisco and Berkeley? What do you think will be the first jurisdiction in the world to actually adopt the warning label requirement into law?
A. There is a group in San Francisco and Berkeley that I have been advising.They haven’t yet implemented a labeling law yet, but they are at the tail end of the legislative process, and we are looking at another month or two before it is complete. In West Vancouver, they recently passed a resolution in favor of climate change stickers on all gas pumps throughout Canada.
Many jurisdictions are reluctant to mandate the use of stickers now because of the threat of litigation. No one municipality has as of yet been willing to be first, but I believe a number will be willing once the law is decided that municipalities do have jurisdiction to require warning labels.
In West Vancouver, the mayor was formerly a petroleum distributor, and he has said that he will voluntarily put the warning stickers on the gas pumps he owns. Some consumers might want to support gas stations that voluntarily use the stickers. Voluntary placement of stickers could be a big growth area for the sticker movement.
Q. Is the time right for a gasoline boycott or similar coordinated withdrawal of gasoline purchasing? When will the time be right? How could it be achieved?
A. I wouldn’t go the boycott route. But it would introduce another perspective and be an interesting downstream intervention. We need to look at where fossil fuels companies get their revenue, which is from markets. The only reason that pipelines, tar sands, and oil drilling occur is because there is a market for the product. If we take away the market, all of these problems will disappear.
Posted in Campaigns, Carbon, Guilt, Stigmatizing Carbon Use and tagged Activism, Campaigns, Carbon, carbon and lifestyle, Carbon Strategies, Climate Change, Consumer carbon education | Leave a comment
Gas Pump Warning Labels Push Consumers to Reject Gasoline
Our Horizon, a Toronto-based environmental group led by Rob Shirkey, is campaigning throughout Canada and the U.S. to enact laws requiring warning labels on gas pumps which inform consumers about the environmental consequences of using gasoline. The campaign is gaining traction. Berkeley and San Francisco governments have given preliminary approval to the idea and are in the process of drafting the warning label regulations. The City of West Vancouver recently passed a resolution favoring the warning labels.
In a stirring TEDx talk and on the ourhorizon.org website, Shirkey argues that the labels confront the consumer with the severe yet distant impacts of climate change, thereby counteracting the total lack of feedback between the use of carbon and its consequences. He also says that the warning labels “take a problem [climate change] of diffuse origins and locate responsibility right in the palm of your hand.”
Shirkey argues strongly for the gasoline consumer’s central role in combating climate change:
“We may worry about climate change, oil sands, pipelines, etc., but we rarely question the simple act of pumping gas. There is a complete disconnect. The act of going to a gas station and filling up a car has been normalized for several generations. The warning labels take this unexamined, automatic act and problematize it. In creating a sense of dissatisfaction with the prevailing mobility solution, they stimulate demand for alternatives. The labels disrupt the status quo, shake us out of our sense of complacency, and provide impetus for us to do better. They are a catalyst for change.
Discourse around climate change in Canada tends to overlook end-use in favour of focusing on oil companies, points of extraction (e.g. oil sands, offshore drilling) or means of transportation (e.g. pipelines, shipping). Unfortunately, the uncomfortable reality is that we all share in responsibility for this problem. Indeed, the vast majority of greenhouse gases come from end-use; emissions from extraction and processing pale in comparison to emissions from vehicle combustion.
[W]hile a diversity of approaches is important, there is a risk that in framing the [CO2 pollution] issue as an exclusively upstream problem, we actually distance ourselves from it and perhaps unintentionally perpetuate the status quo through demand-side complacency. A complacent, disconnected marketplace is unlikely to affect change upstream; engaging consumer demand can help us to finally address these issues in a more meaningful way.” (p.17)
The labeling campaign has attracted vigorous opposition. The Western States Petroleum Association, an oil-industry lobbying group, said the plan imposes “onerous restrictions” on businesses and “compels speech in violation of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.” A Berkeley councilmember said that the labeling ordinance is a “feel-good measure” that would “increase people’s guilt without giving them useful action.”
As electric cars and other transportation solutions become increasingly viable, consumer perceptions of gasoline will play a key role in determining the longevity of gasoline as the world’s dominant transportation fuel. By graphically and repetitively reminding gasoline consumers of the environmental damage that gasoline use causes, gas pump warning labels can help shift consumer demand to other fuels and technologies and speed up gasoline’s demise.
Posted in Campaigns, Climate Change, Stigmatizing Carbon Use and tagged Activism, Campaigns, Carbon, carbon and lifestyle, carbon reduction, Carbon Strategies, CO2 reduction, Consumer carbon education
Interview with Michael Vandenbergh, Author of Beyond Gridlock
Michael Vandenbergh
Last week I reviewed “Beyond Gridlock,” a major new article by Michael Vandenbergh and Jonathan Gilligan concerning voluntary carbon reduction strategies. This week, I interview Michael Vandenbergh about the ideas behind the paper.
MNM: Why have consumer-oriented carbon reduction strategies been given so little attention relative to carbon pricing schemes?
MV: We all share a conceptual framework that assumes that the principal actor that can respond to climate change is government, and the principal actions are government regulation or a carbon price. Even our vocabulary locks in this framework – terms such “policy,” “regulation,” and even “international” imply that government is the key actor. This is buttressed by our tendency to pursue panaceas, as Elinor Ostrom noted, rather than to pursue multiple strategies when the policy plasticity [MNM: ability to implement] of the optimal strategy is low.
MNM What are the principal political obstacles to consumer-oriented voluntary carbon-reduction strategies? Could the left and right rally together around such a campaign? Why hasn’t it happened yet?
MV: The principal obstacles to private climate governance are not political – that’s part of the advantage of this strategy. Government, and thus politics, can be bypassed. The fact that private institutions and private markets are involved suggests that those with a conservative worldview may be less averse to this solution than to others, and that provides some room for optimism. Note also that consumer-oriented carbon reduction strategies are only a small part of the private climate governance strategy that professor Gilligan and I outline in Beyond Gridlock. Often corporations and other private institutions reduce carbon emissions because of influences from investors, lenders, employees and others, even if consumers are not engaged.
MNM: How would you assess the “carbon literacy” of the American public? Is knowledge regarding the amount of carbon one emits in daily life a prerequisite for an effective private governance campaign for households? What would a carbon literacy campaign look like?
MV: The carbon literacy of the public in the US and around the world varies a great deal, with some having a sophisticated understanding but many having little knowledge. Shahzeen Attari and her colleagues have done great work on this, and they have found that people often overestimate visible forms of energy use and underestimate by many times their energy use from some household activities. Similarly, our research team found that people think they should idle their cars for over four minutes if they want to save gas, when the right answer is ten to thirty seconds. Over ten million tons of CO2 emissions are associated with this idling, an amount larger than several industrial sectors. Addressing energy invisibility and correcting myths provide two areas of opportunity for private governance response, using information to drive behavior change without requiring altruism or support for climate mitigation.
MNM: Are there/should there be limits (voluntary, moral, or otherwise) on the right of an individual to use and emit carbon? How can the concept of limits on carbon usage gain currency?
MV: This is an important but complex issue, and we do not address it in this paper. We do suggest a private climate registry as a way for people in this generation to tell future generations what they did in response to climate change.
MNM: Should the government set a “Recommended Carbon Limit” similar to the FDA’s Recommended Daily Allowance? Should consumers at least be advised by the government as to what a reasonable per person usage of carbon is? (Note: I just wrote a blog post on this topic wp.me/p1yDzM-2R)
MV: This is an interesting idea, but government action is not what we are focused on at this point. The point of our Beyond Gridlock paper is that although there are many things government could do, most of them are not viable in the near term, and much of the population dismisses government as the messenger. Yet we need to start bending down the carbon growth curve. To analyze new initiatives, we suggest always accounting for the technical potential and behavioral plasticity of any action, as well as the policy plasticity of the initiatives that could induce behavior change. A Recommended Carbon Limit probably scores well on the first two but not so well on the third. Following the analysis we suggest in Beyond Gridlock, one approach would be for a well-respected private organization, not a government agency, to set a Recommended Carbon Limit. That may be more viable in the near term and may allow the concept to be tested and shaped while government remains in gridlock.
MNM: What single private governance initiative is the most exciting and has the most potential to make a significant impact?
MV: The increasing pressure on corporations to disclose the carbon emissions of their suppliers (often called “Scope 3” emissions) is an initiative that has a great deal of promise. It has a large potential because a large share of all corporate emissions originate from suppliers, and if the buying firms demand carbon reductions from suppliers, the emissions reductions pressure can cross international borders to suppliers in other countries without any international agreement. This is one of the few ways to create incentives for emissions reductions among small- and medium-sized companies in developed and developing countries. We are also very excited about the idea of a private climate prediction market that would enable people to buy and sell predictions about the accuracy of the climate science and to say, “put your money where your mouth is” in climate debates.
MNM: Many have written that the battle to prevent climate change is the equivalent for our generation of World War II, yet the level of complacency in this country is profound, even though 80% plus per the recent New York Times poll now understand that climate change is occurring and that it is man made. What will it take to galvanize and mobilize the public to make the radical changes necessary to address the CO2 problem before it is too late? Where do you see the leadership coming from?
MV: We think it is a mistake to assume that this mobilization must occur in the near term only through the traditional political processes that affect governments at the state, national, and international levels. It is also a mistake to start with radical change. When concern about a problem, such as climate change, is widespread but a low-priority preference for many people, the best response may be to try to buy time while a sufficient consensus develops and the barriers to government action are overcome. We can achieve more than a billion tons of emissions reductions annually over the next decade by using private initiatives to address market failures and behavioral failures that are widespread around the globe. The principal message of Beyond Gridlock is not that government action is not necessary but that it is a mistake to wait for the optimal government response. Instead, we should be pursuing emissions reductions through public and private initiatives to buy time for a more comprehensive response. The leadership to pursue a private climate governance strategy could come from advocacy group or corporate managers, philanthropists, or pundits, or it could emerge from people who are on the sidelines now but become motivated to do something about the issue.
MNM: Where is your research and writing headed next in relation to carbon emission reduction strategies?
MV: We are continuing to identify new initiatives around the world that are reducing carbon emissions despite the government gridlock at the national and international levels. Once you make the conceptual shift to understanding the role that private governance can play in reducing carbon emissions, it is remarkable how many examples you can see around the world, and how many new possibilities emerge.
Posted in Campaigns, Carbon Offsets and tagged Activism, Carbon, carbon and lifestyle, carbon reduction, Carbon Strategies, Climate Campaign, CO2 reduction | Leave a comment
“Beyond Gridlock” Finds Enormous Potential in Private Emission Reduction Efforts
Vanderbilt Professors Michael Vandenbergh and Jonathan Gilligan’s new article “Beyond Gridlock” (advance version available here, publication in the Columbia Environmental Law Journal in Summer 2015) finds enormous potential for carbon emissions reductions from voluntary private actions by businesses and households despite governmental gridlock. Mobilizing such private initiatives could buy additional years to enact comprehensive national and international climate legislation and agreements before we reach a 2oC rise in global temperatures.
The authors examine a wide array of private initiatives, ranging from corporations requiring carbon-emission disclosures from the suppliers in their supply chain (as Walmart, Cisco, and Dell have done), to drivers shutting off their cars when they idle for more than 30 seconds, to a private climate registry wherein individuals can register their actions to prevent climate change for future generations. They conclude that these and other private initiatives together could lead to a reduction in annual CO2 emissions worldwide of a gigaton or more.
Beyond Gridlock is an important counterweight to the excessively narrow focus of many in the climate movement on carbon pricing and other forms of governmental action. Many sectors of society are ready, willing, and able to make major reductions in their carbon footprint without any governmental involvement whatsoever. Corporations, foundations, and people concerned about climate change should deploy their creativity, resources, and energy towards voluntary efforts now, regardless of what our politicians are doing (or not doing) on climate.
The authors suggest that private action may accelerate the likelihood of government action, by enlisting broader participation in the climate mitigation effort, and by reducing the negative impacts of a carbon tax on businesses and individuals.
Beyond Gridlock points the way to further research. What conditions activate dormant citizens and corporations to reduce their carbon footprint? What can foundations, universities, advocacy organizations, and others do to promote and support private action? What role can local, state, and even the federal government play in expanding it? How can a culture of private action be fomented?
Beyond Gridlock is an important work because it marks a path for citizens and organizations to realize major reductions in CO2 emissions despite a gridlocked political system.
(Coming soon: Interview with Beyond Gridlock author Michael Vandenbergh)
Posted in Campaigns, Climate Change, CO2 and tagged Activism, Campaigns, Carbon, carbon reduction, Carbon Strategies, CO2 reduction, Elinor Ostrom | Leave a comment
Can a Recommended Carbon Limit Do for Carbon what Recommended Daily Allowances Do for Food?
What policies can bridge the divide between the public’s concern about the climate crisis and their unwilling-ness to pay additional taxes on energy?
Recent New York Times polling found that 83% of Americans (including 61% of Republicans) believe that global warming will be a serious world problem if nothing is done about it. The public’s high level of concern about global warming does not translate into willingness to pay more for carbon. The poll found 63% of the public opposed to higher gasoline taxes, and 74% opposed to higher electricity taxes.
One low-cost, high-return approach would be for the government to set and promote voluntary guidelines and targets for individual carbon emissions limits similar to the “recommended daily allowances” the FDA sets for calorie and sodium intake. The Recommended Carbon Limit (RCL) for Americans could be set, for example, at 27,500 pounds (12.5 metric tons) of CO2 emissions per year (30% below the existing U.S. per capita average or more than 50% above the European average), and could be reduced 5% annually from there. Just as with food’s “nutrition facts” box, the RCL could be paired with a labeling campaign, which could, for example, inform consumers at the gas pump that using a gallon of gas emits 20 lbs of CO2, or state on their electric bills how much CO2 was used to generate their electricity.
The purpose of the RCL would be to raise consumers’ awareness of their carbon emissions and how those emissions contribute to the world’s CO2 problem, and to encourage consumers to set limits on their emissions.
Establishing an RCL would generate enormous controversy and debate about the individual’s duty to conserve carbon, the role of government in setting carbon limits, what the appropriate carbon limits should be, and whether there should be different limits depending upon where one lives. These debates would highlight the consumer’s role in carbon reduction and raise awareness of key carbon-reduction issues that receive little public attention. The debates would also highlight key issues hindering carbon reduction efforts, such as many communities’ dependence on coal-generated power, poor mass-transit in suburban and rural area, and the difficulties of financing home weatherization and solar panel installation.
The RCL would likely be more politically popular than carbon taxes. Americans’ visceral opposition to higher taxes would be avoided. The limits would be set without regard to personal wealth, and would therefore be more egalitarian than gas taxes, which fall harder on the poor than the wealthy. The limits would be completely voluntary.
RCLs would bring out into the open the issue that has long been obscured in public debates—whether individuals’ use of carbon should have limits. Carbon limits should have the imprimatur of government, because of government’s unparalleled reach and credibility, and because it is important that the entire population understand that everyone needs to do his or her part in solving the CO2 problem.
We are running out of time to deal with the climate crisis. A clear message from the government to consumers about their role in addressing their carbon emissions is both critical and long overdue. Just as the FDA’s recommended daily allowances help people establish a healthy food diet, RCLs are necessary to help us establish a healthy carbon diet.
Posted in Carbon, CO2, Stigmatizing Carbon Use and tagged Campaigns, Carbon, carbon and lifestyle, carbon reduction, Carbon Strategies, Climate Campaign, CO2 reduction | Leave a comment
Making Progress on Climate in the Trump Years
Why We Liberals Deserved to Lose the Election
How the Charger Can Beat the Nozzle
Interview with Ian Monroe, Founder of Oroeco, Social Network for Carbon Reduction
Tesla’s Model 3 and the Future of Gasoline
Carbon Pledge
cultural agency
Stigmatizing Carbon Use
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Downtown Mesquite Development Program
A dynamic partnership of citizens and the City of Mesquite has resulted in a powerful new force revitalizing the historic heart of the city.
From the process of envisioning a successful downtown to hiring staff to achieving Texas Main Street Program designation, the partnership is putting together all of the elements necessary to create a vital downtown that is authentic, vibrant and a point of pride for the community.
Downtown Mesquite Program Earns Two Prestigious Statewide Awards
Downtown Mesquite’s development efforts were honored with two statewide honors at the Texas Downtown Association’s annual President’s Awards Gala held in Georgetown, TX.
The partnership of the City of Mesquite and citizens to revitalize downtown won the Spirit of Downtown Award, which recognizes local projects that represent the overall efforts of the downtown or commercial district and their goals for the year. The Gathering at Corner Theatre won the statewide award for being the Best Economic Game Changer in cities with a population of 50,000 or more. This category recognizes projects, programs or promotions that had measurable impact on a downtown or commercial district in a striking and powerful manner.
Two Downtown Facade Grants Approved
Two Downtown Mesquite façade improvement grants were approved by City Council, which marks the first use of a new incentive program for the improvement of downtown properties.
The Downtown Mesquite Façade Improvement Program was created to encourage improvement of properties within the downtown area. Approved projects are eligible for a 50% reimbursement of the cost, with the maximum reimbursement of $20,000. The program also includes free design services.
Bill Metzger of Metzger Awards and George Boyce are the first two downtown property owners to apply and be approved for grants. Metzger is eligible for a grant of $6,116 and Boyce is eligible for a grant of $2,800. The Metzger property at 105 W. Main will undergo several improvements, including new signage and lighting, new paint, general door and window repairs and a new awning with custom brackets. The Boyce property at 202 W. Davis will see the installation of a new awning, as well as cleaning of the brick exterior.
For further details on the grant program, please see information below.
Facade improvement grants, which will be in the form of a reimbursement, will be for 50% of the cost of a façade rehabilitation up to $20,000. The program is funded by the Towne Centre Tax Increment Finance Reinvestment Zone No. Two, and a pool of $80,000 is available through the current fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.
Projects must be vetted by the Downtown Mesquite Development Advisory Board and approved by City Council before work commences on any façade project. Once the façade rehabilitation is completed, it will be inspected for adherence to the proposal. If the façade work is true to the approved plan, the property or business owner will receive a reimbursement check.
The façade grant program can be coupled with free design services also made available to downtown business and property owners. By virtue of being part of the Texas Main Street Program, Downtown Mesquite has access to historic preservation architects who will provide architectural renderings, scopes of work and technical assistance briefs to owners in the downtown area free of charge. Abell noted that those considering applying for a façade grant will be encouraged to consult with the Texas Main Street architects before proceeding.
To see the complete Downtown Mesquite Facade Improvement Program policy, procedures and application, click here.
Call City of Mesquite Downtown Development Manager Beverly Abell at (972) 216-6450 for more information.
Front Street Station Infrastructure Project Underway
Construction has begun on Front Street Station, a $5.5 million public improvement project that will update infrastructure, including new sanitary sewer lines, storm drain and water lines as well as the installation of three grease traps to accommodate restaurant development. New lighting, sidewalks, paving, shade structures, a stage area and more than 80 parking spaces will also be installed. In addition, there will be a pass-through “pocket park” that will allow pedestrians passage between Front Street and Main Street.
Substantial completion is projected for late 2020.
Click on the following links for press releases regarding Front Street Station:
Road Closures Begin
Groundbreaking Event
City Council Approves $5.5 Million Project
Downtown Development Highlights
Significant progress is being made on the revitalization of Downtown Mesquite! Though successful revitalization is not accomplished overnight, we are happy to say new activities, new programming and new business development is already occurring even though our program is still in its beginning stages. Below you will see a timeline of some of the most significant achievements of the past few months as well as links to articles on Downtown Mesquite revitalization progress.
These highlights are the result of very concentrated effort on the part of citizen volunteers and City of Mesquite staff. On the near horizon are more business development tools, events, downtown design improvements, Front Street infrastructure and streetscape improvements and more. Stay tuned!
Mesquite Marketplace
Follow us on social media to get the latest Downtown news
We are proud to be a Designated Texas Main Street and National Main Street Program Downtown!
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Follow us on Facebook: Clarity Visas Immigration - Follow us on Twitter: @RogolsUK
Case Assessment
UK 0121 3 894 895
Entry Visas, Leave to Remain & Citizenship
Contact us to discuss your options if you wish to live, work, study, join family or do business in the UK
There are so many reasons that someone decides to come to the UK. It can be for a quick visit, to work or study, to come and live with family members and even for a safe place away from conflict in their country of origin.
We specialise in all aspects of UK immigration particularly for people who wish to come to the UK on a long-term basis. We can guide you through the process so that you can live the life in the UK that you have always dreamt of.
Free case assessment
Let's examine your immigration matter with a case assessment
Our case assessment is designed to confirm whether you qualify to make the application to come to or stay in the UK. We will go over the eligibility criteria and the documents required to support the application for the best chance of success.
Trust your case to experts to ensure the best possible result in your case. At Rogols Solicitors we specialise in all aspects of UK immigration including Entry to the UK and defending deportation proceedings. We treat our clients with the respect and attention we believe everyone deserves. Our experienced lead Immigration solicitor takes a personal interest in every case. We represent clients from all over the world.
Your immigration case is an investment in your future.
If you are a foreign national who has decided to make the UK your home then you must make sure you follow the correct immigration path.
When you need help with your immigration case, don't take chances thinking it will sort itself out, and don't risk having problems later on just to save money now. We're living in a harsh immigration climate. There is more scrutiny now on immigration applications than ever before.
UK Immigration Experts
Our team is led by Rachel Okello, a Solicitor who specialises in UK immigration and family law issues. Rachel started practising law in 1998 and qualified as a Solicitor of England and Wales in November 2002. During her career she has specialised in criminal law, family law and immigration law. She has been self-employed since 2007 so understands the ins and outs of doing business in the UK
She now focuses on advising people who wish to come to the UK on a long term basis especially to work, join family or do business. She has a particular interest in cases involving the right to family life; protecting the rights of people who wish to live in the UK to be with family members. More
Join our mailing list and get your free Ebook “Top 10 Ways to Come to the UK 4 Love”
In this simple guide we break down the different ways that someone can join their spouse or partner who already lives in the UK or to continue to live together if both are already in the UK.
We also look at what to do if things go wrong and the relationship breaks down.
Thank you!!!! to the most genuine A1 solicitor of all times. Rachel and her team showed top-class professionalism and gives an amazing support. What was probably the most stressful situation to deal with in my lifetime; was made so much easier with all your straight forward advice and positive attitude.
I knew that I was dealing with a God sent solicitor. You knew the best direction for a successful application. I will definitely recommend you to anyone looking for an immigration solicitor.
Thank you again Rachel and your team, can’t even thank you enough. God bless you all
“Thank you so much for helping our church member…you went over and above the call of duty” Pastor Scott, Canon Street Church, Birmingham.
Years of Stuggle
“I’m so glad I came across your offices..thank you so much for everything” (Successful client whose case had been in the Home Office for 12 years prior to our instructions)
We're changing Lives
Your out here saving lives Rachel Okello. Great work. The recognition is well deserved.
Great work you are doing - changing peoples lives
Much respect for you Rachel. Your works are a God send to many people. Blessings on you always
We advise and represent clients who need a visa to enter the UK; those with family immigration issues; those going through non - criminal deportation. We start with an in-depth consultation at our office, over the telephone or by video-link.
Rogols Solicitors
Branston Court, Branston Street, Jewellery Quarter Birmingham B18 6BA
Regulated by SRA
Copyright © 2019 Rogols Limited T/A Rogols Solicitors - All Rights Reserved.
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Joan Fowler / Elizabeth Price
Elizabeth Price: The Woolworths Choir of 1979, 2012, HD video, 18:00 min installation view, Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, Image courtesy the artist and MOT International, London and Brussels.
Elizabeth Price at the Model, Sligo, 25 June – 28 August.
As is her usual practice, Elizabeth Price supplemented her installation at The Model – three video works and several prints – with a typically in-depth public talk about her work. Clearly she sees this as an important added offering, and the audio recording of the event allows comparisons between the perceptions of artist and viewer.
Price’s videos are so multi-layered one might expect that her account is a straightforward narrative of their genesis. Instead her talks are just as layered, as confirmed by the availability of several on the Internet. She exerts a verbal rigour equal to the production of her videos, but, notwithstanding this, there is a multiplicity of concerns that reject a single intent or meaning. These conversations provide many insights as to how and why the material – ideas, principles, images, sounds, words, patterns, rhythms, repetitions – combines and mutates.
Price understands there is a reservoir of sound, image, and rhythm residing in the subconscious which, when plumbed, may come forth as forms of agency in the social world. Importantly, she also understands that the raw material is many and varied, and that critical appraisal should arrest any singular movement towards the soporific and on to spectacle. The final video works remain remarkably quiet even while popular and consumer culture prevail as content. If one might take the liberty of suggesting an overall interest, it is that Price’s work uses the technical means of a technocratic world to expose and explore subjectivities within; and how these subjectivities might be put to work towards a more qualitative sense of community.
Written by Joan Fowler
Joan Fowler is a writer focusing on Art in Ireland.
A link to the audio of the conversation can be found here.
Published on: Wednesday 5 October 2016
Chris Hayes / Lina Selander
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City of Coronado » Government » News Center » Coronado TV
Coronado TV See Schedule Below
Coronado TV is the City of Coronado's government access channel, a public channel which provides timely and informative content for the community. The channel offers programming 24 hours a day seven days a week, including two City Council, two Planning Commission, one Naval Complexes and three other live board, commission or committee meetings per month.
Watch Coronado TV live
Operated through the City Manager's Office and a contract administrator, Coronado TV produces all the video and bulletin content. In addition to live meetings and rebroadcasts of meetings, Coronado TV also produces the City Manager's Weekly Update video and other special events, public service announcements and short features.
Coronado’s local government channel provides enumerable opportunities for the City to broadcast public meetings and information to enhance our ability to attract viewership, become more open and engaged with citizens, and build trust through communication and transparency.
Coronado TV can be found on Time Warner Cable Channel 19 and AT&T Channel 99. Please note that if a program runs longer than anticipated, the meeting immediately following it on the schedule will begin later than the published time. Scrolling text at the bottom of the program on Coronado TV will inform the viewer if a show is running long.
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Choose a Facility
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Do you know of a program that isn’t listed here? Have you noticed a mistake, or do you have an update for us? Please contact us and help us keep this directory as accurate as possible.
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College of the Redwoods
Operating In
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Rory Johnson (PBSP)
rory-johnson@redwoods.edu
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tory-eagles@redwoods.edu
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talcott@redwoods.edu
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Successful Introductory Day for Apprenticeship Applicants
With a record number of Work+ Apprenticeship applications this year, Lagan Specialist Contracting Group invited top applicants to attend an introductory day which began at Rosemount House where they learnt about career pathways at LSC and were given the opportunity to meet with current LSC Apprentice Civil Engineer, Finbar McGrade to find out first-hand what it’s like to be part of the Work+ Apprenticeship scheme within LSC.
The Apprenticeship applicants then made their way across to the University of Ulster (UU) site where the chosen apprentice will be based. Whilst at UU, applicants were briefed on the importance of Health and Safety and given a comprehensive overview of the project including the use of BIM by Henry Doyle, project Director. Finally, applicants were invited to take a tour around the site to see the current activities and gain some insights into the practicalities of working on a large-scale site.
To find out more about early careers at Lagan Specialist Contracting Group click here
To find out more about the Work+ Apprenticeship Scheme click here
Pictured above: (L-R) Paddy Willis (Lagan Specialist Contracting Group) pictured alongside top Work+ Apprenticeship Applicants
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British Editors
Tina Brown, editor of The New Yorker, talks about the increased circulation in the five years since she's been with the magazine and her career aspirations. Anna Wintour, editor in chief of Vogue, talks about the magazine's September issue. Elizabeth Tilberis, editor in chief of Harper's Bazaar, on turning the 125-year-old magazine around.
Tina Brown Elizabeth Tilberis Anna Wintour
Art and design Media
Elizabeth Tilberis
Elizabeth Tilberis, editor in chief of Harper's Bazaar, on turning the 125-year-old magazine around. 24:48
Remembering Elizabeth Tilberis
In remembrance of Elizabeth Tilberis, a rebroadcast of an appearance from 1998. 03:38
Greg Garrison; Elizabeth Tilberis
Law, Media
Lawyer Greg Garrison on the O. J. Simpson and Mike Tyson trials. Elizabeth Tilberis of Harper's Bazaar on turning the 125-year-old magazine around. 55:21
Littleton Shooting; Lavrov; Greenstock;...
Politics, Society, Health
An examination of the Littleton, CO school shooting; Sergey Lavrov; Jeremy Greenstock; Elizabeth Tilberis. 53:16
Remembering Si Newhouse
A conversation about Si Newhouse, the legendary chairman of media company Condé Nast, who died recently. 32:13
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Is there software or a device that allows bookmarking positions to allow variation analysis?
I'm wondering if there is any chess software or portable chess computer that allows a position to be bookmarked while a variation is examined? For example, it's possible to download pgn for games analyzed in Chernev's logical chess. However, there isn't a diagram for every position, and occasionally the author outlines alternate moves and their consequences. While it's possible to follow through this analysis on a board and "unplay" the moves back to the point where this divergence from the actual game takes place, this can be time-consuming. What I'm looking for is the opportunity to bookmark a point in the game, follow the variation through, and then click back to the bookmark to continue on with the game, rather than clicking a back arrow for every move that was made. Thanks
Chessbase is a commercial product that solves your problem. Any position in Chessbase is in essence a bookmark. You can just click on the move/position you want to go back to (all the moves are available visually beside the chess board). I believe the same functionality is available for free with Scid.
HalvardHalvard
In the days before electronics, I managed this with a pocket magnetic set. I'd follow along playing the game on the board, and when I wanted to explore a variation I set the "return" position on the magnetic set to save until I was done and wanted to go back.
These days every chess database of any stripe will allow you to jump directly to a given move. So you follow along, create a new variation, follow it, and then with one click you jump back to the original position.
Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged software or ask your own question.
Is there any chess software that tutors beginners?
Is there chess software that allows storage and replay of media annotations?
What Chess Software allows creating a chess Ebook?
Is there a chess software that allows to generate and store engine evaluation graph for a chess game?
What chess software allows to search for sacrifices and combinations?
Chess Software for analysis and notes
Is there a multiplayer Chess GUI that allows you to choose the starting position?
Chess GUI that allows null-moves
Minimax and alpha beta
Is there any software that will analyse games offline?
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Marvel Studios Celebrates The In-Home Release of “Avengers: Endgame” with the “We Love You 3000” Tour
– Posted on July 15, 2019Posted in: Movies
MARVEL STUDIOS CELEBRATES THE IN-HOME RELEASE OF “AVENGERS: ENDGAME” WITH THE
“WE LOVE YOU 3000” TOUR
Nine cities and 3,000 giveaways to thank fans who’ve invested 11 years in the MCU!
In celebration of the in-home release of “Avengers: Endgame,” Marvel Studios and directors Anthony and Joe Russo have teamed up to launch the “We Love You 3000” Tour as a way to thank the fans who have invested so deeply in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), making it the single most successful franchise in film history.
Special guests from Marvel Studios and the MCU will visit nine U.S. cities — beginning in San Diego at Comic-Con International on July 20 and ending in Anaheim at D23 Expo 2019 the weekend of Aug. 23-25— greeting and treating fans at each tour stop. A total of 3,000 MCU Funko Pop Vinyl Figures will be distributed to fans throughout the tour as well as additional giveaways ranging from exclusive “Avengers: Endgame” prints to McDonald’s vouchers for a free Happy Meal® plus an Avengers: Endgame Happy Meal toy to a MCU inspired sundaes and recipe cards courtesy of Ben & Jerry’s.
Best Buy will serve as the location for five “We Love You 3000” Tour stops, hosting in-store fan events to celebrate the nationwide release of Marvel Studios “Avengers: Endgame” on Blu-ray™ Aug. 13. Events will feature signings with Marvel Studios filmmakers and/or MCU talent; a special digital photo booth; specialty promotional giveaways, including MCU Funko Pop! Vinyl Figures and exclusive “Avengers: Endgame” prints; and much more. Fans can also get their hands on the exclusive, limited edition “Avengers: Endgame” SteelBook and other collectable SteelBooks from the MCU at Best Buy stores across the country and on BestBuy.com.
For more information on what’s taking place in each market, visit www.Marvel.com/WeLoveYou3000.
Fans are encouraged to use the hashtag #WeLoveYou3000.
FAN EVENTS/TOUR STOPS:
July 20 SAN DIEGO, Comic-Con International – Directors Anthony & Joe Russo, Writers Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely and a special guest from the MCU
July 30 EVERETT, WA, Funko HQ – to be announced
Aug. 8 SAN FRANCISCO, Giants vs. Phillies at Oracle Park – Directors Anthony & Joe Russo at the San Francisco Giants’ Marvel Night
Aug. 13 MIAMI, Best Buy store – to be announced
Aug. 13 CHICAGO, Best Buy store – Directors Anthony & Joe Russo
Aug. 13 TORRANCE, CA, Best Buy store – to be announced
Aug. 14 MINNEAPOLIS, Best Buy store – Directors Anthony & Joe Russo
Aug. 20 CLEVELAND, Best Buy store – Directors Anthony & Joe Russo
Aug. 23-25 ANAHEIM, CA, D23 Expo 2019- to be announced
ABOUT “AVENGERS: ENDGAME” IN-HOME RELEASE:
Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Endgame,” the climactic conclusion to an unprecedented, 11-year cinematic journey in which the Avengers take one final stand against Thanos, delivered the biggest opening weekend in history and is currently one of the highest-grossing films of all time. On July 30, Avengers fans around the world are invited to assemble once more for the in-home release of “Avengers: Endgame” on Digital in HD, 4K Ultra HD™ and Movies Anywhere, followed by a physical release on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray™, DVD and On-Demand beginning Aug. 13.
New Poster And Trailer For AVENGERS: ENDGAME
Official Synopsis For AVENGERS: ENDGAME Revealed
AVENGERS: ENDGAME Reaches A New Milestone
Marvel Studios “AVENGERS: ENDGAME” releases on Digital 7/30 and on Blu-ray 8/13
Official Images Of Marvel Legends AVENGERS: ENDGAME Wave 2 And More!
Tags: avengers: endgame, marvel studios
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You are at:Home»Interviews»The Enlightenment, Humanism and Morality with Dr Stephen Law
The Enlightenment, Humanism and Morality with Dr Stephen Law
By Scott Jacobsen April 2, 2018 No Comments
Part of "School of Athens" by Raphael
In Part 4 of this interview series, Dr Stephen Law speaks to Conatus News about the Enlightenment, Humanism, Morality and more.
Scott Jacobsen: New data and analysis make arguments for humanism and positive progress based on Enlightenment values and scientific discovery easier now. Some of the most prominent humanists, including Professor Steven Pinker in Enlightenment Now (2018) make arguments of these forms. Do these arguments seem valid and more reliable than in previous centuries to you? What are their strengths and weaknesses?
Dr Stephen Law: It’s an empirical question whether the post-Enlightenment world is getting better in various respects. I have not read Pinker’s book or looked at much of the research, so not well-placed to comment on that. I am aware of the fact that you will likely get differing answers depending on exactly which question you ask of the available data, of course.
My interest in the Enlightenment has tended to focus particularly on those who want to blame the Enlightenment for various ills.
There are some post-modern thinkers who do this – who blame the Enlightenment for the Holocaust, for example. Lyotard is one of them. There are also religiously conservative thinkers who blame the Enlightenment for the Holocaust. Journalist Melanie Philips does so quite explicitly, and I seem to remember historian Michael Burleigh made a TV programme which also made that argument. Here’s Philips:
The Enlightenment gave us freedom and liberal values, but it also gave us … The Holocaust.
Philosopher John Gray says about Count Joseph de Maistre, a staunch defender of the Church and Pope and one of the Enlightenment’s most vigorous critics, that:
[w]hen he represents reason and analysis as corrosive and destructive, solvents of custom and allegiance that cannot replace the bonds of sentiment and tradition which they weaken and demolish, he illuminates, better perhaps than any subsequent writer, the absurdity of the Enlightenment faith [for such it undoubtedly was]that human society can have a rational foundation. If to reason is to question, then questioning will have no end, until it has wrought the dissolution of the civilization that gave it birth.
So someone like Pinker, or me, who thinks that reason and the Enlightenment value of thinking independently and for oneself should lie at the heart of raising good citizens will come under attack from two different directions. We are criticised by post-modern thinkers who think that this elevation of reason turns it into a highly oppressive authority. We are also criticised by religious conservatives who blame the kind of independent critical thinking espoused by Enlightenment thinkers for undermining traditional sources of authority, promoting relativism, and unravelling the social and ethical fabric.
Neither of these critiques is correct, of course.
Jacobsen: Continuing from the previous question, how does the humanist framework provide a way in which to think about ethics practically, especially with all of the technology involved at every level of decision-making now?
Law: That is an enormous question. Humanism does not really offer a specific philosophical ethical theory. Some humanists are utilitarians; some are not, some humanists are moral realists, some are not. One thing humanists do have in common is a rejection of the thought that some special texts or people must be deferred to because they are sources of divine guidance.
Hume was probably right that science reveals only what is the case, not what one ought to do, and one cannot rationally support an ought conclusion using only ‘is’ premises. So science alone cannot answer moral questions. Many humanists accept that (not all – Sam Harris disagrees, for example). However, that still leaves a great deal of scope for science to inform our moral thinking. If I believe women should not get the vote because I believe dim people should not get the vote and that women are dim, my moral position can be demolished scientifically, because it’s based in part on a false empirical claim: women are dim.
Almost everyone agrees that, whether or not science alone can justify moral positions, it can be hugely helpful with moral judgements. Almost everyone agrees morality has at least something to do with human flourishing in this life. And it’s an empirical matter what helps humans flourish in this life, so scientific investigation of what helps us flourish will be very valuable, morally speaking. What we think will help us flourish often turns out to be incorrect.
Jacobsen: With these positive gains in the scientific world and the expansion of the moral sphere, what new values that are now fringe considerations in ethical decisions will in the coming decades become mainstream and even central in moral choices?
Law: Well one obvious candidate is genetic enhancement – designer babies. As the technology develops, we will have some hard decisions to make. I was also recently involved in discussion with John Danaher about robot sex. That is already a thing, apparently (robotic sex dolls are on sale). That also raises lots of interesting questions about human relationships, freedom, the law, etc.
In my opinion, what should now come to the fore, but probably won’t, is class. We are all acutely aware that racism, sexism, homophobia are forms of discrimination that hurt our fellow human beings badly. “I’d suggest a form of discrimination that hurts our life prospects at least as much as these other forms is class discrimination: classism if you like.”
Of course, this is controversial. Currently, more on the right are beginning to voice publicly what many think privately – that the lower classes are genetically inferior, and that this is overwhelmingly what explains their lack of social mobility. Whether this is true is an empirical matter, of course.
Jacobsen: Thank you for the opportunity and your time, Dr Law.
Dr Stephen Law is Reader in Philosophy at Heythrop College, University of London. He is also the editor of THINK: Philosophy for Everyone, a journal of the Royal Institute of Philosophy (published by Cambridge University Press). Stephen has published numerous books on philosophy, including The Philosophy Gym: 25 Short Adventures in Thinking (on which an Oxford University online course has since been based) and The Philosophy Files (aimed at children 12+). Stephen is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Arts. Our prior article, here, and main interview, here, and sessions in this series here, here, and here.
Dr. Stephen Law Enlightenment humanism Morality Science
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Scott Jacobsen
Scott Douglas Jacobsen is the Founder of In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal and In-Sight Publishing. Jacobsen works for science and human rights, especially women’s and children’s rights. He considers the modern scientific and technological world the foundation for the provision of the basics of human life throughout the world and advancement of human rights as the universal movement among peoples everywhere.
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How One Community Organisation is Tackling the Problem of Refugee Integration in Britain
Olivia DeLaurentis on This Gets Ruff: “I’ve Always Loved Dark Comedy”
My Pride, Your Pride. Do We Still Need Pride?
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Reel Big Fish Tour Dates 2020
Feb 26, 2020 - Mar 8, 2020
Reel Big Fish extend 'Life Sucks...Let’s Dance!' tour
Ska punks Reel Big Fish will continue touring across America into early 2020 supporting their latest album 'Life Sucks...Let’s Dance!'. The new 10-city outing kicks off February 26th in Savannah and runs into March visiting cities like Charlotte, Baltimore, Syracuse, Lancaster and Huntington. Joining the tour in support will be special guests Big D And The Kids Table and Keep Flying. The tour originally launched earlier in 2019 and was joined by MEST and Bikini Trill.
Reel Big Fish released their ninth studio album 'Life Sucks...Let’s Dance!' on December 21st, 2018 via Rock Ridge Music. The same year, the band embarked on their Tickle My Tiki Torch Tour across America with support from Ballyhoo! and We Are The Union. Then in 2019, they hit the road with Bowling For Soup and special guests Nerf Herder before teaming up with The Aquabats for another co-headlining tour along with Dog Party. Back in 2017, they launched The Beer Run tour with The Expendables, The Queers and Tunnel Vision.
Reel Big Fish Concert Schedule
Victory North - Savannah, GA
Feb 26, 2020 | Wed 8:00 pm
Neighborhood Theatre - Charlotte, NC
Levels Nightclub - State College, PA
Mar 1, 2020 | Sun 6:00 pm
Town Ballroom - Buffalo, NY
Mar 3, 2020 | Tue 8:00 pm
The Westcott Theatre - Syracuse, NY
Mar 4, 2020 | Wed 6:00 pm
Chameleon Club - Lancaster, PA
Mar 5, 2020 | Thu 6:30 pm
Upstate Concert Hall - Clifton Park, NY
About Reel Big Fish Tour Albums
Reel Big Fish appeared on the Alternative scene with the release of the album 'Everything Sucks' released on November 30, 1994. The song 'I'm Cool' quickly became a success and made Reel Big Fish one of the fastest growing performers at that time. Thereafter, Reel Big Fish released the most popular album 'Turn the Radio Off' which is comprised of some of the most beloved music from the Reel Big Fish discography. 'Turn the Radio Off' hosts the track 'Sell Out' which has made itself the most well-known for music lovers to experience during the shows. In addition to 'Sell Out', most of other tracks from 'Turn the Radio Off' have also become sought-after as a result. A handful of Reel Big Fish's most beloved tour albums and songs are provided below. After 22 years since releasing 'Everything Sucks' and making a major effect in the business, fans still gather to see Reel Big Fish appear live to play tracks from the entire collection.
Reel Big Fish Tour Albums and Songs
Reel Big Fish: Turn the Radio Off
Sell Out
She Has A Girlfriend...
Snoop Dog, Baby
Skatanic
All I Want Is More
Nothin'
Reel Big Fish: Cheer Up!
Somebody Loved Me
Ban The Tube Top
A Little Doubt Goes ...
Dateless Losers
Rock 'n' Roll Is Bit...
Reel Big Fish: Why Do They Rock So Hard?
Somebody Hates Me
Brand New Song
She's Famous Now
The Set Up (You Need...
Thank You For Not Mo...
I'm Cool
I Want Your Girlfrie...
Everything Is Cool
Song #3
Scott's A Dork
Reel Big Fish: Everything Sucks
Call You
Hate You
I'll Never Be
Fo' Head
Why Do All Girls Thi...
Say "Ten"
Reel Big Fish: We're Not Happy 'til You're Not Happy
Drinkin'
Don't Start A Band -...
A-W-E-S-O-M-E
We Hate It When Our ...
Turn The Radio Off
Talkin' Bout a Revol...
The Bad Guy
The Joke's On Me
One Hit Wonderful
Last Show - Dirty
Reel Big Fish Concert Tour Questions & Comments
Reel Big Fish Tour and Concert Ticket Information
Concert schedule for Reel Big Fish is located above.
Front row tickets will not be any concern, we always have great tickets.
Tour schedules for all Reel Big Fish concerts are updated constantly.
Reel Big Fish tour dates has recently been reported.
Tickets for the forthcoming Reel Big Fish concert are in stock.
Reel Big Fish may come to a city near you. View the Reel Big Fish schedule on this page and click the ticket button to checkout our big selection of tickets. Look through our selection of Reel Big Fish front row tickets, luxury boxes and VIP tickets. Once you track down the Reel Big Fish tickets you need, you can purchase your seats from our safe and secure checkout. Orders taken before 5pm are normally shipped within the same business day. To purchase last minute Reel Big Fish tickets, check out the eTickets that can be downloaded instantly.
Reel Big Fish Top Tour Album
Savannah, GA Charlotte, NC Baltimore, MD State College, PA Buffalo, NY Syracuse, NY Lancaster, PA Huntington, NY Clifton Park, NY
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Why Information Security is Hard
5.1 Current Market Practices Undermine Cybersecurity
5.2 Offensive Operations Are Easier Than Defensive Ones
Why Information Security is Hard -- An Economic Perspective
Ross Anderson, Why Information Security is Hard -- An Economic Perspective, 17th Annual Computer Security Applications Conference (ACSAC'01), IEEE Computer Society, December, 2001. Web AltWeb
Issues: Economics of Cybersecurity; Incentives; Risk Management and Investment
Approaches: Regulation/Liability
Black Hat, Botnet, DDoS Attack, Information Asymmetries, Tragedy of Commons, White Hat
Current Market Practices Undermine Cybersecurity
According to one common view, information security comes down to technical measures. Given better access control policy models, formal proofs of cryptographic protocols, approved firewalls, better ways of detecting intrusions and malicious code, and better tools for system evaluation and assurance, the problems can be solved. In this note, I put forward a contrary view: information insecurity is at least as much due to perverse incentives. Many of the problems can be explained more clearly and convincingly using the language of microeconomics: network externalities, asymmetric information, moral hazard, adverse selection, liability dumping and the tragedy of the commons.
This paper examines the winner-take-all IT market structure and the strategic practices towards market power that enable poor management decisions and large-spread security failures. The focus is on the constant competitive struggles to entrench or undermine monopolies and to segment and control markets that de facto determines many of the environmental conditions that make the security engineer’s work harder. The paper also suggests that it is likely that over time, government interference in information security standards will be motivated by broader competition issues, as well as by narrow issues of the effectiveness of information security product markets.
Offensive Operations Are Easier Than Defensive Ones
The paper also examines information warfare from a theoretical perspective to show the weakness of information security, and why offensive operations are more attractive than defensive ones:
Let us suppose a large, complex product such as Windows 2000 has 1,000,000 bugs, each with an MTBF of 1,000,000,000 hours. Suppose that Paddy works for the Irish Republican Army, and his job is to break into the British Army’s computer to get the list of informers in Belfast; while Brian is the army assurance guy whose job is to stop Paddy. So he must learn of the bugs before Paddy does. Paddy has a day job so he can only do 1000 hours of testing a year. Brian has full Windows source code, dozens of PhDs, control of the commercial evaluation labs, an inside track on CERT, an information sharing deal with other UKUSA member states – and he also runs the government’s scheme to send round consultants to critical industries such as power and telecomms to advise them how to protect their sys- tems. Suppose that Brian benefits from 10,000,000 hours a year worth of testing.
After a year, Paddy finds a bug, while Brian has found 100,000. But the probability that Brian has found Paddy’s bug is only 10%. After ten years he will find it – but by then Paddy will have found nine more, and it’s unlikely that Brian will know of all of them. Worse, Brian’s bug reports will have become such a firehose that Microsoft will have killfiled him. In other words, Paddy has thermodynamics on his side. Even a very moderately resourced attacker can break anything that’s at all large and complex. There is nothing that can be done to stop this, so long as there are enough different security vulnerabilities to do statistics: different testers find different bugs. There are various ways in which one might hope to escape this statistical trap.
• First, although it’s reasonable to expect a 35,000,000 line program like Windows 2000 to have 1,000,000 bugs, perhaps only 1% of them are security-critical. This changes the game slightly, but not much; Paddy now needs to recruit 100 volunteers to help him (or, more realistically, swap information in a grey market with other subversive elements). Still, the effort required of the attacker is still much less than that needed for effective defense.
• Second, there may be a single fix for a large number of the security critical bugs. For example, if half of them are stack overflows, then perhaps these can all be removed by a new compiler.
• Third, you can make the security critical part of the system small enough that the bugs can be found. This was understood, in an empirical way, by the early 1970s. However, the discussion in the above section should have made clear that a minimal TCB is unlikely to be available anytime soon, as it would make applications harder to develop and thus impair the platform vendors’ appeal to developers.
Information warfare looks rather like air warfare looked in the 1920s and 1930s. Attack is simply easier than defense. Defending a modern information system could also be likened to defending a large, thinly-populated territory like the nineteenth century Wild West: the men in black hats can strike anywhere, while the men in white hats have to defend everywhere. Another possible relevant analogy is the use of piracy on the high seas as an instrument of state policy by many European powers in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Until the great powers agreed to deny pirates safe haven, piracy was just too easy. The technical bias in favor of attack is made even worse by asymmetric information. Suppose that you head up a U.S. agency with an economic intelligence mission, and a computer scientist working for you has just discovered a beautiful new exploit on Windows 2000. If you report this to Microsoft, you will protect 250 million Americans; if you keep quiet, you will be able to conduct operations against 400 million Europeans and 100 million Japanese. What’s more, you will get credit for operations you conduct successfully against foreigners, while the odds are that any operations that they conduct successfully against U.S. targets will remain unknown to your superiors. This further emphasizes the motive for attack rather than defense. Finally – and this appears to be less widely realized – the balance in favor of attack rather than defense is still more pronounced in smaller countries. They have proportionally fewer citizens to defend, and more foreigners to attack.
Expertise Required: None
Ross Anderson's home page
Retrieved from "http://cyber.harvard.edu/cybersecurity/?title=Why_Information_Security_is_Hard&oldid=5846"
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The National Archives at Philadelphia
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News & Commentary, Visual Arts
The Venice Biennale and the Australian Pavilion’s history of repetition
By John Kelly | April 30, 2017 |
Artist John Kelly is in Venice – painting – in a visit that coincides with next month’s Venice Biennale. Kelly is a regular visitor to the Biennale and a commentator on the Australia Council sponsored Australian Pavilion in which (usually) one artist is chosen to represent the country’s art.
In 2015 he wrote in Daily Review of the coterie of powerful commercial galleries behind Australia’s choices in the article The 2015 Venice Biennale and the Myopia of Australia’s Arts Leaders.
This year’s artist is Tracey Moffatt whose My Horizon project will comprise all new work including large-scale photography and film. Ahead of the opening of the Biennale (running from May 13 until November 26), Kelly looks back at some of the recent Australian representations and finds repetition in the choice of artwork represented.
“Irony is the song of a bird that has come to love its cage…” – David Shields (The fourth law of thermodynamics)
“When we look at Australia’s representation in the pavilion it’s impossible to think of the chronicle, and not think about recent Australian art, because we’ve never got it wrong.” So sang Commissioner Doug Hall while opening the Hany Armanious exhibition at the 2011 Venice Biennale.
The writer David Foster Wallace defined “blind certainty” as “a closed-mindedness that amounts to an imprisonment so total that the prisoner doesn’t even know he is locked up.”
Ten years earlier in 2001 ABC reporter Jill Singer filed from the Venice Biennale, introducing the work of Robert Gober over an image of a floor piece consisting of a ‘wood’ fragment lying across a ‘polystyrene’ block. Gober was representing the USA and is famous for his ‘sinks’ – exacting replicas of bathroom sanitation units – that so heavily quote Duchamp’s urinal of 1917.
Singer intoned, “…as with his previous work Gober produced meticulous reconstructions of everyday objects, bronze sculptures of Styrofoam blocks, newspaper cut-outs and a gin bottle.” Singer cut to artist Imants Tillers, who responded to Gober’s work with “…well I thought it was absolutely terrible and I think it’s kind of complacent in a way, and it depends totally on being in the American pavilion and, you know, having all the aura of that. You know if he was to show as an unknown artist in the Australian pavilion nobody would take any notice.”
At the 2011 Biennale, Hany Armanious represented Australia. “Armanious creates duplicates of eclectic, everyday objects and presents them in a gallery, thereby turning them into fine art.” On the floor of the pavilion was a simulacrum of a painted wooden-plinth with simulated duct tape patching up a hole. Elsewhere there were Styrofoam-looking reproductions cast in resin – as a homage to Gober it was, well, gob-smacking.
I am questioning is the curatorial and conceptual repetitiveness of the art exhibited by Australia since 2001
Gober’s work relies on exacting reproduction and unusual juxtaposition. For example, his Untitled Leg, 1989 – 1990, is a super-realistic sculpture of the lower part of a man’s leg complete with shoe, sock, trousers cuff and human hair, the dismembered limb curiously sticking out from the gallery wall. Adrian Searle described another Gober work in 2001 as “Half-male, half-female human torsos wallow like flesh drowning in itself.” In 2003 Australia’s representative was Patricia Piccinini with We are Family. Her mutant figures including replicated boys, complete with clothes and human hair.
“Game Boys Advanced (2002) is a hyperreal sculpture of two boys leaning against the gallery wall…At first they look normal…On closer inspection we can see that the boys are not normal. Their faces are aged, their hair is greying at the temples…Hairs and veins appear on their little arms, and their fingers have thick, yellowing nails.”
“Robert Gober makes hand-crafted sculptures that replicate everyday objects with an eerie precision and, usually, a detail or two that is just a little bit off.”
Alongside Piccinini’s mutant teenagers were crash helmets that had mutated to strangely shaped heads, comprising “…a strange mixture of mask, motorcycle helmet and prosthetic device – all wrapped up into a desirable consumer item displayed on a shelf.”
Skip along two more years and we come across Ricky Swallow representing Australia at Venice, with his exactingly meticulous wooden replicas of the everyday object. Swallow’s oeuvre also reflects Gober with his pair of realistically carved hands emerging from the gallery wall, a carved bicycle helmet with slithering snakes, a dismembered arm hanging vertically on the wall, a kitchen table covered with reproductions of fish, a bean bag enveloping a skull. It’s a type of photorealism reproduced in three dimensions.
Fast forward to 2013 and 2015 and we find Simryn Gill and Fiona Hall respectively representing Australia in Venice. Gill’s approach “…to making art involve adapting everyday and found objects…into mordant, yet playful pieces: a Native American (‘Red Indian’) head dress, for instance, fashioned from dried chillies…” “Hall’s work is enormously popular, partly because of its clever use of everyday objects, from the sardine cans…”
Look back a hundred years and we find DADA challenging the orthodoxy: “Dada artists, for example…modeled a headpiece fashioned of sardine cans.” 1917 is also when Duchamp’s urinal was created, and so we are back to Gober’s bathroom sinks in 2001. But let’s go via the German pavilion, also in 2001, where we find Gregor Schneider meticulously reconstructing the interior of his family home that is situated in the German town of Rheydt. “I dream about taking the whole house away with me and building it somewhere else…” Six years later Australia’s representative Callum Morton’s Valhalla reconstructed his Melbourne family home as part of Australia’s presentation in Venice.
Why are we promoting such a narrow view of Australian Art?
Shaun Gladwell was Australia’s representative in 2009. Along with his stunt videos he exhibited an exact replica of a car and motorbike.
If you think I am criticising the artists for their conceptual heritage, I am not. Rather than criticising the art, what I am questioning is the curatorial and conceptual repetitiveness of the art exhibited by Australia since 2001. For by definition contemporary art should be erratic, inconsistent, diverse and elusive, just as it is in the global art landscape. However, Australia has consistently shown work that might be termed Post-Modernist but which is traceable not just to the primary experience (DADA 1917) or even the secondary (American Art of the ’50s and ’60s) but to tertiary sources of the ’80s and ’90s (Gober). The question is why are we promoting such a narrow view of Australian art?
Ten years ago, David Foster Wallace argued persuasively that the problem with Post-Modernism is that it offers no hope, that it simply identifies our situation to the point that the prisoner can’t see the bars – our Venice pavilion might be regarded as the offshore detention centre.
“Irony and cynicism were just what the U.S. hypocrisy of the fifties and sixties called for. That’s what made the early postmodernists great artists. The great thing about irony is that it splits things apart, gets up above them so we can see the flaws and hypocrisies and duplicates . . . The problem is that once the rules of art are debunked, and once the unpleasant realities the irony diagnoses are revealed and diagnosed, “then” what do we do?. . . Postmodern irony and cynicism’s become an end in itself, a measure of hip sophistication and literary savvy. Few artists dare to try to talk about ways of working toward redeeming what’s wrong, because they’ll look sentimental and naive to all the weary ironists. Irony’s gone from liberating to enslaving. There’s some great essay somewhere that has a line about irony being the song of the prisoner who’s come to love his cage.”
This imprisonment leads to a form of curatorial and artistic narcissism which begets a form of elite consumerism to satisfy the needs of that narcissistic personality – much the way western advertising and consumerism uses exclusivity and exclusion to encourage consumerist behaviour, with any perceived criticism being met by the closing of the mind while looking for internal support. It’s just as how Facebook excludes ‘friends’ that have not been ‘liked’ – an ‘echo chamber’ or ‘bubble’ environment is created. This allows the Australian art establishment, as reflected in the presentations at Venice, to maintain their ‘blind certainty’, because it grows out of a ‘blind privilege’ and blots out all other possibilities.
But what of those critics who have tried to question the perceived orthodoxy and establishment art, for surely the Australia Council for the Arts, whose pavilion it is, supports diversity? My experience suggests not. In 2002 I challenged the ‘Branding the Arts’ strategy advocated by the Australia Council. This strategy grew out of the Saatchi and Saatchi report ‘Australians and the Arts’ (2001) which advocated Australian art should be down to earth and accessible. More recently I have questioned the repetitiveness of the presentations when writing on the past decade of Australia at the Venice Biennale. I have constructively pointed out the works origins within a clearly identified establishment of commercial galleries and museums who promoted this Official Oz Art (let’s call it ‘OOzA’). As expected, you get blow-back, like in 2002 when an Australia Council employee’s email response to me read:
Fuckhead: don’t send me this trash – it’s not clever
All petty stuff, but none is more damning of an institution set up to support artists in Australia than what a well- known journalist told me of a conversation he had at the 2009 Venice Biennale with a senior Australia Council representative at the time. “Please do not to have anything to do with John Kelly,” she advised him.
The evidence suggests that branded OOzA exists and by identifying and tracing it you realise that it has squeezed out many other alternative Australian artists in an epoch of great Australian creativity. Sadly, it brings to mind Henry Lawson’s advice to young Australian writers which is as apt today for artists as it was 100 years ago, just as Duchamp was exhibiting his non-functional urinal.
My advice to any young Australian writer whose talents have been recognised would be to do steerage, stow away, swim, and seek London, Yankeeland, or Timbuctoo – rather than stay in Australia till his genius turns to gall, or beer. Or, failing this – and still in the interests of human nature and literature – to study elementary anatomy, especially as it applies to the cranium, and then shoot himself carefully with the aid of a looking glass. – Henry Lawson 1867 – 1922
[box]Main image: John Kelly painting in Venice this week[/box]
John Kelly is a painter, sculptor and printmaker Kelly who was raised in Australia and lives in Ireland. In Australia Kelly is best known for his paintings and large sculptures of William Dobell’s cows, papier-mâché creations used during WWII in an attempt to confuse enemy aircraft as to the location of the Australian airbases. His sculptures of these cows have been exhibited on the Champs Elysées, Paris, in Les Champs de la Sculpture, 1999, Monte Carlo, in La Parade des Animaux, 2002, the MAMAC in France, The Hague, 2007, Glastonbury (2006 and 2007), Cork city 2011, and Melbourne Docklands and Sunshine (2001 to the present).
12 responses to “The Venice Biennale and the Australian Pavilion’s history of repetition”
Hoojakafoopy says:
Repetition? Simulation? Representation? These are age-old modes by which art operates and common to artists across the world and throughout time. Robert Gober didn’t invent them & linking a handful of Australian artists who all exhibited at Venice over the last decade through their engagement with them doesn’t amount to much.
Sally Morrison says:
Art is a conversation. Artists copy and thieve, copy and thieve and copy and thieve themselves up blind alleys – or they combine their copying and thieving with something close to them that hasn’t been seen before in that way – and then, you have originality and the start of something. This is a good essay and timely.
quasimodo says:
“Fuckhead: don’t send me this trash – it’s not clever” is surely a badge of honour!
It likes stuff it can buy and sell and revalue to build tax losses. It doesn’t give a flying fuck what it looks like so long as the price tag can be exhibited and boasted about. There are, of course, the genuine art lovers, but they’re not really a part of that World, not really. Shit, you can’t let just anybody in!
Scott Redford says:
“The new artwork looks really new and alive only if resembles…every other ordinary, profane, thing or every other ordinary product of popular culture” – Boris Groys
We could add to Groys’s list: The new artwork looks really new and alive only if resembles every other past work of art. What Kelly is describing above is the endgame of Contemporary Art. Contemporary Art is an epoch of art, it is an art style. Google Contemporary Art and you will see various objects and video images in uniformly white rooms. Blur your eyes and you will see it is all basically the same. Look at a Contemporary Art auction online and after a while you notice that all this art (of whatever value) has FAR MORE in common than any sense of difference between the artworks. Part of this problem is the fact everything now comes to us via a jpeg on the Internet.
Also we have to also realise these expanded Internet and social media platforms now so available mean more people are making images and art and more art is “out there”. We also can see that so-called sub art (the more commercial art produced for the lower end of the market chain) has become almost indistinguishable from “high art Contemporary Art”. Let’s call this the revenge of Jeff Koons’s notion that in reality the rich have no more taste than everyone else. This is why Contemporary Art HAS to keep its illusion of “quality and excellence” as in reality this is the ONLY THING that separates the profane objects and media of high end Contemporary Art from being perceived as somehow “better” and more valuable and significant than the rest of the world. More worthy of a place in the Archive of the Museum. This is why so many artists (including myself) spend so much time trying to get into Museums.
In fact Groys has many times argued that it is only within the context of the Museum that most Contemporary Art has any meaning at all. Leave most Contemporary Art out on the street and it is just stuff on the street. Leave a painting on the street and its a misplaced painting. This is why Painting always survives, only a painting exists in Art and as only pertaining to Art. The true subject of Contemporary Art is this argument of Context before Contemporary Art finally fulfills what the earlier, properly radical artists wanted which was the end of high art.
In this age of the Internet and Social Media we must realise that everything has been done, and done 100s of times before. Some artists do IT better than most, many just do IT. Every artist and also most members of the real public know that it is only the power of the (usually Govt Funded) Gatekeeper that makes ANY DISTINCTION at all. I have 30+ years experience of this. My work has been both reviled and lauded…often by the very same curators at different times!! In the end one realises just how arbitrary and sinister the whole system is. Looking now from the Outside I can see it as a perverse game whereby those curators finally retire BUT more the same take their place! Deckchairs on the Titanic. I can safely say it is FAR BETTER to go Outside the Australian Contemporary Art World than be in it, step away and it all looks very small, incestuous and hegemonic indeed.
Australian Art is a deeply conformist and conservative space. Australian Art is Government Art as only Govt can deliver regular and sustainable funding. all of us in Australian Art are basically Govt employees and therefore by definition we all pump out Propaganda for the Status Quo. One only has look at how Australian Art parades itself as being “good” via multicultural Pluralism whilst Australia happily puts people in Concentration Camps on Manus. But let’s not stop at that obvious hypocrisy. Let’s look at the sham “paradise” at the heart of QAGOMA’s APT series. We happily lap up art from countries who murder their own citizens (China, Philippines, Myanmar); are brazenly Undemocratic (Singapore) or have other appalling lack of values. APT is Propaganda and inhuman.
Of course the argument is that APT is “Art” and somehow art is a “free” space…but the exclusion of 99.9% of artists from QAGOMA (artists and image makers deemed not worthy) proves the illusion of freedom is just that.
In the end Contemporary Art, art history, academia itself just cannot deal with the vast bulk of individual subjectivites that constitute Culture. Every time QAGOMA or Tate or MoMA etc adds a “new” country to its roster of Art they actually show their failure to ever be Democratic. Only the Internet and Social Media provide some Symbolic form of Democracy. Popular Culture also can give at least a semblance of this.
Australia at Venice Biennial was made far worse when the process of curators and artists submitting Projects to Australia Council was scrapped (Ricky Swallow was the last). Is it any wonder that Australia now shows basically the same art each time. The same people with the same mindset choose it each time. What is fascinating is that last year at the Architecture Biennial Australia just showed a fully functioning swimming pool and it got the press no Australian Art has ever got at Venice. I say we just leave the pool there permanently, a much cheaper option.
A Dubbo says:
John very true.
Speaking as an artist my fear is : ‘ jezz, what if they liked me?’
Hang on, I’m confused, aren’t you (John Kelly) doing the same thing as you abhor by using William Dobells cows and calling it your art? Just by putting the cow in a tree or on its head doesn’t make it original. I’m confused, please enlighten me.
Dirk Hudson says:
As someone who doesn’t live in Australia, born in the ’60’s, and brought up on B&W WWII films, I have been exposed to a WW II narrative (as have other Europeans) that actively ignores the Australian commitment and ingenuity of the time. I have traveled to France specifically to “do” the Normandy Landings coastal tour in the company of an English war historian.
I had never heard of William Dobell’s cows , or indeed had it occurred to me to consider the Australian homeland wartime defenses, although I always knew of the ANZACs due to their time-honoured sacrifices.
When I first saw the “Dobell’s cows” in Ireland, it was the smaller sculptural edition of “Man Lifting Cow”; it made me smile. I just assumed, Ireland. ..bloody windy…cow in tree….ha, ha,ha. I was’t particularly familiar with John Kelly or his work. When I learned of the Dobell connection, I was fascinated by the story…it was from this I looked further into Kelly’s work and saw the substance and breadth of it, which I now love.
I think Kelly’s use of the Dobell story is a worthwhile example of bringing often-marginalised history into popular view…Does anyone need another “Ned Kelly” work out there to break the story of his exploits? In fact, it’s hard to look at a galvanised bucket without being reminded of the Ned fella….
As to the article above, I think there are many interesting points in relation to the copying/influence/inspiration of Duchamp, Dada etc. Other than copying Duchamp in some tired form, it would seem to me that the logical conclusion of those wanting to build on Duchamp’s work would be to urinate in said seminal artwork, juxtaposing the contextual…blah-blah-blah.
Will Coles says:
Probably best if you at least check out an artist’s work before you criticise it. I came across his work about 25 years ago in a London gallery, loved it but had to find out more, so I did, which improved my appreciation of his work.
Gober was the US representative. What is your point?
See article above.
Cawabunga says:
Demoralizing to contemplate art in this country, as an artist you have Buckley’s of ever getting into such shows, the same few boring old names get it every time. Surely the other countries point and laugh at how we can’t manage anything fresh or exciting on the international art stage.
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The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula Power Rankings – Season 2, Episode 1
November 4, 2017 by krisis
Your eyes do not deceive you – I’m back, back, back, back again with more drag power rankings for you!
What rankings? Well, even though RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Season 3 does not debut until January, it’s no longer the only drag show you can stream to the comfort of your own couch.
Hennies, please let me introduce you to Season 2 of Dragula – the search for the next drag super monster! This new season is free to watch on World of Wonder’s YouTube channel!
I’ve loved horror even longer than I’ve loved drag, ever since the first chapter book I ever read was a children’s version of Dracula. Unfortunately, the modern horror landscape tends to be focused on gore and jump scares, and not a lot of the macabre suspense I dug as a kid.
Dragula brings that creepiness and sense of macabre – along with the heaping of camp that comes with a great drag performance.
Rather than preparing for an outlandish challenge in each episode, contestants prep a horrific look that adheres to a specific scary theme – like zombies or sea monsters. Then, rather than present the look on the runway, the queens bring their them to life on a genuinely scary floor show that’s sometimes in a challenging environment, like the middle of the desert!
Finally, and I do mean finally, there are no lip syncs for your life here. Queens are eliminated via Extermination! This season, they first face their fears in a frightening challenge against other low-ranking queens. Then, the bottom queen (or queens!) films her own creepy, campy death scene at the hands of hosts The Boulet Brothers!
The queens of Season 1 turned out some amazing looks despite the show’s low budget. This first Season 2 episode is worlds different – it’s shot in much higher quality, and the queens all bring highly-detailed horror looks filled with prosthetic make-up and practical effects.
Enough explanation – let’s get to the show and the rankings! This week each queen was tasked with turning out a horrific, Hellraiser-inspired Cenobite – you probably know the most-famous one as “Pinhead.” Cenobites are sadomasochistic extra-dimensional beings who take the shape of humanoids whose bodies are consumed in an endless state of half-torture, half elaborate art.
[Read more…] about The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula Power Rankings – Season 2, Episode 1
Filed Under: teevee Tagged With: drag, Dragula, Ranking
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Power Rankings, Season 3 Pre-Season RuVeal!
October 21, 2017 by krisis
It’s time… time for more fabulous drag queens!
That’s right, last night RuPaul took the to the airwaves to announce an all-new cast of nine queens for RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Season 3, which is set to debut in January.
While the past two seasons of All Stars heavily featured queens that reached the finals, this cast doesn’t have a single Final Three competitor in its rank.
If these aren’t the most glittering of all-time drag stars, then what is the unifying theme of this season of All Stars? It could be “Ru-Grets.” In the case of over half of these queens, RuPaul could credibly claim that she has since had second thoughts about the “Sashay Away” that lead these queens to make their exits the first (or, in two cases, second) time around.
How well will these return queens fare in glamorous combat based on what we’ve seen of them in past seasons and in their brand new video packages? Keep reading for as I rank the house down to assess the chances of each of these queens to strut into the Hall of Fame alongside Chad Michaels and Alaska Thunderfuck 5000.
[Read more…] about RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Power Rankings, Season 3 Pre-Season RuVeal!
Filed Under: teevee Tagged With: drag, Ranking, RuPaul's Drag Race, RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Season 3
RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E12 – “Category Is”
June 10, 2017 by krisis
This week the world got flipped turned upside down in more than one way.
First, RuPaul made the unprecedented decision to go with a final four queens in the finale!
If you’ve been following my rankings, you’ll know I’m pretty pleased with the development, as I’ve been shuffling the same four queens back and fourth in the top four for weeks now.
However, the other thing that feels totally flipped tonight are the rankings themselves! I feel like we’re completely topsy turvy compared to what the queen’s average rankings from the season were telling us coming out of last week.
I got the distinct sense tonight that the queens are no longer competing against each other, but battling against themselves to turn the best version of their own take on drag. As such, I’ll be grading each queen individually in their own 50 point scale based on their original song verse, their choreography, their dance outfit, their final runway look, and their brief speeches.
No points will be awarded for the four-way lip sync because nobody cares. [Read more…] about RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E12 – “Category Is”
Filed Under: teevee Tagged With: drag, Ranking, RuPaul's Drag Race, RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 9
RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E11 – “Gayest Ball Ever”
June 3, 2017 by krisis
It’s my favorite every-season episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race – the Drag Ball – and this year’s Gayest Ball Ever did not disappoint!
(How could anything be a disappointment when it involves sexy unicorns?)
Our consistent finale foursome absolutely delivered in every look without a single fail amongst them, and it made for some very interesting final jockeying in the rankings after last week and before the final elimination next week.
Because this episode was all about gag-worthy looks, I’m going to rank each of the three ball looks individually before recapping the queen’s overall power ranks! I won’t bother ranking our departed queen since she was the worst in every look.
(It’s not shady if it’s true.)
Look #1: Rainbow-She-Betta-Do
If this was any other group of queens we’d be at risk of being pounded over the head with the most rainbow-y rainbow looks that ever rainbowed, so it was a pleasant surprise to see all four of these brainy queens depart from the expected color spectrum in their own way.
1. Sasha Velour
I was living for Sasha’s deconstruction of the rainbow!
Sasha Velour’s color-blocking approach to wearing the rainbow was a genius turn, and her tailored skirt set with green leather gloves and Dorothy shoes was gorgeous. That she had a tiny rainbow house tucked beneath her red hat (wrapped with fabric from her cowgirl costume!) just sealed the deal of her outfit’s excellence.
2. Shea Couleé
Shea’s pastel graffiti rainbow dress might go down as the most controversial look of the entire season … at least, for me it will.
There’s no denying the cut and silhouette was high fashion, but was it rainbow bright? Honestly, I was getting “dirty sofa” from it way more than “rainbow,” especially from the structured top.
Yet, this is an instance where I can tell my read is a total mismatch with the judges – Shea’s desaturated take on rainbow was clearly a hit with the panel. [Read more…] about RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E11 – “Gayest Ball Ever”
RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E10 – “Makeovers: Crew Better Work”
May 27, 2017 by krisis
With only three episodes left until the finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race we’re down to the gauntlet of three major every-season challenges: a makeover this week, a ball next week, and presumably some form of RuPaul music video the week after that.
Will this trio of terrible challenges finally shake one queen out of our super-tight top four so we have a clear final three heading into the finale?
This makeover on the members of the Drag Race crew didn’t help much in that respect. We did see one queen take a minor plunge after last week’s standings, but when you see who it is you’ll understand when I say it changes nothing about who is making it to the finale.
[Read more…] about RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E10 – “Makeovers: Crew Better Work”
RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E09 – “Your Pilot’s On Fire”
Last night’s Ru Paul’s Drag Race brought us one of the most epic meltdowns in the history of the show, confirming some of my suspicions about a certain queen from last week.
It also sported a challenging runway where only half the queens scored a solid hit, but it also yielded some truly memorable looks.
What does that mean for the rankings? It’s another shake-up, that sees one queen in particular making a strong case for the finale while another hopes to crash the finale four party by blowing past next week’s challenge.
Before we get to that, a word on this week’s departed queen. [Read more…] about RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings, S09E09 – “Your Pilot’s On Fire”
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You are at:Home»Culture»Celebrate Internet Day 2018 Today!
Celebrate Internet Day 2018 Today!
By Scott Slater October 29, 2018 No Comments
Today is October 29th, or as we at Digital Addicts like to call it, Internet Day! For those of you who don’t know, Internet Day falls on the 29th of October each year, and commemorates the first network message sent between two computers. On this day, we celebrate the Internet. Which is perhaps, one of the most important technological advancements ever made.
For some of us (I’m looking at you fellow millennial’s), its hard to imagine a world without the Internet. Just about everyone in today’s society uses it in some way on a daily basis. Whether its sending an email at work, playing online video games, or just reconnecting with someone on social media, the internet has undoubtedly changed our lives. So, let’s take a moment to reflect back on how it all started.
The History Of Internet Day
Almost 50 years ago to the day, the very first message was sent via ARPANET (the predecessor to the internet). A Computer Science professor (Leonard Kleinrock) from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) attempted to send the word “LOGIN” to another computer system located at the Stanford Research Institute (SRI). Using the ARPANET, Kleinrock was able to transmit his message. However, halfway through transmission, the network crashed. As a result, only the first two letters were successfully transmitted to the Stanford location. Thus making the first Internet message read “LO”. An hour later, the network was repaired and the full “LOGIN” message was successfully sent and retrieved.
It’s safe to say that nobody present for this historic event in 1969 could have imagined just how important the Internet would eventually become. In just a few short years, the ARPANET was expanded to included several other universities and government research facilities. And shortly after that, the Internet as we know it was available to the masses. This is the reason why October 29th was chosen to commemorate Internet Day. It was truly the first step in the creation of the Internet.
How To Celebrate Internet Day
Now that you know a little bit more about the backstory of Internet Day. There are a few things you can do to celebrate the occasion. Our first suggestion would be to visit the very first webpage to exist on the Internet. While it may not look like much, the website is still online after several decades, and still in it’s original form. Aside from reliving a bit of history, you can also take some time to strengthen the passwords on all your online accounts. While this might not be the most fun way to spend Internet Day, you’ll certainly be glad you took the time to do so.
You Might Also Like: Online Safety Basics For Safer Internet Day
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January 5, 2013 January 18, 2017 / Tom
Release: Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Finally someone let Tarantino off HIS chain so he could function at a much higher level — and that is of course, to our great benefit. And it is this I shout louder over many other shouting people, in an effort to laud the director on what may well be his best work thus far. I was a little slow on getting to the theater (Christmas shopping and traffic can be a bitch) but now I understand all the hype surrounding it. Except for Spike Lee. I’m still ignoring him.
Quentin Tarantino knocks ’em dead with Django Unchained, a love story plucked out of pre-Civil War America (places and times aren’t ultra-specific, but you can infer from just a few racial epithets right off the bat). It’s a bold, visionary and violent story of justice and redemption that centers around a recently freed slave (Jamie Foxx) who is willing to do what is necessary to reunite with and emancipate his beautiful wife, Broomhilda, from whom he has been separated courtesy of a slave trade some years ago. On the way to accomplishing that personal goal, he helps a German bounty hunter, Dr. King Shultz (Christoph Waltz), settle some of his vendettas by providing what the bounty hunter would later call ‘the fastest guns in the South,’ slaying several of Shultz’s most wanted in extremely efficient and rapid succession.
Indeed, the bodies do start to pile up. The trail of victims — those of which are not without their evils — begins with a trio of merciless slave traders, the Brittle brothers (Tom Savini, M.C. Gainey, and Gerald McRaney), and are simultaneously on the bounty hunter’s and Django’s Most Wanted list — for Django, it’s slightly more personal. Further out in the open country, beyond the Brittle brothers, lies a path filled with other criminals and evil-doers — including brief cameos from an incredible list: Kurt Russell, Don Johnson, Anthony LaPaglia, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jonah Hill. Django’s oddball German partner points this fact out more than a few times; however, the slaying of his former captors and torturers seemed to be all the use of a trigger finger Django ever needed.
That is, of course, until the trail leads the pair to Mississippi, where he learns that’s where he may find his wife. Django and Shultz ride on horseback through dense networks of slave trades and slave routes; towns simply filled to the brim with the sort of atrocities the country had become decadent in defending as the status quo. Although one bit of justice has been served in slaying the ruthless Brittle brothers, Django’s personal hell is only just beginning.
Here, amid long lines of slave traffic all dressed up in all sorts of awkward metal contraptions that look more like weapons meant to distance one slave from the next; here against the muddy backdrop of this sorry state of affairs, Django’s road only starts to grow darker. There have been bodies piling up the entire way through, but once he’s finally been shown one particular neck of the woods, the infamous Candieland Plantation, life goes from bad to worse. It is on the bounty hunter’s good word that this is where Broomhilda still is working as a slave for one Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), a particularly narrow-minded and brutal slave owner.
The thematic elements of Django Unchained were perfect matches for Tarantino’s typical grisly style of filmmaking. God knows what compendium of documents he is going to cite that accurately depict some of the ways slaveowners treated their property in this haunting epic, but it is quite apparent he did his homework. Throughout the film we become spectators to people being viciously whipped, torn apart by hungry dogs, frozen and then immediately thawed out, and hung, among other cruel and unusual punishments. The one thing you can almost be sure of despite Tarantino’s other fare, though, is that these graphic moments of torture were not self-aggrandizing creations. They were rooted in historical happenings. As is often the case in his films, the violence is often excruciating, but it is justified to the highest degree. In this latest example, when Django finally asserts his dominance over former slave owners and inevitably, over the entire plantation in one gloriously bloody scene, the bloodletting and gore becomes a spectacle that is unusually enjoyable. Such guilty pleasures are defining elements of the Tarantino film reel, and certainly Django is off the chain in that regard.
This time, Tarantino’s cleverly disguising his high-brow sense of rectifiable violence in an American society ripped apart by the issue of slavery. Steven Spielberg had something to say on the subject as well, but he focused more on the presidential leadership and how those in power could possibly control/end the situation by way of passing legal documentation, whereas Tarantino had no problem with sticking his hands in the mud and mixing it up until it formed something palpable to sell from a narrower angle. Oh, ho-ho, was it more than sell-able. It was visually arresting, and most importantly educational in its revealing of one of the nation’s darkest times in history.
The best thing that Tarantino and crew could have done — and did — was to get the story up off the ground as quickly and feasibly as possible, avoiding what could easily turn into a lecture if not directed properly. In some of his works, there have been rather extensive expositions to set up characters, plot and other overriding elements that make his films what they are. In this outing, time is not wasted. When Django is first sighted by a passing carriage driver (who would soon become known as the quick wit and our beloved German bounty hunter Dr. Shultz) in the opening scene, only a few minutes have passed and already we’re being dragged into a dramatic and compelling storyline. Once he’s ‘off the chain’ the journey thereafter is destined to be a classic.
Even if that does sound rather biased, try watching the film for yourself and then telling me afterwards that you weren’t rooting for Django. I mean, come on. Never has peer pressure been so rightfully persuasive. . . and morally obligatory. No, no, and don’t even think that you SHOULD root for him, either. You just end up. . . .rooting for him anyway. What his character goes through for the sake of rescuing his wife should at minimum have you invested in Foxx’s inspirational role. Not to mention the indecent time this story is etched into.
Add to that the brilliance of Chris Waltz’s performance as Dr. Shultz, an eloquently-spoken and amiable (though still by profession, a questionable) man and you have a really dynamic and compelling partnership. Not to mention, as indicated by many of the gawking looks on the faces of passing townsfolk, a rare one. He is a free man, but it’s still not fun for him. No one expects to see a black man riding a horse, and those passing stares are stark evidence of how racist the country was at the time.
The lines get further blurred, when Django becomes coerced into fronting as a black slave owner. This gimmick is forced upon him by doc Shultz since they needed a credible means of passing through many of the digs they wind up passing through. Through many parts they get away with the get-up. Then, when the film hits its all-time pull-your-hair-out-from-the-stress level (most of which is generated from the racial tension; the ‘n’ word is dropped 146 times), Django’s past becomes more and more evident. His wife is confirmed as a housemaid for the sick-twisted Calvin character — who’s more like a snarling caricature thanks to an intense performance turned in by the ever-improving DiCaprio — and it sets off alarm bells in Django’s head, thus laying out the blueprint for the final, sure-to-be-messy showdown. Customary Tarantino fare, sure. But brilliantly served on a steaming, silver platter.
Perhaps the ultimate story arc, that of Django and Broomhilda’s, is the only thing worth all the bloodshed, maltreatment of virtually every black person on screen, and the continual sense of backpedaling we get from whatever small accomplishments Django and Shultz seem to be able to earn. It’s understood that for every success Django has, thousands elsewhere continue to suffer and never become freed. The movie certainly does not ignore that fact, but it also need not be concerned with whatever else is going on across the land. Sweeping through the southeast, the tale of Django pursuing his long lost lover is an appropriate magnifying glass.
Take away the bloodshed — or maybe even inspired by an overwhelming presence of it — it is a very romantic film that winds up far more wholesome in its message than many of his previous releases. There is still the same thread of dark humor throughout, though, that tries to balance out the film’s more gritty and punishing attributes. More than a few scenes manage to steer away from sinking into too deep a rut with all the hate-speech, including one memorable KKK digression into disgust of their own attire. All of the Tarantino films weave a rich, darkly comic story of redemption — hardcore, often bone-chilling redemption at that, but none feel so earnest as that of Django’s final triumph.
Recommendation: For historical purposes, for romantic reasons, for pure popcorn entertainment, Django Unchained appeals to many palates. Its romanticism is surely the winning item here, but also getting to see Django unleash his fury was about as satisfying as I was hoping for it to be. On some levels it rose above those expectations. This was my favorite Quentin Tarantino picture, far and away.
Rated: R (for racist remarks?)
Action, Drama, Rave
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2 thoughts on “Django Unchained”
Pingback: Top That: Five of My Favorite Directors | digitalshortbread
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In The Studio - The Immune System and the Brain
Submitted by Lin Weaver on Tue, 12/17/2019 - 5:23pm
Lin Weaver hosts Kimberley McAllister, Professor of Neurobiology, Director of UC Davis Center for Neuroscience.
neuroscience.ucdavis.edu
topics discussed include: the immune system and how it communicates with the brain, new evidence that helps us understand what may cause diseases such as Alzheimer's, multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia, how viral infection affects brain development.
Recorded 12/11/19.
Read more about In The Studio - The Immune System and the Brain
Wine Country at Work - The 1881 Napa Museum and Tasting Room
Submitted by Alexander Silva... on Thu, 12/12/2019 - 2:40pm
This episode is currently not viewable online.
In the heart of the Napa Valley is California's oldest running market, the Oakville Market. Right next door is the new wine country museum and tasting room called 1881, for the year that the market started. This is the story of its creation with the person who acted as the director and manager, George Webber. He is interviewed by Ralph DeAmicis.
Read more about Wine Country at Work - The 1881 Napa Museum and Tasting Room
Wine Country at Work - The Wine Sherpa - Sandrew Montgomery
A wonderful talk with the host Ralph De Amicis and the well respected wine educator Sandrew Montgomery. In the background people frolic around the Welcome to Napa Valley Sign.
Read more about Wine Country at Work - The Wine Sherpa - Sandrew Montgomery
Fast Forward - Connie Willis
Submitted by Alexander Silva... on Tue, 12/10/2019 - 2:24pm
Episode #287 of Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction features a new interview with award winning author Connie Willis. Mrs. Willis talks about her latest novel, Crosstalk. The book is a romantic comedy, using the trope of telepathy to cause all sorts of havoc in the lives of the main characters.
Mrs. Willis also discusses a recent trip to the Space Telescope Science Institute, where she and other science fiction writers got to talk with the team that handles the Hubble telescope data.
Read more about Fast Forward - Connie Willis
Fast Forward - Ada Palmer
Episode #286 of Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction features an interview with author, historian and composer Ada Palmer. Ms. Palmer talks about her first novel, Too Like the Lightning.
Also in this episode:
Guest book reviewer Steve Cordle discusses Night Shift, the 3rd Book in the Midnight Texas series by Charlaine Harris.
Marianne Petrino gives 5 chans, her highest rating, to the thoughtful anime series Gingitsune.
We talk to the man behind "Dalek Rainer" at last year's World Science Fiction Convention.
Read more about Fast Forward - Ada Palmer
Health Focus with Dr. Scott - Dec'19 - Opioid Epidemic - Dr. Dennis Hawley
Read more about Health Focus with Dr. Scott - Dec'19 - Opioid Epidemic - Dr. Dennis Hawley
Fast Forward - Charles Stross
Submitted by Alexander Silva... on Fri, 12/06/2019 - 2:45pm
Episode #285 of Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction features an interview with award winning author Charles Stross. Mr. Stross talks about two of his popular book series - The Laundry Files and The Merchant Princes.
This interview was recorded on May 27th, 2016, on location at Balticon in Baltimore, MD.
Colleen Cahill gives us an unusual review of In Humor Most Odd, a story and essay collection by Alan Loewen.
Marianne Petrino gives a rating of four chans to the anime series Steins;Gate.
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Fast Forward - Bill Campbell
In Episode #284 of Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction, we feature an interview with author, editor, and publisher Bill Campbell. Mr. Campbell talks about the most recent developments at his company, Rosarium Publishing.
He discusses several recent book projects, including one of stories inspired by the works of Samuel (Chip) Delany, an anthology of Southeast Asian "Steampunk" stories, and a book of essays and comics dealing with the current problem of police brutality in America.
Read more about Fast Forward - Bill Campbell
Fast Forward - Contemporary Sci-fi - Conventions
Submitted by Alexander Silva... on Wed, 11/20/2019 - 1:07pm
Episode #283 of Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction features an interview with Bill Lawhorn, a science fiction fan who helps organize and run various science fiction conventions. Mr. Lawhorn talks about different types of conventions, what kind of activities you can find there, and how to get involved.
We feature several short interviews recorded at, Sasquan, the 2015 World Science Fiction Convention.
Note: The YouTube link only contains the interview portion of the show.
Read more about Fast Forward - Contemporary Sci-fi - Conventions
Fast Forward - Contemporary Sci-fi - Charles Gannon
Episode #282 of Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction features an interview with author Charles E. Gannon. He talks in depth about his new book, Raising Caine, the third volume in his Tales of the Terran Republic/Caine Riordan series. Dr. Gannon discusses the political complexities of his future history, as well as the biology of his multiple alien races.
As a special treat, this episode of Fast Forward also goes on location, featuring short segments recorded at the Library of Congress and the 2015 World Science Fiction Convention.
Read more about Fast Forward - Contemporary Sci-fi - Charles Gannon
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Tina Fey At ‘Busy Tonight’ TCA Panel: “Television Is Better Than Movies In All Ways”
By Lisa de Moraes
Lisa de Moraes
TV Columnist
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Busy Tonight star Busy Philipps says her E! late-night show is a work in progress. “It’s a marathon building a four night a week talk show,” she told TV critics at Winter TCA 2019.
“I know personally, from being an actor who worked on a lot of scripted television shows, the pilot of Cougar Town was not indicative of the last episode we shot.”
The show’s recent move from 10 PM to 11 is a “vote of confidence” from the network, she enthused.
Asked if being of “two worlds” – mom of two and social media celeb – makes her a more interesting person, Philipps joked, “I do think I’m a very interesting person, yes,” and boasted her audience skews younger than her age.
Tina Fey signed on to EP the show because “I really liked Busy: she’s charismatic and knows her way around a joke.” A lot of being an EP, Fey explained at the Q&A, is “setting people up to succeed and then getting out of their way.”
Peacock Investors Day Review: A Lot Of 'SNL' Alums, Dick Wolf, & Lessons Learned From Apple, Disney & HBO Max
“Busy knows herself and what she wants to say and do,” she added.
Joining them on stage, showrunner Caissie St.Onge got asked if TV is more progressive than film when it comes to giving women opportunities in positions of authority.
“It’s 100% true,” Fey agreed.
St.Onge speculated it may be easier to take a risk in television, whereas a movie is “a huge ship.”
Jumped in Fey: “Television is better than movies in all ways, though.”
Fey thought it might have something to do with women getting to decide what they’re going to watch on TV more often than they get to decide what movie they’re seeing on the weekend.
When talk turned to Busy’s late-night competition, Fey said it never made sense for Philipps “to come out and do five minutes about the government shutdown” and that the show always was going to be “a place to unwind at the end of the day.”
“Only a female late night host could go back in time and ask [guest] Julia Roberts about not shaving her armpits at the Notting Hill premiere,” Fey boasted.
Philipps described her show as a “little treat for viewers at the end of the night.”
“I was sick of watching Friends reruns before I went to bed,” Philipps said. “I’ve seen them all so many times I wanted to see a show I could watch before I went to sleep.”
Before the Q&A, E! played a clip of the episode in which Oprah called Philipps on the set’s Oprah Phone, taking Busy by surprise, who told Oprah she loved her. At TCA on Tuesday, Philipps got asked how high she was on cold medication at the time. She acknowledged she had been sick, but that the “adrenaline” of the Oprah call made her feel better for days.
“Oprah can heal people,” Fey explained.
And when asked if Philipps looks to any other late-night host for inspiration, or as cautionary tale, Fey interjected that Philipps is not trying to be “one of the Jimmys” but acknowledged that when a guest says something poignant or smart, Busy does typically respond, “Okay, that’s The Oprah Moment; say that again.”
“You repeat it and then she repeats it,” Fey said, describing Oprah’s shtick.
“We are all Oprah’s children,” she concluded.
Caissie St. Onge
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Monday News: The Air Force’s (not so) secret flying saucer; Jane Austen scholar fights; mass market still viable
JanePublishing News23 Comments
This video is of the Ohio State Marching Band whose motto is “THE best damn band in the land” and from the videographic evidence, it’s hard to dispute this. The band does a classic video game tribute. You won’t regret watching it but if you are short on time, skip to the 6 minute mark and watch them do the horse. That was incredible.
Onto the news:
Cult leader – Richard Beck begins this article on Jane Austen talking about how thin skinned the lovers of Jane Austen are. “Austen lovers have not grown thicker skins. They accuse one another of “misreading” Austen, of failing to appreciate her subtle engagement with social history, or of twisting Austen’s own necessarily perfect novels to suit some selfish political or professional need.” The short anecdotes he provides are amusing but he ends the article concluding that Austen’s genius was in her self aware characters. I did like what he said here which could fit in a bit with the piece we ran last Tuesday on the placeholder heroine: Our cultural climate is dominated, in part, by two forms of entertainment which only make sense in the context of constant social judgement. One is the self-help book, which asks readers to judge themselves. The other is reality television, where the viewing pleasure comes from judging the people on screen. Jane Austen could not be a better fit.Prospect Magazine
What Is a ‘Human Flesh Search,’ and How Is It Changing China? – In China, internet denizens are taking action where the government refuses to by using shame and outing of individuals through the publication of personal details. This is called Human Flesh Search in China and it can be used for ill, but as we’ve seen as it relates to book reviewers, it can also be used to silence critics. It’s fairly important to remember the political culture under which the Chinese operate. When a chief of the Shaanxi Safety Supervision Bureau was caught appearing to act callously in the face of tragedy, Chinese citizens took to the internet and his predilection for expensive clothing and accoutrements on a meager government salary led to his dismissal.
“Although the term sounds ghoulish, this sleuthing process involves the probing and posting of personal details in pursuit of romance, kinship, justice, or vindication. Citizens and officials alike are equally exposed to the deluge of home and email addresses, bank statements, or gaming handles. Yang, a man with expensive tastes, was no exception.”
Those in favor Human Flesh Search say that it is a collaborative effort to expose corruption in government but acknowledge that innocent people are hurt. The proponents are wrong that this kind of thing only happens in deformed countries. I’m not certain what a deformed country is. It happens everywhere. Is internet vigilantism a good thing ever? In a place where government corruption is rife, is that the place for it? When does Human Flesh Search become necrotizing fasciitis as people begin to eat each other in great gulps in the chase to be the vigilante hero?
Do Mass Market Originals Still Work? – Publishers maintain that the mass market is still viable format for authors, even debut authors, although the article does not cite one debut author who has gone on to increased success. Instead, the examples given are of authors with established fan bases increasing their reach. “Publishers at HarperCollins’s Avon romance imprint and at Harlequin agreed. Liate Stehlik, senior v-p and publisher at Avon, said HarperCollins continues to be “enthusiastic” about mass market, contending that the decline in mass market unit sales is coming primarily in the reprint segment rather than from sale of mass market originals.” The mass market division hasn’t seen an increase (except for a couple of months) since 2006.
I’ve seen several publishing houses repackaging existing titles and repricing them at $3.99. Avon, Pocket and Hachette all have books releasing in December and January for $3.99. I have heard that these books are destined for special shelving in Wal-mart which is in line with the report in PW that publishers “pointed to the importance of pricing, “innovative” marketing, working closely with retailers, and digital support—both from e-books and digital marketing tools.”
I don’t think the mass market is dead at this time, but I do think its a little problematic to suggest that the only reduction in print sales comes from the reprint market. But I also see a lot of synchronicity between building an author in e and extending the reach in print which is what we’ve seen with self published authors or authors like Beth Kery who has benefited tremendously in building a new audience with her serial.
I see the future of building new authors starting in digital with innovative and platform building pricing and packaging and then extending her reach in print. Publishers Weekly
Image via Big Stock Photo
US Air Force’s flying saucer plans declassified – Declassified papers show that the US Air Force tried to build a flying saucer. I’m not sure why saucers are the shape of the future, but apparently in the 1950s the US Air Force really wanted one. What else is the government building in secret. I hope it is awesome and perhaps has one Avenger (I choose Thor) for each of us. The Verge
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Lynne Connolly
But the coolest marching band in the USA is the USC Trojans marching band:
Gwen Hayes
October 8, 2012 @ 10:56 am
I’ll take Captain America. I’ve always liked his manners. And the challenge of turning him absolutely beastly out of that uniform.
Wahoo Suze
That Ohio video was AWESOME. I sat here, alone in my living room, clapping like a doofus.
Charlotte Russell
@Gwen Hayes: But I WANT Captain America! My 6-year-old daughter is enamored by Thor. I asked her why. Her answer: “Because of all his muscles!”
M_E_S
October 8, 2012 @ 3:57 pm
@Lynne Connolly: FIGHT ON!
Angela Booth
Thanks for the link to the article on “Janeism”. I’ve been looking at all the Jane Austen fan fiction with amazement. Never realized there was so much controversy about the books.
@Lynne Connolly: Sorry but no. They’re not marching. Marching is what makes it difficult.
@Wahoo Suze: I was too. That was outstanding!
jane_l
@Jayne: Yeah, I don’t think the Radiohead thing compares in the least to the amazing galloping horse.
@jane_l: That horse is the bomb. It had me cheering.
At least when the USC band played backup on Fleetwood Mac ‘s “Tusk,” they were marching.
@Jayne: oh, you get the best on that performance, no question (apart from the Chinese display at the 2008 opening ceremony for the Olympics – does that count?) – but the coolest? nuh-uh. Thom’s swagger in this, and playing with omg Radiohead = coolest.
@Lynne Connolly: I will leave you to your opinion on this but for me, nope, still no. Standing there as a backup, in the shadows? Any competent musicians could do that. They are not doing what a Marching Band is supposed to do – and which I’ve seen them do very well – march.
@Lynne Connolly: This may be the wrongest you’ve been and ever will be. Sorry hun.
@Ridley: Couldn’t be more right. I did say cooler, not better.
The USC Trojans are a pretty good marching band, too, but to work with those complex rhythms and counterpoint, not to mention using a 5/4 time signature is a brilliant achievement, especially in the short time they had.
The other is all precision and clever references, but they’re working on known territory, with a system they know well with timescales and rhythms they know well. They had something to build on instead of having to work from scratch. Great to watch, though. Loved the video. It does remind me strongly of the Chinese Olympics opening ceremony.
So if this is the wrongest I’ll ever get, I’ll take it and be grateful.
AlexaB
All I know is that I bought several books by Lynne Connolly today.
Because she is, and always will be, completely right about the USC Trojan Marching Band.
@AlexaB: I hope you enjoy her writing as much as I have. I strongly recommend her “Richard and Rose” series – great stuff there.
@Jayne:
If her writing is as perceptive as her taste in American university marching bands, then I’m sure I’m in for a great reading experience. (Not that I didn’t appreciate the Ohio State video; I just happen to agree wholeheartedly with Lynne.)
And it helps to have your recommendation as well – many thanks!
@Lynne Connolly: If marching to 5/4 time makes a band cool, then many, many marching bands (great and otherwise) have been doing it for years. Also to 3/4, 7/4, and combinations thereof. While marching.
If marching to Radiohead makes a band cool, then the University of Arizona marching band did it years before USC. They have not one but at least two routines set to Radiohead music (including 15 Steps in a recent routine). All the routines involve, you know, marching.
The Ohio State marching band has been better than USC’s band for most if not all of the Trojans’ existence. And I say that reluctantly, as the daughter of Purdue grads, but honestly, as someone who spent her high school years in a competitive marching band.
The best marching bands, pound for pound, note for note, and most definitely dollar for dollar, come out of the HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities).
carmen webster buxton
the Air Force was working on a flying saucer? How did I now know this? That is the US Air Force, right?
The Austen thing sounds like the early formation of a new religion– sects forming, different interpretations of the gospels. Next thing you know they will start wars with each other. -)
And that video was amazing! That band is a living illustration of what teamwork can accomplish!
SonomaLass
I rarely wave The Ohio State University flag (my MA alma mater), but that marching routine is pretty darn cool.
I’m trying to remember the last mass market paperback I bought. It was probably in a series where I had all the earlier books in that format, but I couldn’t say which. Still, I’m all for creative marketing, experimenting with price, releasing older titles (as long as that’s clearly indicated!) or whatever else works to get books into the hands of readers in the formats they prefer.
@Sunita: It’s playing with Radiohead that makes them cool. I’ve spent the time I should have spent writing looking up marching bands now! They’re pretty good. When I was little my Mum used to drag me to the nearest military band, and damn bagpipe bands, and the brass bands that used to play concerts, but the brass bands tend to play sitting down! Perhaps her obsession meant I avoided them. This is what we get – all these guys are enlisted soldiers. A bit stuffier!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA62X9kHrDo
And on the other subject, mass market paperbacks – I haven’t bought one for three years that I can remember. I’ve bought text books and travel guides, and biographies, but not mmpb’s. I was an early adopter of ebooks, admittedly. I’ve been writing them for ten years and I thought it was a bit hypocritical to write for that format and not read in it, too, but I bought mmpb’s alongside the ebooks I bought until about 3 years ago. Partly because most books are now available in ebook format, partly because the reading experience for me is preferable now in e-format.
Estara
I’m just a fascinated bystander clapping everyone’s enthusiasm, interest and knowledge on marching bands. Go all of you! Already bought the last Richard & Rose even before this thread ^^
Moriah Jovan
Re MMP: I buy non-digitized OOP books used, then promptly send them off to 1dollarscan.
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Home Mobile Microsoft fixes major Windows 10 flaw discovered by NSA
Microsoft fixes major Windows 10 flaw discovered by NSA
Debra Madano January 19, 2020 0 Comment
The National Security Agency (NSA), the intelligence agency in the United States, alerted Microsoft to the fact that it had discovered a major flaw in the Windows 10 operating system, according to CNBC. two federal cybersecurity officers. The company has developed a security update and recommends that all of its customers install it quickly.
The flaw in question, essentially an error in the software code, could have exposed Internet users to serious data leaks or surveillance, according to the Washington Post , which was the first to report the news.
Hackers could also have exploited the breach to imitate digital signatures and thereby pass malware for legitimate applications.
This is a new and surprising approach for the NSA, which until recently preferred to keep these vulnerabilities to collect intelligence and develop cyber weapons for use against enemies of the United States.
In 2017, NSA agents warned Microsoft president Brad Smith that it had discovered a similar flaw, but did so too late, exposing several Internet users to attacks.
As the New York Times reports , the government agency had known about this breach for some time, but kept it secret, hoping to use it to expand its technical arsenal.
This time, the rapid collaboration of the NSA will have allowed Microsoft to develop a security update (New window) before there is too much damage.
“A security update was released online on January 14, 2020, and those who have already installed it or have automatic updates are already protected.” As always, we encourage people to install security updates as soon as possible, “said Jeff Jones, senior director at Microsoft, in a statement.
Debra Madano
Debra Madano worked as a freelance journalist for DellOne2One before becoming our lead editor. Debra has over thirty bylines and has reported on countless stories concerning all things related to technology. As a contributor to DellOne2One , Debra covers console gaming. Debra studied at the University Of Ohio.
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Tigers Are Struck Down by Comets
Texas-Dallas
DePauw (0-1-0, 0-0-0) 0 2 2
Texas-Dallas (1-0-0, 0-0-0) 0 3 3
2nd - 48:08 - Anissa Nourse (DePauw)
2nd - 61:30 - Stephanie White (Texas-Dallas)
2nd - 66:19 - Kaitlyn Manning (Texas-Dallas)
2nd - 77:50 - Shaili Kumar (DePauw)
2nd - 78:17 - Sofia Munoz (Texas-Dallas)
A: Shaili Kumar - 1
Sh: 3 Players (#11, #7, #28) - 2
Sv: Reanna Stiehler - 5
G: 3 Players (#8, #1, #21) - 1
Sh: Munoz, Sofia - 5
Sv: Sherman, Morgan - 1
Sept. 1, 2019 (Dallas, Texas)- The DePauw University, women's soccer team lost 3-2 in a heavily contested match against host team University of Texas-Dallas (UT-Dallas).
In their second night game of the weekend, it was clear that the Dallas heat still played a factor in the pace of the game. Fighting through the humidity, the DePauw Tigers pushed pass the midline into the Comets half and kept it there for the first 15 minutes of the game.
The combined efforts of Shaili Kumar's aggressiveness with the strength and skills of Maddie Smith had a lot to do with DePauw's offensive attacking in those first minutes.
As play continued in the first half, both teams became equally frustrated with their inability to finish in the box. With tensions rising across the field the Tigers took their frustration out on the ball rather than on their opponents, creating scoring situations deep in the Comet's half.
In the final 10 minutes of play, DePauw lost a bit of steam and had to defensively step up their game as UT-Dallas kept the ball in Tiger territory. Showing confidence in her second game Reanna Stiehler remained calm and directed her defensive line as the COmets earned multiple corner kicks in a row.
Entering the second half tied at zero, with the sun down and the field lights on both teams came out with new life.
That slight drop in temperature was all DePauw needed to get something started. Alex Berkley was able to break out with the ball from the defensive line to then rocket the ball down the middle of the field to Kumar.
Making her way into the box, Kumar gets a step on the last defender and at the last second sends it across to Anissa Nourse who finds the back of the net and records her first career goal.
Down by one, a sense of urgency took over UT-Dallas' attacking efforts. And in the 62nd minute, the Comets managed to sneak into the DePauw half following a throw-in and scored to tie the game.
Unable to contain UT-Dallas' momentum, the Tigers suddenly found themselves down 2-1 after the Comets scored off a corner kick put back.
After a fantastic team effort to stop an attack by UT-Dallas, the defensive line boots the ball up the middle and gets the ball through to Silcox who touches it to Shaili for the goal to even it out 2-2.
That sigh of relief for the Tigers was cut short after DePauw committed a late foul, awarding the Comets a penalty kick that would put them up 3-2.
With plenty of time left in the game, the Tigers continue to play with tenacity, finding themselves with great opportunities on goal yet were shut down time after time by their opponents' defense.
UT-Dallas closed out the game by taking control of the pace of the game, forcing DePauw to put even more pressure on the ball. That pressure eventually paid off as the Tigers earned what would be the final penalty kick of the game.
Taking Stiehler out of the goalie box to take the kick, DePauw just missed the extra touch to get the ball in the net. Keeping it alive Kumar and Sophia Silcox attempted to put it back into play, but the Comets managed to clear it out one last time as time expired.
Though their efforts came up short, there was a definite improvement in the Tigers' communication and teamwork throughout the weekend. DePauw returns to Greencastle, Ind. on Wednesday, Sept. 4 to play Carthage College in their Home Opener. Come out and support your Tigers at 7 PM EDT.
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Shop for artwork based on themed collections. Each image may be purchased as a canvas print, framed print, metal print, and more! Every purchase comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
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About Douglas Castleman
Douglas Castleman is a watercolor and oil painter. He also works as a freelance illustrator and as a graphic artist. Many of his paintings have been sold to people and companies around the world, including NASA.
Douglas specializes in landscape, aviation, and marine subjects. He is a member of several art associations, including the American Society of Aviation Artists as an Artist Member and the Los Angeles Society of Illustrators. Some of his paintings are part of the United States Air Force Art Collection. He has won numerous awards for his art from various associations, national and international art shows, and the City of Torrance, California, where he resides. Douglas has had five solo exhibitions in the Los Angeles area. In the summer, he teaches watercolor painting for the Yosemite Association, and many private clients. Some of his paintings have been published, most notably in the book, “The Best of Watercolor,” from Rockfort Publishing. He has earned a Bachelor Degree in Art from California State University, Northridge and a computer graphic degree and a multi-media degree from Platt College, Cerritos, California.
He maintains two artist-themed websites, www.DouglasCastleman.com and www.DouglasCastlemanAviationArt.com, where you can view his paintings.
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Key Stage 1 National Curriculum Assessments
New-style KS1 SATs were introduced in 2016 for all Year 2 children in England. These SATs reflect the changes made to the national curriculum, which was introduced from September 2014.
At the end of Year 2, children take SATs in:
English grammar, punctuation and spelling (optional paper, schools can decide whether to use it)
Key Stage 1 Reading
The new reading test for Year 2 pupils is made up of two separate papers:
Paper 1 consists of a selection of texts, with questions interspersed
Paper 2 comprises of a reading booklet of a selection of passage. Children will write their answers in a separate booklet
Each paper should take around 30 minutes, but children are not to be strictly timed, as the tests are not intended to assess children’s ability to work at speed.
The texts in the reading papers cover a range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, and get progressively more difficult towards the end of the test.
Key Stage 1 Grammar, Spelling and Punctuation (EGPS)
Children taking Key Stage 1 SATs may also sit two separate papers in grammar, spelling and punctuation.
The KS1 EGPS test remains optional, so schools can choose whether to administer it to their pupils.
Paper 1: a 20-word spelling test taking approximately 15 minutes and worth 20 marks.
Paper 2: a grammar, punctuation and vocabulary test, in two sections of around 10 minutes each (with a break between, if necessary), worth 20 marks. This will involve a mixture of selecting the right answers e.g. through multiple choice, and writing short answers.
Key Stage 1 Maths
The new Key Stage 1 math test is made up of two papers:
Paper 1: Arithmetic, worth 25 marks and taking around 15 minutes.
Paper 2: Mathematical fluency, problem-solving and reasoning, worth 35 marks and taking 35 minutes, with a break if necessary. There are a variety of question types: multiple choice, matching, true/false, constrained (e.g. completing a chart or table; drawing a shape) and less constrained (e.g. where children have to show or explain their method).
Children are not allowed to use any tools such as calculators or number lines.
When will the KS1 SATs take place?
The KS1 SATs are due to be administered in May 2020.
Unlike KS2 SATs, KS1 SATs don’t have to be administered according to a nationally-set timetable in a specific week. Schools are free to manage the timetable and will aim to administer the tests in the classroom in a low-stress, low-key way; some children won’t even be aware they’ve taken them!
View End of KS1 National Curriculum Assessments Information
This is the third year of the revised testing and assessment arrangements for Year 2. These arrangements reflect the more challenging national curriculum which was introduced in 2014. At the end of KS1 (Yr 2), teachers are required to assess each child in the areas of reading, writing, maths and science. National Curriculum assessment tests are used to support teacher’s judgements.
The system of national curriculum levels has been removed and the current measures are as follows:
Expected Standard – Working at the expected standard for a child at the end of Year 2.
Greater Depth – Working at greater depth within the expected standard, with a strong understanding of the curriculum.
http://wodenprimary.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/KS1-tests-2016.mp4
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Epsom Salt: 10 Benefits for the Bath and Other Uses
Source: Epsom Salt: 10 Benefits for the Bath and Other Uses
by Dr. Edward Group
Epsom salt is a potent mineral compound comprised of magnesium and sulfate. It is widely used to relieve many minor health issues. Soaking in a bath with Epsom salt can relieve achy feet and soothe sore muscles. Epsom salt is used in skin cleansers and hair care products to help naturally exfoliate skin, and give hair more volume and shine. Many people also turn to Epsom salt as a remedy for occasional constipation as ingesting food-grade Epsom salt helps flush the gastrointestinal tract and encourage detoxification.
What Is Epsom Salt?
Epsom salt is named after the English town of Epsom, where the substance was first produced. Although it is referred to as “salt,” it does not contain sodium and, despite sharing similar physical characteristics, has different properties from table salt. For instance, adding Epsom salt to warm bath water makes your skin feel smooth and silky, while salt produces a drying effect. For this reason, Epsom salt is a common ingredient in bath salts that are designed to cleanse and soften skin.
“All products labeled as Epsom salt are essentially the same, but there is a difference between “food grade” Epsom salt and non-food grade Epsom salt – the latter being produced for agricultural use.”
All products labeled as Epsom salt are essentially the same, but there is a difference between “food grade” Epsom salt and non-food grade Epsom salt – the latter being produced for agricultural use. The former will bear the “USP” designation, which means it was certified according to standards set by the United States Pharmacopeia and the Food and Drug Administration. Because agricultural or garden grade Epsom salt is not manufactured under the same conditions, it may contain contaminants.
What Makes Epsom Salt Work?
Epsom salt has two major components: magnesium and sulfate (sulfur). These minerals are essential for optimal health. Magnesium is a cofactor involved in more than 300 enzymatic processes, including protein and DNA synthesis, the regulation of blood pressure and serum glucose levels, and supporting the body’s detoxification routes. Magnesium is also required for the uptake of calcium and potassium, both of which are necessary to regulate nerve, muscle and heart function.[1]
Sulfate is involved in several biological functions as well, most notably in the gut. This mineral facilitates the release of proteases, lipases, and amylase, which are pancreatic enzymes needed to digest food. It is needed to form specialized proteins in epithelial cells. These cells line and lubricate your intestinal tract to keep things moving smoothly and prevent intestinal bacteria from leaking into the bloodstream. Sulfate is also required for prenatal mapping of the neuronal network and the development of brain tissue.[2] Dietary sources of magnesium include whole grains, green leafy vegetables, nuts, and seeds.
10 Epsom Salt Benefits
Soothes inflammation
Relieves discomfort caused by sunburn
Relieves itchiness caused by poison ivy
Helps reduce stress
Fixes magnesium deficiency
Supports recovery after exercise
Relieves occasional constipation
Promotes radiant skin and hair
Relaxes tired, aching feet
Fertilizes your garden
Due to the beneficial qualities associated with magnesium and sulfate, Epsom salt is used as a natural remedy to support many health issues including inflammation, constipation, and bodily strain from exercise. It may also help remove splinters, relieve a sunburn, and soothe the itch from poison ivy.
Bathing with Epsom salts is a healthy way to reduce stress, while at the same time promoting the elimination of environmental toxins from your body and increasing new cell turnover through exfoliation. It is also used in beauty regimes and can even be added to soil for a healthier garden.
Inflammation is a natural process in the body in which white blood cells rush to the site of injury to counter foreign agents that might lead to infection. Evidence of this taking place is seen in localized swelling, bruising, itching, or redness. Adding two cups of Epsom salt to a warm bath helps to break down this compound into its two components, magnesium and sulfate. Since these minerals are readily absorbed through the skin, soaking in this solution may reduce discomfort and swelling associated with sore muscles and joints, aching feet, sprains, bruises, and minor skin irritations.
Chronic inflammation, on the other hand, may not immediately affect your health but can be quite damaging over time. One of the markers used to evaluate ongoing inflammation is the level of serum C-reactive protein (CRP). High levels are linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, irritable bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and other inflammatory conditions. Research shows that magnesium plays a significant role in inhibiting chronic inflammation and that insufficient intake of this mineral leads to elevated CRP levels.[3, 4]
According to the National Institutes of Health, magnesium deficiency is more likely to occur in certain groups of people due to particular medical conditions. These conditions include kidney disease, diabetes, and Crohn’s disease. People who use certain medications that interfere with the absorption of this mineral, or that speed its elimination from the body can also be deficient. Magnesium supplementation may benefit people with these conditions, as well as people with other health issues.
Symptoms of magnesium deficiency include, but are not limited to:
Unhappy mood
Mental fog or confusion
Muscle twitching or weakness
Other factors that can lead to low magnesium include excessive intake of alcohol or caffeine, consuming too much salt, heavy menstrual periods, and chronic stress.[9]
Soaking in an Epsom salt bath after intense exercise can help relieve muscle pain. In studies, a closer look at the benefits of Epsom salt revealed that supplementing with magnesium sulfate before working out or playing sports may enhance performance and stamina. An Epsom salt supplement before a round of calisthenics could also reduce the risk of injury, muscle cramps, inflammation, and post-exercise aches.The reason for this is because of magnesium’s ability to improve blood glucose metabolism, which leads to better endurance. Magnesium also reduces lactic acid buildup in muscles during intense exercise, allowing muscles to relax rather than stiffen.[10, 11, 12]
Food grade Epsom salt is approved by the FDA for use as a laxative to relieve occasional constipation. Magnesium sulfate exerts laxative effects because it enhances digestion as it stimulates the ilium brake. This mechanism serves as traffic control for the movement of digested food through the intestinal tract.[5] Drinking a solution of food grade Epsom salt, or a suitable magnesium powder supplement, increases the transport of water to the large intestine. This process results in a natural colon cleanse and body detox. Your gallbladder may also benefit from magnesium sulfate as a flush to help relieve gallstones. Epsom salt may also be mixed with purified water and administered as an enema. For adults, the typical serving if used as a drink is 1-2 teaspoons of Epsom salt mixed with eight ounces of distilled or purified water. This blend is consumed once daily.[6]
There are many ways to use Epsom salt in your personal care regimen. Many people love soaking in a warm bath that contains Epsom salt bath crystals or bath salts to exfoliate their skin, reduce stress, and relieve aches. Aside from a lovely bath, the salt can be combined with your favorite cleanser, a carrier oil (such as sweet almond oil, or melted coconut oil), or simply moistened with plain water to make an effective body and facial scrub.
Epsom salt may also be used for everyday hair care. Mixed with an equal amount of hair conditioner that has been slightly warmed, Epsom salt will soften and increase hair volume, especially in oily hair types. For best results, massage the conditioner mixture onto the scalp and through the hair, and wait 20 minutes before rinsing.
This salt is also great as a natural hair spray, and it’s easy to make. Combine one cup of Epsom salt with one cup of water and two tablespoons of fresh lemon juice. Place this mixture in a spray bottle, and shake well before each use.
A foot-soak in warm water and Epsom salt works wonders for tired, aching feet. Incorporating essential oils into a foot bath can be even more beneficial. If in fact, your feet are feeling tired, a few drops of peppermint oil will revitalize them and diminish that achy feeling. If you have issues with foot or nail fungus, consider adding a few drops of tea tree oil to your Epsom salt soak. This addition may help remedy the effects of athlete’s foot.
While you’re taking care of your feet, you can also take care of your discarded shoes. Grab an old, clean sock and fill it with Epsom salt. Tuck this salt-filled sock into well-worn sneakers or boots. This trick will help absorb odor so that your clean, fragrant feet have a better chance of staying fresh.
Can Even Be Used to Fertilize Your Garden
Epsom salt can improve the quality of soil. It supports the uptake of sulfur, nitrates, and phosphorus in plants. Magnesium, in particular, is needed for seeds to germinate and for plants to produce chlorophyll. The sulfur component in this salt is used by plants to synthesize proteins, amino acids, and enzymes. In fact, sulfur is responsible for the distinctive flavor of many vegetables. Some of these vegetables include garlic, onion, cabbage, and broccoli.[7]
While many plants benefit from fertilization with Epsom salt, the practice is especially effective for plants that require high levels of magnesium, such as tomatoes, peppers, and roses. According to the National Gardening Association (NGA), test gardeners reported that the use of Epsom salt in the garden yields larger vegetables, and fuller rose bushes.
Soil that is deficient in magnesium tends to have a low pH. This deficiency makes alkaline levels too high to successfully grow crops and flowers. Soils with a pH of 7 or higher may benefit from potassium and calcium but tend to lack sufficient magnesium. Either scenario is remedied by conditioning the soil with an Epsom salt and water mix. A foliar spray application works best for this purpose.
For roses, the NGA suggests applying a spray of one tablespoon of Epsom salt per gallon of water for each foot of plant height. This solution works best when applied as soon as leaves open, and again when flowers begin to bloom. For tomatoes and peppers, the recommended treatment is one tablespoon of Epsom salt in a gallon of water. Maximum effectiveness occurs when this mixture is sprayed on plants after transplanting, at flowering, and as fruits begin to set.[8]
Savvy gardeners also know that Epsom salt provides an effective, chemical-free alternative to toxic weed killers. A simple recipe mixing two cups Epsom salt, a gallon of water, and one-quarter cup dishwashing liquid can be applied to weeds with a sprayer. This action will cause them to die off within 8-12 hours. Be advised that this solution will kill any variety of plant, including your favorite ornamental shrubs and flowers, and should be used with caution.
Epsom Salt Side Effects
“Epsom salt is generally safe. However, it is possible to experience adverse side effects. In extreme cases, high doses of a magnesium supplement can lead to severe health issues.”
Epsom salt is generally safe. However, it is possible to experience adverse side effects. In extreme cases, large servings of a magnesium supplement can lead to severe health issues. In addition to diarrhea, cramping, and other gastrointestinal irritations, hypermagnesemia (magnesium toxicity) can occur with doses of more than 5,00 mg of magnesium per day. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, flushing of the skin, urine retention and paralytic ileus. These symptoms, if left unchecked, may progress and lead to irregular heartbeat, severe hypotension, difficulty breathing, kidney failure, and cardiac arrest.[1, 6]
Certain medications may interact with magnesium supplements, including diuretics, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), and medicines used to treat osteoporosis. Magnesium may also interact with antibiotics in the tetracycline class (doxycycline and demeclocycline) or quinolone antibiotics (ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin) unless taken two hours before, or six hours after taking these medicines.[1]
Be sure to check with your healthcare provider before supplementing with magnesium sulfate during pregnancy, or while you are nursing. Seek professional advice as well if you take prescription medications, or if you have a chronic health condition.
Is Epsom Salt Right for You?
Epsom salt offers many benefits, and there’s no question that adding it to a hot bath and soaking does wonders for sore muscles. However, if your goal is to get your daily required intake of magnesium, try Intracal™. It’s a combination of calcium orotate and magnesium orotate, two vital nutrients that support healthy teeth and bones, the nervous system, and cardiovascular health.
Have you ever used Epsom salt? Why did you use it? Did you find it helpful? We’d love to hear from you. Please tell us your Epsom salt story in the comments section below.
“Magnesium: fact sheet for professionals.” U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. National Institutes of Health. nih.gov. 2017. Accessed 17 Jan. 2018.
Waring R. “Sulfate and sulfation: epsom salt council.” School of Sciences. University of Birmingham. Accessed 17 Jan. 2018.
King D, et al. “Dietary magnesium and C-reactive protein levels.” J Am Coll Nutr. 2005;24(3), 166-71. Accessed 17 Jan. 2018. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15930481.
Dibaba D, et al. “Dietary magnesium intake is inversely associated with serum C-reactive protein levels: meta-analysis and systematic review.” Eur J Clin Nutr. 2014;68(4), 510-6. Accesseed 17 Jan 2018. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24518747.
Vu M, et al. “The osmotic laxative magnesium sulphate activates the ileal brake.” Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2000;14(5), 587-95. Accessed.
“Bath salts.” National Institutes of Health. drugabuse.gov. 2017. Accessed 18 Jan. 2018.
McGorrin R. “The significance of volatile sulfur compounds in food flavors.” Department of Food Science and Technology. Oregon State University. 2011. Accessed 17 Jan. 2018.
Chalker-Scott L. “Miracle, myth, or marketing: epsom salts.” Washington State University. wsu.edu. 2007. Accessed 18 Jan. 2018.
“Magnesium.” University of Maryland Medical Center. umm.edu. Accessed 18 Jan. 2018.
Cinar V, et al. “The effect of magnesium supplementation on lactate levels of sportsmen and sedanter.” Acta Physiol Hung. 2006;93(2-3), 137-44. Accessed 18 Jan. 2018.
Chen Y, et al. “Effects of magnesium on exercise performance and plasma glucose and lactate concentrations in rats using a novel blood-sampling technique.” Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2009;34(6), 1040-7.
Cheng S, et al. “Magnesium sulfate enhances exercise performance and manipulates dynamic changes in peripheral glucose utilization.” Eur J Appl Physiol. 2010;108(2), 363-9.
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The Health Benefits of Sleeping Naked
Tagged beauty, Constipation, Exercise, Gut and Digestive Health, Hair and Skin, Hair Care, Health, integrated care, Mind and Body, personal care products, skin care, stress, whole body detox, whole body wellness
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Medical doctor focused on Biological Medicine · Ayurveda · Bioresonance therapy · Darkfield microscopy · Detoxification · Diabetes management · Energy medicine · Erectile dysfunction · Functional medicine · Hormone imbalance · Integrative Medicine · International Journal of Functional Informatics and Personalized Medicine · Men's health · Naturheilverfahren · Nutrition · Orthomolecular psychiatry · Orthomolecular treatment · Sexual health View all posts by dreddymd
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#1. About SEGi University
Boasting a strategic location in Kota Damansara covering 10-acres of land, private university SEGi University has provided quality education to all since it was founded in the year 1977.
SEGi University offers numerous levels of study, from Certificate and Foundation to Degree and Postgraduate Studies. A wide variety of programmes are available, including Business, Accounting and Health Sciences. For extra convenience, the university is also situated near 2 shopping complexes One Utama and The Curve.
SEGi University Ranking & Reputation
SEGi University has excellent rankings, with a ‘Tier 4: Very Good’ rating by the Ministry of Higher Education (MQA SETARA 2017). It was also awarded the World Branding Awards’ Brand of the Year in 2014-2015, as well as the Putra Brand Awards in 2010, 2012 – 2018. The university added another feather in its hat with the Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand Awards: 2013 – 2015.
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SEGi encourages students to participate in social causes that give back to the community
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The RM300 million SEGi University campus is strategically situated on a 10-acre site in Kota Damansara. Just minutes away from major shopping malls and amenities such as The Curve, IPC Shopping Centre and One Utama, students will benefit greatly. Banks, restaurants and supermarkets are everywhere for greater convenience, and the campus is also surrounded by many residential areas.
Public Transport: Taxi, e-hailing services and RapidKL buses are available. MRT services are also available via the Kota Damansara station.
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Zac being honored at the Maui Film Festival
From E! Online (Marc Malkin):
Congrats, Zac Efron!
It's just been announced that Mr. Zac will receive the Shining Star Award at next month's Maui Film Festival. Previous recipients include Jake Gyllenhaal and Jessica Biel.
Efron, who will next be seen in the romantic drama Charlie St. Cloud, will be honored during opening night festivities on June 16th at the Celestial Cinema.
And guess who's gonna be there when it all goes down? Me! I'll be conducting a Q&A that night with Efron and will be reporting back to you throughout the festival. So if you aren't already, it's time to start following me on Twitter and Facebook!
Also, from Twitter it sounds like Zac is at the Lakers game, so maybe pics later!
ETA from IndieWire:
The Shining Star Award honors “a film artist, still in the ascendance of their career—with many magnetic performances both behind and ahead of them—whose very presence on screen guarantees as much light as heat.”
“We are thrilled to honor Zac Efron with the 2010 Maui Film Festival Shining Star Award, especially on Opening Night at the Celestial Cinema, in the first year of the festival’s second decade,” said Barry Rivers in a statement. “With this year’s mantra ‘Trust the Future,’ considered, Zac, an actor with abundant talent, an extraordinary career behind him and an even more brilliant one ahead of him, is an exemplary shining star.”
will post more in the morning.
basketball, eating, plaid, shoes: ysls
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Marie Claire & Blow the Whistle #MCNaked Campaign
Tue, Feb 17th, 2015
Marie Claire’s popular Naked issue, in aid of Blow the Whistle (BTW) and supported by 1st For Women Insurance is on sale now. Featuring 35 local celebrities in the nude, the issue aims to raise awareness of Blow the Whistle’s support of women that are victims of rape and abuse.
“This is probably one of our most powerful Naked issues yet,” says Aspasia Karras, editor of Marie Claire. “We are all vulnerable and naked in the face of the high rate of violent and sexual crime in South Africa against women and children. This campaign aims to give a voice to the many thousands who suffer daily. Our aim is simple; to raise awareness and allow those who are victims to feel safe and come forward and speak up.”
Anti-rape initiative, Blow the Whistle is a national campaign focused on the empowerment of women and children in the face of the incidence of rape and abuse, by giving them the platforms necessary to feel safe. They have developed an app that allows users to select four Guardians to watch over them wherever they are. The app, which can be downloaded on Whistle.co.za, has a private panic button that sends a notification to the Guardians when pressed. The app is also equipped with a journey-monitoring function, allowing users to load their journey details, as well as the amount of time it should take them to get there. If the timer runs out without the journey being cancelled or extended, a notification will be sent to the users Guardians, along with the coordinates and address of their current location. BTW has also produced small and unobtrusive whistles to blow to attract attention when one is in need of help.
All proceeds of the Naked campaign will go towards BTW’s beneficiary, The DNA Project, which works on the development of crime scene DNA forensics. The DNA Project is aimed at expanding the existing National Forensic DNA Database of South Africa that holds the DNA profiles of convicted criminals. DNA profiling is a key component in the conviction of rapists. Any persons arrested for rape or sexual assault will have their DNA profile loaded onto the database, which will be searchable in new DNA investigations to establish any matches in identifying a suspect.
“Blow the Whistle is proud to be associated to the Naked issue,” notes Mike Rowley and Sureshnie Rider, co-founders of the BTW campaign. “Blow the Whistle is about giving woman a voice and allowing them to be heard,” states Rider “This issue really speaks to that voice. It’s about empowerment. It’s about all citizens forming a community and starting a conversation.”
As Rowley concludes, “Our women and children are our nation’s greatest asset and we cannot fail them.”
Marie Claire cover - March 2015
Share one’s voice. Speak up and tell others to do the same. Marie Claire has created a picture gallery on its website, where readers can post their message of support or opinion on sexual violence. This gallery will be shared on Marie Claire’s Facebook page. To drive engagement and more discussion; 1st For Women Insurance will donate R10 000 towards The DNA Project when the Facebook gallery reaches 1000 shares.
Donate: SMS the word ‘WHISTLE’ to 38157 to make a donation of R10 towards BTW.
Buy a whistle for R36 from The Cross Trainer stores or from hotels in the Legacy Group around South Africa. (For more information, visit www.whistle.co.za).
Supporting the 2015 campaign is 1st for Women Insurance.
Robyn Farrell, the executive head of 1st for Women Insurance and a trustee of the 1st for Women Foundation says: “We are proud to sponsor Marie Claire’s Naked campaign. We believe that it cuts through the charity clutter and makes a bold statement – it exposes the naked truth of the rape epidemic and forces South Africans to pay attention and start a conversation. The purpose of the campaign aligns with the aim of the 1st for Women Foundation which has, since its inception in 2005, donated over R30-million to a number of women-related charity organisations that focus on assisting survivors of gender-based violence and making the HPV vaccine more accessible to South African women.”
Celebrities taking part in the 2015 campaign are:
Lira; DJ Milkshake from 5FM; Pearl Thusi and Masasa Mbangeni; Daniel Nash, Thithi Nteta and Andrew Berry; Chris Chameleon and Danielle Deysel; Angel Campey and Shimmy Isaacs; Schalk Bezuidenhout; Michael Lowman and his girlfriend, brand manager Daisy May; JP Duminy and his wife, Sue Duminy; Ewan Strydom; Guy McDonald, Carl Wastie, Sandra Rosenberg and Erin-Li from of Good Hope FM Breakfast; Joelle Kayembe; Katherine Pichulik; George van der Spuy, Rian Zietsman, Jason Ling and Louis Nel from Taxi Violence; Nadia Velvekens, Leandie du Randt and Amalia Uys; Stefan Ludik, Reynardt Hugo, Theodore Jantjies and Nkululeko Tshirumbula and radio personality Vic Naidoo.
Marie Claire will post more content, interviews and behind-the-scenes videos of the 2015 Naked campaign online, as well as more information on BTW. For all the updates, visit www.marieclaire.co.za.
SOURCE: Lira to grace cover of Marie Claire’s 2015 Naked issue – Media Update – published 16 February 2015
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Tour company Thomas Cook collapses, stranding travelers
By Bianca Britton, Jessie Yeung and Sherisse Pham, CNN
Updated 1:40 p.m. ET, September 23, 2019
What we covered here
Company collapse: The 178-year-old British tour operator Thomas Cook, which employs 21,000 people, collapsed Sunday night -- immediately entering liquidation.
Travelers stranded: Hundreds of thousands of travelers have been left stranded across the world.
Huge repatriation effort: The UK government is launching its largest ever peacetime repatriation to bring passengers home.
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5:31 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019
Rival travel companies get a boost
From Mark Thompson, CNN Business
Rival travel groups and airlines got a boost from Thomas Cook’s demise in early European trading.
Shares in the region’s leading low-cost airlines Ryanair and EasyJet were up by 2% and 5% respectively.
EasyJet is making a big push into the holiday business with the aim of selling accommodation packages to millions of people who fly with the airline but currently book hotels elsewhere.
EasyJet is also working with the UK Civil Aviation Authority to support the huge repatriation effort required to bring stranded Thomas Cook customers back to the United Kingdom.
Germany's TUI, Thomas Cook’s biggest rival tour operator, saw its shares gain more than 6% in Frankfurt.
UK Foreign Office "prioritizing passengers" due to limited aircraft availability
The UK Foreign Office has tweeted that because of a limited number of aircraft, it is "prioritizing passengers in areas with limited alternative options" after British tour operator Thomas Cook collapsed Sunday night.
"We are doing all we can get to get passengers home who can no longer travel on Thomas Cook services," it added.
UK Government's refusal to save Thomas Cook is "ideological shortsightedness," says Labour MP
The Shadow Secretary for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Rebecca Long-Bailey says Thomas Cook's collapse is "yet more evidence" of the UK Government's "indifference to British jobs and businesses going under."
“All viable options must be explored by Thomas Cook and the government must consider stepping in and taking an equity stake to avoid this crisis," Long-Bailey said in a statement.
“Refusing to do so is ideological shortsightedness: the government faces a simple choice between a £200m government cash injection to save the company now versus a £600m bill to repatriate UK holidaymakers.”
The British tour operator Thomas Cook has collapsed, with 600,000 travelers scattered around the world. If you're just joining us now, here's what you need to know:
What happened? The operator has entered liquidation, meaning almost all of its companies have ceased trading and operating.
What does this mean? All flights and holidays booked through Thomas Cook have been canceled, and all retail stores closed. With 160,000 UK travelers stranded, the UK government and the Civil Aviation Authority have launched a massive repatriation operation to bring them home.
Who's paying the cost? The UK's Civil Aviation Authority will arrange return flights for ATOL-protected travelers currently abroad who were planning to fly back to the UK with Thomas Cook. Travelers returning after October 6 will have to book their own flights back. Travelers who only booked hotels through Thomas Cook and not flight-inclusive packages will have to foot the bill themselves.
Who's been affected? Stories are starting to trickle in of newlywed couples whose honeymoon plans are dashed, and of employees who have woken up to find their jobs gone. UK officials have pledged to help travelers and employees through the liquidation process.
Thomas Cook accountant tweets a last look inside the Manchester Airport hangar
From CNN's Gianluca Mezzofiore
The Manchester hangar, where Thomas Cook aircraft were parked. Damian Matthews
Damian Matthews had been working at Thomas Cook as a commercial accountant since July, and told CNN he hasn't been told anything about the company collapse.
“I saw in (the) news, security had been hired to lock down our Manchester hangar where I work and that flights are grounded so didn’t seem any point in going in today,” he said.
He posted photos of the hangar today, tweeting that he felt "so privileged to have worked for Thomas Cook Airlines."
He said the airline had been "viable," but after increased media coverage of the crisis, suppliers withdrew and demanded immediate payments.
"Then consumer confidence was gone, so it felt like the end," he said. “I had hoped it’d be rescued but I worked in banking for a long time previously and knew that was going to be unlikely given banks won’t really want to own an airline and the brand was so damaged.”
Damian Matthews said he was glad he took the photos to remember the hangar by. Damian Matthews
Many flights back to the UK have been rerouted to different airports hours away
An aircraft comes in to land at Gatwick Airport in London, England. Jack Taylor/Getty Images
For some travelers, the trouble doesn't stop once they land back in the UK.
The UK's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is working to return stranded travelers to Britain on repatriation flights, but there are already bumps in the arrangements. One flight from Spain's Palma de Mallorca back to the UK was originally supposed to land in London's Gatwick Airport, but has been rerouted to land in Manchester Airport.
The CAA site said transfers will be provided from Manchester to Gatwick, but it still spells extra hassle for travelers -- the two cities are about a four hour drive apart.
Two other flights originally leaving Palma to Birmingham and to Newcastle have also been rerouted to Manchester, about two and three hours away by car respectively.
It's business as usual at Thomas Cook India
From CNN's Rishi Iyengar
The collapse of UK tour operator Thomas Cook has left hundreds of thousands of travelers stranded, but customers who made bookings through Thomas Cook India can rest easy.
Thomas Cook India said Monday it was a separate business so won’t be affected by the collapse of the venerable British brand. The company is owned by Canada’s Fairfax Financial Holdings, which bought a 77% stake in 2012.
“Please be reassured that all your bookings and transactions will continue to be smooth,” Thomas Cook India said on Twitter, adding that it only shares the Thomas Cook brand name through a licensing agreement.
“Thomas Cook India… is financially strong, profitable and maintains a positive outlook in the travel and tourism sector,” the company’s chairman Madhavan Menon tweeted.
Travelers stuck in Menorca, Spain "not going anywhere soon"
Michael Welham was supposed to fly back to London's Stansted Airport after his week-long holiday in Menorca, Spain.
He's been at the airport since 7 a.m. -- for more than two hours now.
"They asked us to sit in a corner of the airport and wait for more news, which we are currently still doing," he told CNN.
A video he posted on Twitter shows the airport full of passengers all waiting with their suitcases. "Not going anywhere soon," he wrote in the post.
Thomas Cook's German airline Condor will continue flight operations
A passenger airplane of German airline Condor, owned by travel agency Thomas Cook. Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Condor, a German airline owned by Thomas Cook, will continue flight operations, it said in a press release.
"Condor continues to operate as a German company. In order to prevent liquidity constraints Condor has applied for a state-guaranteed bridging loan, which is currently under review by the Federal Government," said the release.
Condor's CEO Ralf Teckentrup said the airline would "continue to concentrate on what we do best: flying our customers to their holidays safely and on time.”
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2020 Honda Pioneer 500
New Utility Vehicles • SxS: Pioneer 500 & 700
SxS: Pioneer 500 & 700
SXS500M2LL
2020 Honda Pioneer 500 • $9,199
BIG FUN. LITTLE RESTRICTIONS.
The first secret of getting away from it all is to go where most people can’t. That’s where a Honda Pioneer side-by-side comes in. The second secret? To go where other side-by-sides can’t. And that’s where the Pioneer 500 truly rocks. It comfortably seats two, and is only 50” wide so you can explore trails with width restrictions. Plus, it fits in a full-sized pickup’s bed and has lots of great features like automatic transmission with AT/MT modes. And for 2020, a new Moose Brown color option. Work or fun, the Pioneer 500 gets the job done.
SIDE-BY-SIDE SEATING: With a comfortable bench-style seat, individual backrests and seatbelts for both rider and passenger, the Pioneer 500 offers side-by-side comfort and excellent maneuverability.
INDEPENDENT REAR SUSPENSION (IRS): The Pioneer 500’s fully independent rear suspension means you get a smooth ride, especially over rough terrain.
FUN, SPORTY RIDE: With 5.9 inches of travel at the front wheels and 8.5 inches of ground clearance, the Pioneer 500 can negotiate rough trails with ease. And the Pioneer 500’s suspension is tuned for a fun, sporty ride too.
PADDLE SHIFTERS: If you want to shift manually, simply upshift and downshift without ever having to take your hands off the wheel. You get to choose the exact gear you want, and it’s engineered for precise, smooth shifts
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WITH AT/MT MODE: You can let the Honda Pioneer 500’s automatic transmission shift for you, or you can still shift yourself with its paddle shifters. You can even shift from auto to manual (AT to MT) on the fly!
DUAL RATE SPRINGS: A spring is a spring, right? Sure, all springs may look alike, but the Pioneer 500s feature dual-rate springs, and after one ride you’ll feel the difference. You get a smoother ride over smaller bumps with more bottoming resistance on bigger bumps, along with a more confident steering feel.
TRAXLOK® 2WD/4WD: Our rock-solid system lets you choose either 2WD or 4WD, giving you the freedom to choose between lighter steering (in 2WD) and maximizing available traction (in 4WD) when you need it most.
STRONG GEARBOX: Unlike the belt-drive automatics out there, the Pioneer 500 features an AT/MT mode transmission that uses rugged, steel gears. You get true compression braking for superior controllability (especially when descending hills), as well as long transmission life.
POWERFUL 500-CLASS ENGINE: Coupled with an efficient five-speed automatic transmission, the Pioneer 500’s engine features electronic fuel injection for effortless cold-weather and high-altitude operation. It’s specially tuned for low-rpm torque, too.
SEMI-DRY-SUMP ENGINE: Compact and lighter weight, the Pioneer 500’s overhead-valve, semi-dry-sump design creates an engine that's not only shorter from top to bottom, but one that enhances handling with a low center of gravity and favorable ground clearance.
LONGITUDINAL ENGINE MOUNTING: The Pioneer 500 is built around our strong, single-cylinder, 475cc longitudinal engine. By orienting the crankshaft front to back in the chassis, we route the flow of power straight to the wheels without any right-angle detours, reducing powertrain friction and putting more grunt to the ground.
LIQUID COOLING: Our time-tested Honda engine is liquid-cooled, which provides more consistent operating temperatures and more power than a comparable air-cooled motor. This adds up to better performance and longer engine life.
CLOSED-LOOP FUEL INJECTION: Better cold-weather and high-altitude running, effortless startups, great fuel efficiency and less pollution—that’s what the Pioneer 500’s “closed loop” fuel-injection system means for you. And that’s what we call a win/win situation.
1000 POUND TOWING CAPACITY: The Pioneer 500 has a heavy-duty receiver-style hitch and 1000-pound towing capacity.
DRIVER / PASSENGER PROTECTION: The Pioneer 500 is loaded with features to help provide a feeling of security for the driver and passengers. The Occupant Protection Structure uses sturdy, large-diameter tubing, and includes integrated handholds, recessed top tubes and a more spacious structure to enhance protection; it also meets OSHA’s 1928.53 rollover protective structure standard. Hard doors and roll-up side nets provide a secure feel and keep mud and debris out of the cabin, while automotive-style three-point belts with an Emergency Locking Retractor mechanism help keep everyone secure.
SINGLE-FUNCTION DOOR / NET: The Pioneer 500 comes standard with doors, and the occupant net is directly attached—just unlock and open the door, and the net automatically swings aside making entry and exit easier.
COMPACT 50 IN. WIDTH: The Pioneer 500’s 50-inch overall width is a huge bonus. Whether it’s for width-restricted trails or convenient transportation and storage, the Pioneer 500 can go where just about no other side-by-side can!
REAR CARRIER DESIGN: With the unique steel rear carrier design, the Pioneer 500 gives you tremendous versatility when it comes to securing loads. Special tiedown-hook securing points make it even easier, and the rack’s 450-pound rating gives you plenty of carrying capacity, too.
HEADLIGHTS: 35-watt headlights provide clean, crisp light to get you through any adventure, day or night.Read more at https://powersports.honda.com/pioneer/700/home.aspx#6GeD0R8qS1GK4xIs.99
Front - Dual 200 mm hydraulic disc
Front - Dual 24 x 8-12
Curb - 1,025 lb. (includes all standard equipment, required fluids and full tank of fuel.)
Five-speed automatic transmission with AT/MT modes with paddle shifting and reverse. Two drive modes include 2WD and 4WD.
Single cylinder four-stroke
Electronic fuel injection (PGM-FI), 36mm throttle body
Full-transistorized type with electronic advance
Independent double-wishbone; 5.9 in. travel
Independent double-wishbone with preload adjustablility; 5.9 in. travel
Moose Brown
Honda Phantom Camo®
Recommended for drivers 16 years of age and older
PIONEER 500 IS ONLY FOR DRIVERS 16 YEARS AND OLDER. MULTI-PURPOSE UTILITY VEHICLES (SIDE-BY-SIDES) CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO OPERATE. FOR YOUR SAFETY, DRIVE RESPONSIBLY. ALWAYS WEAR A HELMET, EYE PROTECTION AND APPROPRIATE CLOTHING. ALWAYS WEAR YOUR SEAT BELT, AND KEEP THE SIDE NETS AND DOORS CLOSED. AVOID EXCESSIVE SPEEDS AND BE CAREFUL ON DIFFICULT TERRAIN. . WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU COMPLETE THE RECREATIONAL OFF- HIGHWAY VEHICLE (ROV) E-COURSE. THE FREE COURSE IS AVAILABLE AT WWW.ROHVA.ORG. READ THE OWNER’S MANUAL BEFORE OPERATING THE VEHICLE. NEVER DRIVE AFTER CONSUMING DRUGS OR ALCOHOL, OR ON PUBLIC ROADS. DRIVER AND PASSENGERS MUST BE TALL ENOUGH FOR SEAT BELT TO FIT PROPERLY AND TO BRACE THEMSELVES WITH BOTH FEET FIRMLY ON THE FLOOR. PASSENGER MUST BE ABLE TO GRASP THE HAND HOLD WITH THE SEAT BELT ON AND BOTH FEET ON THE FLOOR. RESPECT THE ENVIRONMENT WHEN DRIVING. Pioneer® is a registered trademark of Honda Motor Co., Ltd. ©2018 American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (05/19) powersports.honda.com
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EuroVoc concepts: tree ×
Geographical Coverage: United Kingdom × Estonia × Bulgaria × Faroes ×
Distribution map of Pseudotsuga menziesii (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Pseudotsuga menziesii. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Provisional data HTML (50 views)
Visualise this dataset with [VIEW] [WMS] INSPIRE View Service
Distribution map of Pinus mugo (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Pinus mugo. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the spatial...
European map of living forest above and below-ground biomass
This is a pan-European map of living forest above and below-ground biomass. The map was implemented following IPCC Tier 1 method. Maps of forest biomass stock and carbon are relevant for...
Distribution map of Abies spp. (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Abies spp. (whole genus Abies, i.e. all observed species in that genus). The distribution map is provided for...
Distribution map of Pinus sylvestris (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Pinus sylvestris. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Distribution map of Corylus avellana (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Corylus avellana. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Distribution map of Carpinus betulus (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Carpinus betulus. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Maximum habitat suitability map of Populus tremula (2006, FISE, RDS-MHSv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the Maximum Habitat Suitability (MHS, also known as survivability) map of Populus tremula (raster format: geotiff). The survivability map is provided for Europe...
Distribution map of Quercus petraea (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Quercus petraea. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Distribution map of Prunus avium (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Prunus avium. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the spatial...
Maximum habitat suitability map of Fraxinus ornus (2006, FISE, RDS-MHSv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the Maximum Habitat Suitability (MHS, also known as survivability) map of Fraxinus ornus (raster format: geotiff). The survivability map is provided for Europe...
Distribution map of Alnus glutinosa (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Alnus glutinosa. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
European map of forest above-ground carbon
This is a pan-European map of living forest above-ground carbon. The map was implemented following IPCC Tier 1 method. Maps of forest biomass stock and carbon are relevant for quantifying...
Distribution map of Fraxinus excelsior (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Fraxinus excelsior. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Distribution map of Quercus cerris (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Quercus cerris. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Distribution map of Quercus pyrenaica (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Quercus pyrenaica. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the...
Distribution map of Pinus pinea (2006, FISE, C-SMFAv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the distribution map (raster format: geotiff) of Pinus pinea. The distribution map is provided for Europe (EU28 plus part of other countries within the spatial...
Maximum habitat suitability map of Quercus robur (2006, FISE, RDS-MHSv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the Maximum Habitat Suitability (MHS, also known as survivability) map of Quercus robur (raster format: geotiff). The survivability map is provided for Europe...
Maximum habitat suitability map of Salix caprea (2006, FISE, RDS-MHSv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the Maximum Habitat Suitability (MHS, also known as survivability) map of Salix caprea (raster format: geotiff). The survivability map is provided for Europe...
Maximum habitat suitability map of Robinia pseudoacacia (2006, FISE, RDS-MHSv0-3-2)
This dataset series shows the Maximum Habitat Suitability (MHS, also known as survivability) map of Robinia pseudoacacia (raster format: geotiff). The survivability map is provided for...
biotope (27)
natural resource (73)
Habitats and Biotopes (27)
Åland Islands (73)
Guernsey (73)
Greenland (73)
Czechia (73)
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View source for Help:Introduction
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<div class="plainlinks" style="border: 1px solid red; width: 100%; background-color: #fcc; padding: 10px; margin-bottom: 25px;">This page requires copy editing and improvement.</div> Alice is far away from Bob and wants to buy his [http://www.grasshillalpacas.com/alpacaproductsforbitcoinoffer.html Alpaca socks]. In return, she wants to send him a dollar. A dollar bill is a piece of paper with very low intrinsic value, but which is accepted by people in exchange for valuable products and services in the real world, such as the socks Alice wants to buy. One simple thing Alice can do is to put a dollar bill in an envelope, mail it to Bob, and then wait for Bob to send the socks to her. Another thing Alice can do is to "wire" the money to Bob. She can do that by first giving her dollar bills to an institution called a bank, the job of which is to safe-keep Alice's dollar bills and, in return, to give Alice a written promise (called a "bank statement") that, whenever she wishes, she can come to the bank to take back the same amount of dollar bills that she deposited. Since the money is still Alice's, she is entitled to do with it whatever she pleases, and the bank (like most banks), for a small fee, will do Alice the service of "giving" the dollar bills to Bob instead of her. This could be done by sending a person to Bob's door, with Alice's dollar bills in hand (or, better, fresh new dollar bills, if Alice's dollar bills are in bad condition), but usually it is done by Alice's bank by giving the dollar bills to Bob's bank and informing them that the money is for Bob, who will then see the amount in his next statement, or, if he is in a hurry, the next time he contacts his bank asking about how much money they have for him. Since banks have many customers, and bank employees need money too, for doing the job of talking to people and signing documents, banks in recent times have been using machines such as ATMs and web servers, that do the job of "talking" to the customers instead of paid bank employees. The job of these machines is to learn what each customer wants to do with his/her money and, to the extent that it's possible, act on what the customer wants (for example, ATMs can hand cash). In the end, there is very little human involvement in this process, most of the time. The people can always know how much money out of the money that the bank is safe-keeping is theirs, and they are confident that the numbers they see in their bank statements and on their computer screens stand for the number of dollar bills that that they can get from the bank at any time they wish. They can be so sure of that, that they can accept those numbers in the same way they accept paper dollars. However, the fact that machines are used does not change the structure of this system, which is, as it was, based on a central authority (the bank) which is responsible for keeping records about how much money belongs to whom. Everybody has to rely on this central authority to be honest (i.e. to say the truth about how much money they are safe-keeping in total, or at least to make the paper money available upon demand from the owners). Also, every person has to identify him/herself to this authority, by giving his/her real name, in order to be allowed to get their paper bills back or to send money to another person. Bitcoin is a system of owning and voluntarily transferring amounts of so-called bitcoins, in a manner similar to an on-line banking interface, but anonymously and without reliance on a central authority to decide on what is true. These bitcoins are valuable because they require the spending of real resources (CPU time and electricity) to produce, and they cannot be counterfeited or removed from a person's ownership without his/her command. ==Counterfeiting== ===By an eavesdropper=== To guarantee that an eavesdropper, Eve, cannot replicate bitcoins we use a [[Wikipedia:Public-key_cryptography|public key system]] to make digital signatures. In this system, each person, such as Alice and Bob, has a pair of public and private keys which he/she stores in a safe [[Wallet|wallet]]. Only the user with his secret private key can sign a document, such as the transaction to give some of his bitcoins to somebody else, but any one can validate the signature using the user’s public key. The bitcoins, in Alice's hands, already contain a signature by whoever sent her the amount. * Bob sends his public key to Alice. * Alice adds Bob’s public key along with the amount she wants to transfer, to the transaction. * Alice signs the transaction with her secret private key. As a result, anyone who knows the public keys of both Alice and Bob can now see that Alice agreed to transfer the amount to Bob. Later on, when Bob will transfer the same coins to Charley, he will do the same thing: receive from Charley his public key, add a new transaction to the chain of transactions and sign it with his (Bob) private key. But only Bob can do this, because only Bob has the private key which is necessary for signing and which is the only private key to match Bob’s public key that is already in the chain. Eve cannot change who the coins belong to by replacing Bob’s public key with her public key, because Alice signed the transfer to Bob using her private key, declaring that the coins now belong to Bob, and Alice's private key is kept secret from Eve. So if Charley accepts that the original coin was in the hands of Alice he will also accept the fact that this coin was later passed to Bob and now Bob is passing this same coin to him. ===By the sender=== This is how we guarantee that Alice cannot replicate the coin and use it in more than one transaction: * Details about the [[Transactions|transaction]] are [[Network|sent]] to as many other people's computers as possible * At least one of the computers sends back a [[Blocks|block]], which is just a large document that includes details of many transactions. The block is sent to as many other people as possible. * Eventually the block reaches Bob who can validate that his transaction was recorded and no other transaction for the same coin was made in the past. In theory, Alice could generate a spoofed block in which her past usage of the same coin does not appear and try to send this block to Bob as evidence that the coin is still hers. However, that past transaction, which contains a signature from Alice, has already been announced and has already been distributed to a very large number of computers in the bitcoin network. Since the process of generating a block is designed to take a [[Proof_of_work|long time]] and all transactions must be given in such blocks, Alice will be unable to compete with all these computers in the rate with which she can generate blocks. Bob will receive much more blocks from third persons than Alice alone will ever be able to generate, and some of these blocks will contain Alice's previous transaction, telling Bob that Alice has already spent her coin. And since, in the presence of multiple parallel chains of blocks of transactions, the longest such chain is taken as the truth, the only way for Alice to "pass" her own version of events is to be in a position to command the majority of the CPU power on the network. We assume nobody can do that, therefore Alice cannot undo what she did and cannot spend her coin twice. ==Privacy== In order to protect his [[Anonymity|privacy]], Bob can generate a new public-private key pair for each transaction. So David receiving the coin from Charley will not be able to identify who is the second person in the list of transactions. The only thing David will know is the [[Address|address]] of Bob which is a shortened (hashed) version of his public key. ==Creation of coins== As we saw, both Bob and Charley need to verify that the original coin from Alice is valid. Alice cannot simply generate coins instantly, out of thin air, because the appearance of a coin is a transaction that needs to be accepted by others (it must appear at some place in the chain of blocks). The way that new coins are slowly introduced is this: every computer that manages to generate a block is allowed to put one transaction there in which it gains 50 BTC, without this amount having to come from somewhere. Other computers receiving the block can easily see that the block is valid and accept that this amount belongs to the computer that generated the block. This is called a "proof of work", because generating blocks is a [[Target|slow]] process that requires Alice to spend real resources (buy recent computer hardware, use electricity and CPU time) and in this way it can be compared to gold mining. Only with a proof of work is Alice allowed to contribute to the [[Block_chain|chain of blocks]] that together keep a record of all transactions. The coin received by Alice is an incentive for her to perform this computation work. In addition to this, Alice can shave a small, voluntary [[Transaction_fee|fee]] from the transactions stored in the block. ==Putting it all together== Directly experience the system in action by visting [http://blockexplorer.com/ Bitcoin Block Explorer]. The site shows you the latest blocks in the block chain. The [[Block_chain|block chain]] contains the agreed history of all transactions that took place in the system. Note how many blocks were generated in the last hour, should be around 6. Also notice the number of transactions and the total amount transfered in the last hour (last time I checked it was about 64 and 15K.) This should give you an indication of how active the system is. Next, drill into one of these blocks. Start by noticing that the block's [[hash|hash]] begins with a run of zeros, this is what made making it so difficult. The computer that generated this block had to run on many ''Nonce'' values (also listed on the block's page) until it found one that generated this run of zeros. Next notice the line titled ''Previous block'', each block contains the hash of the block that came before it, this is what forms the chain of blocks. Now notice all the transactions the block contains. The first transaction is the income earned by the computer that generated this block. It includes a fixed amont of coins created out of thin air and possibly fee collected from other transactions in the same block. Several blocks starting from the same block could have been generated in parallel but at the end all the computers in the network agree that only one of these blocks is accepted to be part of the block chain. Other blocks are rejected either because they didn't play according to the rules of the game or they missed out on some of the transactions. Drill into any of the transactions and you will see how it is made from one or more amounts coming in and out. The fact that there can be more than one incoming and outgoing amounts, allow the system to join and break amounts in any possible way allowing for any fractional amount needed (usually cents.) Each incoming amount is a transaction from the past (which you can also drill to) coming from an address of someone and each outgoing amount is addressed to someone and will be part of a future transaction (which you can also drill too if it also had already taken place.) Finally you can drill into any of the [[Address|addresses]] and see what public information is available. ==See Also== * Installing Bitcoin [[getting started]] * [[How bitcoin works]] * [[Using Bitcoin]] * A gentle introduction to Bitcoin - [[BitcoinMe]] * Another introduction, ''The Rebooting Of Money'' podcast is found at [[Bitcoin Money]]
Return to Help:Introduction.
Retrieved from "https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Help:Introduction"
Bitcoin FAQ
About Bitcoin Wiki
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Qatar approves new residency law for foreigners
Dubai, United Arab Emirate (Reuters): Qatar plans to allow some expatriates to obtain permanent residency, state news agency QNA reported, in the first move of its kind among Gulf Arab states that rely heavily on foreign labor.
A draft law approved at a cabinet meeting will allow permanent residence to the children of Qatari women married to non-Qataris, as well as expatriates who provide outstanding services to Qatar, the Wednesday evening report said.
The cabinet statement carried by QNA said, "According to the provisions of the bill, the minister of interior may grant a permanent residency ID to a non-Qatari if they meet the conditions specified in the law."
Gulf Arab countries have a high number of expatriate workers but do not allow naturalization of foreigners except in rare cases and under strict conditions.
Qatar has a population of 2.7 million including some 300,000 citizens and has been reluctant to extend residency rights out of concern for the demographic balance.
Holders of the new permanent residency can for the first time access free state education and healthcare and have the right to own property and run some businesses without needing a Qatari partner, QNA said.
READ MORE: ECC to discuss 6-point agenda today
The world's wealthiest country per capita, Qatar is under international pressure to improve conditions for hundreds of thousands of foreign workers building facilities for the 2022 World Cup. The government says it is implementing labor reforms.
Four Arab countries including Saudi Arabia have imposed sanctions on Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism, a charge it denies.
A work-sponsorship system widely enforced in the Gulf and known in Qatar as "kafala" requires foreign workers to get their employer's consent to change jobs or leave the country.
QNA said a committee would be established at the interior ministry to review requests of granting permanent residency ID in line with the provisions of the law.
Tagged qatar approves residency law foreigners
Police detains man held 21 people hostage
10:34 AM, 30 Dec, 2017
NAB approves four references against Sharif family, Dar
02:25 PM, 7 Sep, 2017
LHC approves Rana Sanaullah's bail in drug possession case
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Статьи > Write > Desperate Futurism: Japan. Part 4
Desperate Futurism: Japan. Part 4
Автор: Elena Rasenko 27.02.2015 | Japan, desperate futurism
So, to wash your hands, you have to leave indoor slippers before bathroom threshold, step into the bathroom, slip into the special footwear, wash hands, remove those special bathroom slippers, and switch for indoor slippers when re-entering the living area. Earlier, probably in jest, Oba-san warned me that if I step onto the living area in the toilet slippers, he will tell me about hara-kiri rules.
Oba-san for several days repeatedly asked us to be his guests in Yokosuka, a small town not far from Tokyo. The Japanese host was going to show us US warships and to treat us with his hand-grown oranges. Oba-san moved to Yokosuka after his retirement.
Previously he was employed as a designer at one of the Tokyo companies producing electronic equipment. He painted logos, promotional booklets, designed anime advertisements. He had worked for the same company for over 30 years and thus earned a decent pension of about three thousand dollars. His wife Kaoru earned almost the same retirement allowance. They bought a house, planted some citrus trees, Oba-san got interested in photography. Sometimes the spouses nurse their grandson, from time to time travel abroad.
Oba-san surprised us with his meticulousness. First, he sent a letter to the hotel mail where he described with great detail how to get to his house. It was a letter with the route calculated to the minute. Then he sent a fax message with pictures. Apparently having decided that some data may go wrong, he also forwarded to us colour printed instructions how to take train to arrive at destination on time. For transition from one subway line to another, he allocated five minutes, and after we have 30 seconds to jump into the train to go a few stations. Then we had to get out, change the station quickly and again catch the subway train. In general, for the trip he gave us a little over an hour. But Oba-san wrote everything as fit for him. We were lost in the inscriptions, hardly oriented in an unfamiliar space and dragged the heavy equipment. Already at the first transition we lost pace just half a minute... and everything went perfectly on a different schedule.
Tokyo public transport network is one of the most confusing. There the same rails are used for long-distance trains, local and subways trains. If you miscalculate a few seconds and rush into car without being very attentive, you can head wrong direction. However, the Japanese claim that everything is very convenient, if you understand it. And after got used to transfer and change trains quickly, you can easily get from one station to another in a very short period of time, what is important for the city which is home to 25 million people. To facilitate this, all transport lines have strictly fixed colours and respectively painted cars. Station names are written not only in hieroglyphs, but also in Latin and Japanese alphabets. However, it can be very crowded inside. Despite a rather short departure interval, there are so many passengers that they often have to stand. And it concerns everyone, since in Japan it is not a custom to cede a seat to women or elderly.
Of course, we got lost in the subway and went opposite direction. But thanks to helpful Japanese we jumped out at some station and took another train. At the same time with considerable joy we discovered that all the toilets in Tokyo subway are free, immaculately clean and even well tucked with toilet paper and handkerchiefs. We arrived at Yokosuka being almost an hour late. Oba-san was very pleased that we have not got lost forever.
In the area where Oba-san led us to, all the houses are nested so close to each other that in some places a hostess could pass sugar through the window to a neighbour, or smell what neighbour put into soup. Most of the buildings resemble traditional Japanese houses, in every yard there are small vegetable gardens or rock gardens, and trees.
When entering the house, we took off our shoes and place them neatly with the toes facing the door. We were given slippers, both of 36 size. Sasha kept losing them as they slipped from his 45 sized feet. Oba-san forbade us to walk shoeless, so not to soil his tatami.
The Japanese in general are obsessed with cleanliness. In this regard, the toilet and bathroom have separate slippers. So, to wash your hands, you have to leave indoor slippers before bathroom threshold, step into the bathroom, slip into the special footwear, wash hands, remove those special bathroom slippers, and switch for indoor slippers when re-entering the living area. I have to confess that several times I forgot about it, and horrified to be caught in wrong slippers, ran to switch them. Earlier, probably in jest, Oba-san warned me that if I step onto the floor of living in toilet slippers, he will tell me about hara-kiri rules.
Kaoru-san cooked for us soba with mushrooms. The house had no chairs or tables. We had meal on the floor. Sasha barely crossed his long legs to sit on them. It is improperly to recline while eating, so we had to sit on our heels. Admittedly, this reduces to discipline and makes it impossible to eat much. But in our case it was not desirable: our friends were making noises when chewing and produced loud whistling sounds slurping their spaghetti. In Japan it is believed that if you make loud sounds during the meal, thus you praise hostess for excellent cooking. At the end of the meal Oba-san’s wife brought us green tea smelling of oats and fish scales.
Friends’ house proved to be quite traditional. Large wooden columns, sloped tiled roof, thin walls. They are usually made light so that after earthquake to re-store them quickly. Typically, there is one main wall, all the rest are mobile panels of different density and texture, they are walls, doors and windows. Interior partitions in the house are portable. They are wooden frames glued on both sides with paper. They divide a house into separate premises, and if necessary, one can form a single space by altering the partitioning. Traditional floor in the house is wooden covered with tatami – dense mats woven from rice straw and covered with marsh reeds. They feel very soft and warm. At night, the Japanese just throw mattress on tatami and sleep. Oba-san claims that sleeping on the floor is good for joints and bones. And it is quite believable, looking as the family couple quickly jump up, run to the kitchen and literally flit around the garden although they are well in their 60s.
There is almost no furniture in Oba-san and Kaoru’s house. Built-in cabinets coincide with texture of walls. Instead of chairs - cushions, sofas are replaced by futons. And immediately after use they are removed into the built-in niches. Unless, there is a computer chair and a table on the second floor, as well as other devices. And even then the hostess complained about too much dust on those items.
It does not feel hot in the house. It is cold in Yokosuka from November to March. And everyone resigned to the fact that in the winter it is cold and windy inside building. Residents only warm hands and feet at small electric heaters, and are content with this. But in summer it is comfortable in a traditional house. Its interior spaces are well ventilated and, as Oba-san states, it helps to get rid of bad energy.
To get recharged with good energy, Oba-san took us to the ocean. There a few Americans in uniform were already basking in the sun. Our friend told us that present-day Yokosuka is an important historical port city, hereto once sailed Americans on their black ship and demanded the right to trade, threatening the locals with war. It was time when the Japanese revolution and civil war Meiji started. Now Yokosuka is a home for a huge American military base. And local children often run there to take a look at the tall and slender fair-haired men.
When we were going to hit the road, Oba-san gave us some oranges and our portraits. On his portraits we looked a little "Japanese."
Photo from open sources
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Vietnam-Thailand trade fair, exhibition underway in Da Nang
A Vietnam-Thailand trade fair and photo exhibition opened in the central city of Da Nang on June 1.
VNA Wednesday, June 01, 2016 16:39
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Poster of the trade fair. (Photo: VNA)
Da Nang (VNA) - A Vietnam-Thailand trade fair and photo exhibition opened in the central city of Da Nang on June 1.
The six-day event features 50 stalls showcasing cosmetics, household articles and food, among other products.
Visitors can take part in a draw to win flights to Thailand’s Bangkok and Pattaya or a free stay at the Centre Hotel Da Nang.
At the event there will be a conference on business opportunities in Da Nang for Thai investors, a Thai food festival and a music concert.
Trinh Thanh Sau, head of the Vietnam-Thailand friendship association in Da Nang said ties between the two countries are growing in trade, culture and tourism.
On May 25, a direct route between Da Nang and Bangkok was launched, with four flights operating per week. It is expected to stimulate the wide-range relations between the two cities and the two countries.-VNA
trade fair photo exhibition stalls Related stories Da Nang Related stories Thailand
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BTS releases new album, 'Fake Love' music video
0 0 Friday, May 18, 2018 Edit this post
BTS released the album "Love Yourself: Tear" and a new music video Friday. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo
South Korean boy band BTS returned with new music Friday.
The K-pop group released the album Love Yourself: Tear and a music video for the single "Fake Love."
The "Fake Love" video shows Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin and V performing coordinated dance numbers in front of a large installation. The video had received more than 18 million views as of Friday morning.
"#BTS #LOVE_YOURSELF 'Tear' Official MV #FAKE_LOVE," BTS' agency, Big Hit Entertainment, tweeted.
Love Yourself: Tear includes 10 other tracks, including the song "The Truth Untold" with Steve Aoki. BTS previously collaborated with the American DJ on a remix of its single "Mic Drop."
BTS will perform "Fake Love" at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards on Sunday, May 20. The group will also showcase songs from Love Yourself: Tear at a comeback show May 24 in Seoul, South Korea.
Entertainment - U.S. Daily News: BTS releases new album, 'Fake Love' music video
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https://entertainment.dailynews.us.com/2018/05/bts-releases-new-album-love-music-video.html
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Opportunities for early career researchers
We are offering funded cross sector placements for early career researchers.
Spend 3 months full time (part-time placements of typically one or two days per week may be over a longer period) working in a host organisation in the public or third sector.
Complete a research project that makes the most of your knowledge and skills to make a difference to children & young people’s mental health.
Our first round of Emerging Minds cross sector placements are now open for applications. For full details of current opportunities, please see below:
The Embracing Complexity Coalition
For full details, please download and read the following documents. The deadline for applications is 3 February 2020.
The Centre for Mental Health
For full details, please download and read the following documents. The deadline for applications is 10 February 2020 at 10am.
What is an Early Career Researcher?
Our definition of early eareer researcher includes those undertaking post-graduate study through to early career academics.
However, some activities may be better suited to individuals at different stages of this spectrum. The term ‘early career researcher’ includes peer researchers, those in universities and in the public, charity or business sector.
How else will the Emerging Minds Network support Early Career Researchers?
We will be offering a programme of events and opportunities including a short-term fellowship programme and a mentoring scheme.
Please do contact our Network Manager Emily Lloyd to share your ideas if you are an early career researcher who’d like to get involved with the Emerging Minds Network.
You can also sign up for our newsletter or follow us on Twitter at @EmergingMindsUK to receive regular updates about our events and opportunities.
Our early career researchers programme is being led by members of our leadership team and advisory group: Dr Caroline Jay, Dr Rachel Hiller and Dr Faraz Mughal.
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Case studies UK Financial Services Employee engagement Employee wellbeing
Leeds Building Society uses key awareness week to support diversity ambitions
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In 2018, Leeds Building Society, which has 1,400 employees, received the Leaders in Diversity accreditation from the National Centre for Diversity, recognising its demonstration of a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion from senior leadership.
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In 2019, the building society used September’s National Inclusion Week as a springboard from which to showcase the work it has done internally across three relevant employee forums: mental health, gender equality and black, Asian and minority ethnic (Bame) representation.
As well as updates on the activities and progress of the forums themselves, the internal campaign included a message from Leeds Building Society’s chief executive officer, Richard Fearon, which outlined the employer’s commitment to inclusion and diversity. Employees could also take part in interactive quizzes, and learn about the launch of a new e-learning programme about diversity and inclusion.
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Becky Hewitt, director of people at Leeds Building Society, says: “Being able to talk openly about some of these topics is an obvious indicator to colleagues about the culture we want to create. We’re aiming to make sure people feel they can come and talk to us about things that they are finding difficult, or that might impact them at work.
“We try to take a holistic view, and it is about creating the right culture of work. For that reason, we look at our wellbeing approach as one of the strong points of how we achieve a good, diverse culture here. We want people to bring their whole self to work, we recognise that everyone has lots of things going on at once, it’s not just about work.”
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For the past quarter century epic has been making news – read all about it here.
11 Apr 2003 Vic
epic software group is Honoree at 2003 PH Gala
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The Woodlands, Texas - November 21, 2001 - the epic software group, inc. completed work on a new book for Microsoft's newly released spreadsheet application Excel 2002. Microsoft Excel 2002 Plain & Simple was written by well know author Curtis Frye under contract by Epic. Frye has written extensively on Microsoft Excel, Access, Active Server Pages, as well as the issue of privacy law in international business. "He is able to explain complex subjects in terms we can all understand,"…
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Project acronym 2D-CHEM
Project Two-Dimensional Chemistry towards New Graphene Derivatives
Researcher (PI) Michal Otyepka
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERZITA PALACKEHO V OLOMOUCI
Summary The suite of graphene’s unique properties and applications can be enormously enhanced by its functionalization. As non-covalently functionalized graphenes do not target all graphene’s properties and may suffer from limited stability, covalent functionalization represents a promising way for controlling graphene’s properties. To date, only a few well-defined graphene derivatives have been introduced. Among them, fluorographene (FG) stands out as a prominent member because of its easy synthesis and high stability. Being a perfluorinated hydrocarbon, FG was believed to be as unreactive as the two-dimensional counterpart perfluoropolyethylene (Teflon®). However, our recent experiments showed that FG is not chemically inert and can be used as a viable precursor for synthesizing graphene derivatives. This surprising behavior indicates that common textbook grade knowledge cannot blindly be applied to the chemistry of 2D materials. Further, there might be specific rules behind the chemistry of 2D materials, forming a new chemical discipline we tentatively call 2D chemistry. The main aim of the project is to explore, identify and apply the rules of 2D chemistry starting from FG. Using the knowledge gained of 2D chemistry, we will attempt to control the chemistry of various 2D materials aimed at preparing stable graphene derivatives with designed properties, e.g., 1-3 eV band gap, fluorescent properties, sustainable magnetic ordering and dispersability in polar media. The new graphene derivatives will be applied in sensing, imaging, magnetic delivery and catalysis and new emerging applications arising from the synergistic phenomena are expected. We envisage that new applications will be opened up that benefit from the 2D scaffold and tailored properties of the synthesized derivatives. The derivatives will be used for the synthesis of 3D hybrid materials by covalent linking of the 2D sheets joined with other organic and inorganic molecules, nanomaterials or biomacromolecules.
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Project acronym AI4REASON
Project Artificial Intelligence for Large-Scale Computer-Assisted Reasoning
Researcher (PI) Josef Urban
Host Institution (HI) CESKE VYSOKE UCENI TECHNICKE V PRAZE
Summary The goal of the AI4REASON project is a breakthrough in what is considered a very hard problem in AI and automation of reasoning, namely the problem of automatically proving theorems in large and complex theories. Such complex formal theories arise in projects aimed at verification of today's advanced mathematics such as the Formal Proof of the Kepler Conjecture (Flyspeck), verification of software and hardware designs such as the seL4 operating system kernel, and verification of other advanced systems and technologies on which today's information society critically depends. It seems extremely complex and unlikely to design an explicitly programmed solution to the problem. However, we have recently demonstrated that the performance of existing approaches can be multiplied by data-driven AI methods that learn reasoning guidance from large proof corpora. The breakthrough will be achieved by developing such novel AI methods. First, we will devise suitable Automated Reasoning and Machine Learning methods that learn reasoning knowledge and steer the reasoning processes at various levels of granularity. Second, we will combine them into autonomous self-improving AI systems that interleave deduction and learning in positive feedback loops. Third, we will develop approaches that aggregate reasoning knowledge across many formal, semi-formal and informal corpora and deploy the methods as strong automation services for the formal proof community. The expected outcome is our ability to prove automatically at least 50% more theorems in high-assurance projects such as Flyspeck and seL4, bringing a major breakthrough in formal reasoning and verification. As an AI effort, the project offers a unique path to large-scale semantic AI. The formal corpora concentrate centuries of deep human thinking in a computer-understandable form on which deductive and inductive AI can be combined and co-evolved, providing new insights into how humans do mathematics and science.
The goal of the AI4REASON project is a breakthrough in what is considered a very hard problem in AI and automation of reasoning, namely the problem of automatically proving theorems in large and complex theories. Such complex formal theories arise in projects aimed at verification of today's advanced mathematics such as the Formal Proof of the Kepler Conjecture (Flyspeck), verification of software and hardware designs such as the seL4 operating system kernel, and verification of other advanced systems and technologies on which today's information society critically depends. It seems extremely complex and unlikely to design an explicitly programmed solution to the problem. However, we have recently demonstrated that the performance of existing approaches can be multiplied by data-driven AI methods that learn reasoning guidance from large proof corpora. The breakthrough will be achieved by developing such novel AI methods. First, we will devise suitable Automated Reasoning and Machine Learning methods that learn reasoning knowledge and steer the reasoning processes at various levels of granularity. Second, we will combine them into autonomous self-improving AI systems that interleave deduction and learning in positive feedback loops. Third, we will develop approaches that aggregate reasoning knowledge across many formal, semi-formal and informal corpora and deploy the methods as strong automation services for the formal proof community. The expected outcome is our ability to prove automatically at least 50% more theorems in high-assurance projects such as Flyspeck and seL4, bringing a major breakthrough in formal reasoning and verification. As an AI effort, the project offers a unique path to large-scale semantic AI. The formal corpora concentrate centuries of deep human thinking in a computer-understandable form on which deductive and inductive AI can be combined and co-evolved, providing new insights into how humans do mathematics and science.
Project acronym ALEM
Project ADDITIONAL LOSSES IN ELECTRICAL MACHINES
Researcher (PI) Matti Antero Arkkio
Host Institution (HI) AALTO KORKEAKOULUSAATIO SR
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE8, ERC-2013-ADG
Summary "Electrical motors consume about 40 % of the electrical energy produced in the European Union. About 90 % of this energy is converted to mechanical work. However, 0.5-2.5 % of it goes to so called additional load losses whose exact origins are unknown. Our ambitious aim is to reveal the origins of these losses, build up numerical tools for modeling them and optimize electrical motors to minimize the losses. As the hypothesis of the research, we assume that the additional losses mainly result from the deterioration of the core materials during the manufacturing process of the machine. By calorimetric measurements, we have found that the core losses of electrical machines may be twice as large as comprehensive loss models predict. The electrical steel sheets are punched, welded together and shrink fit to the frame. This causes residual strains in the core sheets deteriorating their magnetic characteristics. The cutting burrs make galvanic contacts between the sheets and form paths for inter-lamination currents. Another potential source of additional losses are the circulating currents between the parallel strands of random-wound armature windings. The stochastic nature of these potential sources of additional losses puts more challenge on the research. We shall develop a physical loss model that couples the mechanical strains and electromagnetic losses in electrical steel sheets and apply the new model for comprehensive loss analysis of electrical machines. The stochastic variables related to the core losses and circulating-current losses will be discretized together with the temporal and spatial discretization of the electromechanical field variables. The numerical stochastic loss model will be used to search for such machine constructions that are insensitive to the manufacturing defects. We shall validate the new numerical loss models by electromechanical and calorimetric measurements."
"Electrical motors consume about 40 % of the electrical energy produced in the European Union. About 90 % of this energy is converted to mechanical work. However, 0.5-2.5 % of it goes to so called additional load losses whose exact origins are unknown. Our ambitious aim is to reveal the origins of these losses, build up numerical tools for modeling them and optimize electrical motors to minimize the losses. As the hypothesis of the research, we assume that the additional losses mainly result from the deterioration of the core materials during the manufacturing process of the machine. By calorimetric measurements, we have found that the core losses of electrical machines may be twice as large as comprehensive loss models predict. The electrical steel sheets are punched, welded together and shrink fit to the frame. This causes residual strains in the core sheets deteriorating their magnetic characteristics. The cutting burrs make galvanic contacts between the sheets and form paths for inter-lamination currents. Another potential source of additional losses are the circulating currents between the parallel strands of random-wound armature windings. The stochastic nature of these potential sources of additional losses puts more challenge on the research. We shall develop a physical loss model that couples the mechanical strains and electromagnetic losses in electrical steel sheets and apply the new model for comprehensive loss analysis of electrical machines. The stochastic variables related to the core losses and circulating-current losses will be discretized together with the temporal and spatial discretization of the electromechanical field variables. The numerical stochastic loss model will be used to search for such machine constructions that are insensitive to the manufacturing defects. We shall validate the new numerical loss models by electromechanical and calorimetric measurements."
Project acronym ALGOCom
Project Novel Algorithmic Techniques through the Lens of Combinatorics
Researcher (PI) Parinya Chalermsook
Summary Real-world optimization problems pose major challenges to algorithmic research. For instance, (i) many important problems are believed to be intractable (i.e. NP-hard) and (ii) with the growth of data size, modern applications often require a decision making under {\em incomplete and dynamically changing input data}. After several decades of research, central problems in these domains have remained poorly understood (e.g. Is there an asymptotically most efficient binary search trees?) Existing algorithmic techniques either reach their limitation or are inherently tailored to special cases. This project attempts to untangle this gap in the state of the art and seeks new interplay across multiple areas of algorithms, such as approximation algorithms, online algorithms, fixed-parameter tractable (FPT) algorithms, exponential time algorithms, and data structures. We propose new directions from the {\em structural perspectives} that connect the aforementioned algorithmic problems to basic questions in combinatorics. Our approaches fall into one of the three broad schemes: (i) new structural theory, (ii) intermediate problems, and (iii) transfer of techniques. These directions partially build on the PI's successes in resolving more than ten classical problems in this context. Resolving the proposed problems will likely revolutionize our understanding about algorithms and data structures and potentially unify techniques in multiple algorithmic regimes. Any progress is, in fact, already a significant contribution to the algorithms community. We suggest concrete intermediate goals that are of independent interest and have lower risks, so they are suitable for Ph.D students.
Real-world optimization problems pose major challenges to algorithmic research. For instance, (i) many important problems are believed to be intractable (i.e. NP-hard) and (ii) with the growth of data size, modern applications often require a decision making under {\em incomplete and dynamically changing input data}. After several decades of research, central problems in these domains have remained poorly understood (e.g. Is there an asymptotically most efficient binary search trees?) Existing algorithmic techniques either reach their limitation or are inherently tailored to special cases. This project attempts to untangle this gap in the state of the art and seeks new interplay across multiple areas of algorithms, such as approximation algorithms, online algorithms, fixed-parameter tractable (FPT) algorithms, exponential time algorithms, and data structures. We propose new directions from the {\em structural perspectives} that connect the aforementioned algorithmic problems to basic questions in combinatorics. Our approaches fall into one of the three broad schemes: (i) new structural theory, (ii) intermediate problems, and (iii) transfer of techniques. These directions partially build on the PI's successes in resolving more than ten classical problems in this context. Resolving the proposed problems will likely revolutionize our understanding about algorithms and data structures and potentially unify techniques in multiple algorithmic regimes. Any progress is, in fact, already a significant contribution to the algorithms community. We suggest concrete intermediate goals that are of independent interest and have lower risks, so they are suitable for Ph.D students.
Project acronym AMETIST
Project Advanced III-V Materials and Processes Enabling Ultrahigh-efficiency ( 50%) Photovoltaics
Researcher (PI) Mircea Dorel GUINA
Host Institution (HI) TAMPEREEN KORKEAKOULUSAATIO SR
Summary Compound semiconductor solar cells are providing the highest photovoltaic conversion efficiency, yet their performance lacks far behind the theoretical potential. This is a position we will challenge by engineering advanced III-V optoelectronics materials and heterostructures for better utilization of the solar spectrum, enabling efficiencies approaching practical limits. The work is strongly motivated by the global need for renewable energy sources. To this end, AMETIST framework is based on three vectors of excellence in: i) material science and epitaxial processes, ii) advanced solar cells exploiting nanophotonics concepts, and iii) new device fabrication technologies. Novel heterostructures (e.g. GaInNAsSb, GaNAsBi), providing absorption in a broad spectral range from 0.7 eV to 1.4 eV, will be synthesized and monolithically integrated in tandem cells with up to 8-junctions. Nanophotonic methods for light-trapping, spectral and spatial control of solar radiation will be developed to further enhance the absorption. To ensure a high long-term impact, the project will validate the use of state-of-the-art molecular-beam-epitaxy processes for fabrication of economically viable ultra-high efficiency solar cells. The ultimate efficiency target is to reach a level of 55%. This would enable to generate renewable/ecological/sustainable energy at a levelized production cost below ~7 ¢/kWh, comparable or cheaper than fossil fuels. The work will also bring a new breath of developments for more efficient space photovoltaic systems. AMETIST will leverage the leading position of the applicant in topical technology areas relevant for the project (i.e. epitaxy of III-N/Bi-V alloys and key achievements concerning GaInNAsSb-based tandem solar cells). Thus it renders a unique opportunity to capitalize on the group expertize and position Europe at the forefront in the global competition for demonstrating more efficient and economically viable photovoltaic technologies.
Compound semiconductor solar cells are providing the highest photovoltaic conversion efficiency, yet their performance lacks far behind the theoretical potential. This is a position we will challenge by engineering advanced III-V optoelectronics materials and heterostructures for better utilization of the solar spectrum, enabling efficiencies approaching practical limits. The work is strongly motivated by the global need for renewable energy sources. To this end, AMETIST framework is based on three vectors of excellence in: i) material science and epitaxial processes, ii) advanced solar cells exploiting nanophotonics concepts, and iii) new device fabrication technologies. Novel heterostructures (e.g. GaInNAsSb, GaNAsBi), providing absorption in a broad spectral range from 0.7 eV to 1.4 eV, will be synthesized and monolithically integrated in tandem cells with up to 8-junctions. Nanophotonic methods for light-trapping, spectral and spatial control of solar radiation will be developed to further enhance the absorption. To ensure a high long-term impact, the project will validate the use of state-of-the-art molecular-beam-epitaxy processes for fabrication of economically viable ultra-high efficiency solar cells. The ultimate efficiency target is to reach a level of 55%. This would enable to generate renewable/ecological/sustainable energy at a levelized production cost below ~7 ¢/kWh, comparable or cheaper than fossil fuels. The work will also bring a new breath of developments for more efficient space photovoltaic systems. AMETIST will leverage the leading position of the applicant in topical technology areas relevant for the project (i.e. epitaxy of III-N/Bi-V alloys and key achievements concerning GaInNAsSb-based tandem solar cells). Thus it renders a unique opportunity to capitalize on the group expertize and position Europe at the forefront in the global competition for demonstrating more efficient and economically viable photovoltaic technologies.
Project acronym ANPROB
Project Analytic-probabilistic methods for borderline singular integrals
Researcher (PI) Tuomas Pentinpoika Hytönen
Host Institution (HI) HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE1, ERC-2011-StG_20101014
Summary The proposal consists of an extensive research program to advance the understanding of singular integral operators of Harmonic Analysis in various situations on the borderline of the existing theory. This is to be achieved by a creative combination of techniques from Analysis and Probability. On top of the standard arsenal of modern Harmonic Analysis, the main probabilistic tools are the martingale transform inequalities of Burkholder, and random geometric constructions in the spirit of the random dyadic cubes introduced to Nonhomogeneous Analysis by Nazarov, Treil and Volberg. The problems to be addressed fall under the following subtitles, with many interconnections and overlap: (i) sharp weighted inequalities; (ii) nonhomogeneous singular integrals on metric spaces; (iii) local Tb theorems with borderline assumptions; (iv) functional calculus of rough differential operators; and (v) vector-valued singular integrals. Topic (i) is a part of Classical Analysis, where new methods have led to substantial recent progress, culminating in my solution in July 2010 of a celebrated problem on the linear dependence of the weighted operator norm on the Muckenhoupt norm of the weight. The proof should be extendible to several related questions, and the aim is to also address some outstanding open problems in the area. Topics (ii) and (v) deal with extensions of the theory of singular integrals to functions with more general domain and range spaces, allowing them to be abstract metric and Banach spaces, respectively. In case (ii), I have recently been able to relax the requirements on the space compared to the established theories, opening a new research direction here. Topics (iii) and (iv) are concerned with weakening the assumptions on singular integrals in the usual Euclidean space, to allow certain applications in the theory of Partial Differential Equations. The goal is to maintain a close contact and exchange of ideas between such abstract and concrete questions.
The proposal consists of an extensive research program to advance the understanding of singular integral operators of Harmonic Analysis in various situations on the borderline of the existing theory. This is to be achieved by a creative combination of techniques from Analysis and Probability. On top of the standard arsenal of modern Harmonic Analysis, the main probabilistic tools are the martingale transform inequalities of Burkholder, and random geometric constructions in the spirit of the random dyadic cubes introduced to Nonhomogeneous Analysis by Nazarov, Treil and Volberg. The problems to be addressed fall under the following subtitles, with many interconnections and overlap: (i) sharp weighted inequalities; (ii) nonhomogeneous singular integrals on metric spaces; (iii) local Tb theorems with borderline assumptions; (iv) functional calculus of rough differential operators; and (v) vector-valued singular integrals. Topic (i) is a part of Classical Analysis, where new methods have led to substantial recent progress, culminating in my solution in July 2010 of a celebrated problem on the linear dependence of the weighted operator norm on the Muckenhoupt norm of the weight. The proof should be extendible to several related questions, and the aim is to also address some outstanding open problems in the area. Topics (ii) and (v) deal with extensions of the theory of singular integrals to functions with more general domain and range spaces, allowing them to be abstract metric and Banach spaces, respectively. In case (ii), I have recently been able to relax the requirements on the space compared to the established theories, opening a new research direction here. Topics (iii) and (iv) are concerned with weakening the assumptions on singular integrals in the usual Euclidean space, to allow certain applications in the theory of Partial Differential Equations. The goal is to maintain a close contact and exchange of ideas between such abstract and concrete questions.
Project acronym APES
Project Accuracy and precision for molecular solids
Researcher (PI) Jiri KLIMES
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERZITA KARLOVA
Summary The description of high pressure phases or polymorphism of molecular solids represents a significant scientific challenge both for experiment and theory. Theoretical methods that are currently used struggle to describe the tiny energy differences between different phases. It is the aim of this project to develop a scheme that would allow accurate and reliable predictions of the binding energies of molecular solids and of the energy differences between different phases. To reach the required accuracy, we will combine the coupled cluster approach, widely used for reference quality calculations for molecules, with the random phase approximation (RPA) within periodic boundary conditions. As I have recently shown, RPA-based approaches are already some of the most accurate and practically usable methods for the description of extended systems. However, reliability is not only a question of accuracy. Reliable data need to be precise, that is, converged with the numerical parameters so that they are reproducible by other researchers. Reproducibility is already a growing concern in the field. It is likely to become a considerable issue for highly accurate methods as the calculated energies have a stronger dependence on the simulation parameters such as the basis set size. Two main approaches will be explored to assure precision. First, we will develop the so-called asymptotic correction scheme to speed-up the convergence of the correlation energies with the basis set size. Second, we will directly compare the lattice energies from periodic and finite cluster based calculations. Both should yield identical answers, but if and how the agreement can be reached for general system is currently far from being understood for methods such as coupled cluster. Reliable data will allow us to answer some of the open questions regarding the stability of polymorphs and high pressure phases, such as the possibility of existence of high pressure ionic phases of water and ammonia.
The description of high pressure phases or polymorphism of molecular solids represents a significant scientific challenge both for experiment and theory. Theoretical methods that are currently used struggle to describe the tiny energy differences between different phases. It is the aim of this project to develop a scheme that would allow accurate and reliable predictions of the binding energies of molecular solids and of the energy differences between different phases. To reach the required accuracy, we will combine the coupled cluster approach, widely used for reference quality calculations for molecules, with the random phase approximation (RPA) within periodic boundary conditions. As I have recently shown, RPA-based approaches are already some of the most accurate and practically usable methods for the description of extended systems. However, reliability is not only a question of accuracy. Reliable data need to be precise, that is, converged with the numerical parameters so that they are reproducible by other researchers. Reproducibility is already a growing concern in the field. It is likely to become a considerable issue for highly accurate methods as the calculated energies have a stronger dependence on the simulation parameters such as the basis set size. Two main approaches will be explored to assure precision. First, we will develop the so-called asymptotic correction scheme to speed-up the convergence of the correlation energies with the basis set size. Second, we will directly compare the lattice energies from periodic and finite cluster based calculations. Both should yield identical answers, but if and how the agreement can be reached for general system is currently far from being understood for methods such as coupled cluster. Reliable data will allow us to answer some of the open questions regarding the stability of polymorphs and high pressure phases, such as the possibility of existence of high pressure ionic phases of water and ammonia.
Project acronym aQUARiUM
Project QUAntum nanophotonics in Rolled-Up Metamaterials
Researcher (PI) Humeyra CAGLAYAN
Summary Novel sophisticated technologies that exploit the laws of quantum physics form a cornerstone for the future well-being, economic growth and security of Europe. Here photonic devices have gained a prominent position because the absorption, emission, propagation or storage of a photon is a process that can be harnessed at a fundamental level and render more practical ways to use light for such applications. However, the interaction of light with single quantum systems under ambient conditions is typically very weak and difficult to control. Furthermore, there are quantum phenomena occurring in matter at nanometer length scales that are currently not well understood. These deficiencies have a direct and severe impact on creating a bridge between quantum physics and photonic device technologies. aQUARiUM, precisely address the issue of controlling and enhancing the interaction between few photons and rolled-up nanostructures with ability to be deployed in practical applications. With aQUARiUM, we will take epsilon (permittivity)-near-zero (ENZ) metamaterials into quantum nanophotonics. To this end, we will integrate quantum emitters with rolled-up waveguides, that act as ENZ metamaterial, to expand and redefine the range of light-matter interactions. We will explore the electromagnetic design freedom enabled by the extended modes of ENZ medium, which “stretches” the effective wavelength inside the structure. Specifically, aQUARiUM is built around the following two objectives: (i) Enhancing light-matter interactions with single emitters (Enhance) independent of emitter position. (ii) Enabling collective excitations in dense emitter ensembles (Collect) coherently connect emitters on nanophotonic devices to obtain coherent emission. aQUARiUM aims to create novel light-sources and long-term entanglement generation and beyond. The envisioned outcome of aQUARiUM is a wholly new photonic platform applicable across a diverse range of areas.
Novel sophisticated technologies that exploit the laws of quantum physics form a cornerstone for the future well-being, economic growth and security of Europe. Here photonic devices have gained a prominent position because the absorption, emission, propagation or storage of a photon is a process that can be harnessed at a fundamental level and render more practical ways to use light for such applications. However, the interaction of light with single quantum systems under ambient conditions is typically very weak and difficult to control. Furthermore, there are quantum phenomena occurring in matter at nanometer length scales that are currently not well understood. These deficiencies have a direct and severe impact on creating a bridge between quantum physics and photonic device technologies. aQUARiUM, precisely address the issue of controlling and enhancing the interaction between few photons and rolled-up nanostructures with ability to be deployed in practical applications. With aQUARiUM, we will take epsilon (permittivity)-near-zero (ENZ) metamaterials into quantum nanophotonics. To this end, we will integrate quantum emitters with rolled-up waveguides, that act as ENZ metamaterial, to expand and redefine the range of light-matter interactions. We will explore the electromagnetic design freedom enabled by the extended modes of ENZ medium, which “stretches” the effective wavelength inside the structure. Specifically, aQUARiUM is built around the following two objectives: (i) Enhancing light-matter interactions with single emitters (Enhance) independent of emitter position. (ii) Enabling collective excitations in dense emitter ensembles (Collect) coherently connect emitters on nanophotonic devices to obtain coherent emission. aQUARiUM aims to create novel light-sources and long-term entanglement generation and beyond. The envisioned outcome of aQUARiUM is a wholly new photonic platform applicable across a diverse range of areas.
Project acronym ATM-GTP
Project Atmospheric Gas-to-Particle conversion
Researcher (PI) Markku KULMALA
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE10, ERC-2016-ADG
Summary Atmospheric Gas-to-Particle conversion (ATM-GTP) is a 5-year project focusing on one of the most critical atmospheric processes relevant to global climate and air quality: the first steps of atmospheric aerosol particle formation and growth. The project will concentrate on the currently lacking environmentally-specific knowledge about the interacting, non-linear, physical and chemical atmospheric processes associated with nano-scale gas-to-particle conversion (GTP). The main scientific objective of ATM-GTP is to create a deep understanding on atmospheric GTP taking place at the sub-5 nm size range, particularly in heavily-polluted Chinese mega cities like Beijing and in pristine environments like Siberia and Nordic high-latitude regions. We also aim to find out how nano-GTM is associated with air quality-climate interactions and feedbacks. We are interested in quantifying the effect of nano-GTP on the COBACC (Continental Biosphere-Aerosol-Cloud-Climate) feedback loop that is important in Arctic and boreal regions. Our approach enables to point out the effective reduction mechanisms of the secondary air pollution by a factor of 5-10 and to make reliable estimates of the global and regional aerosol loads, including anthropogenic and biogenic contributions to these loads. We can estimate the future role of Northern Hemispheric biosphere in reducing the global radiative forcing via the quantified feedbacks. The project is carried out by the world-leading scientist in atmospheric aerosol science, being also one of the founders of terrestrial ecosystem meteorology, together with his research team. The project uses novel infrastructures including SMEAR (Stations Measuring Ecosystem Atmospheric Relations) stations, related modelling platforms and regional data from Russia and China. The work will be carried out in synergy with several national, Nordic and EU research-innovation projects: Finnish Center of Excellence-ATM, Nordic CoE-CRAICC and EU-FP7-BACCHUS.
Atmospheric Gas-to-Particle conversion (ATM-GTP) is a 5-year project focusing on one of the most critical atmospheric processes relevant to global climate and air quality: the first steps of atmospheric aerosol particle formation and growth. The project will concentrate on the currently lacking environmentally-specific knowledge about the interacting, non-linear, physical and chemical atmospheric processes associated with nano-scale gas-to-particle conversion (GTP). The main scientific objective of ATM-GTP is to create a deep understanding on atmospheric GTP taking place at the sub-5 nm size range, particularly in heavily-polluted Chinese mega cities like Beijing and in pristine environments like Siberia and Nordic high-latitude regions. We also aim to find out how nano-GTM is associated with air quality-climate interactions and feedbacks. We are interested in quantifying the effect of nano-GTP on the COBACC (Continental Biosphere-Aerosol-Cloud-Climate) feedback loop that is important in Arctic and boreal regions. Our approach enables to point out the effective reduction mechanisms of the secondary air pollution by a factor of 5-10 and to make reliable estimates of the global and regional aerosol loads, including anthropogenic and biogenic contributions to these loads. We can estimate the future role of Northern Hemispheric biosphere in reducing the global radiative forcing via the quantified feedbacks. The project is carried out by the world-leading scientist in atmospheric aerosol science, being also one of the founders of terrestrial ecosystem meteorology, together with his research team. The project uses novel infrastructures including SMEAR (Stations Measuring Ecosystem Atmospheric Relations) stations, related modelling platforms and regional data from Russia and China. The work will be carried out in synergy with several national, Nordic and EU research-innovation projects: Finnish Center of Excellence-ATM, Nordic CoE-CRAICC and EU-FP7-BACCHUS.
Project acronym ATMNUCLE
Project Atmospheric nucleation: from molecular to global scale
Researcher (PI) Markku Tapio Kulmala
Summary Atmospheric aerosol particles and trace gases affect the quality of our life in many ways (e.g. health effects, changes in climate and hydrological cycle). Trace gases and atmospheric aerosols are tightly connected via physical, chemical, meteorological and biological processes occurring in the atmosphere and at the atmosphere-biosphere interface. One important phenomenon is atmospheric aerosol formation, which involves the production of nanometer-size particles by nucleation and their growth to detectable sizes. The main scientific objectives of this project are 1) to quantify the mechanisms responsible for atmospheric new particle formation and 2) to find out how important this process is for the behaviour of the global aerosol system and, ultimately, for the whole climate system. Our scientific plan is designed as a research chain that aims to advance our understanding of climate and air quality through a series of connected activities. We start from molecular simulations and laboratory measurements to understand nucleation and aerosol thermodynamic processes. We measure nanoparticles and atmospheric clusters at 15-20 sites all around the world using state of the art instrumentation and study feedbacks and interactions between climate and biosphere. With these atmospheric boundary layer studies we form a link to regional-scale processes and further to global-scale phenomena. In order to be able to simulate global climate and air quality, the most recent progress on this chain of processes must be compiled, integrated and implemented in Climate Change and Air Quality numerical models via novel parameterizations.
Atmospheric aerosol particles and trace gases affect the quality of our life in many ways (e.g. health effects, changes in climate and hydrological cycle). Trace gases and atmospheric aerosols are tightly connected via physical, chemical, meteorological and biological processes occurring in the atmosphere and at the atmosphere-biosphere interface. One important phenomenon is atmospheric aerosol formation, which involves the production of nanometer-size particles by nucleation and their growth to detectable sizes. The main scientific objectives of this project are 1) to quantify the mechanisms responsible for atmospheric new particle formation and 2) to find out how important this process is for the behaviour of the global aerosol system and, ultimately, for the whole climate system. Our scientific plan is designed as a research chain that aims to advance our understanding of climate and air quality through a series of connected activities. We start from molecular simulations and laboratory measurements to understand nucleation and aerosol thermodynamic processes. We measure nanoparticles and atmospheric clusters at 15-20 sites all around the world using state of the art instrumentation and study feedbacks and interactions between climate and biosphere. With these atmospheric boundary layer studies we form a link to regional-scale processes and further to global-scale phenomena. In order to be able to simulate global climate and air quality, the most recent progress on this chain of processes must be compiled, integrated and implemented in Climate Change and Air Quality numerical models via novel parameterizations.
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Tad Dubious
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A British Airways flight from London to Germany took off in the wrong direction and landed in Scotland, 525 miles away from its destination
A British Airways flight bound to Düsseldorf, Germany, from London, England, accidentally landed in Edinburgh, Scotland, instead: 525 miles away from where it should have been. (flip.it) Más...
7 comentarios de miembros
Thomas Cook might sell airline to raise cash, shares climb
LONDON (Reuters) – Thomas Cook said it was willing to sell its profitable airline business to raise cash to fund its fight back from losses racked up in 2018 and to cope with a tough year ahead, sending the travel group’s shares 12 percent higher. The oldest travel company in the world stumbled badly last year when a heatwave in northern Europe deterred holiday makers from booking lucrative last minute deals, leading to two major profit warnings and talk of a need to raise funds. (flip.it) Más...
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Flights: Disgusting moment Delta passenger finds a MAGGOT crawling in his food
FLIGHTS are not always equated with high-quality food but certain standards are expected to be met - especially when you travel in first class. One Delta Airlines passenger was left absolutely horrified by the dish he was served, as this viral video shows. (flip.it) Más...
If Airbus had built and commercialized the A-380 Freighter, would it be a success or failure?
Well let’s start with the first two. Lots of lift and the ability to carry a lot of weight mean that freight companies can load it with stacks of cargo and it can still fly safely. The third point mentions weight reduction. What I mean is that unlike the A380, the 747 only has a partial upper deck. Obviously, half a deck weighs less than a whole deck. The 747’s upper deck has been extending since the 1980s/1990s, so Boeing introduced their newest freighters with a short upper deck. (flip.it) Más...
18 comentarios de miembros
New Regulations for Airline Passengers in Canada
Domestic jet-setters will have seemingly more protection and compensation as the federal government looks to pass the first, passenger bill of rights, within Canada. Earlier this week, Transport Minister Marc Garneau, announced new regulations for flights flying out of, or landing in Canada. The passenger bill of rights outlines compensation for passengers for delayed or cancelled flights and amends the time passengers will have to stay in their plane on the tarmac when delays are present. (www.waytoimprove.net) Más...
Air Force accepts first long-delayed Boeing KC-46 tanker jet
The U.S. Air Force has accepted the long-delayed first delivery of the KC-46 tanker jet made by Boeing, an Air Force spokeswoman said on Thursday. (www.stltoday.com) Más...
Vietnam's newest airline Bamboo takes first flight
HANOI, Vietnam -- Vietnam's newest commercial carrier Bamboo Airways took flight Wednesday, officially entering Southeast Asia's crowded aviation sector where it will face stiff competition from established players. Air travel in the region has boomed in recent years as appetites -- and budgets -- for travel have soared among spendthrift flyers. (news.abs-cbn.com) Más...
100 Passengers and 5 Airline Crew evacuate plane after Engine makes a loud bang then cabin fills with smoke
More than 100 people were evacuated from a Flybe flight at Exeter Airport today after the engine made a loud banging noise and the cabin filled up with smoke. Passengers had boarded the Flybe Embraer plane to the Spanish resort of Alicante and the pilot was preparing to leave when the air in the cabin became hazy. (www.itravelapp.net) Más...
Southwest sues mechanics union alleging deliberate slowdowns
Southwest sues mechanics union alleging deliberate slowdowns (www.seattletimes.com) Más...
Exclusive: Meet The Brave Mumbai Air Hostess Who Ran Up 9 Floors To Battle a Fire
“While I have been part of several training sessions, standing in front of such an inferno was scary but I was able to think clearly and my training kicked in,” she says. In an interview that I had conducted with the crew of flight 9W 973, in which the quick thinking of the crew saved the life of a passenger who suffered a heart attack mid-flight, I remember that the importance of their training process was mentioned several times. (www.thebetterindia.com) Más...
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6 Best Planes To Choose For Your Next Flight
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Strange but True: Plane forced to turn back after mother forgets her newborn at airport
Why Etihad, Emirates and Qatar Airways Are All Showing Signs of Crisis
'I'm not an idiot, HE'S the f***ing idiot!' US passenger's bizarre rant as he is thrown off flight from Moscow to New York
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Boeing To Showcase Chinook Helicopter, Latest Planes At Aero India 2019
Vietnamese airlines granted access to U.S. market for first time
Disruptive passenger forces flight from SeaTac to LAX to land in Portland
Airbus to give update on A380 superjumbo shutdown plans: sources
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Frontpage
Entering Finland
Find out if you need a visa
What is a Schengen visa?
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Finland Abroad -websites
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Finland abroad
A decision of paternity issued and valid in a foreign country is, as a rule, recognised in Finland without a separate legal establishment. The competent authority is the Local Register Office.
As a rule, paternity should be confirmed in the child's country of residence in accordance with the legislation in the country in question. When a decision of paternity issued in a foreign country is valid in that country it can be recognised in Finland without a separate legal establishment.
A decision on paternity refers to a decision by a court of law or other authority and the confirmation or registration of a legal act that establishes the relation between the child and man as one of paternity in the country in which the registration or other act took place.
Where necessary, the Helsinki District Court may confirm, by application, whether a decision on paternity issued in a foreign country is recognised in Finland.
Consular and customer services are provided by the Embassy of Finland in Ankara, Turkey.
Service telephone +90 312 457 4433 Tuesday and Thursday from 14:00 to 15:00 hrs.
Website finlandabroad.fi/turkey
Finland Abroad is a website provided by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and Finland's missions abroad.
Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland
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Targeted nanoparticle-aptamer bioconjugates for cancer chemotherapy in vivo
Farokhzad, O. C., Cheng, J., Teply, B. A., Sherifi, I., Jon, S., Kantoff, P. W., Richie, J. P. & Langer, R., Apr 18 2006, In : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 103, 16, p. 6315-6320 6 p.
Good vibrations: Do electrical therapeutic massagers work?
McDonagh, D., Wilson, L., Haslam, C. & Weightman, D., May 15 2005, In : Ergonomics. 48, 6, p. 680-691 12 p.
Wavelength-dependent scattering in spectroscopic optical coherence tomography
Xu, C., Carney, P. S. & Boppart, S. A., Jun 11 2005, In : Optics Express. 13, 14, p. 5450-5462 13 p.
spectral signatures
Wax-protected catalyst microspheres for efficient self-healing materials
Rule, J. D., Brown, E. N., Sottos, N. R., White, S. R. & Moore, J. S., Jan 31 2005, In : Advanced Materials. 17, 2, p. 205-208 4 p.
Self-healing materials
dicyclopentadiene
Adaptive spectral apodization for sidelobe reduction in optical coherence tomography images
Marks, D., Carney, P. S. & Boppart, S. A., Nov 1 2004, In : Journal of biomedical optics. 9, 6, p. 1281-1287 7 p.
sidelobe reduction
apodization
sidelobes
Targeted delivery of RNA-cleaving DNA enzyme (DNAzyme) to tumor tissue by transferrin-modified, cyclodextrin-based particles
Pun, S. H., Tack, F., Bellocq, N. C., Cheng, J., Grubbs, B. H., Jensen, G. S., Davis, M. E., Brewster, M., Janicot, M., Janssens, B., Floren, W. & Bakker, A., Jul 2004, In : Cancer Biology and Therapy. 3, 7, p. 641-650 10 p.
Cyclodextrins
Transferrin
Adamantane
Catalytic DNA
Projected index computed tomography
Zysk, A. M., Reynolds, J. J., Marks, D. L., Carney, P. S. & Boppart, S. A., May 1 2003, In : Optics Letters. 28, 9, p. 701-703 3 p.
In-plane bandgap control in porous GaN through electroless wet chemical etching
Li, X., Kim, Y. W., Bohn, P. W. & Adesida, I., Feb 11 2002, In : Applied Physics Letters. 80, 6, p. 980-982 3 p.
light emission
In-plane control of morphology and tunable photoluminescence in porous silicon produced by metal-assisted electroless chemical etching
Chattopadhyay, S., Li, X. & Bohn, P. W., May 1 2002, In : Journal of Applied Physics. 91, 9, p. 6134-6140 7 p.
porous silicon
Catalytic amplification of the soft lithographic patterning of Si. Nonelectrochemical orthogonal fabrication of photoluminescent porous Si pixel arrays
Harada, Y., Li, X., Bohn, P. W. & Nuzzo, R. G., Sep 12 2001, In : Journal of the American Chemical Society. 123, 36, p. 8709-8717 9 p.
Effects of material growth technique and Mg doping on Er3+ photoluminescence in Er-implanted GaN
Kim, S., Henry, R. L., Wickenden, A. E., Koleske, D. D., Rhee, S. J., White, J. O., Myoung, J. M., Kim, K., Li, X., Coleman, J. J. & Bishop, S. G., Jul 1 2001, In : Journal of Applied Physics. 90, 1, p. 252-259 8 p.
vapor phase epitaxy
Experimental factors controlling analyte ion generation in laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry on porous silicon
Kruse, R. A., Li, X., Bohn, P. W. & Sweedler, J. V., Aug 1 2001, In : Analytical chemistry. 73, 15, p. 3639-3645 7 p.
Temperature dependence of photoluminescence spectra from multiple Er3+ sites in Er-implanted undoped and Mg-doped GaN
Kim, S., Rhee, S. J., White, J. O., Mitofsky, A. M., Li, X., Papen, G. C., Coleman, J. J. & Bishop, S. G., Apr 24 2001, In : Materials Science and Engineering B: Solid-State Materials for Advanced Technology. 81, 1-3, p. 136-139 4 p.
Photoluminescence spectroscopy
Arsenic oxide microcrystals in anodically processed GaAs electrochemical growth, spectroscopy, and morphology
Li, X. & Bohn, P. W., May 1 2000, In : Journal of the Electrochemical Society. 147, 5, p. 1740-1746 7 p.
Microcrystals
Metal-assisted chemical etching in HF/H2O2 produces porous silicon
Li, X. & Bonn, P. W., Oct 16 2000, In : Applied Physics Letters. 77, 16, p. 2572-2574 3 p.
submerging
Selective enhancement of 1540 nm Er3+ emission centers in Er-implanted GaN by Mg codoping
Kim, S., Rhee, S. J., Li, X., Coleman, J. J. & Bishop, S. G., Apr 24 2000, In : Applied Physics Letters. 76, 17, p. 2403-2405 3 p.
Spatially resolved band-edge emission from partially coalesced GaN pyramids prepared by epitaxial lateral overgrowth
Li, X., Bohn, P. W., Kim, J., White, J. O. & Coleman, J. J., May 22 2000, In : Applied Physics Letters. 76, 21, p. 3031-3033 3 p.
Raman spectra
GaN: From selective area to epitaxial lateral overgrowth
Li, X., Bishop, S. G. & Coleman, J. J., Dec 1 1999, In : MRS Internet Journal of Nitride Semiconductor Research. 4, SUPPL. 1
Impurity states are the origin of yellow-band emission in GaN structures produced by epitaxial lateral overgrowth
Li, X., Bohn, P. W. & Coleman, J. J., Dec 1 1999, In : Applied Physics Letters. 75, 26, p. 4049-4051 3 p.
apexes
Photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy of in situ Er-doped and Er-implanted GaN films grown by hydride vapor phase epitaxy
Kim, S., Li, X., Coleman, J. J., Zhang, R., Hansen, D. M., Kuech, T. F. & Bishop, S. G., Dec 1 1999, In : MRS Internet Journal of Nitride Semiconductor Research. 4, SUPPL. 1, p. 7d
Production and evolution of composition, morphology, and luminescence of microcrystalline arsenic oxides produced during the anodic processing of (100) GaAs
Finnie, C. M., Li, X. & Bohn, P. W., Nov 1 1999, In : Journal of Applied Physics. 86, 9, p. 4997-5003 7 p.
x ray analysis
Excitation mechanisms of multiple Er 3+ sites in Er-Implanted GaN
Kim, S., Rhee, S. J., Li, X., Coleman, J. J., Bishop, S. G. & Klein, P. B., Apr 1998, In : Journal of Electronic Materials. 27, 4, p. 246-254 9 p.
Absorption spectra
GaN epitaxial lateral overgrowth and optical characterization
Li, X., Bishop, S. G. & Coleman, J. J., Dec 1 1998, In : Applied Physics Letters. 73, 9, p. 1179-1181 3 p.
Photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy of multiple sites in Nd-implanted GaN
Kim, S., Rhee, S., Li, X., Coleman, J. & Bishop, S., Jan 1 1998, In : Physical Review B - Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. 57, 23, p. 14588-14591 4 p.
The incorporation of arsenic in GaN by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition
Li, X., Kim, S., Reuter, E. E., Bishop, S. G. & Coleman, J. J., Dec 1 1998, In : Applied Physics Letters. 72, 16, p. 1990-1992 3 p.
Characteristics of GaN stripes grown by selective-area metalorganic chemical vapor deposition
Li, X., Jones, A. M., Roh, S. D., Turnbull, D. A., Bishop, S. G. & Coleman, J. J., Mar 1997, In : Journal of Electronic Materials. 26, 3, p. 306-310 5 p.
Depth-resolved and excitation power dependent cathodoluminescence study of GaN films grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition
Li, X. & Coleman, J. J., Jan 27 1997, In : Applied Physics Letters. 70, 4, p. 438-440 3 p.
Observation of multiple Er3+ sites in Er-implanted GaN by site-selective photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy
Kim, S., Rhee, S. J., Turnbull, D. A., Reuter, E. E., Li, X., Coleman, J. J. & Bishop, S. G., Jul 14 1997, In : Applied Physics Letters. 71, 2, p. 231-233 3 p.
optical absorption
Surface photoabsorption monitoring of the growth of GaAs and InGaAs at 650°C by MOCVD
Kim, Y. D., Nakamura, F., Yoon, E., Forbes, D. V., Li, X. & Coleman, J. J., Oct 1997, In : Journal of Electronic Materials. 26, 10, p. 1164-1168 5 p.
photoabsorption
Semiconductor quantum wells
Trap-mediated excitation of Er 3+ photoluminescence in Er-implanted GaN
Kim, S., Rhee, S. J., Turnbull, D. A., Li, X., Coleman, J. J., Bishop, S. G. & Klein, P. B., Nov 3 1997, In : Applied Physics Letters. 71, 18, p. 2662-2664 3 p.
Effect of e-beam irradiation on a p-n junction GaN light emitting diode
Li, X., Gu, S. Q., Reuter, E. E., Verdeyen, J. T., Bishop, S. G. & Coleman, J. J., Sep 1 1996, In : Journal of Applied Physics. 80, 5, p. 2687-2690 4 p.
junction diodes
p-n junctions
Experimental investigation of aluminum/epoxy interfacial properties in shear and tension
Albers, R. G. & White, S. R., 1996, In : Journal of Adhesion. 55, 3-4, p. 303-316 14 p.
Shear strength
Time-dependent study of low energy electron beam irradiation of Mg-doped GaN grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition
Li, X. & Coleman, J. J., Sep 9 1996, In : Applied Physics Letters. 69, 11, p. 1605-1607 3 p.
electron beams
A new buffer layer for MOCVD growth of GaN on sapphire
Li, X., Forbes, D. V., Gu, S. Q., Turnbull, D. A., Bishop, S. G. & Coleman, J. J., Nov 1 1995, In : Journal of Electronic Materials. 24, 11, p. 1711-1714 4 p.
Manufacture and mechanical testing of hybrid aluminum/graphite/epoxy rods with different surface treatments
Berman, J. B., Albers, R. G. & White, S. R., Oct 1995, In : Journal of Advanced Materials. 27, 1, p. 18-30 13 p.
Ultraviolet absorption bands of ionic compound clusters: Onset of crystalline structures in [Csn+1In]+, n=1-13
Li, X. & Whetten, R. L., Jan 1 1993, In : The Journal of Chemical Physics. 98, 8, p. 6170-6175 6 p.
ultraviolet absorption
Photon-stimulated ejection of atoms from alkali-halide nanocrystals
Li, X., Beck, R. D. & Whetten, R. L., Jan 1 1992, In : Physical review letters. 68, 23, p. 3420-3423 4 p.
alkali halides
surface defects
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Howard Berenbaum, Professor
Professor, Psychology
Professor, Psychiatry
Emailhberenba@illinois.edu
50 - 100 out of 135 results
Worry, anhedonic depression, and emotional styles
Berenbaum, H., Bredemeier, K., Thompson, R. J. & Boden, M. T., Feb 1 2012, In : Cognitive Therapy and Research. 36, 1, p. 72-80 9 p.
Worry and perceived threat of proximal and distal undesirable outcomes
Bredemeier, K., Berenbaum, H. & Spielberg, J. M., Apr 1 2012, In : Journal of Anxiety Disorders. 26, 3, p. 425-429 5 p.
Self Report
Adaptive and aggressive assertiveness scales (AAA-S)
Thompson, R. J. & Berenbaum, H., Sep 1 2011, In : Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment. 33, 3, p. 323-334 12 p.
Reproducibility of Results
Affective instability, family history of mood disorders, and neurodevelopmental disturbance
Berenbaum, H., Bredemeier, K., Boden, M. T., Thompson, R. J. & Milanak, M., Jul 1 2011, In : Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment. 2, 3, p. 220-229 10 p.
Alogia and formal thought disorder: Differential patterns of verbal fluency task performance
Docherty, A. R., Berenbaum, H. & Kerns, J. G., Oct 2011, In : Journal of Psychiatric Research. 45, 10, p. 1352-1357 6 p.
Task Performance and Analysis
Broad and Cutting-Edge Training in Applied Psychology: A Clinical Science Perspective
Berenbaum, H. & Shoham, V., Feb 1 2011, In : Training and Education in Professional Psychology. 5, 1, p. 22-29 8 p.
Cognitive Correlates of Emotional Traits: Perceptions of Self and Others
Dizén, M. & Berenbaum, H., Feb 1 2011, In : Emotion. 11, 1, p. 115-126 12 p.
Cross-sectional and longitudinal relations between affective instability and depression
Thompson, R. J., Berenbaum, H. & Bredemeier, K., Apr 1 2011, In : Journal of Affective Disorders. 130, 1-2, p. 53-59 7 p.
Dyadic moderators of the effectiveness of problem-focused and emotional-approach coping interventions
Baker, J. P. & Berenbaum, H., Dec 1 2011, In : Cognitive Therapy and Research. 35, 6, p. 550-559 10 p.
Individual differences in controlled attention and susceptibility to inattentional blindness
Bredemeier, K., Berenbaum, H. & Simons, D. J., 2011, In : Visual Cognition. 19, 10, p. 1299-1303 5 p.
Individual Differences
Inattentional Blindness
Links between neuroticism, emotional distress, and disengaging attention: Evidence from a single-target RSVP task
Bredemeier, K., Berenbaum, H., Most, S. B. & Simons, D. J., Dec 1 2011, In : Cognition and Emotion. 25, 8, p. 1510-1519 10 p.
Attentional Blink
What you are feeling and why: Two distinct types of emotional clarity
Boden, M. T. & Berenbaum, H., Oct 1 2011, In : Personality and Individual Differences. 51, 5, p. 652-656 5 p.
Affective processing in overwhelmed individuals: Strategic and task considerations
Kerns, J. G. & Berenbaum, H., Jun 1 2010, In : Cognition and Emotion. 24, 4, p. 638-660 23 p.
Screening for Depressive Disorders Using the Mood and Anxiety Symptoms Questionnaire Anhedonic Depression Scale: A Receiver-Operating Characteristic Analysis
Bredemeier, K., Spielberg, J. M., Silton, R. L., Berenbaum, H., Heller, W. & Miller, G. A., Sep 1 2010, In : Psychological assessment. 22, 3, p. 702-710 9 p.
ROC Curve
Shame Aversion and Shame-Proneness in Cluster C Personality Disorders
Schoenleber, M. & Berenbaum, H., Feb 2010, In : Journal of abnormal psychology. 119, 1, p. 197-205 9 p.
The bidirectional relations between affect and belief
Boden, M. T. & Berenbaum, H., Sep 1 2010, In : Review of General Psychology. 14, 3, p. 227-239 13 p.
Empirical Research
Emotional awareness and emotional eating
Moon, A. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 7 2009, In : Cognition and Emotion. 23, 3, p. 417-429 13 p.
Emotional Salience, Emotional Awareness, Peculiar Beliefs, and Magical Thinking
Berenbaum, H., Boden, M. T. & Baker, J. P., Apr 1 2009, In : Emotion. 9, 2, p. 197-205 9 p.
Measuring clarity of and attention to emotions
Palmieri, P. A., Boden, M. T. & Berenbaum, H., Nov 2009, In : Journal of Personality Assessment. 91, 6, p. 560-567 8 p.
Affective Symptoms
Statistical Factor Analysis
The association between rejection and depression in the context of women's relationships with their parents
Thompson, R. J. & Berenbaum, H., Mar 1 2009, In : Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. 26, 2-3, p. 327-339 13 p.
Nuclear Family
The relationship between PTSD symptom factors and emotion
Milanak, M. E. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 31 2009, In : Journal of Traumatic Stress. 22, 2, p. 139-145 7 p.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders
The unique relations between emotional awareness and facets of affective instability
Thompson, R. J., Dizén, M. & Berenbaum, H., Oct 1 2009, In : Journal of Research in Personality. 43, 5, p. 875-879 5 p.
Cognitive correlates of schizophrenia signs and symptoms: III. Hallucinations and delusions
Berenbaum, H., Kerns, J. G., Vernon, L. L. & Gomez, J. J., May 30 2008, In : Psychiatry Research. 159, 1-2, p. 163-166 4 p.
Cognitive correlates of schizophrenia signs and symptoms: II. Emotional disturbances
Cognitive correlates of schizophrenia signs and symptoms: I. verbal communication disturbances
Berenbaum, H., Kerns, J. G., Vernon, L. L. & Gomez, J. J., May 30 2008, In : Psychiatry Research. 159, 1-2, p. 147-156 10 p.
Extreme outcome expectations and affect intensity
Dizen, M. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 4 2008, In : Cognition and Emotion. 22, 6, p. 1130-1148 19 p.
Fear and disgust propensity in spider phobic distress
Vernon, L. L. & Berenbaum, H., Dec 1 2008, In : Journal of Anxiety Disorders. 22, 8, p. 1285-1296 12 p.
Intolerance of uncertainty: Exploring its dimensionality and associations with need for cognitive closure, psychopathology, and personality
Berenbaum, H., Bredemeier, K. & Thompson, R. J., Jan 1 2008, In : Journal of Anxiety Disorders. 22, 1, p. 117-125 9 p.
Intolerance of uncertainty and perceived threat
Bredemeier, K. & Berenbaum, H., Jan 1 2008, In : Behaviour Research and Therapy. 46, 1, p. 28-38 11 p.
Psychological Trauma and Schizotypal Personality Disorder
Berenbaum, H., Thompson, R. J., Milanak, M. E., Boden, M. T. & Bredemeier, K., Aug 2008, In : Journal of abnormal psychology. 117, 3, p. 502-519 18 p.
The efficacy of problem-focused and emotional approach interventions varies as a function of emotional processing style
Baker, J. P. & Berenbaum, H., Feb 1 2008, In : Cognitive Therapy and Research. 32, 1, p. 66-82 17 p.
Social Adjustment
The relation between emotional awareness and hallucinations and delusions in acute psychiatric inpatients
Serper, M. & Berenbaum, H., Apr 1 2008, In : Schizophrenia Research. 101, 1-3, p. 195-200 6 p.
Emotional approach and problem-focused coping: A comparison of potentially adaptive strategies
Baker, J. P. & Berenbaum, H., Jan 1 2007, In : Cognition and Emotion. 21, 1, p. 95-118 24 p.
Self-report
Emotional awareness, gender, and suspiciousness
Boden, M. T. & Berenbaum, H., Feb 1 2007, In : Cognition and Emotion. 21, 2, p. 268-280 13 p.
Emotional State
Emotional triggers and their relation to impulsive and compulsive psychopathology
Abramowitz, A. & Berenbaum, H., Oct 1 2007, In : Personality and Individual Differences. 43, 6, p. 1356-1365 10 p.
Perceived threat: Exploring its association with worry and its hypothesized antecedents
Berenbaum, H., Thompson, R. J. & Bredemeier, K., Oct 1 2007, In : Behaviour Research and Therapy. 45, 10, p. 2473-2482 10 p.
The relation between worrying and concerns: The importance of perceived probability and cost
Berenbaum, H., Thompson, R. J. & Pomerantz, E. M., Feb 1 2007, In : Behaviour Research and Therapy. 45, 2, p. 301-311 11 p.
Emotional correlates of the different dimensions of schizotypal personality disorder
Berenbaum, H., Boden, M. T., Baker, J. P., Dizen, M., Thompson, R. J. & Abramowitz, A., May 2006, In : Journal of abnormal psychology. 115, 2, p. 359-368 10 p.
Shame reactions to everyday dilemmas are associated with depressive disorder
Thompson, R. J. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 1 2006, In : Cognitive Therapy and Research. 30, 4, p. 415-425 11 p.
Emotional awareness and psychological needs
Dizén, M., Berenbaum, H. & Kerns, J. G., Dec 1 2005, In : Cognition and Emotion. 19, 8, p. 1140-1157 18 p.
A naturalistic examination of positive expectations, time course, and disgust in the origins and reduction of spider and insect distress
Vernon, L. L. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 2 2004, In : Journal of Anxiety Disorders. 18, 5, p. 707-718 12 p.
The potentially adaptive features of peculiar beliefs
Boden, M. T. & Berenbaum, H., Sep 1 2004, In : Personality and Individual Differences. 37, 4, p. 707-719 13 p.
Brain injury in battered women
Valera, E. M. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 1 2003, In : Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 71, 4, p. 797-804 8 p.
Spouse Abuse
Sexual Partners
The dimensions of emotional intelligence, alexithymia, and mood awareness: Associations with personality and performance on an emotional stroop task
Coffey, E., Berenbaum, H. & Kerns, J. G., Jul 1 2003, In : Cognition and Emotion. 17, 4, p. 671-679 9 p.
The relationship between formal thought disorder and executive functioning component processes
Kerns, J. G. & Berenbaum, H., Aug 2003, In : Journal of abnormal psychology. 112, 3, p. 339-352 14 p.
Cognitive impairments associated with formal thought disorder in people with schizophrenia
Kerns, J. G. & Berenbaum, H., Jan 1 2002, In : Journal of abnormal psychology. 111, 2, p. 211-224 14 p.
Automatic Data Processing
Culture and Alexithymia: Mean Levels, Correlates, and the Role of Parental Socialization of Emotions
Le, H. N., Berenbaum, H. & Raghavan, C., Dec 1 2002, In : Emotion. 2, 4, p. 341-360 20 p.
Disgust and fear in response to spiders
Vernon, L. L. & Berenbaum, H., Nov 1 2002, In : Cognition and Emotion. 16, 6, p. 809-830 22 p.
Predicting dysphoria and hostility using the diathesis-stress model of sociotropy and autonomy in a contextualized stress setting
Raghavan, C., Le, H. N. & Berenbaum, H., 2002, In : Cognitive Therapy and Research. 26, 2, p. 231-244 14 p., 368365.
Varieties of joy-related pleasurable activities and feelings
Berenbaum, H., Jul 17 2002, In : Cognition and Emotion. 16, 4, p. 473-494 22 p.
Personality Inventory
Contact Howard Berenbaum, Professor
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Faded Spring
An Open Letter To Grenfell Tower: The Cold Hard Truth
58 people feared dead, dozens missing and hundreds without house or home, caught in limbo as they watched their homes go up in flames on the 14th June. Many were lucky to have made it out alive; a blind pensioner who used his jumper to create an SOS signal, rescued 12 hours after the fire had started from his 11th floor flat orffff the hero who caught a 4 year old girl, thrown out of the window by her mother who is believed to be deceased. But for some, their last words brought anguish to their families; talented artist Khadija Saye who posted on Facebook that she had tried to escape but couldn’t leave due to the thick smoke and flames or 23 year old Mohammed al-Haj Ali who escaped war in Syria, to find a better life in the UK but died alone, after being separated from his brother Omar. Or what about the 536 others reported as missing by residents, yet the government and media have only listed 30 as dead, why is this?
Why is the media and the government lying to us, claiming that the death toll is lower than it is? Why is the media trying to sugarcoat what really happened, is it because they are scared of criticism? Because they know that the ‘fall’ of Grenfell Tower was pre-mediated and that they could have done more to prevent the fire from happening. The only way that we can know the truth is by listening to the ‘Grenfell Community’ because they are the only ones who want the whole world to know what really happened. I felt sickened reading through community reports where despite the ‘media’ declaring that there were 30 ‘deaths so far’, the reality is that there is in fact 160 innocent people dead; mothers, fathers, children, families, friends all perished in the fire without having their deaths acknowledged. As volunteer and resident DJ Isla stated in a heartbreaking interview she had not met a ‘single victim’ since volunteering and said she can no longer volunteer when the money is A. not reaching the survivors and B. the donations are going to waste, when the donations are for people who are already dead.
An emotional resident, whose name was undeclared stated that he was ‘friends’ with one of the firefighters, because they both share Moroccan descent , who told him that in one room alone, there was 42 people dead and yet the official death toll still remains at 30. The reality is that our Conservative government is afraid of its people, because it knows that if it was to release the real ‘high death’ figures, then Theresa May would undoubtedly be ousted from power, as she should be. Where was she when Corbyn was talking to the residents, comforting the survivors and giving them a shoulder to cry on. As one survivor quite aptly put, May was ‘s**t and did not even talk to the residents when she visited Grenfell Tower, yet Corbyn who constantly receives bad press, showed what a good man he really is, expressing empathy and understanding. While May released an official statement admitting that the response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy was ‘not good’ and claimed that she would ‘extend relief efforts’, the truth is she knows as well as the media that they are not taking full responsibility for their actions. After all a true leader is one who unites a nation in the wake of tragedy and gives us the cold hard truth, even when we don’t want to hear it and May has failed spectacularly on both levels.
But how on earth did Grenfell Tower catch fire in the first place? While there are many theories that are floating around, a general consensus is that the lack of fire sprinkler systems combined with non-fire resistant external cladding led to the destruction of the building in the matter of 15 minutes, although a resident claimed that his faulty fridge caught fire first. The truth is that for years residents had complained about the fire hazards that the building imposed and yet their words were blocked. Instead they were giving sanctions for speaking out against the council. London Mayor Sadiq Khan even stated that residents were offered poor advice by authorities, who claimed that it was advisable to stay inside in the event of a fire and that the council would only take action if many people had died. Can we claim that this fire, that undoubtedly killed more than 30 people, is an example of corporate manslaughter? I believe so, after all as Labour MP for Tottenham David Lammy stated
“This is the richest borough in our country treating its citizens in this way and we should call it what it is. It is corporate manslaughter. And there should be arrests made; frankly, it is an outrage,” he said. Having lost his dear friend and artist Khadija Saye in the blaze, Lammy was not the only MP or minister to question and label the tragedy as ‘corporate manslaughter’. Shadow Housing Minister John Healey accused ministers of ignoring key recommendations issued by coroners reports into tower block fires in south London and Southampton and declared that there should be an immediate fire safety review of tower blocks. The real question is though, why does it take a tragedy to propel the government into action? Moreover why were many residents threatened with being kicked out after voicing their concerns over the fire safety hazards or dismissed for being dramatic?
The irony is that our very own Prime Minister Theresa May’s Chief Staff was one of a series of housing ministers who sat on a report that warned that ‘high rise buildings like Grenfell Tower ‘ were prone to fire for FOUR YEARS and yet did nothing! If there had been the ‘recommended fire sprinkler’ systems in place and fire resistant cladding, would the fire have been as momentous as it was on the 14th June or would it have even happened at all? After all the fire at Lakanal House in 2009, killed 6 people and injured at least 20, surely that would have been a wake up call to the government and councils to not reject ‘residential bids’ for adequate infrastructure and fire safety regulations? Yet like always, the government are lining their own pockets and watching their own backs, without thinking of its people first. It horrifies me that corporate manslaughter is still evident in 2017 and to think that our government continues to create a gap between the poor and the rich, because they believe that the ‘rich is more valuable to our economy’ is beyond me.
But what can we as a community do, when the money we have donated is lining the pockets of charities and not going towards funeral, housing and living costs? How can we take a stand and show our government that we will not stand for this bull***t any more? I will tell you how, by signing petitions to help Grenfell residents find loved ones, to spread the word about the real truth that the media is failing to disclose and lastly to pressure the government to rethink their policies on the welfare state and social housing because this is not the first time that they have failed to stop high rise tower blocks from fires.
If you really want to make a change please sign the petitions below
To Fast track Grenfell Tower Victim Mohammad Alhajali’s parents visa to the UK please sign the petition below. You will not only allow them to visit surviving son Omar in hospital, but you will also allow them to attend their son Mohammed’s funeral. No parent should ever have to bury their child but please give them the chance to spend time with both sons, before having to return to Syria.
https://www.change.org/p/home-office-get-grenfell-tower-victim-s-parents-to-the-uk
Any family and friends concerned about their loved ones please contact the Casualty Bureau on 0800 0961 233.
If you are affected by the Grenfell Tower fire, either directly or indirectly, and in need of mental health support or psychological therapy you can call a dedicated NHS response service number where you can get access to mental health support services as well as information and advice 24 hours a day.The number to call is 0800 0234 650 or email cnw-tr.spa@nhs.net
To Get Grenfell Tower’s Housing Minister and Theresa May’s Chief of Staff Gavin Barwell to resign now, sign the petition below.
https://www.change.org/p/theresa-may-mp-grenfell-tower-gavin-barwell-resign-now
To improve fire safety in tower blocks to make sure the tragedy in Grenfell Tower is never repeated please sign the petition below
https://speakout.38degrees.org.uk/campaigns/grenfell_tower?utm_campaign=pBMQ0j8CD7
and finally to rehome all tenants of Grenfell Tower please sign the petition below
https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/rehome-all-tenants-of-grenfell-tower
If you live nearby or have easy access to London then please do your bit and volunteer. Together we can make a change.
What Are Your Thoughts On The Grenfell Tower Fire?
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It was definitely a tragedy. Thoughts and prayers with the victims and the survivors. Just a horrible situation all around.
Well done for calling out the government and mainstream media on this, it is a brave but important post to write. I am not even sure it is a conservative vs labour issue though, I believe regardless of who is in power they have alot to answer for and twist the truth/ weave lies for us to believe. (I am very keen to get rid of Theresa May though certainly, and do like Jeremy Corbyn!)
Sarah Tamsin says
This is so horrific, it’s such a shame that a terrible tragedy had to take place in order for politicans/those in power to listen. The Grenfell Community had actively voiced their concerns over safety many times but no one listened?! It’s clear how harmful it can be to not listen and engage. I have signed several of these petitions and already donated money – it’s also baffling how much support comes from the public and not from the poiticans!!
elizabeth o says
An abomination! I am so sad that lives had to be lost for the problems to be finally addressed. The fatality numbers are going to soar and I’m heartbroken. Many are unaccounted for …. dozens of families missing and people died because of the management’s carelessness.
Who builds a high rise with 24 stories, 2 lifts, 1 exit!!!!!!!? Did anyone stop to consider how to evacuate 24 floors from 1 exit? It’s impossible and a travesty. Typically, elevators shut down in a fire. So, they were building funeral homes and calling them residences. I’m heartbroken for all the families. May the dead never be forgotten. <3
Such a tragic event. I also questioned how the death toll was so low when so many people were unaccounted for. I guess that can’t say they are dead unless they know for sure?
Ali Rost says
I read with horror what had happened and couldn’t help but think London has been through so much. My goodness, to read about the victims and what happened, it’s simply beyond heartbreaking. Some of what you mentioned filled in gaps for me .. especially about the number dead. I couldn’t (and still can’t) understand why the number wasn’t increasing, when clearly one knew it should. Thank-you too for including links for ways people can have their voice heard ..
Made Adayasa says
I am sorry to hear this . It was few days ago when I am here this happening on the radio station while I am driving my clients which is also from England .
Lauretta at Home and Horizon says
This is a heartbreaking story. I feel sorry for the relatives and friends of the victims. Praying for those who died and their families.
I think the Grenfell Tower Fire has been a wake-up call for a lot of councils who look after these high rise flats. You can bet they are all scrambling around now getting confirmation that tower blocks in their cities aren’t covered in plastic cladding!
Sona Jain says
My condolences are with families of those who lost lives. It is a sad thing. I agree. The people have the right to know what really happened and it only brings humanity together.
It’s such a devastating event and my thoughts are with everyone involved.
robin rue says
I watched this unfold on the news. What a tragedy! So much love to the survivors – I can’t even imagine what they went through.
Angela Milnes says
It is heartbreaking and so much more could have been done before the fire happened. It’s so so sad and I hope the government will make the changes they should have done long before. It makes me so mad the inequalities between rich and poor and the way things are hidden and played down! It’s just wrong!
freya farrington says
Thank you for sharing these petitions, I had friends (architects) living in throwing distance from this block and they can’t quite believe how the refurbished infrastructure was signed off!
Geek says
Really horrible incident.we have to take lesson from it.
Cathy Glynn says
It was such a tragic event, my heart is with all the families that lost loved ones, this should never have happened.
These are definitely some very real and scary experiences for those involved in a tradegy. It is sad that news often exaggerates, or portrays what political figures want them to portray. This is a great wake-up call post!
Talya says
Still reeling from this terrible tragedy which really could have been avoided I think it’s disgusting that cheap flammable cladding was put up on the exterior just so it could look better to those who live around it. Saving money always leads to such high human cost.
Chimezie says
London has been through a lot lately. The once calm and peaceful London is now threatened.
We sincerely commensurate with you all.
Jen groom says
This just makes me so angry. Thank you for giving those who need it resources to get the help they need after this tragic event.
Natalie Ann Redman says
It’s so sad, especially when it could have been prevented.
Elodie says
This is heartbreaking. I lived nearby for years and I can’t help but thinking all of these could have so easily been avoided. I still can’t believe all the lies we kept being fed…
Milton Goh says
This is horrible. I sincerely hope that the petition is successful and that justice is served!
Natasha Mairs says
It makes me so mad, why do councils only try and improve thing when something major happens like this? Why weren’t they listening to the concerns of the residents before this horrible tragedy. ?
Sarah Bailey says
I can’t get my head around what happened at Grenfell, how did they not have sprinkers and working alarms? Why did they tell people to stay put? So many why and so many missing answers.
Tonya Wilhelm says
I’m still in shock. What is wrong with people? I feel the world may be coming to an end!
Jana Carrero says
This is so heartbreaking AND infuriating. A real-life example of how the oppressed continue to be ignored, or pushed down, and forced to stay down. Sad that it takes such a tragic ordeal to shine a light on the economic disparities that exist.
It’s a shocking story whatever way you look at it. Such a devastating and unnecessary loss of precious life. There are many many questions to be answered x
Ivan says
Tragic news here and there. I saw the fire in the news and I couldn’t really bear to think about the poor souls suffering in that building.
Rhian Westbury says
I couldn’t believe the news when I heard about this, especially that most of the building didn’t have fire alarms either. I know the fire must have spread quick but fire alarms could have alerted more people x
Heather Johnson says
What a terrible tragedy. What caused the fire to spread so quickly was so easily preventable. Hopefully this tragedy will lead to improvements that will prevent further tragedies.
Sylvie Hanes says
What a horrible and sad tragedy. Hopefully this will open eyes to the fact that such type of building and lack of maintenance must be made safer. Prayers going out to those affected.
Karen Morse says
This is why it’s heartbreaking to watch the news these days. You never know which station is telling the truth. My heart goes out to the victims as well. It’s so heartbreaking when you hear, yet again, that London has to endure another tragedy as if the first two weren’t enough. Stay strong and stay united.
Dean says
This is unbelievably heartbreaking. I’m completely saddened by the current state of affairs, everywhere. Greed, hate, divide… and TOO much death lately. My thoughts are with all the families and friends. Hopefully, something positive can come of this. And I know that’s not comforting to hear, I hate hearing the saying “all things happen for a reason” after something tragic. I won’t say that. I do not believe this EVER should have happened. I think people should have been taken care of, I think people matter more than saving money and greed. But I do hope that there is some positive.
Sending you love-
MELANIE EDJOURIAN says
It’s such an awful thing to have happened. It’s shocking issues that had been brought up in 2003 about the building and faulty electrics there were ignored and not addressed as this could have been prevented. I think the death toll is now 79. I donated food right at the very beginning when we heard what had happened.
five little doves says
Just devastating. I have been unable to find the words and yet you sum it up so well. It’s shocking that they have underplayed this whole tragedy, there are so many more dead and missing than we will ever truly know, I will be signing those petitions.
The Brainy Mama says
I despise media for manipulating the truth! This is a heartbreaking tragedy.
yukti says
Such a tragic incident. Plastic cladding on high rise is very risky and shouldn’t be allowed atleast in residential towers.
Tia Cox says
What a terrible tragedy and things just seem to be getting worse each week. Terrible story and one can only hope the families find strength
tots2travel says
Heartbreaking. I think, but please check, that the police have to confirm somebody has passed away, and notify the relatives, before the media can officially be told and then officially state that somebody is gone. The loss is utterly heartbreaking but I think these checks and balances are to stop wild speculation or any error on the serious matter of life and death, but please check if I’m right. I think a lot of the members of the media right now are hurting too covering the endless succession of stories in London but each individual will be different. People across the country are shocked at this event.
Becca Talbot says
You’re completely right, it shouldn’t take a tragedy such as this to make the government take action – especially when residents were already requesting improved fire safety. My thoughts are with the victims and their families of this totally unnecessary tragedy xx
Helene Cohen Bludman says
Such a horrible tragedy. My prayers go to the victims and their families.
Cassandra Mayers says
I did notice that May’s comments were always very short and obvious. like “Something needs to be done” No Sh*t sherlock! She really does not seem to have a clue what she is doing or what to say at times like these. We may as well have a robot for PM.
The tower news hasn’t left my mind all week. The strength that mother must of had to throw her baby is unreal.
kathryn Maher says
Another tragedy…… another blow for London …and as if this were not enough for you all to cope with you have been cursed with a shitty Prime MInister who’s only concern is for her own self and her political career. Well if there is any Justice she won’t have one after the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
The Culinary Jumble says
Such a terrible tragedy. You simply can’t imagine the terror these people must have felt. You are right, we need the truth and answers as to how and why this happened in the first place.
Michele Pappagallo says
Such a tragic event. I feel for all of the people affected by this terrible tragedy. I agree that it seems like some sort of cover-up is going on, and I hope somebody gets to the bottom of it eventually.
Sarah Ann says
Such a powerful post. I still can’t believe such a thing happened in today’s day and age in this country, it’s wrong. I read your post whilst watching the Panorama documentary that was shown tonight. My heart goes out to everyone affected.
Such a horrific tragedy. My thoughts and prayers are with all those affected.
I was absolutely devastated when I read about this. I can’t believe something like this was allowed to happen and my heart breaks for the families who lost loved ones and also for the people who are now displaced because of this tragedy!
It was such a terrible thing that happened but I definitely put my hands in the air for you, so brave speaking out what everyone really thinks!
fashionmommy says
It is the most horrific thing I have ever seen, and my heart goes out to the families who have died, lost loved ones and lost their homes.
Chemady says
This is heartbreaking. My prayer goes to the victims, families and loved ones.
another sad and very tragic event and blow for London and i hope people find strength, to survive this horrible time.
Claudya says
Gut-wrenching. No one should have to die this way, let alone so many. This quote really got to me: “This is the richest borough in our country treating its citizens in this way and we should call it what it is. It is corporate manslaughter. And there should be arrests made; frankly, it is an outrage.” I think that if this could have been prevented, then yes, arrests should be made.
Amber Myers says
This is so upsetting–I feel for all those families. And I’m glad you called the media out. I wish I lived near London so I could help.
Nicole Anderson says
Not being someone living in the UK, I had no idea of the high numbers of dead you are talking about here. Obviously we only know what the media tells us as well. This terrible event was tragic enough without all the other points you have made in this post. It certainly is a real eye-opener and I can only hope that people really do make an effort to learn something from it so that it doesn’t happen again. Good on you for encouraging people to take some positive action and I hope it makes a difference.
Blair villanueva says
I saw this online and it is very sad. However, it also makes me think the security and safety of people in London. Every week there is a tragedy happening. Its scary.
Which makes me think.. Is London losing it?
I was saddened to see this on TV. Thank you for sharing more information about it because I really did not think it received the coverage that it should have. Prayers to all affected.
Such a devastating tragedy. Our hearts go out to all who were affected. What a horrible thing!
Gracie Gill says
My prayers for the victims of this tragic event. It is a big news here in the Philippines because many Filipinos were living in that building as well, and there were still missing people. It’s really sad that politics is still in this tragic moment.
Shigufa Saleheen says
Incredible truth in your post. The residents of that building had been asking for years for renovations to improve the building’s safety– it’s disheartening but not shock to think about why their requests weren’t fulfilled.
chei says
What a grief reading the news about the fire incident. May condolences to all people who lost their families.
lex says
my o my, Ana you did just what am sure alot of people will wish to do but couldn’t do, you served the government a big dose of their own treatment and medicine, hopefully they get to read this and see reasons to act more and protect citizens in cases like this and also to prevent such accidents in the future. well done Ana. Bravo.
I don’t agree with your political opinion of this tragedy and I can only assume that the media can only update numbers as the official number is recorded – they would be under fire if they over reported too. What I do agree with is that it is a tragedy and my heart goes out to the victims and their families and I hope that they find the help and support they need to get through this and that the people that look after these housing blocks bring their properties up to standard and quickly
Rachel George, Ordinary Hopes says
I do think that the numbers will rise but I do also think that they are probably can’t confirm deaths without bodies. I don’t even want to imagine the sights the firefighters must have seen.
Britta says
These people died because they are poor. Because this country has injustices that are more than immoral. Things need to change. These are desperate times.
Musings of a tired mummy...zzz... says
An awful tragedy. I didn’t realise such lies were being told. Alleging that 70 are dead in total but a witness says 42 dead in a single room is appalling. I hope the people force change to happen.
Cath - BattleMum says
It’s absolutely horrendous that fire safety in tower blocks is being ignored, mostly because landlords don’t want the expense. I saw a post yesterday which showed the Tory ministers who vetoed a proposal to force landlords to address fire safety in houses/flats and they were ALL landlords. Absolutely disgraceful. Just because they’re looking after their own pockets and ensuring they remain lined, they’re willing to put human lives at risk. They should be ashamed of themselves!
Mike Shugrhed says
What an excellent article – bravo. I cannot believe the amount of atrocities that have happened just recently. Unfortunatrely, the death toll is rising too!
Amanda Love says
I was in shock when I heard the news. So many lives lost, I’m sure there’s so much more because I saw the aftermath and the building did not look like anyone would survive at all. I can’t believe that the media chose to block it out instead of honoring those who lost their lives. My heart goes out to the victims of the fire and to everyone in the UK right now.
Stephanie Merry says
This is just a horrible tragedy all round, my thoughts and prayers are with all those affected x
Thank you for writing the truth and giving us ways to get involved. That is crazy how they kept ignoring attempts to make buildings like these safer in the event of a fire. This is so heart-breaking. I hope your government will wake up.
liz Cleland says
What an interesting post and sad tragedy. Thanks for sharing.
Baby Isabella says
The sad thing is that this tragedy could have been prevented 🙁 the death toll has risen again and no doubt will over the next couple of weeks. What we have found reassuring is the community spirit in the local area. People coming together in times of need.
Jeanine says
Such a tragedy. I feel like every other day its just something horrible happening somewhere. I’ve been thinking of the victims and families often, and its just so sad. Great call out.
Samantha Carraro says
This tragedy is truly awful. Two fellow Italians died that night, a young couple that went to the UK to find a job.
She called her mother before dying thanking her for what she’s done for her and saying that she’ll be watching the family from above. Heartbreaking.
Cindy Ingalls says
I remember seeing the pictures of the fire last week and it horrified me. All I could think about was all those poor people who were trapped in the building. I couldn’t believe how much damage there was as I always thought high-rises had to have more protection from fires. I truly hope something like this never happens again.
Man It makes me so sad to see the state of our world right now. It’s hard raising kids and seeing all of these horrible things happening all the time.
the Frenchie Mummy says
Such a tragedy! I will not be surprised iof the insurance is behind it. there is something wrong in this story…
sabrrina barbante says
Ana, thank you so much for giving us the link for the petition! I’ve found so incredible for a modern building in a modern city like London to burn that way in 2017 like it used to happen in 1600! And I’m so anguished when I think about those people dying there… and those shocked and survived but too poor to have a decent home.
Anosa says
What happened at Grenfell tower is absolutely devastating, I can’t even image what it must of been like for the familes, the fire and ambulance services, the people passig by that could do nothing except stand and watch as this awful tragedy was happening right before thier eyes. It is something that will continue to haunt them for many many years. The last I heard the death toll was up to 79 but like you said there is no way thats all it is, there must be so many more that have not been counted. My heart goes out to every person effected by it. Just horrible
2017 has been one tragedy after another for our country but this Grenfell tower was the last straw for many of us. Someone has to pay for all those needless deaths
Cassie Tucker says
Grenfell Tower was an unimaginable tragedy. I can’t believe the grief that London has been put through in recent months. I hope people sign these petitions and let the British government know that something needs to be done.
Newcastle Family Life says
It is such a tragic event, the speed which the fire took hold is terrifying. I think it is a disgrace that deaths are being kept quiet and totally agree the way May handled things has been terrible xx
Such a horrific event and the amount of things that are coming to light that could have prevented these deaths is appauling, someone needs to be held accountable and I for one am fed up with the media constantly trying to bullshit us all, first the election, now this! We need honesty not this crappy “reporting”
shannon ritchie says
I cannot even comprehend what has happened, such a tragic event. It makes me angry that the media are covering up the actual number of victims, it is disgusting behaviour.
The whole thing is SO tragic and my thoughts and prayers are with everyone. London has had a really rough go of it as of late.
I am a journalist, in the whim the news about the fire came across my AP news my heart dropped. Every time we get another update And the death toll rises, I just can’t believe it actually happened. Good job on your article and thanks for highlighting different points.
reesa says
Such a sad tragedy for sure! I have to be honest, I wasn’t aware of much of this information though prior to your post.
Sally Akins says
A really well written post, Ana. I think the truth will be slowly drip fed out, to try and manage the reaction. But the reports coming out from that night are just horrifying.
Ophelia Tang says
It is so sad that so many terrible things are happening in the world. I pray that the friends and family members of the people who died can find peace. Thanks for sharing.
XOXO //SINCERELY OPHELIA | NYC Petite Fashion Blogger
I’m not going to say too much in this comment, because it’ll end up as a rant… All I will is that this could have been avoided, and all those lost could still be with us, if the warnings they had provided were just listened to…
As for the media lying to us and covering things up… That’s all the media ever does anyway… At this point, the large majority of newspapers and news channels are just as falsified as The Onion…
Ahtsham Rana says
It was a saddening incident, I also got the news that some Muslims who were awake for the Fast of Ramadan, saved many lives.
Its great that people are signing these petitions, I hope they go through.
Dannii says
The whole situation really does break my heart. I was reading last night that over 40 dead people were found in one room, but they won’t officially realise that info.
Fashion and Style Police says
I have been unable to sleep properly since the horrible incident. I can’t believe how such a thing could happen in Great Britain. I believe the dead are way over 100, and I believe we will never know the true figure. May their souls rest in peace.
David Elliott says
I was saddened when I hear about this event. There is just so much going on out in the UK and its so tragic there. It seems unimaginable that people would do stupid things and that companies wouldn’t keep good sprinkler systems in a building but I know they try to pay for everything on the cheap. I saw a movie just recently about a government agency firebombing a building with men women and children inside and then instead of putting the fire out, they let it burn to encourage the people to come out of the building. Just angered me. And I don’t know that things have changed enough with people to be loving towards one another. I hope it is changing but I fear it is not.
francesca says
What has happened is an absolute atrocity!! My husband is a London firefighter so its been constantly on our minds lately. The number of deaths has been lied about in such a terrible way, there were hundreds of people living in those flats the death toll told by the media is a big lie! And its absolutely to cover the bucks of the people responsible!
What happened at Greenfell Tower is just horrifying. I also believe the numbers are being played down for the same reason.
As a council tennant myself I can believe the reports now coming out of the state of the Tower before. Councils don’t have to meet the same standards as private landlords and their budget being constantly cut like it has is sadly going to lead to more tragedys like this.
Emily Leary says
Such a horrid thing, it was so hard to read about for me. I hope everyone affected gets the information they need as soon as possible, and we can learn how to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
What an absolute tragedy! And a tragedy that could have been avoided, the way this has been handled is terrible too. So sad that we’ll never even know the true number of lost lives either
This whole event was just so sad. But I love how the UK came together again and started sending clothes, food and other items to help those in need. I just hope the death count at the end isn’t as high as I’m sadly expecting it to be 🙁
This is such a horrific tragedy. Thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved. I just can’t imagine being so close to this.
What a devastating tragedy. I didn’t know that so many people lost their lives in that fire. That is one of my biggest fears, being trapped in a fire. I can’t even imagine how all those people felt.
Whatlauraloves says
Thank you for writing such a beautiful post. Such a tragedy should not have happened in this day and age. Its a total disgrace xxx
Rachel Catherine says
So much has happened there lately. That poor city is just battered and the fire in this tower was just senseless and could have been avoided. My heart goes out to everyone.
ourliveswithbella says
Heartbreaking! I’m sorry I was not able to read the whole post, since it is upsetting to read or hear about people losing their lives. I appreciate you for writing this and making people reflect on this. It is heartbreaking that so many had to lose their lives.
The fire was such an awful tragedy, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing on the TV. Such a heartbraking tragedy! xo
Ana Ojha says
What a terrible tragedy! Prayers for the victims and their families! It’s so awful that media and government are sugarcoating the facts!
This is so heart-breaking and such a tragedy. Well done on calling out the government and the media. I love London and it hurts my heart to see everything that’s happening.
Ankit says
I wish I could say that it was not a premeditated tragedy. Everything, from the way fire broke out, the way media is responding and the way govt is silencing the media around it points towards a possibility. I have for long stopped watching news channels and instead rely on freelance journalists for the real news.
May God give rest and peace to the souls of deceased.
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JUDGING SUCCESSES
My first publishing credit was here.
As a writer, how do you judge successes? I don't think there's one big moment of publishing success for most writers.
I think there is a series of smaller ones, all of which culminate in the realisation you really can call yourself a writer after all. (And what writer doesn't need some kind of vindication after all?).
I would list some of my smaller steps as:-
First publishing credit. This was A Helping Hand in Bridge House Publishing's Alternative Renditions anthology.
First online publishing credit. This was with Shortbread Short Stories though I have gone on to have work online at Cafe Lit (short story and flash fiction) and Alfie Dog. Most recently I have had work on the American based Scriggler.com
Being recognized as a writer by fellow writers. This usually happens at book launches like the joint Bridge House/Cafe Lit launch I went to in London today. I'm glad to say I'm in The Best of Cafe Lit 4 and the inclusion of my story is recognition in itself, as is when talking to other writers, they recognize you regardless of how many stories you've had out there. They recognize, as I do for others, it's the graft and commitment you put in that really counts for anything.
And then how to judge success for your characters... I hope to look at that in my next post.
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FA Cup Preview: Fantasy Players to Watch
The FA Cup is gathering momentum and with quarter-final places up for grabs this weekend, clubs will have to start deciding how seriously they want to take the historic competition.
Chelsea’s home tie against Manchester City is one of the most eye-catching fixtures of the round, but there are opportunities for upsets too, with Blackburn Rovers hosting West Ham United, Hull City travelling to holders Arsenal and minnows Shrewsbury Town taking on Manchester United.
Here are five of the round’s biggest ties and the fantasy players to watch out for this weekend.
Chelsea v Manchester City
There is no doubt that the tie of the round sees Manchester City travel to Chelsea, although City’s manager Manuel Pellegrini has complained about the game’s proximity to a long trip to Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Chelsea, for whom the FA Cup is their best shot at glory this season, could be without first-choice defensive pairing Kurt Zouma and John Terry. Zouma is certain to miss the match with a serious knee injury while Terry is doubtful due to a hamstring problem he picked up in Saturday’s win against Newcastle United. Branislav Ivanović is therefore likely to start alongside Gary Cahill at centre-back, with Baba Rahman and Cesar César Azpilicueta the full-backs.
City should hand a start to Kelechi Iheanacho, who has scored four goals in two FA Cup games this season, giving Pellegrini the chance to rest Sergio Agüero for the Champions League. Iheanacho looks good daily fantasy value on FantasyBet at £7m.
Shrewsbury Town v Manchester United
Shrewsbury Town are the smallest team left in the competition and they host Manchester United in a mouthwatering cup tie on Monday, with United having lost 2-1 at Sunderland on Saturday.
Veteran midfielder Michael Carrick has admitted it is an “annoyance” that United have not won the FA Cup since 2004, with the tournament one of only a few he has not won at the club.
“I missed out on winning it in my first season, losing in the final to Chelsea – the first one back at the new Wembley – late on in extra-time,” Carrick said. “That was hugely disappointing. We’ve had a couple of really big chances to get back there over the years but we haven’t taken them.”
Micky Mellon’s side would record one of the biggest ever FA Cup shocks if they could knock United out, but no player has scored more than four goals for the League One strugglers this year.
Blackburn Rovers v West Ham United
West Ham triumphed over Liverpool in what manager Slaven Bilić described as a “classic FA Cup tie” in round four, but a trip to Championship side Blackburn Rovers offers a potential banana skin.
Rovers have struggled for goals under new manager Paul Lambert and they sold top goalscorer Jordan Rhodes to Middlesbrough in the January transfer window, while Lambert also once said Premier League managers could do without the FA Cup “if they were being honest” before his Aston Villa side lost 2-1 to Sheffield United in the 2014 third round.
Fantasy players to consider selecting include the in-form playmaker Dimitri Payet, Mark Noble and Angelo Ogbonna, who hit the Hammers’ late winner against Liverpool. Rovers can count on reliable defender Shane Duffy, who has been the fourth best player in the Championship this season according to WhoScored, with the Republic of Ireland international rated at 7.47.
Tottenham v Crystal Palace
A run of seven straight wins has put Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham in Premier League title contention and the FA Cup may be Spurs’ lowest priority, as they are also in the Europa League.
The most interesting sub-plot in Crystal Palace’s trip to White Hart Lane is the return of striker Emmanuel Adebayor, who scored his first goal for the club in a weekend loss at home to Watford.
Palace have lost six of their last seven Premier League games, so the cup could be a welcome distraction for Alan Pardew’s side, who have struggled to cope without injured playmaker Yannick Bolasie, who has scored four goals this season. In fact, Palace’s joint top scorers have only scored five goals all season, with Yohan Cabaye tied with centre-back Scott Dann.
Arsenal v Hull City
The fifth round gets underway when the holders Arsenal host Championship leaders Hull City in the early kick-off on Saturday, with Arsène Wenger’s side seeking a third straight FA Cup title.
Gabriel, Kieran Gibbs and Laurent Koscielny could all miss the game, leaving Arsenal with a second-string defence, while David Ospina may get a chance to impress in goal.
Wenger must also be thinking ahead for a Champions League clash with Barcelona, but he has been boosted by the improving fitness of Danny Welbeck, who scored a dramatic late winning goal in a 2-1 victory against title rivals Leicester City on Sunday.
Steve Bruce’s Tigers lost the 2014 FA Cup final 3-2 to Arsenal despite taking a 2-0 lead in the early minutes at Wembley and the Gunners also beat Hull in last year’s third round. But, in Abel Hernández, Bruce has one of the country’s most in-form strikers, with the Uruguay striker having hit 17 goals for his club this season.
Recommendation – Kelechi Iheanacho at £7m on FantasyBet (vs Chelsea, £100m Budget) in their FA Cup Contests
Tagged with: expert • FA Cup • focus
February 18, 2016 Jamie Smith
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Vinyl Corner
A Hotel To Call Home
Far Out Meets: Editors reflect on their evolution as a band and why they rebel against the comfort zone
Joe Taysom October 25, 2019
(Credit: Rob Baker Ashton)
Today is a day of fifteen years in the making for Editors, a band who reach the milestone that very few acts achieve and are releasing their greatest hits album, Black Gold, which hits the shelves today. The career-spanning 24-track compilation showcases and celebrates the number of uncompromising and left-turns the group have taken since they released their debut in 2005.
The title track for the compilation is a shining example of the evolution of Editors, the band that sit in front of us today are that of a completely different beast to the one from all those years ago. Frontman Tom Smith’s unique voice still creates the chilling sense of darkness that their debut set out but now, with the experience behind it, reaches that destination using a different mode of transport.
Editors’ 2.0 cycle began with their third record 2009’s In This Light and On This Morning which saw the band change up their style by swapping the guitar for the synthesizer, the album was a critical and commercial success which topped the album charts in the U.K. However, guitarist Chris Urbanowicz would later leave the band citing musical differences following this change in direction.
The Midlanders then made the decision to carry on and, while the band were a man down, the agreement was reached to bring in two extra members with Elliott Williams joining on keys and Justin Lockey replacing Urbanowisz as lead guitarist. As I prepared to interview the band, my research highlighted just how many obstacles Editors have been forced to overcome. While their breakthrough was one which instantly propelled them to high exposure, it’s their longevity and ability to stay relevant which seemed almost more impressive. Luckily, I was able to meet up with Justin Lockey who talked us through his journey with the group, the key to their durability and why they continue to re-invent themselves with every record.
Joining a band who are already well established and with three albums under their belt can be a strange position, but Editors with this new look line-up were approaching the shake-up as if they were making a debut all over again: “I think going into their fourth record they wanted to expand even further and make this jump from indie guitar band into this kind of expansive synth kind of world and got the bug for experimenting and moving forward,” Lockey explained. “Bands do get really bored after a while of just playing the same shit all the time.”
Editors’ fourth record and first for Lockey, 2013’s The Weight Of Your Love, was necessary for this new era of the band to get into full swing and “imprint their new sound” as Lockey tells me, stating: “In some ways the fourth record is just a band in a room playing together to gel the new members and imprint a new kind of sound. It was when we went into In Dream in 2015 which spiritually picked up where their third record left off which adds experimentation into the dark. By that point we had toured the world a couple of times and were very much a band, then last year’s ‘Violence’ record was a further departure from that.”
In Dream saw the band take their experimentation to new ambitious levels and, when I mention this to Lockey about how tracks such as the almost spoken word ‘No Harm’ show the band at their boldest, the guitarist then revealed that he was given extra production responsibilities despite his new arrival: “That kind of sound comes from a place of trust. It was obviously the right time for us to dig deep into that production world again, we are more of a studio-based thing anyway because we love being in the studio so it’s nice to be able to have the time to just dig in and do whatever the fuck you want to do really.”
While Lockey talks up the trust factor that the current line-up seem to have in abundance with each other, it becomes perfectly clear by the passion in which the guitarist talks about his bandmates that a major factor in their success is the collective devotion and intensity for their shared creative vision while their individual egos are firmly left at the door. “With the evolution of the band, we are all not precious with what we play or do,” Lockey said. “This band started out all those years ago with four guys in a room making a lot of noise with all that excitement of being young and making your first record but that excitement leaves.
“That post-teen guys in a room thing you can’t re-create that and if you try, everyone can tell. So six records in, I couldn’t give a shit if I play the guitar on any of the tracks, to be honest. I am a guitarist but it’s just one of the things I do and that’s the same with all of us. We are way past that precious stage it’s about pushing ourselves personally and as a band.”
Despite the band being a constantly evolving shape, which has undoubtedly played a massive part in them being as relevant as ever with a headline date at Wembley Arena on the horizon, it goes without saying some drawbacks will arise from such development—a factor which may have resulted in some of their fans struggling to adapt to their evolution.
Lockey opened up to me about some of the criticism he has personally faced from some of their older fans, saying: “You do get fans saying ‘I fucking hate this record, it doesn’t sound like the first record’ and I’ve even had fans come up to me saying ‘I prefer Chris’s playing’, I say ‘Great, well I’m not Chris’. That band was 15 years ago, you can go back and listen to your record because that’s always going to be there but the band personally, couldn’t give a fuck cos it’s just going to keep moving on.”
He does, however, understand the objections of the vocal minority, saying: “People like their bands because bands mean something to them in a certain moment of their lives. Say you get a mad Morrissey and Smiths fan and no matter what The Smiths do since they’re just like: ‘It’s not This Charming Man’ but the band aren’t in the same place, Morrissey is this weird right-wing dude now they are different people now.”
(Credit: Rahi Rezvani)
“To be a truthful artist and move forward, your tastes develop because you physically aren’t the same person you were 15 years ago.”
I mention to the guitarist about when I saw their emphatic headline set at Belgium’s Pukkelpop Festival in 2017 which was a special night for the band that Lockey can vividly recall, saying: “It was mad, I remember that night because the promoter came back and told us there was 55,000 people stood in a field watching us which pecks your head. We don’t assume or expect, we just go out and do our best show so when you get figures like that thrown at you it just goes over your head like how’s that happening five records in, we shouldn’t be getting bigger but when your taste changes and the fans you lose along the way because they can’t get past the fact they’re not playing their first record anymore you pick up new fans who find you on record four, five or six, it’s such an evolving bizarre existence.”
He continued: “Wembley Arena on album six like what’s going on here? To still be growing is a bizarre feeling, especially for a British band as there’s such a high turnover of bands in Britain like all the bands that came up with Editors at the beginning there’s probably like three left, and they’re all just playing their classic album or something, which I get but we like to move forward.”
Being six albums in, headlining festivals around Europe is a rare position that the band have found themselves in and while Lockey knows how fortunate they are, the secret to their success isn’t really a secret as he sheds some light on. “It’s a work ethic thing, they went out to Europe early and saw past Britain. I remember they were lumped in with the theme of the time which was Bloc Party, Rakes, Editors and Maximo, they were all talked up by NME as being this scene blah blah then you had bands like The Bravery and shit like that from America which was all post-punk basically.”
Adding: “But you can hear on Editors’ first record that what they were trying to strive for was way beyond that scene and box allowed them to do so they just fucked off and kept going back to Europe since day one and just worked harder than everyone else, they were always playing and saw the rest of the world as important as the UK. Whereas a lot of bands think because they’ve played Brixton Academy that they have made it, but you take that attitude to France and they’ll tell you to fuck off. In terms of France, there’s an attitude towards English bands were they think they are going to be well respected everywhere they go but a lot of people couldn’t give a fuck and these are massive countries. It took until ‘Ocean of Night’ on record five to get decent radio play in France.”
This immense work ethic and lack of an ego-centric ideas has been another huge contributing factor to why they are where they are, Lockey recalls the surreal nature of his first European adventure with the band saying: “Fucking hell, the first European tour I went on with Editors we were doing stadiums in Belgium then would go to Norway and play to 400 people in a club. It’s a very old school way of growing a career as a band and not something that a lot of bands grew up with especially the current crop who grew up watching X Factor where someone comes out a megastar but there’s no longevity in that.”
Lockey then gave his advice to younger bands, adding: “The emotional connection is always that live feeling that emotional attachment of seeing your favourite band loud in a club is always going to beat the record. For a band if you keep going out and out at some point if you’re good enough it’ll grow in a very organic way and that’s what Editors did from the start, now we can do Wembley and Sport Paleis in Belgium on album six or our own outdoor shows in Italy, Germany and Holland.”
Editors feel somewhat underappreciated in the U.K. because they don’t play the same festivals every single summer but they more than make up for that across the continent, a touring scene where it feels like they are truly treasured for the talent they are and Black Gold is a great excuse to delve back deep into their expansive repertoire of a band not scared of doing it their own way.
Black Gold is released via PIAS and available here, for tour dates look below:
Thursday 30 Jan France, Paris – Salle Pleyel
Friday 31 Jan Germany, Dusseldorf – Mitsubishi Electric Halle
Saturday 1 Feb Belgium, Antwerp – Sportpaleis
Monday 3 Feb Germany, Berlin – Velodrom
Tuesday 4 Feb Poland, Krakow -Studio
Wednesday 5 Feb Poland, Warsaw -Torwar
Friday 7 Feb Austria, Vienna -Gasometer
Saturday 8 Feb Croatia, Zagreb – Dom Sportova Zagreb
Monday 10 Feb Italy, Rome – Atlantico
Tuesday 11 Feb Italy, Milan – Alcatraz
Wednesday 12 Feb Italy, Milan – Alcatraz
Friday 14 Feb Switzerland, Zurich – Komplex 457
Saturday 15 Feb Switzerland, Fribourg – Fri-Son
Monday 17 Feb Spain, Madrid – The Box (Wizink Center)
Tuesday 18 Feb Spain, Barcelona – Razzmatazz
Thursday 27 Feb UK, Birmingham – Arena Birmingham
Friday 28 Feb UK, London – The SSE Arena Wembley
Saturday 29 Feb UK, Manchester – O2 Apollo
Monday 2 Mar Ireland, Dublin – Vicar Street
Tuesday 3 Mar UK, Glasgow – Barrowland
Friday 27 Mar Greece, Thessaloniki – Principal Theatre
Saturday 28 Mar Greece, Athens – Tae Kwan Do Arena
Wednesday 1 Apr Ukraine, Kiev – StereoPlaza
Friday 3 Apr Russia, Moscow – GlavClub
Saturday 4 Apr Russia, St. Petersburg – Morze
Monday 22 June Germany, Hamburg – Stadtpark
Saturday 27 June Netherlands, The Hague – Zuiderpark
Far Out Magazine
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HomePosts tagged 'Canadian city'
Back To Normal Quiz
January 6, 2014 January 5, 2014 fasab Questions, Tests A Bug's Life, Absolute government, America, animals, Anubis, Bill Murray, burrito, Camp David, Canadian city, car, character, China, Christmas Day, classics, Clint Eastwood, comedy festival, composed, compulsory, computer-generated feature length movie, Cosi fan tutte, country, country retreat, Crocodile, cultivation, desert, drink, Egyptian god, Elias, Elliot, enchilada, England, environment, Ernest, Ewart, first state in America, food, forest, France, general knowledge, Geography, Germany, Great Britain, Greek god, Groundhog Day, history, Hogmanay, Jackal, July, Just For Laughs, kaufhaus, Kazakhstan, law, lion, literature, little cheese thing, longest land border, Mariculture, measured, Mexican snack food, Mongolia, Monsters Inc, movie character, movies, music, mythology, New Year's Day, new year's eve, Nobel Prize for Literature, Opera, Pennsylvanian city, Pixar, plants, politics, prize possession, profession, quesadilla, questions, quiz, quizzes, Rankine scale, Roman equivalent, Russia, science, sea, seat belts, show business, space, state, Sweden, test, tests, The Office, Toy Story, US Presidents, US TV series, vehicle occupants, Walt Disney, Walt Kowalski, wear seat belts, writers, Zeus
After a couple of festive mega quizzes it’s back to normal this week with a standard sized offering to test your knowledge.
As usual the answers can be found waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below, but NO cheating please!
Q. 1: What was Walt Disney’s Middle name?
a) Ewart b) Elias c) Elliot d) Ernest
Q. 2: Which was the first state in America to pass a law which required vehicle occupants to wear seat belts, and what year did that law that come into effect? (A point for each part.)
Q. 3: In which year did seat belts become compulsory in Great Britain?
Q. 4: In Germany what is a ‘kaufhaus’?
Q. 5: Which country has the longest land border with Russia?
a) Mongolia b) Kazakhstan c) China
Q. 6: ‘Hogmanay’ is another name for which day of the year?
a) New Year’s Day b) New Year’s Eve c) Christmas Day
Q. 7: Camp David, the country retreat of US Presidents, is in which state?
Q. 8: The name of which Mexican snack food literally means ‘little cheese thing’?
a) quesadilla b) burrito c) enchilada
Q. 9: Absolute government by one person called what?
Q. 10: The Egyptian god Anubis had the head of what animal?
a) Jackal b) Lion c) Crocodile
Q. 11: What was the first fully computer-generated feature length movie made by Pixar?
a) Monsters Inc b) A Bug’s Life c) Toy Story
Q. 12: Which Canadian city hosts the ‘Just For Laughs’ comedy festival every July?
Q. 13: Who was the Roman equivalent of the Greek god Zeus?
Q. 14: The US TV series ‘The Office’ was set in which Pennsylvanian city?
Q. 15: What is measured on the Rankine scale?
Q. 16: Who composed the opera ‘Cosi fan tutte’?
Q. 17: What is the profession of Bill Murray’s character in ‘Groundhog Day’?
Q. 18: ‘Mariculture’ is the cultivation of the animals and plants of which environment?
a) Desert b) Forest c) Sea
Q. 19: Writers from which country have won the Nobel Prize for Literature most often?
a) America b) Sweden c) France d) England
Q. 20: What car is the prize possession of Clint Eastwood’s movie character ‘Walt Kowalski’?
A. 1: b) Elias.
A. 2: New York in 1984 (December 1 to be precise).
A. 3: 1983.
A. 4: A department store.
A. 5: b) Kazakhstan.
A. 6: Hogmanay is celebrated on b) New Year’s Eve.
A. 7: Maryland.
A. 8: a) quesadilla.
A. 9: Autocracy.
A. 10: a) Jackal.
A. 11: c) Toy Story.
A. 12: Montreal.
A. 13: Jupiter.
A. 14: Scranton.
A. 15: The Rankine scale measures temperature.
A. 16: Mozart.
A. 17: He plays the part of a TV weatherman.
A. 18: c) Sea.
A. 19: c) France.
A. 20: Gran Torino
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Fast Film Reviews
for those who like their movie reviews short and sweet
« Murder on the Orient Express
The Shape of Water »
A good film introduces us to interesting people. It provides exposition as to what motivates them as characters so we can empathize with their plight. The tale should essentially lay the groundwork for an account that will feature enriching individuals that develop over the course of an adventure. Their inner journey is part of a larger narrative that we can follow and enjoy. In this way our emotions are captivated and we can feel some emotional component to what’s happening on screen. Justice League is not one of those films.
To be fair, this picture concerns superheroes with which a large portion of the moviegoing public has some previously built-in awareness. Icons like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman already have a recognizability factor, yes. You’re granted a certain amount of shortcuts when detailing familiar characters. Still, that doesn’t absolve the screenwriter or the director from presenting something coherent. Justice League is an absolute mishmash of unfocused plot threads and pointless mayhem. Given the basic elements of what normally constitutes a story, I struggle to even define it as such. It’s a visual chaos of color and activity with dreary conversations sprinkled throughout to give the appearance that something interesting is developing.
The first 30 minutes are as bad as any in the entire 120-minute runtime. The chronicle bewilderingly opens with what appears to be archival camera phone footage of two kids talking to Superman. “What’s your favorite thing about earth?” one asks. The clip stops short before we can get an answer. Now cut to Batman chasing an unknown man on a rooftop that has just committed a robbery. Batman dangles the man over the edge and apparently his fear lures some flying monster out of the shadows. The creature inexplicably explodes moments later leaving 3 boxes. I immediately had questions. Who is the robber? What is that monster? What’s in those boxes? Some of these are answered later while others linger on well after the movie is over. But first some arbitrarily inserted scenes of Superman’s earthly mom (Diane Lane) and Lois Lane (Amy Adams) pontificating on how they miss Superman. He’s dead of course, but you already knew that, right? If not too bad because the screenwriters have assumed you do. Cut to the city of London where Wonder Woman is stopping a bank robbery. Then abrupt edit to Batman journeying to Iceland to recruit what looks like a long haired bodybuilder with tribal tattoos that cover his body. It seems that this is Aquaman. He declines. Bruce is sad. He’s trying to assemble a team. He wants Cyborg (Ray Fisher) and The Flash (Ezra Miller) too. Cut to hastily inserted scenes featuring those people as well. The narrative is so haphazard. Plot elements are distributed to viewers like the shuffled deck at a blackjack table. The only difference here is that there is no winner.
Justice League doesn’t resemble a story so much as the random insertion of recognizable characters doing puzzling things. Without any meaningful focus, we’re left to try and appreciate the visual spectacle. Computer generated imagery infects every frame of the film. Action set pieces are grotesque displays of blurry images. The action is confusing and uninvolving. We’re missing the human element. The human visage can charm an audience. Yet even Superman’s face doesn’t look natural in his opening vignette. Here’s where a little background information might be helpful. You see, actor Henry Cavill had to come back late in production for reshoots. At that point he was sporting a mustache that he was contractually obligated to keep for another picture. CGI was used to erase the facial hair. Hence the bizarre unnatural look to his face in this scene.
The film has bigger storytelling problems than ugly CGI though. It’s characters we couldn’t care less about. Batman (Bruce Wayne), Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and Cyborg (Ray Fisher) are unlikeable protagonists that are dour at best. Their interactions gave me the impression that they hate each other. Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) and Superman (Henry Cavill) at least smile occasionally but the screenplay limits their chances to connect with the audience. What a comedown from this summer’s far superior Wonder Woman. Gal Gadot is mainly in action mode and Henry Cavill merely occupies the final quarter of the picture. Only The Flash (Ezra Miller) has that spark of a personality that engenders warmth. His plight is emotionally involving. Ezra Miller was well utilized. Oh well him and the personal trainers of Jason Momoa & Henry Cavill. The cinematography makes sure you notice how physically fit they are. Duly noted. Everyone else was wasted. The rest of the actors are meaningless ciphers – stand-ins for where charismatic people are supposed to be.
I really wanted to love Justice League. The idea of these superheroes all joining forces and fighting crime together is an inherently exciting idea. Any child of the 70s like me will remember the animated Super Friends Saturday morning TV series. I loved that show. Yet the joy of that concept is completely subjugated under the helm of Zack Snyder. Sadly the director had to leave due to a most regrettable family tragedy. Joss Whedon stepped in to finish things up. I can’t ascertain as to whether the change helped or hurt the movie. I can only offer that the final product is an absolute travesty to anyone who values an intelligible narrative. At this point, the central villain doesn’t even matter, but even he is a non-entity. He registers not as a personality but as a plot device. His name is Steppenwolf and comprises the whole reason the Justice League must assemble. The monster isn’t even portrayed by an actor but a completely fabricated creation using CGI and motion capture technology. Ciarán Hinds’ body movements were utilized for reference. However it’s telling that the poor actor never even met the rest of the cast. He’s merely an afterthought in a production that treats the humanity of a human actor as an inconvenience when telling a story. That kind of sums up the viewpoint of the entire film.
This entry was posted on November 17, 2017 at 5:30 pm and is filed under Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Superhero with tags 2017. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
14 Responses to “Justice League”
culturecritique14 Says:
Mark Hobin Says:
Ha ha. Thanks. I wish the movie had been sweet.
Dan O. Says:
It’s just messy. Still kind of fun. Nice review.
I wish I had fun.
Marlon Wallace (@marlonwallace) Says:
We’re not alone. Box office was significantly lower than expected.
Mr. Bobinsky Says:
That is an interesting info about the CGI monster. I didn’t know that. I guess it is the same approach as in BvS.
I guess you mean Doomsday. I didn’t like Batman v Superman either but at least that story had a human villain in Lex Luthor.
Yes, I meant Doomsday! 🙄
My Comic Universe Says:
The whole point of bringing the justice league together is usually an alien invasion. So a human villain wouldn’t have worked for this movie. Also, luthor was one of the worst parts of bvs. But yes this movie did have a lot of flaws, and the tone was all over the place
I was really referring to a villain being portrayed by a human actor as opposed to the CGI creation they used here.
Ok yeah that makes sense. I agree with you on that.
Ruben Says:
Wanted so much to love this, but it fell way short. I loved the characters individually, but their segments were scattered and unfocused. The Flash was a standout. I also love WW, but could not enjoy them enough due to limited screen time. 2 1/2 stars
I love these characters in theory but not here. Such a missed opportunity.
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Guest post Research integrity Smut Clyde
Li Jia, the Research Fraud Olympian
Li Jia is Chinese cancer researcher apparently training for Fraud Olympics. She fabricates data at speed and excess, and in several disciplines.
This new post by Smut Clyde and Tiger BB8 will introduce you to Dr Li Jia, a young Chinese cancer researcher from Dalian whose academic career can only be described with the Olympic motto “Faster, Higher, Stronger”. And just as in Olympia, that was only possible due to unashamed doping. There is no lab technology Jia cannot fake: western blot, flow cytometry, RT-PCR, colony assays, immunohistochemistry: she is the champion athlete of that fraud pentathlon, and beyond. Numerous journals, published by Wiley, Elsevier, Springer Nature and PLoS had the dubious honour of hosting her achievements, often repeatedly.
Nobody wondered until now how Jia, who received her PhD in 2006 and became full professor only two years later, managed to achieve such stupendous research output. And why should anyone wonder? After all, the number of papers and their cumulative impact factor count, not whether the data is actually real and if any experiments were ever performed at all. Li Jia’s research record proves that you can create several independent research datasets using one single picture, if you only apply some elbow grease in Photoshop.
By Smut Clyde and Tiger BB8
Feel free to admire these panels. The angular silhouettes are not cranes in flight or fish schooling among bubbles, but vat-cultured carcinoma cells from a lineage prone to metastases; they have been lured through pores in a microfilter and then stained, to quantify how different conditions and deterrents affected their invasive tendencies. Sadly in light of the positive results of this ‘migration assay’, it did not exist outside Photoshop, and in comments at PubPeer, ‘Bacillus Mannanilyticus‘ has helpfully circled some of the clone-tool-multiplied cells in Zhao et al Mol Cell Proteomics 2014:
The authors took the criticism to heart and recently retracted the paper —
“This article has been withdrawn at the request of the authors. It contained several inappropriately processed and incorrect figures, Figs. 3C, 3D, 4B, 4C, 4D, 5B, 5D, 6B, 7B, 7C, and 8B. On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author has taken full responsibility and apologizes to the readers of Molecular & Cellular Proteomics for submitting and publishing the erroneous article and any inconvenience caused”.
— though without crediting PubPeer or B. Mannanilyticus… perhaps they learned of the cloning accidents through other channels.
An earlier retraction for Ma et al Biochim Biophys Acta 2014 from the same research group hinged on overlapping microphotographs. Let us say that the number of stained tissue slices (and thus the number of distinct treatments) represented in Figures 5 and 7 was smaller than the number of panels in those subdivided diagrams. Like roofing tiles, or Ordnance Survey maps, the panels share many edges in common.
“This article has been retracted at the request of the authors. It contained several inappropriately processed and incorrect Figures. On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author has taken full responsibility and apologizes to the readers of BBA Molecular Basis of Disease for submitting and publishing the erroneous article and any inconvenience caused.”
This is our introduction to the oeuvre of Dr Li Jia. Now care is required when counting how many of her papers have been discussed at PubPeer (and the ResearchGate archives are little better), for there are some quite separate names in Chinese which become ‘Li Jia’ when romanised by the Pinyin system. Here we are concerned with the Dalian Medical University cancer researcher, who received her Ph.D in 2006 – the basis for her initial papers (seven of them with her Ph.D advisor as main author and herself as first author). That Li Jia.
Advised by Professor Jianing Zhang, a Kyoto University-trained Doctor of pharmaceutical sciences, Li Jia received her PhD on Pathology and Pathophysiology from Dalian Medical University in 2006, with her PhD thesis titled “Effects of CD147 glycosylation on the lymphatic metastasis in murine hepatocarcinoma cells lines”. It won a title of distinguished PhD thesis of the Liaoning Province in 2007. After her PhD, Li Jia remained in her university and became full professor in August 2008, her numerous research grants established her academic success and earned her an own lab and a big team.
Li Jia’s PhD thesis. It is based on fraudulent papers. Now what?
What draws us to this oeuvre is the breadth of fake-data styles it encompasses. The versatility is impressive. Future conferences on Data Integrity could use it for an overview of the range of graphical techniques available for inventing results in cell biology. In fact the sheer abundance of material to include has forced me to be systematic, and to arrange everything along a time-line. I have limited its scope to the decade 2006-2015, with 27 papers receiving post-publication review at PubPeer (the two retractions, both from 2014, are [22] and [23]).
The time-line is not comprehensive; it features images that tie everything together by occurring more than once. There was no space for exuberant but one-off fabrications, such as Figure 3B from [3] in which hepatocarcinoma cells multiply to form colonies in nutrient agar (peer-reviewers were not concerned that identical colonies arose independently, such as the Mickey Mouse silhouette marked with a blue trapezoid in the first and third panels).
Over to the left of the chronology I have arranged the various manifestations of Western blots. The emphasis is on the metamorphoses of a small number of loading controls, the labels on the lanes changing according to the exigencies of different experiments. Now one school of thought regards loading controls as needless, time-wasting formalities, and relies on the process of harvesting cell contents to capture the same number of cells and yield the same concentration of proteins for each experimental situation (i.e. for each lane in the blot) – making it nugatory to control for that concentration. Jia was evidently of that persuasion.
However, that defence does not apply to the “swoosh” series of metamorphoses (from papers #3, #5 and #7), in which the recurring blot serves as empirical evidence for the three substantive proteins MMP-11, COL8A1 and VEGF-A.
Apparently the same slice of gel can be a GAPDH control from different cell-lines in [1], or Matrix Metalloprotease-11 expression in the same cell-line exposed to different concentrations of tunicamycin, in [2]. None of this is promising for the Ph.D thesis source. Nor is it a good advertisement for the supervisor and main author Jianing Zhang, who had left Dalian Medical University in 2013 and took the position of the Dean of the School of Life Science and Medicine in a neighbouring, but much more prestigious Dalian University of Technology.
That second manifestation as MMP-11 opens up further vistas of exploration when we look at its nominal loading control. It overlaps with other controls in the same paper, and they with others still… until we can reconstruct a single Ur-blot with nine lanes, from which various segments were extracted to provide the GAPDH controls for five separate blots, comparing multiple gamuts of conditions and spanning papers [1], [2] and [9].
No reconstruction is needed for a 12-lane GAPDH blot, which was shown in full in Figure 2E of [3], ensuring stability over a time-course.
Short excerpts from it can be found controlling for other trials in [3], [5] and [7] (where we met them already), and [11].
In this time period of 2006 to 2010, many of Jia’s image integrity problems can be traced back to her PhD thesis. However, new material did enter the repertoire after 2010. One eight-lane band will always be “lipstick traces” to me. Various fragments featured as Figure 5A of [12], as 6A of [17], and four times in Figure 5 of [16].
The time-line includes a 2011 gap between [10] and [11], when Jia spent a year in Japan on a research fellowship (May 2010-May 2011) on the basis of her promising youthful productivity. Evidently this provided fresh blots, among them a second six-lane segment featured in overlapping segments in [11], [15], [16] and [17]… I like to think of it as the “charm bracelet”.
In total, counting Figure 1D of [11] as well as 6B, the charms appeared five times. As its debut it took the form of the substantive protein β1,4-Gal-T1 to justify a crucial claim of the paper: that the expression of that gene was blocked by a targeted shRNA. In that manifestation it acquired a GAPDH loading control of its own, which was less versatile, occurring only twice there and again in [12].
From Western Blots we shift to a genre grouped on the extreme right of the time-line. Here the molecules of interest – to be separated by molecular weight and labelled – are DNA segments, transcribed from RNA in the cellular extracts using Reverse Transcriptase, then amplified with PCR. Repurposed RT-PCR gels are not a novelty, and readers may recall them coming under scrutiny in previous blogging, but Jia took the amplification of RNA message to a new level. Prepare yourself for flotillas of kayaks and Canadian canoes parading across the screen, like a Mohawk war party in a Fenimore Cooper novel.
Two strands of repurposing can be discerned. The less active strand is distinguished by the crumpled prow (or stern) of one of the kayaks, and comprises only [3], [4], [6] and [13].
The “core gel” of the second strand is recognisable by the wee peg below the keel of one kayak and by the dot above another one (I surmise that to be the vanguard of the war party, and the leader has raised a small balloon, in the manner of a tour-group leader, to stop the others wandering off and becoming separated). It was cropped to two bands and three lanes for its debut in [1], and to a three-by-four form for [2]
This blot had already been manipulated when it first appeared outside Jia’s thesis: the upturned kayak at the top right corner is a fabrication, spliced in. Anyway, these distinguishing marks allow us to trace the blot through its variants and permutations in [3], [4], [5], [6], [7] and [8]. Sometimes the kayaks are merely flipped vertically [5] or horizontally [7]:
Conversely, in [4] the manipulations reach delirious heights of ransom-note rearrangement to create eight lanes.
The two strands meet in Figure 1A of [6], which is a veritable stamp collection. Even a Helpful Diagram does not really make clear how much the core blots were sliced up and reconfigured.
Let’s go back to the Colony Growth assay, and to a group of images recycled across [4], [7], [8] and [10]. Everything can be improved with googly eyes, but also with duplicated colonies. Among other discoveries, it emerged that COLA81 manipulations affect the proliferation of Hca-F cells in exactly the same way as CD147 manipulations affect P388D1 cells… even producing identical colonies (in multiple copies). To my mind this phenomenon deserves a paper in itself.
We have already encountered the Invasion / Migration Assay. There is some visual variety in its applications, depending on the specific lineage of cancer cells that had squeezed through pores in the filter. The software enhancement of the images is constant, though, and B. Mannanilyticus noted a number of cloned cells in Figure 3B of [16] (see also 4B).
Some of the repetitions stem from the fact that the upper-right and lower-right panels of 3B are essentially the same, as can be seen when one of them is colour-inverted and superimposed on the other, so that identical areas cancel out. The areas of failed cancellation are where cells were added to one panel, or the other, but not both.
We should also pay attention to the upper-left panel of 3B, for it reappeared in [19] as the top right of Figure 5(b), minus the Photoshop improvements (again, an inversion and superimposition clarify the areas of difference). The repeating sections are confined to other panels of 5(b), and to look at them closely is to be reminded of the crude faces in Appel’s “Vragende Kinderen” paintings.
But we cannot linger on those images for I am impatient to move on to a group of invasion-assay results which may well be hommages to Yayoi Kusama and demanded their own thread in the time-line. Overlapping sections of panels reappear between a half-dozen papers, stretching across seven years, purportedly representing treatment with different siRNAs to discourage the cells’ mobility. This series began in 2007 with Figure 5A of [3], where the most obvious overlaps are with 2E from [10].
Note that a prominent cell was inserted for the [10] version (or perhaps erased for the [3] version), presumably for aesthetic reasons. The authors continued to improve the images with more dots and manipulations, as if in the thrall of a gaes or whatever is the opposite of trypophobia, and the series build to a crescendo in [13] (2012)…
… then reached a dizzying apotheosis of artificiality in [18] (2013).
The failure of the PLoS One reviewers to recognise the creativity poured into these figures must have been galling. Anyway, the links of re-use / alteration between papers are spelled out in the PubPeer threads, and rather than take up more space, I have prepared a little diagram to help interested readers follow the routes from one to another.
We are nearly finished with Invasion / Migration Assay images. The ones featured in [24], [25] and [26] are close to the angular cranes-in-flight profiles with which we began, though because they are purple I’ll compare them to tropical fish in aquarium tanks. I lied when I wrote that “the software enhancement of the images is constant”, for there is nothing amiss with these examples… except their re-use within and between papers, differently labelled.
One visual motif remains to tie these papers together. The FACS-plot strand stretches practically the length of this sample, from [3] to [27], though only five papers take part.
Because the three panels of 3B from [5] portray the protein-expression distributions of murine hepatocarcinoma cells, while panels 1, 2 and 4 of Figure 3A from [7] involve human leukemia cells – measured under different conditions – we expect them not to cancel out when panel is superimposed upon panel. But prepare for disappointment:
The repetitions are not complete; some points have been added or scraped away (each point indicating a single cell), as if an experimental data-file had been plotted with a different choice of filtering parameters, or simply revisited in Photoshop. As for the third panel of 3A, it is an unnatural chimera, formed by grafting two half-panels together.
A single color-coded diagram captures the almost-repetitions across Figures 4E from [10], 4B from [3], 3B from [5] and 6D from [27].
After 2015, Li Jia’s research shifted direction towards the area of micro-RNA and its role in intra- and inter-cellular regulation. [28] is “Comprehensive N-glycan profiles of hepatocellular carcinoma reveal association of fucosylation with tumor progression and regulation of FUT8 by microRNAs“, from 2016. [29] is “Long non-coding RNA HOTAIR promotes osteoarthritis progression via miR-17-5p/FUT2/β-catenin axis”.
A feature of this newly-popular miRNA genre is its strong visual conventions. Papers follow a template, and as well as Western Blots and FACS plots, readers expect to see immunofluorescent staining and scatterplots of miRNA levels against cancer biomarkers.
Fig 4C of [28]: Not entirely clear on the “independent measurements” aspect of scatterplots
As part of that shift, the Jia Lab left behind egregious displays of forged results. Another 10 threads at PubPeer examine her output since 2015, but with some exceptions they concern trivial image duplications that can be corrected with an embarrassed Erratum notice and a Does-not-affect-the-Conclusions. Indeed, four of the affected papers have been recently amended (coinciding with the Retraction with which we began). Note, too, that these 10 papers are only a fraction of the group’s productivity, with 11 papers published in 2017 and nine in 2018.
“With some exceptions”. Figure 5C from [29].
It may be that Li Jia does not need to invent results now that she has students of her own. Once you make it you no longer have to fake it. It may also be that I spent too much time on over-thinking this. Arguably there is nothing exceptional about this body of work, though it does conveniently bring together a diverse range of ways in which data manipulation can manifest.
Here are some out-takes. The task of finding the source(s) is left as an exercise for the reader.
[1] Li Jia, Huimin Zhou, Shujing Wang, Jun Cao, Wei Wei, Jianing Zhang.
Deglycosylation of CD147 down-regulates Matrix Metalloproteinase-11 expression and the adhesive capability of murine hepatocarcinoma cell HcaF in vitro
IUBMB Life (2006), DOI:10.1080/15216540600719580 (PubPeer here)
[2] Li Jia, Shujing Wang, Huimin Zhou, Jun Cao, Yichuan Hu, Jianing Zhang.
Caveolin-1 up-regulates CD147 glycosylation and the invasive capability of murine hepatocarcinoma cell lines
Intl J Biochem & Cell Biology (2006), doi: 10.1016/j.biocel.2006.03.019. (PubPeer here)
[3] Li Jia, Shujing Wang, Jun Cao, Huimin Zhou, Wei Wei, Jianing Zhang.
siRNA targeted against matrix metalloproteinase 11 inhibits the metastatic capability of murine hepatocarcinoma cell Hca-F to lymph nodes
Intl J Biochem & Cell Biology (2007). doi: 10.1016/j.biocel.2007.05.023 (PubPeer here)
[4] Li Jia, Huaxin Wang, Shuxian Qu, Xiaoyan Miao, Jianing Zhang.
CD147 regulates vascular endothelial growth factor-A expression, tumorigenicity, and chemosensitivity to curcumin in hepatocellular carcinoma
IUBMB Life (2007), DOI:10.1002/iub.11 (PubPeer here)
[5] Li Jia, Jun Cao, Wei Wei, Shujing Wang, Yunfei Zuo, Jianing Zhang.
CD147 depletion down-regulates matrix metalloproteinase-11, vascular endothelial growth factor-A expression and the lymphatic metastasis potential of murine hepatocarcinoma Hca-F cells
Intl J Biochem & Cell Biology (2007), doi: 10.1016/j.biocel.2007.06.007 (PubPeer here)
[6] Li Jia, Henggui Xu, Yongfu Zhao, Lili Jiang, Jingda Yu, Jianing Zhang.
Expression of CD147 mediates tumor cells invasion and multidrug resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma
Cancer Investigation (2008).DOI:10.1080/07357900802072723 (PubPeer here)
[7] Yongfu Zhao, Li Jia, Xiaoyan Mao, Henggui Xu, Bo Wang, Yongji Liu.
siRNA-targeted COL8A1 inhibits proliferation, reduces invasion and enhances sensitivity to D-limonence treatment in hepatocarcinoma cells
IUBMB Life (2009).DOI:10.1002/iub.151 (PubPeer here)
[8] Li Jia, Wei Wei, Jun Cao, Henggui Xu, Xiaoyan Miao, Jianing Zhang.
Silencing CD147 inhibits tumor progression and increases chemosensitivity in murine lymphoid neoplasm P388D1 cells
Annals of hematology (2009). DOI:10.1007/s00277-008-0678-2 (PubPeer here)
[9] Shujing Wang, Li Jia, Huimin Zhou, Wei Shi, Jianing Zhang.
Knockdown of Caveolin-1 by siRNA Inhibits the Transformation of Mouse Hepatoma H22 Cells In Vitro and In Vivo
Oligonucleotides (2009).DOI:10.1089/oli.2008.0166 (PubPeer here)
[10] Ling He, Jianing Zhang, Lili Jiang, Changgong Jin, Yongfu Zhao, Guang Yang, Li Jia.
Differential expression of Axl in hepatocellular carcinoma and correlation with tumor lymphatic metastasis
Molecular Carcinogenesis (2010).DOI:10.1002/mc.20664 (PubPeer here)
[11] Yongfu Zhao, Xiance Sun, Lili Jiang, Fengjuan Yang, Zhaohai Zhang, Li Jia.
Differential expression of Axl and correlation with invasion and multidrug resistance in cancer cells
Cancer Investigation (2012), doi: 10.3109/07357907.2012.657816 (PubPeer here)
[12] Zhaohai Zhang, Yongfu Zhao, Lili Jiang, Xiaoyan Miao, Huimin Zhou, Li Jia.
Glycomic alterations are associated with multidrug resistance in human leukemia
Intl J Biochem & Cell Biology (2012) doi: 10.1016/j.biocel.2012.04.026 (PubPeer here)
[13] Zhen-Hai Ma, Jin-Hui Ma, Li Jia, Yong-Fu Zhao
Effect of enhanced expression of COL8A1 on lymphatic metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma in mice
Exper & Therap Medicine (2012).DOI:10.3892/etm.2012.652 (PubPeer here)
[14] Ji Li, Li Jia, Zhen-Hai Ma, Qiu-Hong Ma, Xiao-Hong Yang, Yong-Fu Zhao
Axl glycosylation mediates tumor cell proliferation, invasion and lymphatic metastasis in murine hepatocellular carcinoma
World J Gastroenterology (2012).DOI:10.3748/wjg.v18.i38.5369 (PubPeer here)
[15] Huimin Zhou, Zhaohai Zhang, Chunqing Liu, Changgong Jin, Jianing Zhang, Xiaoyan Miao, Li Jia.
B4GALT1 gene knockdown inhibits the hedgehog pathway and reverses multidrug resistance in the human leukemia K562/adriamycin-resistant cell line
IUBMB Life (2012).DOI:10.1002/iub.1080 (PubPeer here)
[16] Rui Guo, Lei Cheng, Yongfu Zhao, Jianing Zhang, Chunqing Liu, Huimin Zhou, Li Jia.
Glycogenes mediate the invasive properties and chemosensitivity of human hepatocarcinoma cells
[17] Hongye Ma, Xiaoyan Miao, Qiuhong Ma, Wenzhi Zheng, Huimin Zhou, Li Jia.
Functional roles of glycogene and N-glycan in multidrug resistance of human breast cancer cells
[18] Zhaohai Zhang, Jie Sun, Lihong Hao, Chunqing Liu, Hongye Ma, Li Jia.
Modification of glycosylation mediates the invasive properties of murine hepatocarcinoma cell lines to lymph nodes
PLoS ONE (2013). doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0065218 (PubPeer here)
[19] Jingchao Xu, Li Jia, Hongye Ma, Yanping Li, Zhenhai Ma, Yongfu Zhao.
Axl gene knockdown inhibits the metastasis properties of hepatocellular carcinoma via PI3K/Akt-PAK1 signal pathway
Tumor Biology (2014). doi: 10.1007/s13277-013-1521-5 (PubPeer here)
[20] Hongye Ma, Lei Cheng, Keji Hao, Yanping Li, Xiaobo Song, Huimin Zhou, Li Jia.
Reversal effect of ST6GAL 1 on multidrug resistance in human leukemia by regulating the PI3K/Akt pathway and the expression of P-gp and MRP1
[21] Dongliang Ren, Li Jia, Yanyan Li, Yanxin Gong, Chen Liu, Xu Zhang, Ning Wang, Yongfu Zhao.
ST6GalNAcII mediates the invasive properties of breast carcinoma through PI3K/Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway
IUBMB Life (2014). DOI:10.1002/iub.1268 (PubPeer here)
[22] Hongye Ma, Huimin Zhou, Peng Li, Xiaobo Song, Xiaoyan Miao, Yanping Li, Li Jia.
Effect of ST3GAL 4 and FUT 7 on sialyl Lewis X synthesis and multidrug resistance in human acute myeloid leukemia
Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (2014). DOI:10.1016/j.bbadis.2014.06.014 (PubPeer here)
[23] Yongfu Zhao, Yanping Li, Hongye Ma, Weijie Dong, Huimin Zhou, Xiaobo Song, Jianing Zhang, Li Jia.
Modification of sialylation mediates the invasive properties and chemosensitivity of human hepatocellular carcinoma
Mol & Cell Proteomics (2014). doi: 10.1074/mcp.m113.034025 (PubPeer here)
[24] Dongliang Ren, Yanyan Li, Yanxin Gong, Jingchao Xu, Xiaolong Miao, Xiangnan Li, Chen Liu, Li Jia, Yongfu Zhao.
Phyllodes tumor of the breast: role of Axl and ST6GalNAcII in the development of mammary phyllodes tumors
[25] Yanyan Li, Li Jia, Dongliang Ren, Chen Liu, Yanxin Gong, Ning Wang, Xu Zhang, Yongfu Zhao.
Axl mediates tumor invasion and chemosensitivity through PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and is transcriptionally regulated by slug in breast carcinoma
[26] Yanyan Li, Li Jia, Chen Liu, Yanxin Gong, Dongliang Ren, Ning Wang, Xu Zhang, Yongfu Zhao.
Axl as a downstream effector of TGF-β1 via PI3K/Akt-PAK1 signaling pathway promotes tumor invasion and chemoresistance in breast carcinoma
[27] Xu Zhang, Weijie Dong, Huimin Zhou, Hongshuai Li, Ning Wang, Xiaoyan Miao, Li Jia.
α-2,8-Sialyltransferase Is Involved in the Development of Multidrug Resistance via PI3K/Akt Pathway in Human Chronic Myeloid Leukemia
[28] Lei Cheng, Shuhang Gao, Xiaobo Song, Weijie Dong, Huimin Zhou, Lifen Zhao, Li Jia
Comprehensive N-glycan profiles of hepatocellular carcinoma reveal association of fucosylation with tumor progression and regulation of FUT8 by microRNAs
Oncotarget (2016). doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.11284. (PubPeer here)
[29] Jialei Hu, Zi Wang, Yujia Shan, Yue Pan, Jia Ma, Li Jia
Long non-coding RNA HOTAIR promotes osteoarthritis progression via miR-17-5p/FUT2/β-catenin axis
Cell Death & Disease (2018). doi: 10.1038/s41419-018-0746-z (PubPeer here)
Tagscancer research • cell biology • China • data manipulation • Li Jia • Smut Clyde • TigerBB8
33 comments on “Li Jia, the Research Fraud Olympian”
A lot of these crap papers in crap journals have a hefty number of citations. Has anyone looked to see if they mention “as faked by Lia et al.” in the Methods?
an quan
Let me introduce a more exaggerated professor of Dalian Medical University!!Li dan,Sun,director of Dalian Friendship Hospital affiliated Dalian Medical University.Let me first introduce her title:Master’s tutor of Dalian Medical University, the first author of National Natural Science Foundation and the Liaoning Province Natural Science Foundation, presided over a number of scientific funds, published many SCI, but she has never learned English.Here is the detail,do not laugh out loud!!!
（1）7-O-geranylquercetin-induced autophagy contributes to apoptosis via ROS generation in human non-small cell lung cancer cells,（2）Effects of specific egg yolk immunoglobulin on pan-drug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii.About these two articles’ corresponding author :Lidan Sun’s misconduct.
1.As a graduate tutor of Dalian Medical University, director of respiratory department of Dalian Friendship Hospital of China,Lidan Sun has no research ability and has never studied English. As is known to all in China that passing through CET-4 （College English Test- rank 4）English examination is the most basic proof that one has learnt English.In the life of her learning language, from childhood to growing up, she never learnt English,Lidan,Sun’s first language is China,her second language is Russian,she has never passed through any English examination to prove that she has learnt English,even she has never learnt English by herself, but she owns many titles, such as graduate tutors, The first author of the National Natural Science Foundation and Provincial Natural Science Foundation, this behavior does not meet the moral standards of scientific research, her achievements are questionable”.She has a lot of privilege ,because she get used to plagiarizing and bribery for years to achieve so called “scientific research expert”.This is so ridiculous that in the two articles above, she is the corresponding author of these two articles, and she has the contribution of designing research!!That is so ridiculous and absurd!! How can a person who has never learnt English design a research from reading a lot of English paper??That is the biggest joke!!
Ah! Ah! That’s very cool!
Research papers from China are unfortunately untrustworthy for several reasons:
1) The chinese society is highly hierarchical, and in a research environment with a big boss, the PhD students and young researchers do and deliver the results they ask for.
2) The generally high corruption level in China has many unfortunate consequences, including hiring leaders in research institutes.
3) Production and sales of counterfeit research products is a huge problem in China and the few respectable researchers that will try to do proper research will most probably be misleaded by using the domestic fake products.
4) Prestige in the chinese state apparatus and lack of democracy and transparancy.
Then we get the fakery shown here in this excellent presentation.
虎仔 (@TigerBB8)
Hi Morty,
It’s sad to see my home country is being commented this way. But I don’t blame you. I myself don’t read any Chinese papers any more and have been rejecting invitations for reviewing manuscripts from Chinese authors.
These factors can explain given cases, but I would not generalize.
I am afraid you are most probably wrong Weiss.
Just to exemplify one of my points and how bad it is:
https://www.nature.com/news/the-secret-war-against-counterfeit-science-1.21960
Tiger: I am deeply sorry, but what I wrote was not meant to hurt anyone. Hopefully your excellent documentation and all discussions about these problems can lead to some improvements for the best of research and society!
Hi Morty
You didn’t hurt anybody, truth hurts.
Rex Rictor
Actually a major issue is the destruction of morale and individualism during the MAO years. Both of these are key to scientific integrity. It will take many many years to recreate these and I am afraid during the current communistic dictatorship it will take even longer. Perhaps centuries. So despite some Chinese science being ‘clean’ this is predominantly from people who have ‘moved back’. Of course one would hope there are also local scientists who will be ‘clean’ but the general problems will remain as a concern at least. It will be a long process.
nonsci
sadly and pathetically using one example to attack the whole community， and still call yourself a scientist? Go morty mortified.
Hi Morty, still, it is one thing to produce consumer products without proper intellectual property standards (i.e. fake watches/shoes for too low price, what actually you suspect to be a fake anyway), and to say that Chinese researchers in general produce falsified science. Besides, I feel much more dangerous the practice of those researchers, who do data picking, force statistical power, use loading control libraries, hide sample variance, hide uncut blots, run identical samples in FACS analysis and label them distinctly, bully their fellows, in short: produce fake data and create a toxic work environment of a data factory, without provable signs. I can mention here concrete examples where no action has been taken, or pathetic corrections have been released. They are all non-Chinese, and indeed, are influental figures of our time.
I would not say that Chinese researchers ‘in general” faking data, but the truth is that making up data is widely accepted or acknowledged as fairly common practice you’ve got to do there. The worst? No one really cares.
NMH
If you get positive results, there is no need to fake data. Its when you face demanding publication standards and kids to feed and you dont have positive results is when data might be faked.
Precisely for also the reason I mentioned above
In many cases it is not a “good data / bad data” issue. There are no data at all. When people go to a paper-mill to have a paper assembled from hand-drawn FACS plots and odd scraps of Western blot and then published in their name, it is not because they have been doing experiments themselves but failing.
Case in point, the production line of micro-RNA papers
“I can mention here concrete examples where no action has been taken, or pathetic corrections have been released. They are all non-Chinese, and indeed, are influental figures of our time.”
Could you mention the “concrete examples examples where no action has been taken, or pathetic corrections have been released.” I believe that those things happens, It would be useful to compare lists.
https://pubpeer.com/publications/2D084E91EDC85D6C23BC63ACF5E6A8
https://pubpeer.com/publications/1C1292425188400AB6A2B0C4B6E2D0
https://pubpeer.com/publications/6CC01D626651DFF7D30AECF0B762AB
https://pubpeer.com/publications/8362F93170BAE224FC3006A9425993
https://pubpeer.com/publications/E89EBC1AE561A534E027E9D19AB9F9
https://pubpeer.com/publications/454C6F77CE3CB3C28C3A6AF75A371D
https://pubpeer.com/publications/DEA53E3CBABFAAB1F4D6959A46DA9E
https://pubpeer.com/publications/2EF48BB746D7ACEB9F7FA310D24D73
Many of them have been reported/discussed by others as well.
This reply is to NMH: Then these must-fake-data-otherwise-starving-their-own-kids individuals would be much better off finding another career for a living.
To make it clear: Doing science is not for everybody. Being an engineer is not for everyone either. The same logic applies to every profession. People have the right choosing what to do but following the standard practice and obeying the rules in the chosen field. It is that simple.
No one points a gun to your head to force you fake data for publication. Can’t publish? then don’t! The world is full of opportunities and fun outside a science lab.
“No one points a gun to your head to force you fake data for publication. Can’t publish? then don’t! The world is full of opportunities and fun outside a science lab.”: It’s not that easy…. sometimes faking data is the only way to survive for some people. Specially, for people from certain countries it is the only way to a better life. It’s ridiculous to say people should obey “rules” but at the time you’ve got bad results nobody will help you or even will give you any useful hint or advice and they’re just saying to correct it before deadline without asking for more resources or help. I personally think if someone fake something, the “publish or perish” academic system is the who that should be blamed.. Obviously, nobody has sadist for faking data without any apparent reason. It’s really ridiculous that researchers have the lowest income with highest stress and pressure in their life and society at the general level doesn’t give a shit to researchers’ situation but only according to “rules” highest ethical standards are expected from researchers. It’s not fair…
” It’s really ridiculous that researchers have the lowest income “. Supply and demand surely? Too many people want to do it.
One could argue that data generation is as important as management of the generators. But in the end the data generators are not paid enough for a middle-class lifestyle in the USA. I know…Im a permanent post-doc in the US, nearing retirement. It stinks. Im in no way suggesting that people should cheat, but I can certainly see why they do to get ahead. Its too much of a big jump from the pay of a data generator to the pay of a manager.
zmudzka
Do you look at faculty hiring in USA lately ? High emphasis on NIH grants, CNS papers and outrageous H INDEX. The only way to succeed in academia is to work for superstars in the hot fields who can give you papers and grants and promote your career at the expense of slavery, bullying and misconduct.
Reply to zmudzka June 15, 2019
What you write is true.
虎仔 (@TigerBB8) June 15, 2019 gives very good advice;
“much better off finding another career for a living”.
Too many of us, me included, have, or had, an idealised picture of how science is practised.
I think we have learned this idealised picture from children’s books, or had an inspirng, but misguided science teacher.
In my country, we consider academia as an “ivory tower”. Scientists, especially those in universities as professors, are the group of people with the highest moral standard. Traditionally, we also have the understanding of “Once your teacher, forever your father”, a very high respect to professors. But in reality, scientists/professors are the same corrupted people as in gov and in industry.
Yeah, I have heard this teacher-father kitsch before from some undergrad fellows who were on the way of deceiving me 🙂 Students should consider their teachers as teachers, and their fathers as fathers – and these two should not be mixed up, at least in my culture 🙂 Anyway, my opinion remains the same I have stated above: I do not like tags and general statements about countries/people/Chinese researchers. Though I accept the arguments above that certain countries due to their social rules and cultures warrant attention when it comes to their scientific publications.
Reply to Weiss June 16, 2019
Thanks for posting Pubpeer pages with problematic data. Looks like 3 or 4 groups of researchers.
It would be more useful if you listed each group and then put the Pubpeer pages for them,
I had only heard of one of the groups, headed by Richard Moriggl.
This suggests there is a lot more out there.
Oleg Kowalski
Answer to Zebedee: RM has many shared papers with JPT, and all those have western blot loading controls run on separate gels. Some of them are on Pub Peer.
Pingback: De coccio - Ocasapiens - Blog - Repubblica.it
Maybe she uses Google Translator. But yeah, kinda´ absurd story. Anyway, there are labs where the technicians are first authors, and I also have seen papers where undergraduates are corresponding authors (that one is not easy to catch, you should know the persons).
If you have not learnt Chinese,Japanese,how do you use translator to review Chinese or Japanese article? At least someone must have language foundation that can use translator.The google translator can not translate full of all,it must combine with someone’s reading English ability!!
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Home > Signs > Signs Compatibility > Scorpio
Please note that this is a general guide to your compatibility with other Star Signs, based purely on your Sun and doesn't take other factors into account. A Time Together Report or a Togetherness Report provides more details on the dynamics of your particular relationship.
Ideal partners for an emotional and intense Scorpio is a Cancerean, followed closely by a Taurean. Cancer is not only a fellow Water Sign and therefore able to swim, stroke for stroke with you through the Sea of Love, but this is a very romantic connection. A Cancerean’s patience and loving, but steady ways, acts as a calming agent on a Scorpio. Their calm ways, along with their willingness to let them to express themselves freely, will give a Scorpio a sense of relief, making things seem easy. This is a very easy and passionate connection, for when two emotional Signs come together there'll be a lot of warmth and trust. They'll even understand each other’s moods.
Opposing Sign Taurus holds a strong attraction, which will be mutual. There is a powerful energy exchange here, that always takes place with an opposing Sign, but because Taurus is such an earthy and stable Sign they won't put up with your intense ways. Their sensuality will match your natural sex appeal and this could be a very passionate connection.
The Signs of either side of yours, Libra and Sagittarius could be contenders, as both are likely to have at least one planet in Scorpio, so there could be an unexpected connection with either of these Signs.
Because Scorpios like to flirt with danger a Leo would prove a fatal attraction to a Scorpio. A lover of danger, they'll find it here and if it can be controlled and kept in the bedroom, this could be an erotic connection. However Leos are naturally possessive and sometimes jealous and as they're not a Water Sign and don't have access to your feelings in the way a Water Sign does, they could perceive your silences and tendency to hold back information as a Sign that you're hiding something. If there are problems in this connection, they're likely to around the issue of trust.
If you're in love with a Scorpio don't expect an easy or predicable ride, but you can expect a lot of passion and lots of excitement.
Scorpio and Aries: You'll find it hard pulling this pair apart, with love at first sight drawing this passionate couple together. Sexual chemistry will keep them hooked.
Scorpio and Taurus: Opposites attract with the heat, chemistry and passion of this connection, off the Richter scale. Powerful personalities will lead to lots of making up.
Scorpio and Gemini: Once in love this is a couple that have an almost unbreakable bond. Intense emotional intimacy will see lots of bickering, with intense making up sessions.
Scorpio and Cancer: This is about as good as it gets, with a romantic and passionate attraction drawing these two lovers together. Love is likely to strike fast and stay that way.
Scorpio and Leo: This is an intense connection, with equal amounts of passion and possessiveness. This could create an on and off again relationship or an addictive one.
Scorpio and Virgo: There's something dangerous about a Scorpio that Virgos are drawn to and something loyal in a Virgo that Scorpios find irresistible. So different, yet so complementary.
Scorpio and Libra: A lot of intimacy, emotional and sexual chemistry makes this a very dynamic couple. Despite their differences, both will want to take a risk in each other.
Scorpio and Scorpio: This is an obsessive and passionate connection that could become a little too hot for some to handle. This will either be a match made in heaven or it will self destruct.
Scorpio and Sagittarius: Both are likely to rush into love without looking before they leap. So although the attraction is strong, it could fail once the heat wears off and there’s nothing to back it up.
Scorpio and Capricorn: Two strong personalities come together to form a very sensual and emotional connection. A deep sense of loyalty and genuine love will bind these two.
Scorpio and Aquarius: Scorpios’ introverted and emotional ways make it hard to find a match with Aquarius’ unemotional, extroverted ways. With patience and understanding, it could work.
Scorpio and Pisces: This is one of love's most romantic connections, with a coming together of emotion, romance and passion. They need to avoid suffocating each other though.
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Pages: < Back 1 ... 5 6 [7] 8 9 ... 102 Next > Go Down
Quote from: rooster on April 09, 2014, 08:35:23 PM
Quote from: Rama Set on April 09, 2014, 08:27:48 PM
Quote from: Ghost of V on April 09, 2014, 07:44:23 PM
But the article made a great point of how the movie portrays the orcas as fun-loving peaceful animals when in the wild, (which is a nice fantasy). But they also mentioned how the movie was hypocritical in glorifying orcas in the wild when it suits them but also showing them as vicious predators when it suited them.
Thats not really true. The doc points out that attacks in the wild on humans by orcas is almost entirely unheard of and that orcas are extremely social animals that likely have as strong if not stronger emotional lives than humans do. They also show orcas mercilessly hunting seals, so any construing of the films portrayal of orcas as merely fun-loving animals is not really accurate.
That's not dismissing what I said, the context of those 2 aspects is important. I can't pick it apart more than that, but let me just link you to the article.
http://melissaasmith.hubpages.com/hub/blackfish-film
So you're basing your opinion on a backwoods internet article? Shouldn't you just watch the documentary yourself?
There are a lot of articles that say exactly the same things. Why would I want to watch people being attacked by orcas?
I'm not saying it's all fabricated lies, I rather just research it myself than watch a movie length PETA ad.
Well you seem to have made up your mind that that is what it is, but if I may, its not. Its greyer than people make it out to be.
I just said I wasn't saying that. My only point is that it's not the full truth; that my only qualm with it is that it makes pretty bold statements and portrays everything in a way that gets people emotionally involved in something that's not necessarily true. It's why I dislike documentaries that try and rally people behind a cause.
Are you Rushy's alt or something? You have made up your mind that this doc is rallying people to a cause without knowing anything but someone else's interpretation of the doc. You say they seem unbiased, but you do not really know that. That is why I said you sound you like you made up your mind.
You sound like you have made up your mind, regardless of what you say you are doing.
What a surprising turn of events... rooster is Rushy's alt.
On further shittiness by Sea World:
http://www.cbc.ca/newsblogs/yourcommunity/2014/01/sea-world-accused-of-fishy-pr-practices-rigging-blackfish-poll.html
A typical board meeting at SeaWorld:
" It would appear curious then, with so much public outcry, that in a Dec. 31 Orlando Business Journal poll asking readers whether or not “CNN’s Blackfish documentary [had] changed [their] perception of SeaWorld” 99 per cent of respondents claimed "No."
Sensing something fishy, the newspaper investigated and discovered that a single Internat Protocal Address (IP Address) was responsible for 54% of the votes.
That IP, verified by several third-party IP tracking websites according to the publication, belonged to SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. "
Wow Seaworld, next time use a proxy.
You mean, you'd rather have someone else research it than research it yourself.
Researching the documentary yourself would require you actually watching it.
I didn't mean research the movie, I meant researching claims against Sea World. I don't need to watch a doc for that.
I've seen enough meat and food documentaries to know it's not something I'd want to watch. My only point here was to introduce a bit of skepticism which many people don't do, especially when it comes to abusing animals.
I've read several articles about Tilikum and Sea World in general so it's not just one person that I'm getting all my perspective from.
« Last Edit: April 09, 2014, 10:23:24 PM by rooster »
fappenhosen
But I think they explain the reasoning for this. Orcas are pretty intelligent, social animals that roam across thousands of miles. Stick them in a tiny tank and make them splash fat 5-year-olds every day and they might get pissed off. It's not hypocritical to say that different causes give different effects.
Quote from: fappenhosen on April 10, 2014, 01:25:17 AM
I didn't explain it very well since I was paraphrasing from that article I read a couple weeks ago. You should read it if you've seen the movie, it was pretty interesting.
Most articles on the topic don't really rail against the main points of the movie, just how they're presented and the fallacies it uses.
Quote from: rooster on April 10, 2014, 03:27:43 AM
Yeah I read it. Kind of true in that the film does play the emotion card, and that it does seem to anthropomorphise orcas a little too much. If I was in open water and someone told me orcas were near by I wouldn't go "Wooo they're so friendly" and start slapping the water's surface. Some of the people in that documentary remind me of Timothy Treadwell.
But all those things being said. Seaworld do seem like assholes and orcas really shouldn't be there.
I'm not really an anti-captivity person, but I really don't like any animals being trained to do shows.
Thork
I love Cyanide & Happiness soooo much! lol.
http://theflatearthsociety.org/forum/index.php?topic=58795.msg1550210#msg1550210
Okay, Thork. This isn't the "Post YouTube videos" thread.
DDDDAts all folks
It's not necessarily cruel to keep an animal in captivity or teach it to do tricks.
Dogs are a good example. If I released a pet dog into the wild it would be cruel.
Same goes with any animal that has only known captivity all it's life.
Quote from: DDDDAts all folks on April 10, 2014, 10:49:03 PM
Dogs are not a good example, really. Some animals do better in captivity while others do not. For example, apparently great white sharks are terrible in captivity. Animals that have been domesticated are very different to forcing tigers, lions, elephants, orcas, and dolphins to do tricks.
But for animals that do well in captivity, I see no reason why they shouldn't be- especially if it helps conservationism. There are zoos that really should be shut down though. I've been to some pretty sad and depressing ones that really shouldn't have any animals.
Can we all please just shut the fuck up about the animals already?
Anyway, I have watched The Incredible Hulk. It was okay, I guess. It was certainly an improvement over that horrific one Ang Lee gave us back in 2003, the one that had this priceless scene in it:
Quote from: Saddam Hussein on April 11, 2014, 02:27:14 AM
Why, Eric Bana? Why did you ever agree to do such a shit fest?
I never understood why Ang Lee's Hulk was so bad. It was a pretty average movie, besides the Hulk looking kinda shit. But it was ages ago. I didn't think the Edward Norton one was any better. Funnily enough, Ruffalo in the Avengers was easily the best portrayal so far despite the movie not even being about him.
It was overly long, slow, dull, angsty, and sorely lacking in excitement. The Norton one wasn't great, but at least there they understood that what audiences wanted to see was action, not a deep psychological drama.
« Last Edit: April 23, 2014, 08:37:20 PM by Saddam Hussein »
Soo about those animals...
Ghost Spaghetti
Don't look in that mirror. It's absolutely furious
Watched Brazil again last night. Still a wonderfully weird film.
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Back to Geocaching.com
Geocaching Discussions by Country
Mega Event Finland 2011
By Tervas, October 22, 2010 in Finland
+Tervas 0
Tervas 0
Latebird
+Premium Members
MEGA Finland 2011:
Geocaching in Tampere, 12 to 14 August
The first mega-sized geocaching event ever organised in Finland will be held in Tampere next summer, 12 to 14 August. Geocachers and their families and friends from all over the world are warmly welcome to join this extraordinary Nordic adventure!
The main venue of the event will be a unique Geocaching Village just a few kilometres from the centre of the city. In the village, there are several accommodation options for up to 1000 participants.
Please visit the cache listing at http://coord.info/GC2G855. Groundspeak has wished that people would send their Will attend logs as soon as possible. Then they are able to change the cache icon to a Mega-Event Icon.
Once again and on behalf of the great organising teams and all the volunteers:
Welcome to MEGA Finland 2011! Let's meet and geocache in Tampere!
And let’s start with sending the Will attend log
Edited October 22, 2010 by Tervas
+Tilhet 5
Tilhet 5
The Finnish Mega-event was published only 22 hours ago. Nevertheless, it seems to have already hit a new Nordic record as far as Will attend logs are concerned. This is going to be great, if not the greatest ever, and surely worth of also a long journey
It didn't take too long to convince Signal the Frog. The Frog has spoken and the first Mega-Event status given to any of the Nordic countries went to.......Tampere!
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eSports News & Gaming Events
eSports News, Live eSports On Twitch & Gaming Event News
Posted on January 10, 2018 by GameGnome
Watch the 2018 WoW Esports Live Stream Friday–1/12
It’s a new year, and we’ve got another epic year of WoW esports lined up for 2018. Join us live on Twitch.tv/Warcraft Friday, January 12, at 11:00 a.m. PST (7:00 PM GMT), as we sit down with WoW esports manager Jeramy McIntyre who will be sharing what esports fans and participants can look forward to this year. We’ll be covering all the exciting plans and changes to the WoW Arena World Championship and the Mythic Dungeon Invitational.
Watch live video from Warcraft on www.twitch.tv
World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth – WoW’s seventh expansion The battle against the Legion has left the world broken—but the shattered trust between the Alliance and the Horde could prove the hardest wound to mend. Blizzard Entertainment unveiled plans for World of Warcraft®: Battle for Azeroth™, a new expansion to...
RESONATE GAMING FESTIVAL ‘POWERS’ INTO GLASGOW Scotland’s newest and largest gaming festival, Resonate Total Gaming, is set to power its way into Glasgow for the first time this summer. From 29–31 July 2016, the highly anticipated festival of eSports and gaming will take over the SECC...
The World of Warcraft 2016 Road to BlizzCon Once again, the top World of Warcraft 3v3 Arena teams from around the globe will compete for a chance to face off in the WoW Arena World Championship. This year’s action-packed showdown will culminate at BlizzCon 2016 on November 4-5...
Major League Gaming to Host Counter-Strike:Global Offensive Americas Minor Championship Major League Gaming (MLG) is happy to announce the MLG Counter-Strike:Global Offensive Americas Minor Championship to be held at the MLG Arena May 19 – May 22, 2016 with a $50,000 prize pool. Coming fresh out of the record setting...
The WCS Global Finals at BlizzCon 2016 2016 is in full swing, and with it comes the return of the StarCraft II World Championship Series Global Finals at BlizzCon. There, the world’s best players will take the stage to battle for the title of WCS Global Champion...
Meet the Challenge Division teams taking part in the Call of Duty World League relegation! Last weekend, the 16 best Challenge Division teams clashed for the chance to go head to head with the bottom four of the Pro Division in the Stage 1 Call of Duty World League relegation. After facing each other in...
Insomnia57 announces dynamic range of eSports tournaments Hearthstone, Counter-Strike, League of Legends, Halo 5: Guardians and many more eSports tournaments revealed for Insomnia57 Multiplay, organiser of the UK’s largest gaming festival, Insomnia, and a subsidiary of GAME Digital plc (“GAME Digital”), the UK’s leading video gaming specialist,...
MLG Announces Groups for the the Major LAN Qualifier The MLG Major LAN Qualifier is a 3-day tournament that will determine the 8 Challengers who will take on past CS:GO Major Legends at MLG Columbus 2016. The MLG CS:GO Major Championship Columbus is the first North American Major taking...
The Halo World Championship Regional Finals are coming up As the Halo World Championship Regional Finals begin to approach, the competition has never been fiercer as teams are preparing to battle it out in order to reach the Halo World Championship: 2016 Finals. For those teams competing we have...
For the second successive year Gfinity has been selected by Microsoft to Host the European “Play Like a Legend” Championship on FIFA 16. The Play Like a Legend Championship is the most premier FIFA eSports competition in Europe and we’re excited to share the official details surrounding the tournament. In announcing the news, Ben Wyer-Roberts, Xbox EMEA Esports Lead said; “‘Following the success...
CategorieseSports News, World of Warcraft
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eSports News at GameGnome.com
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Gammicks » Platformer » Celeste Review
Celeste Review
With so many 2D throwback 8-bit platformers these days, it’s a wonder that Celeste wasn’t buried in the shuffle of constant Steam releases and “retro games of the week.” What Celeste had in its back pocket the whole time was enough heart and charm to fill this reviewer to the brim with existential joy. It’s another 8-bit throwback, sure, but narratively it serves as an allegory for depression, technically it adopts waves of modernity for which it has been celebrated, and creatively it’s like nothing else I’ve played in the genres it so lovingly borrows from.
Upon booting up, chill vibes from an award-winning soundtrack greet you and you immediately ascend to a brand new adventure. The remains of a pre-apocalyptic society emerge as you double-jump through screens of imaginative level design. Celeste is a masterpiece for all of these reasons and more.
You play as Madeline, a young girl choosing to climb the great mountain Celeste for what turns out to be no real reason. That is to say, she has no other reason than to just do it, which is reason enough when you are as “low to the ground” as Madeline. This young lady is trying to prove to herself that she simply can, an incredibly well-realized execution of a very relatable concept.
Madeline is depressed. Depressed people climb mountains, hike canyons, and Eat, Pray, Love their way around foreign continents. Maybe we aren’t all running out in droves to climb mountains, but metaphorically we might as well be.
You will meet friendly faces and challenges along the way, as well as come face-to-face with a dark version of your own self — a formidable foe indeed.
Theo is one of the first people you meet, and he is probably the most important. The sheer amount of dialogue prepared for multiple interactions with Theo, so long as you continue to press him, impressed me. He’s always sweet, and always very gentle with Madeline. This first encounter illustrates a careful dichotomy within the game’s DNA.
The thesis of this game is as follows: dire challenge then chill hang. Letting the sweet vibes of Theo (and company) allow a break from the grind makes for a memorable experience among the clutter of your current gaming queue. Celeste is careful and deliberate.
When you’re not pondering the greater mysteries of life and one’s own self, you will be platforming… hard! This game is all about taking on “Super Meat Boy”-levels of challenge, dying, and getting back in the action at a breakneck pace. Celeste has very quick load times so that it can dash you against the rocks of expertly-crafted puzzle design again and again.
The game isn’t as difficult as Super Meat Boy and it escalates appropriately. That said, Celeste has a nice challenge scale that explodes later on in the game (especially following the main campaign). It reminded me a lot of late-game Mario levels, best represented in Celeste when you finally clear a stage or grab a coveted strawberry after trying multiple times.
Modern 8-bit gaming aesthetics will always have my heart. But, this kind of graphical presentation currently saturates the market. Even when done right, looking at the same kind of game over and over again can be exhausting. Celeste is the best example of this kind of retro-experience, but it still falls into that tired category. Then again, retro-fatigue is like all fatigue… you get over it.
Visually, each area is completely unique and gorgeous, designed to be fully functional in both gameplay and story. Each area has a look and a reason for that look. For example, the “haunted hotel” level obstacles are basically red, glowing bunches of ectoplasm. If you touch the ectoplasm you become as dead as every other thing in that haunted hotel. Thus, dodging these prickly-pears is your objective both mechanically and narratively. Neat!
If you are looking for a gaming experience that captivates your reflexes and your emotions, look no further than Celeste. It has won many well-deserved awards, and at its current price you should give it a shot. It’s a fantastic indie title with a ton of depth, and perfect for anyone playing on Nintendo Switch. If you go the Steam route you can also pick up the score which is well worth the price. Lena Raine does such an amazing job with the score, and Celeste wouldn’t be the same without it.
Compare with Axiom Verge Battleblock Theater ... Broforce Castlevania: Symphony of ... Cuphead Little Nightmares Minecraft Ori and the Blind Forest ... Super Mario 3D World ... Tearaway Unfolded
Jeremy Schmidt is a Los Angeles-based comedian, improviser, writer, and podcast engineer. As a writer, Jeremy spends most of his time throwing his hot takes around places like Fanbase Press and TheGamer. He produces multiple podcasts that can be found on iTunes including “Video Games: A Comedy Show,” “Reality Bits,” “Stories, But Shorter,” and a whole lot more. Follow him on Twitter @ocarinaofcrime.
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Kwara ex-gov. left seven months unpaid salaries — Teachers’ Unions
Committee of Unions in Tertiary Institutions (CUTI), an amalgam of teachers in Kwara State Colleges of Education, has faulted the claim of former Governor Abdulfatahi Ahmed that his administration did not owe any workers on the state’s payroll.
Comrade Imam Abdulkadir, chairman of CUTI, said in a statement issued in Ilorin that the claim by the former Governor was false because he left at least seven months of unpaid salary amounting to N750m to the teachers across the colleges.
The body, however, commended Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for settling the arrears as well as getting their courses re-accredited.
The statement read: “The attention of Committee of Unions in Tertiary Institutions ( CUTI) has been drawn to the claim by former Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed through his media aide that the immediate past administration was up to date in payment of state civil servants salary before he left office, particularly the state-owned Tertiary Institutions.
READ ALSO: Appreciating teachers goes beyond financial incentives —Corona CEO
“To this end, the Unions wish to reiterate that the claims by the former Governor Ahmed through his aide Dr. Muhideen Akorede was false and misleading. The state-owned tertiary institutions were owed seven months’ salaries to the tune of seven hundred and fifty million naira. Equally, the policy of the immediate past administration to commercialise education in the state impacted negatively on both the staff and students of the institutions.
“It would be recalled that failure of the immediate past administration to pay salaries of the state Colleges of Education and CAILS led to the industrial action embarked upon by the institutions three months to the expiration of the Governor Ahmed’s administration.
“Despite the industrial disharmony between the Unions and the then government, the said 7 months subventions and accreditation funds were not released to the Colleges until Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq assumed office.
“It is noteworthy to say that Governor Abdulrazaq, as at September 2019, completed the payment of all outstanding salary arrears owed the Colleges by the immediate past administration. Similarly, Governor Abdulrazaq has presently released accreditation funds to all the state-owned tertiary institutions. It is equal of note to state that His Excellency has also absorbed staffers of Demonstration schools of the Colleges who are owed 37-month salaries by the immediate past administration in the state. The general public should consider the claim by the former Governor as not only misleading but false.”
Vanguard Nigeria News
The post Kwara ex-gov. left seven months unpaid salaries — Teachers’ Unions appeared first on Vanguard News.
NPFL: Pius Ibrahim on form as Wikki hold Adamawa in stalemate
Enugu LG Polls: Aspirant drags PDP to court
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Friends of Islington Museum
Home of Islington's Heritage
Museum of London -Incoming!
Roz Currie, Curator
Over the summer we have been working with the Museum of London on their rationalisation project. Following a review of the Social and Working History collections, 6000 objects were identified for disposal … and Islington Museum was one of the lucky recipients!
During the 1970s and 1980s museums undertook ‘rescue collecting’. As traditional craft workshops were closing, many museums collected the whole contents, from all of the tools to the tea cups. The idea was to capture disappearing crafts and trades and recreate workshops in the museum. At the Museum of London many of these collections have never been displayed and so the rationalisation process identified duplicate and unusable items and then offered them to other museums.
I spent time at the Museum of London store in Hackney looking through boxes and boxes of exciting objects from the following places in Islington:
The Oliver family watchcase-maker business which had a workshop at 31 Wynyatt Street, Clerkenwell and then in at 25 Spencer Street until 1971.
Oliver’s Watchcase Workshop which closed in 1971
Freeth walking-cane maker
Rowley Parkes clockmakers and brass finishers -One of the last Clerkenwell firms to make clocks by hand, based in Briset Street.
The Rowley Parkes building on Briset Street
Groome upholsterer and button manufacturer
We hope to do a lot more work with these collections –looking at the different tools, understanding how they were used, and exploring their local history so keep a look out for more information. And if you know anything about light industry in Islington please do get in touch with me at roz.currie@islington.gov.uk.
For more information about the Museum of London project see here.
Exploring 53 Cross Street
By Martin King, Islington Museum Volunteer
I lived in 53 Cross Street from 1989 to 2003 as a member of Black Sheep Housing Cooperative. The house was built in 1785 and there was evidence of subsequent occupation ranging from the remains of a brass engraver’s studio in the backyard to the 1960s modernisation. This had covered up much of the original fabric of the house with hardboard and woodchip paper. I became intrigued by what lay behind the walls, behind shutters and under the floor boards.
Behind the shutters I found a pair of 18th century working men’s stockings together with a piece of wood inscribed in pencil ‘George Shaw when to Aameica March 1785’. He was probably a carpenter who worked on the house and left these objects as a kind of time capsule. Under the floor boards I found late 19th century brass engravings from when the house was occupied by John and Eliza Tiley and their eleven children
In the backyard I dug through the earth and found many pottery fragments, clay pipes and a shoe. Behind the air raid shelter I found the remains of a Second World War gas mask.
With my fellow house-mate Mark McAuley I removed the 1960s hardboard in the house and underneath found fragments of wallpaper from the whole life of the house. In the hall, under the wallpaper I found a 1785 painted stencil in the gothic style.
Most of the objects I found were quite humble, everyday objects, but together they tell the story of the house over the last 230 years. The only objects I added to the collection were a plastic Millennium bug chewing a computer and two badges, one of them with the message “Think for yourself”.
Visit Islington Museum to see the 53 Cross Street objects
Away from the Western Front: 1st – 31st July 1918
Away from the Western Front 1st – 30th June 1918
Away from the Western Front: 1st -31st May 1918
Away from the Western Front: 1st – 30th April, 1918.
Away from the Western Front : 13th-31st March, 1918
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Away From the Western Front: From Islington to Egypt, Palestine and Syria
Banners for Spain: Fighting the Spanish Civil War in London
Boy Soldiers
Finsbury Rifles War Diary: Egypt, Palestine and Syria
Gallipoli Blog
Imagine Islington
Islington Burning
Islington Stories
It's Ours Whatever They Say
Learning through Gallipoli
Local History Resources
Museum Blog
Sifting the Paperwork
The Finsbury Rifles
The Streets They Left Behind
Through a London Child’s Eye
Through the hole in the wall
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Trey Songz - Na Na [Official Audio]
Viewer: 30,879,951
Like Video: 189
Order Trey's album TRIGGA on iTunes and download of "Na Na", "SmartPhones" and the new tracks "Foreign" and "Change Your Mind": http://smarturl.it/TRIGGApreorder New album TRIGGA arrived 7/1/14! Order TRIGGA on Google Play: http://smarturl.it/TRIGGAgp Exclusive TRIGGA bundles available! http://atlr.ec/1u8zzGn Download "Na Na" on iTunes here: http://smarturl.it/buynana Stream and Playlist "Na Na": http://smarturl.it/playlistnana Download The Angel Network app for iPhones and Androids: http://bit.ly/theangelnetwork Trey Songz - Na Na [Official Audio] Subscribe for more official content from Trey Songz: https://Atlantic.lnk.to/TreySongzSubscribe Follow Trey Songz: http://www.treysongz.com http://store.treysongz.com http://www.twitter.com/treysongz http://www.instagram.com/treysongz http://www.facebook.com/treysongz https://www.snapchat.com/add/TreySongz Welcome to the official YouTube Channel of Atlantic Records artist Trey Songz. Contemporary R&B vocals blended with hip-hop flows, the actor/singer/songwriter/producer debuted on the scene with his smash hit “Gotta Make It” in 2005. Within the first decade of his career, he released five albums that peaked within the Top 20 of the Billboard 200 chart, including "Ready," "Pain Passion & Pleasure," "Chapter V," and "Trigga" as well as 15 solo singles that hit the Top Ten of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart. Songz’s top hits include platinum “Na Na”, platinum “Say Ahh”, RIAA-certified “Bottoms Up” featuring Nicki Minaj, gold “2 Reasons” featuring T.I., platinum “Slow Motion” and as well as platinum “Heart Attack." Songz lends his soulful vocals on featured hits from Twista’s "Girl Tonight" to J. Cole’s “Can’t Get Enough." Subscribe for the latest official music videos, official audio videos, performances, bts and more from Trey Songz. https://Atlantic.lnk.to/TreySongzSubscribe #treysongz #atlantic #atlanticrecords #ChapterV #trigga #songz #RandB #ContemporaryRandB #nana #officialaudio
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Youth Panel working with Jobcentre Plus to understand young people's needs
Submitted by Ben Reese on Fri, 20/04/2018 - 16:21
Back in August 2017, Greater Manchester Talent Match (GMTM) announced a partnership agreement with Youth Employment UK’s Youth Ambassador programme.
The initial aim of the partnership was to support the GMTM Youth Panel to pinpoint a current youth employment issue they were interested in researching. The Youth Panel would deepen their understanding of said issue by gathering evidence designed to influence policy and decision makers.
The Youth Panel have identified Jobcentre Plus provision as their area of focus. Members agreed there are issues around the accessibility of information at Jobcentre Plus and that communication methods employed by work coaches are not as effective as they could be.
More specifically the Youth Panel aim to:
Support Jobcentre Plus to improve their services by deepening their understanding of young people’s needs
Support disengaged young people to find out more about Jobcentre Plus and its services
To inform this work, throughout May the Youth Panel will survey both young people and Jobcentre Plus staff across Greater Manchester. This will be done via both face-to-face interviews and online questionnaires.
The project’s second stage will see these findings feed into the creation of a pilot project. This will be delivered at an identified Jobcentre Plus office.
Lauren Mistry, Operations Director at Youth Employment UK: “We have been amazed by the Youth Panel’s dedication and hard work so far. They are thoroughly determined to shape and influence the way that young people and Jobcentre Plus interact with one another.
“We have also been delighted by the level engagement from Jobcentre Plus. We are working towards collective goals – we want our research and pilot to benefit all involved.”
GMTM will be sharing regular updates on the progress of this exciting and innovative project. It is hoped that research findings and recommendations will be ready for sharing by August, at which point the intricacies of the pilot project will be mapped out.
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World's Largest Telescope Begins Construction
Filed to:Giant Magellan Telescope
After nearly a decade of planning, construction of the Giant Magellan Telescope is finally underway. And boy, does it look cool.
Perched high in the mountains of northern Chile, the GMT—whose primary optics consist of 7 separate 8.4-meter (27 foot) diameter mirrors—will proudly claim the title of the largest optical scope ever built. Its mirrors will be capable of focusing more than 6 times the amount of light of the largest optical telescopes today, into images 10 times sharper than those captured by Hubble.
“Every time someone builds a new telescope, we learn something about the universe that we never expected,” Patrick McCarthy, director for the Giant Magellan Telescope Observatory told Gizmodo over the phone. “Astronomy is about discovering new things, and telescopes are our vehicle.”
Working in concert with forthcoming space-based scopes, including the James Webb Space Telescope, the GMT will enable astronomers to peer further back in time than ever before, observing the birth of stars and coalescence of galaxies in the first hundred million years of the universe.
“Hubble has given us great views of how the universe evolved when it was 2 to 5 billion years old,” McCarthy said. “It’s also given us just the most tantalizing view of the earlier universe. Now we’ll be able to look back and see the formation of the very first structures, when the universe went from a uniform sea of gas to stars and galaxies.”
Another key science goal of the GMT will be to get a first good look at some of the exoplanets orbiting nearby stars. This work will pair the GMT with the Transit Exoplanet Survey Satellite, a small, space-based telescope that, like NASA’s Kepler mission, will detect the tiny shadows of distant planets transiting in front of their stars. Unlike Kepler, which focuses on exoplanets 500-1,000 light years away, when TESS flies in 2017, it’ll set its sights on our nearest neighbors, getting the distribution of planets in our cosmic vicinity.
If TESS detects a neighboring world that seems interesting, astronomers will use the GMT to take a closer look, measuring the planet’s mass using the doppler technique. In some cases, GMT might be able to measure the spectral fingerprint of the light filtered through the atmospheres of nearby planets, information which astronomers can use to decode atmospheric chemistry and hunt for signs of life.
How Planet Hunters Will Find the Next Earth
Twenty years ago, discovering another Earth sounded like a science fictional dream. But within a…
A perennial challenge for astronomers is dealing with the distortion of space caused by molecules in our atmosphere. According to McCarthy, the GMT will be outfitted with a brand-new mechanism to help compensate for this. In principle, the technology works a bit like a pair of noise-canceling headphones, except the GMT will be canceling distortions of light rather than sound. After light is filtered through the instrument’s primary mirrors, it hits a smaller set of secondary mirrors, which change shape roughly 2000 times per second to cancel out atmospheric distortion. The result is that when the GMT sets her eyes on the night sky, she’ll see it more clearly than any human, or any piece of ground-based technology ever before.
I, for one, can’t wait to see what we discover.
[Giant Magellan Telescope h/t Mayra Marcotte]
Follow Maddie on Twitter or contact her at maddie.stone@gizmodo.com
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Tag: turkey
Traveler Fails to Report $21,000 Seized by CBP
Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on December 13, 2019
Yesterday, CBP publicized a cash seizure from a female traveler who failed to report $21,000 in cash she was transporting before boarding her plane at Dulles airport.
The woman, bound for Pakistan via Turkey, verbally reported carrying $6,000. Thereafter, a customs officer searched her bags and discovered a total of $21,255.
This is a classic violation of 31 USC 5316, where a person fails to report cash being transported by them to CBP. A report of currency must be made on form FinCEN 105 and presented to CBP before departure. It is not enough to verbally report the money when asked.
CBP will also surely allege that this is also an instance of bulk cash smuggling, because she was provided with an opportunity to disclosure the full amount of money she carried, but only reported $6,000. They later had to find the full $21,255 in her bag.
Here’s the full story, from CBP:
STERLING, Va. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized $21,255 in unreported currency from a U.S. woman destined to Pakistan Friday at Washington Dulles International Airport.
While CBP officers conducted an outbound inspection of passengers on a Turkey-bound flight, officers encountered the woman and asked how much currency she possessed. She reported $6,000 and confirmed that she understood federal currency reporting requirements. Officers discovered several envelopes in her carry-on baggage with a total of $21,255 in U.S. currency. Officers released $255 to the woman for humanitarian purposes and seized $21,000 for violating federal currency reporting requirements.
It is legal to carry large sums of currency into or out of the United States. However, federal law requires that travelers who possess $10,000 or more in currency or other monetary instruments must report it all to a CBP officer at the airport, seaport, or land border crossing when entering or leaving the country. Read more about currency reporting requirements.
Consequences for violating U.S. currency reporting laws are severe; penalties may include seizure of most or all of the traveler’s currency, and potential criminal charges.
Have you had money seized by CBP?
If CBP has seized your cash, you need a lawyer. Read our trusted customs money seizure legal guide and can contact us for a free currency seizure consultation by clicking the contact buttons on this page.
Dulles CBP Seizes $53k in Cash
Dulles does it again, seizing $53,000 from two different people at the time they left the United States.
In one incident, when stopped before leaving on a plane from the United States to Cameroon, a man reported having $26,000, but was found to have $36,668.
In the other incident, a man and his family were leaving for Sudan. They reported having $11,000, but in fact, they had $16,500.
In the first instance, the presence of “six envelopes” tells me that this man was probably carrying money back to Cameroon for other people, probably to help family members suffering Cameroon’s civil war. If that was the case, there’s probably a good chance he wasn’t told exactly how much was in the envelopes, leading to his under-report of the money.
In the second instance, the fact that the family was traveling together tells me that — as almost always happens in my client’s cash seizure cases — someone did not count all their money, or did not consider some part of money to be required to be reported (i.e., an adult daughter traveling with a few extra thousand dollars of her own, not thinking she needed to report her money as part of the group because she’s an adult). These situations can be messy; sometimes money should be reported, sometimes not; it ends up being the word of the violator against the word of the CBP officer who seized the cash.
In each case, though, once someone is boarding the plane and has not already voluntary made the report to CBP, a violation of the reporting requirements of 31 USC 5316 have already occurred. So whether the report was accurate or not is technically not important: by having to be prompted to report currency by a CBP officer while boarding a plane, you are as good as caught, because you obviously have the intention to not report the money in the small physical space between the ticket counter and the gangway.
Here’s the full story:
STERLING, Virginia — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized nearly $53,000 during two outbound currency examinations Thursday at Washington Dulles International Airport.
CBP is not releasing the travelers’ names because none were criminally charged.
While inspecting passengers boarding a flight to Belgium, CBP officers seized $35,688 from a Cameroon man who reported that he possessed $26,000. Officers discovered a combined $27,500 in six envelopes in a backpack, and an additional $7,500 in the man’s carry-on bag. Officers retained $34,000 and released $1,688 to the man for humanitarian purpose.
While inspecting passengers boarding a later flight to Turkey, CBP officers seized $17,122 from a U.S. family bound for Sudan. The family reported that they possessed $11,000. Officers retained $16,500 and released $621 to the family for humanitarian purpose.
In both cases, the passengers were released to continue their travel.
Travelers may carry as much currency as they wish into and out of the United States. Federal law requires that travelers must report all U.S. and foreign monetary instruments totaling $10,000 or greater on a U.S. Treasury Department financial form. None of the currency is taxed.
“Customs and Border Protection encourages travelers to be completely honest when reporting all their currency during an inspection with a CBP officer, or they may incur civil or criminal penalties,” said Casey Durst, CBP’s Field Operations Director in Baltimore. “CBP officers conduct outbound examinations to safeguard the revenue of the U.S., and to intercept potentially illicit proceeds that support transnational criminal organizations.”
https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/dulles-cbp-seizes-53k-unreported-currency-two-departing-sets-travelers
CBP Seizes $170k from 7 Travelers at Dulles
Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on August 14, 2018
Dulles CBP does it again, and again.. and again, again, again, and again, and… again. That is, they sezied almost $170,000 in cash at Dulles airport for not reporting cash to Customs before leaving the country.
The 7 cash seizures by Customs range over a 2 week period, from July 13 to August 1. Travelers were taking cash to Belgium, Ghana, Turkey, Qatar, and Serbia. In each case, the travelers were stopped by CBP before boarding their plan and incorrectly reported the amount of money they were traveling, when asked.
Note that, if you’re boarding your flight and you haven’t already made the report, even if you make an accurate report when stopped, you’ve already committed the violation of failure to report. Also, in these cases, not filing the report is only one of the potential charges; additionally, the money could be seized for bulk cash smuggling and structuring offenses, leading to a higher penalty. Worse yet, CBP can criminally indict any person for bulk cash smuggling, structuring, failing to report, and also making false statements to federal officials (i.e., reporting the wrong amount of money).
STERLING, Va., — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized $169,431 during seven recent violations of federal currency reporting laws at Washington Dulles International Airport.
It is not against the law to carry large amounts of currency in or out of the United States. Arriving or departing travelers may carry as much currency as they wish. However, federal law requires that travelers who possess $10,000 or more in currency or other monetary instruments must report it all to a CBP officer at the airport, seaport, or land border crossing where they enter or leave the country.
Consequences for violating U.S. currency reporting laws are severe; penalties may include seizure of most or all of the traveler’s currency, as illustrated by the following cases, and subjected to potential criminal charges.
CBP officers seized $21,735 from a Cameroon woman and son boarding a flight to Belgium August 1. The family reported $9,700. Officers discovered additional currency in envelopes in a carry-on bag. Officers released $735 to the family for humanitarian purposes and released the family.
CBP officers seized $30,721 from a U.S. man boarding a flight to Ghana July 30. The man verbally reported $9,000 then wrote down that he possessed $11,000. Officers discovered additional currency in white envelopes in a carry-on bag. Officers released $721 to the man for humanitarian purposes and released him.
CBP officers seized $26,177 from a U.S. family boarding a flight to Turkey July 29. The family reported $21,000. Officers discovered additional currency concealed inside children’s socks and in cell phone cases. Officers released $1,177 to the man for humanitarian purposes and released him.
CBP officers seized $34,585 from a U.S. man and his Ghanaian wife boarding a flight to Ghana July 23. The couple reported that they each possessed $10,000. Officers discovered additional currency during an inspection. Officers released $1,585 to the couple for humanitarian purposes and released them.
CBP officers seized $18,390 from a U.S. couple boarding a flight to Turkey July 21. The couple reported $9,090. Officers discovered additional currency in an envelope in a carry-on bag. Officers released $390 to the couple for humanitarian purposes and released them.
CBP officers seized $20,645 from a U.S. man and his Jordanian wife boarding a flight to Qatar July 19. The couple reported $14,020. Officers discovered additional currency in envelopes in the woman’s purse. Officers released $390 to the couple for humanitarian purposes and released them.
CBP officers seized $17,178 from a Kosovo woman boarding a flight to Serbia July 13. The woman reported $8,000. Officers discovered additional currency in luggage and carry-on bags. Officers released $1,578 to the woman for humanitarian purposes and released the family.
In each case, CBP officers read the federal reporting requirements to the travelers and solicited their understanding of the law. Officers afforded the travelers multiple opportunities to truthfully report all currency they possessed, both verbally and in writing.
“Customs and Border Protection outbound inspections protect against unreported exportations of bulk U.S. currency, which often can be proceeds from alleged illicit activity, or that fund transnational criminal organizations,” said Casey Durst, CBP’s Field Operations Director in Baltimore. “These currency seizures are a direct reflection of CBP’s continuing commitment to enforcing all U.S. laws, including federal currency reporting laws, at our nation’s international ports of entry.”
Dulles is one of the more aggressive ports when it comes to seizures, penalties, and criminal indictments. If you’ve had money seized by Customs, you should hire a lawyer.
CBP Philadelphia Seized $152k in Unreported Cash
Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on April 13, 2018
The last time we wrote about how CBP Philadelphia seized cash was more than 3 years ago. Cash seizures do not happen too frequently at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), but they definitely do happen.
As proof, recently CBP Philadelphia conducted two cash seizures, with the total value being over $150,000. The two men, apparently in two separate incidents, were traveling to Turkey and Ghana. The story is light on details and follows the typical format, including the 2017 cash seizure statistic that on a typical day, CBP seized $265,205.
Here are the (scant) details on the CBP Philadelphia cash seizure:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized $152,342 in unreported currency from two men who recently departed Philadelphia International Airport.
On Saturday, CBP officers seized $105,842 from a man destined to Ghana who initially claimed that he possessed $60,000.
On April 1, CBP officers seized $46,500 from a man destined to Turkey who initially claimed that he possessed $30,000.
In each case, CBP officers afforded the travelers multiple opportunities to truthfully report all currency.
CBP is not releasing the travelers’ names because none was criminally charged. Travelers may carry as much currency as they wish into and out of the United States. Federal law requires that travelers must report all U.S. and foreign monetary instruments totaling $10,000 or greater on a U.S. Treasury Department financial form. None of the currency is taxed.
“Customs and Border Protection encourages all travelers to be completely honest and report all their currency during an inspection with a CBP officer. Consequences could be severe, including seizure of all currency and possible criminal prosecution,” said Joseph Martella, CBP Area Port Director for the Area Port of Philadelphia. “The best way for travelers to hold onto their currency is to fully comply with our nation’s currency reporting laws.”
Has CBP Philadelphia seized your cash?
If CBP Philiadelphia seized your cash at PHL airport, you should act quickly to ensure that your rights to get the money out of seizure and forfeiture are not lost. You should educate yourself on the process by reading our customs money seizure guide, or contact us directly for a consultation. Our experience can help you just like the many, many others we have already helped.
CBP Dulles Seizes Cash Bound for Ghana and Turkey
Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on April 4, 2018
Dulles CBP conducted more currency seizure operations on people entering and leaving the country for not report carrying more than $10,000 cash. The law requires that transporting more than $10,000 in cash into or out of the United States be reported to a Customs officer at the port of entry or departure, typically on FinCen Form 105. In this particular summary of enforcement activity, CBP seized a total of about $56,000 from a three different sets of travelers, as follows:
Three more travelers failed to truthfully report all their currency to a CBP officers and saw their currency seized.Consequences for violating U.S. currency laws are severe: from loss of all unreported currency to potential criminal charges, as illustrated by the following three cases:
CBP officers seized $18,565 from a passenger boarding a flight to Istanbul, Turkey Sunday. Officers discovered the unreported currency in the travelers checked baggage, carry-on bag and cellular phone case.
CBP officers seized $20,710 from a family boarding a flight to Ankara, Turkey Sunday. Officers discovered the unreported currency in the family’s baggage.
CBP officers seized $17,210 from a couple boarding a flight to Accra, Ghana Sunday. Officers discovered the unreported currency in four envelopes inside their baggage.
Travelers in all three cases were U.S. citizens. None was arrested.
Travelers may carry as much currency as they wish into and out of the United States. None of the currency is taxed. Federal law requires that travelers who possess $10,000 or more in currency or monetary instruments must report it to a CBP officer and complete a U.S. Treasury Department financial form.
“Customs and Border Protection urges travelers to be completely honest during CBP inspections, including by truthfully report all of their currency,” said Daniel Mattina, CBP Area Port Director for the Area Port of Washington Dulles. “The best way for travelers to hold onto their currency is to fully comply with our nation’s currency reporting laws.”
Did you fail to report more than $10,000 in cash to CBP?
If you fail to report more than $10,000 in cash to CBP, your money could be seized. If your money has been seized for a failure to report, you should contact our customs lawyer for a free cash seizure consultation by clicking the contact buttons on this page.
Get all of your questions answered by a customs lawyer. We assist individuals who have had a Customs money seizure to get seized currency returned from CBP.
View our Customs Money Seizure Legal Guide.
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Indigenous camp raided over toy gun
GreensMPs 13 Oct 2008
First Nations Peoples’ Issues
Last Thursday (Oct 9th), a large number of police participated in a raid of the Kunoth town camp in Alice Springs. Officers jumped over fences to enter the camp, displayed rifles, pushed and abused residents and trained a laser on the chest of one man.
Police claimed they were looking for weapons, following a tip off from the fire brigade that there were guns in a car that drove back to the camp. A miniature toy gun was later found on the dashboard of the car.
Under the NT Intervention, police have been given new powers to enter "prescribed areas" without warrants, and many police have been brought into towns who have no experience dealing with local communities.
Donald Kunoth, vice-president of Kunoth town camp:
"Apparently there were guns stolen in Alice Springs earlier in the week. And they just assumed it was our Aboriginal kids."
"Its so scary to see your kids get harassed like that. At gun-point. One of them could have been shot by accident. They even had bullet proof vests on. Lights were shining into the camp from outside and that blinded us. What if someone came walking out with a stick? They could of been shot"
Josephine Thompson from Kunoth town camp:
"We need human rights you know. That's why we feel sad. Its been just like we been chained up again, like our ancestors did in the past. They were chained up and dragged like animals. We don't want that to happen again, for our children, and their children you know. We gotta stand for our rights."
NT Police Duty Superintendent Jamie Chalker said the police attendance was an appropriate reaction to reports of an armed person in a public place. He encouraged any people who were concerned about the police
actions to make a formal complaint which will be investigated by the
Ethical and Professional Standards Command.
For further information, check out www.rollbacktheintervention.wordpress.com
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Bio Of Gregory D. Evans
Facts About Gregory
Greg’s Blog
French government, wary of cyberattacks, shares defense secrets with political parties
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans French security officials, sobered by the destabilizing effect that computer hacking and email leaks had on the U.S. election, have taken the unprecedented step of allowing government cyber-snoops share their expertise with political parties. The goal is to help France’s The…
The Canadian government doesn’t want hackers’ help
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans The U.S. Department of Defence has turned to well-intentioned hackers and independent security researchers to help the government agency find software bugs and vulnerabilities in its computer systems. But in Canada, the government appears to still have no formal The post…
Experts Question Legality of Government Hacking
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans The emergence into the public consciousness of government hacking techniques and activities in recent years has sparked an increasingly loud debate over how and when law enforcement agencies should be allowed to employ these tactics. But that conversation ignores the The…
A US teen hacker has infiltrated and stolen personal information of US citizens from hundreds of US state government servers hosted on .us domains.
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans The hacker’s name is Fear (@hackinyolife on Twitter), and this all seems to be an accidental hack, with the perpetrator stumbling upon a treasure trove he never expected to find. “I gained access to an ftp server, that listed access The…
Government to create Computer & Cybercrime Management Centre to deal with crimes like social media abuse & cyberterrorism
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans Zimbabwe’s draft ICT legislation on cybercrime, electronic transactions, and data has drawn a lot of attention in the past month as an increasing number of citizens pay close attention the impact that these laws will have in their lives. At The…
Can banks do biometric security? We’d trust them before the government
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans Brits have more faith in their banks than government agencies to roll out authentication technologies based on biometrics, according to a new survey from Visa. Consumers are nearly twice as likely to trust banks to store and keep their biometric The…
Two NC Men Charged in Computer Hacking Scheme Targeting Senior Government Officials
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans NORTH CAROLINA — Two North Carolina millennials have marketable skills but seem to be putting them to use in ways more likely to land them jail time than a job. Federal authorities are charging 22-year-old Andrew Boggs of north Wilkesboro The…
KUWAITI GOVERNMENT STAFFER ARRESTED FOR ROLE IN ISIS CYBER WING
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans Kuwaiti police have detained a government worker on suspicion of proliferating the ideology of the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), the interior ministry said late Thursday. The suspect, identified as 26-year-old Kuwaiti national Othman Zain Nayef, had “used his office The…
A Hacking Group is Selling Spyware to Government
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans If you think iPhone is the safest smartphone out there, we’ve got something that’s going to burst this bubble of yours. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, spyware relying on three previously unknown, or “zero-day,” flaws in Apple’s iOS The…
Government Identity Theft Is Dropping…Or Is It?
Source: National Cyber Security – Produced By Gregory Evans When consumers hear about identity theft, their minds may instantly go to their credit cards or their bank accounts. And to be honest, the overwhelming majority of identity theft crimes involve the fraudulent use of someone’s financial accounts. But that doesn’t…
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Copyright © 2020 Worlds No. 1 Security Consultant | AUTHOR | EX-HACKER | TV PERSONALITY. All Rights Reserved.
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Home A&E Bruce Power helps Festival bring culture to the area
Bruce Power helps Festival bring culture to the area
Bruce Power Communique
Bruce Power has become the ‘New Play Development Sponsor’ of the Blyth Festival, as it enters its 45th summer this month.
Gil Garratt, left, Artistic Director of the Blyth Festival, and Chris Mercanti, Manager of Community and Indigenous Relations, Bruce Power
Bruce Power has pledged $125,000 over the next five years to the festival as part of the sponsorship, said James Scongack, Bruce Power’s Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs & Operational Services.
“We are supporting the Blyth Festival because it aligns with our commitment to promoting and sustaining arts and culture in Bruce, Grey and Huron counties,” Scongack said. “The Blyth Festival is a unique experience for theatre-goers of all ages, and we are happy to support it and the Blyth community.”
Gil Garratt, Artistic Director of the Blyth Festival, welcomed Bruce Power as a corporate sponsor.
“It’s inspiring to see Bruce Power recognize the essential role the Festival plays in telling the region’s stories, celebrating our heroes and our history, and bringing the highest calibre of vibrant and vital arts and culture to our community,” Garratt said. “The Festival’s mission is to enrich the lives of our audience by giving voice to the region and the country, and Bruce Power is choosing to bolster that mission and amplify that voice. We are grateful their support will help us continue a proud tradition of relevant, original storytelling on the Festival stage, where more than 135 Canadian plays have launched in 45 celebrated seasons.”
Learn more about the Blyth Festival at www.blythfestival.com.
About Bruce Power
Formed in 2001, Bruce Power is an electricity company based in Bruce County, Ontario. We are powered by our people. Our 4,200 employees are the foundation of our accomplishments and are proud of the role they play in safely delivering clean, reliable, low-cost nuclear power to families and businesses across the province. Bruce Power has worked hard to build strong roots in Ontario and is committed to protecting the environment and supporting the communities in which we live. Learn more at www.brucepower.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
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Historic Motor Sport Central.
Knowledge driven by passion.
Car Culture.
Bikes.
#Focus – The Audi 90 IMSA GTO.
Audi first came to the North American circuit racing through the Trans-Am Championship in 1988 with their 200 Quattro model taking eight wins as well as the championship in their first year with what could have been called the “unfair advantage” also known as the Quattro four-wheel drive system.
The beginning of the story with the 1988 Audi 200 Quattro Trans-Am.
After upsetting the Trans-Am officials as well as team and drivers and being pushed out of the championship through a specific rule banning all-wheel drive system for 1989, Audi departed and focused on the rival championship known as the IMSA Camel GT Championship with the Audi 90 IMSA GTO.
The 1989 Audi IMSA GTO.
Well, the Audi wasn’t really a production based car as the IMSA GTO rules permitted the use of purpose-built racers using a silhouette body to look like their production equivalent although it did retain the original production roof of the car. Bodywork was made of lightweight composites. Chassis was made of a steel tubular space-frame holding their Quattro system sourced from the Group B rally cars. Suspension were simple with double wishbones design, coil springs and brakes with discs at all four corners.
Cutaway view of the 1989 Audi IMSA GTO.
The engine being sourced from the group B rally cars, the mighty and noisy all-aloy straight-five engine using a displacement of 2200cc turbocharged through a big KKK turbo was back but on track this time. Interesting was that the whole engine sat forward from the front-axle line. The engine provided more than 700HP and 720Nm of torque and was mated to a six-speed gearbox with only five-speed retained as written in the rulebook. Seeing those figures, the Quattro system was a good help, but interesting were the size of the wheels with 14inch wide wheels fitted at the four corners..!
The 1989 Audi IMSA GTO engine.
All in all, the Audi IMSA GTO car proved a great concept, the Quattro system provided the best traction possible at any point and with the help of the massive tyres and wheels used, the tyre wear was much better than the opposition known as the Nissan 300Zs of Cunningham Racing and the Roush Mercury Cougars. A longer lasting package, that sums it up.
The massive 14′ inch wide wheels of the 1989 Audi IMSA GTO.
Opposed to the Trans-Am effort ran by Group 44 Inc, this time Audi relied on Audi of America to run its campaign in the IMSA Camel GT Championship, Trans-Am champion Hurley Haywood and Hans-Joachim Stuck were retained as in the previous year. Scott Goodyear and Walter Röhrl were their co-drivers for the endurance races. Unfortunate is that development took quite a long time and the team sat out of the 24 Hours of Daytona as well as the Sebring 12 Hours that same year. It was debuted at the Miami Grand Prix 45′ min race but both cars failed to finish due to an accident and gearbox failure. From round four, the car proved successful with Stuck and Haywood scoring a one-two finish. H-J Stuck would score six more wins in the nine following races. Sad is that it lost the championship to Pete Halsmer and the Mercury Cougar…
The 1989 Audi IMSA GTO at speed.
The project was initially planned as a two-year effort but after 1989, Audi decided to switch its focus on the prestigious DTM championship for 1990 and the project was canned. It looked set to dominate but it never happened !
What the competition saw for most of the year..!
But anyway, the Quattro system would be a feature of their DTM V8 car that following year and on many others. An “unfair advantage” which proved quite successful looking at all the championship claimed with the technology..!
The 1990 DTM Audi V8 Quattro with H-J Stuck and W. Röhrl.
07/13/2015 05/05/2016 Louis Quiniou.AllWheelDrive, Audi, Audi90, CamelGT, GTO, IMSA, IMSACamelGT, IMSAGTO, Quattro, QuattroTransAm, TransAm, UnfairAdvantage
2 thoughts on “#Focus – The Audi 90 IMSA GTO.”
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Pingback: #Focus – The IMSA GT Championship Story. – Duddha.me
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The lighter side.
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By Gruesome Greg Reviews, Reviews - Audio July 23, 2018
Black Elephant – Cosmic Blues
Album number three from Black Elephant landed in late July on Small Stone Records. Their heavy, fuzzy psychedelic rock is certainly right at home on one of the leading purveyors of stoner rock, as this Italian outfit walk the line between desert rock and vintage psych jams for 34 minutes.
“Cosmic Soul” kicks things off with a mellow blues riff that’s halfway between Kyuss and Sons of OTIS, and a slow, laid-back tempo with shades of Clutch—especially in the vocal department—before a funky groove kicks in in the final minute or so. “Helter Skelter” sounds nothing like the Beatles number—riding a slow, heavy groove à la Fu Manchu, complete with a killer guitar solo, followed by a sizzling wah section. After a funky, sub-two-minute instrumental (“Chase Me”), “Walking Dead” is a pretty decent stop-start stomp that again brings the likes of Clutch and Fu Manchu to mind, complete with a touch of 70’s psych.
“Baby Eroina” busts out a vintage groove that reminds me of Mountain, once again relying on a sparser, bluesier verse before getting back to the riffs. The intriguingly titled “Cosmic Blues for Solitary Moose” wails and whines like vintage Blue Cheer, or maybe even Earthless, with its extended guitar solos, although this one clocks in under four minutes. “Inno” ends the album with a handful of head-nodding, heavy riffs sandwiched between some more melodic passages. I’m not sure, but I think this song might be in Italian.
smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/cosmic-blues
Gruesome Greg
Seahawks/Stamps/Flames/Zags/Jays/Raptors fan and lifelong metal head with a beer gut and a self-deprecating sense of humour. Reviewer/blogger (Yon Senior Doomsayer) for Hellbound.ca.
Black Elephantdesert rockfuzz rockheavy rockpsychpsychedelicreview
Corrosion of Conformity – No Cross, No Crown
Forming the Void – Rift
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: PENTAGRAM/Electric Citizen/Satan’s Satyrs @ Grog Shop, Cleveland, October 11, 2015
Pentagram was scheduled to come up here for NXNE in June, but got denied at the border. So when I heard they’d be playing within driving distance–on Canadian Thanksgiving, no less–I just had to scratch that itch, eh?
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The Effects of Hemi-Sync® on Electrocortical Activity: A Review of Three Empirical Studies
Ark / Research Papers / The Effects of Hemi-Sync® on Electrocortical Activity: A Review of Three Empirical Studies
We wish to dedicate this paper to Robert A. Monroe: a man whose love and compassion for humanity have forever changed and expanded the definition of human consciousness.
Bilateral hemispheric synchronization is a phenomenon which has been attracting the attention of researchers and clinicians for sometime. It has been approximately thirty years since a number of studies showed that adept meditators tended to bring about a state of phasic hemispheric synchrony while in deep meditation (see Carrington, 1977). In a classic and often cited study, Banquet (1973) demonstrated that advanced TM meditators could indeed achieve total brain synchrony after minutes of repeating a mantra. However, even in adept meditators the dominant brain-wave frequency in which the state of synchrony takes place is almost impossible to predict and/or control.
Banquet (1973) suggested that during meditation a greater equalization of the functioning of the hemispheres tends to take place. This relative shift in hemispheric dominance (from left-brain dominance to whole-brain dominance) may result in therapeutic effects which are likely to enhance mind-body integration and overall improvements in physical and emotional health. Because of a reduction in cognitive activities during moments of whole brain synchrony, it is believed that negative thinking, self-punitive thoughts and excessive worrying are apt to slow down and consequently a reduction in cognitive anxiety is experienced (Carrington, 1977; Sadigh,1991; Schwartz, Davidson, & Goleman, 1978).
Delmonte (1984) suggested that creative intelligence requires the synthesis and collaboration of both the analytic and the spatial/intuitive halves of the brain. Again, it appears that this left-brain-right-brain synthesis can be achieved almost at will by adept meditators, especially those who practice TM.
Green and Green (1989) believed that long term biofeedback and relaxation training resulted in a harmonious relationship between the two hemispheres which facilitated control of the autonomic nervous system. This control can especially be helpful in the treatment of a variety of stress related and psychosomatic disorders. The authors also suggested that such states of bilateral synchrony may indeed bring about positive changes in psychophysical health as well as therapeutic alterations in underlying personality characteristics which may interfere with healthy growth and development.
Ornstein and Thompson (1984) criticized the Western emphasis on intelligence in terms of written or spoken word. They believed that perhaps the reason we have difficulties expanding our standards of education is because of this overemphasis on the potentials and abilities of the analytic/verbal brain. Studies investigating whole-brain synthesis clearly suggest that human knowledge, intelligence, and well being may very well be achieved as the two brains begin to function as one–in unison and in synchrony. Table 1 summarizes some of the documented characteristics of the two hemispheres.
LEFT BRAIN RIGHT BRAIN
Verbal Visual
Analytic Perceptual
Cognitive Affective
NREM sleep REM sleep
Rational thinking Intuitive
But how can we achieve whole brain synchrony without needing to become involved in the prolonged practice of meditation and meditative exercises? Can such states be induced and maintained by the use of technology? To answer these questions, let us now turn to the examination of Eastern and Western approaches which attempt to bring about whole-brain integration and synchrony.
From East to West:
In Search of The Synchronized Brain
The beneficial effects of hemispheric synchrony suggested in the current literature have motivated a large number of researchers, clinicians, and entrepreneurs to discover more effective and practical ways of inducing such a state. Empirical research with some forms of meditative practices has shown that a synchronized brain state may be achieved after literally years of practice. Furthermore, it has been established that only certain forms of meditation result in such a state. Practices that suggest focused attention such as TM seem to be the most effective ways of causing whole-brain integration. As it was indicated earlier, synchrony achieved during these practices appears to be limited to certain specific frequencies and states of consciousness which cannot be easily controlled or modified by the meditator.
A few years ago, we had the opportunity of mapping the cortical activity of an adept meditator who had been regularly practicing and teaching TM for approximately fifteen years. The subject’s EEG activity during baseline showed an asynchronous state throughout the cortex. The primary cortical activity was that of high-frequency Alpha activity combined with some Theta and Beta waves especially concentrated in the left temporal lobe. Once a stable baseline was achieved, the subject was asked to practice his mantra meditation. Shortly after this, the subject’s cortical activity began to slow down and signs of phasic-bilateral synchrony became apparent. Within a matter of minutes the subject’s primary cortical activity was that of low frequency Alpha across the cortex. This is consistent with similar observations reported in the literature (i.e. Banquet, 1973). After the subject stopped meditating, his cortical activity began to resemble that of the pre-meditation state.
This was actually the first time we witnessed a fully synchronized brain induced by meditation in our neuropsychological laboratory. The results and findings of this experiment were both exciting and sobering. We asked ourselves, “Do we need years of training in meditation before we can achieve whole-brain synchrony? If so, how many years?”
In months to follow, by using our computer-analyzed EEG unit, we began testing and experimenting with a variety of equipment, gadgets, tapes, special vibrational sounds, musical notes played on synthesizers, resonating bowls and gongs all of which claimed to entrain the brain into a synchronized, enhanced state. The results of our investigations were at best disappointing. Study after study, such devices and sounds failed to result even in a slight movement in the direction of hemispheric synchronization or enhancement of any brain-wave frequencies.
In the early months of 1989, we began studying the effects of a specialized audio technology, known as Hemi-Sync, which purported to bring about hemispheric synchronization by inducing a Frequency- Following Response within the brain (Monroe,1982). Unlike other modalities tested so far, Hemi-Sync was based on a sound and scientific method of brain entrainment. We designed three studies to measure and investigate the effects of the Hemi-Sync signal on electrocortical activities.
The First Hemi-Sync Pilot Study Subject and Procedures
The first subject who participated in our Hemi-Sync pilot study was a 20 year-old right-handed white female. She volunteered to participate in the study. The subject had some exposure to tapes containing the Hemi-Sync signal in the past, although she stated that she did not listen to such tapes on a regular basis. During the experiment the subject was seated in a comfortable recliner in a dark room. Gold-plated EEG electrodes of a 16-channel grass EEG model 8-10c were attached using a modified “10-20” system electrode placement. The EEG unit was then interfaced with the HZI computer system for analysis and dynamic brain mapping.
A simple, single subject reversal design (ABA) was used in this study. In other words, the experiment consisted of three phases: the baseline (A), exposure to Hemi-Sync, or the treatment phase (B), and finally a post-treatment phase similar to that of the baseline phase (A). During the baseline phase the subject’s cortical activity was measured while she rested in a recliner. Once the baseline was established, the subject listened to a special Hemi-Sync tape known as Introduction to Focus 10. The subject’s EEG was again recorded during this phase. After completing the treatment phase, a post-treatment evaluation of the subject was made while she was merely resting in the recliner.
A close examination of the subject’s baseline data showed an asynchronous mixture of Alpha, Theta, and Beta activities. The Beta activity was especially evident in the frontal lobes. The cortical activity during the treatment phase, on the other hand, was completely different. Full phasic hemispheric synchronization was observed across the cortex. The subject’s primary brain activity was that of synchronized Theta. The secondary activity was that of synchronized Alpha activity. The results of the treatment phase were quite astonishing since it is rather difficult to achieve and maintain a fully synchronized Theta state. During the post treatment phase, the subject’s EEG activity began to resemble that of the baseline phase with one exception: the frontal Beta activity was completely gone. This possibly indicates that a normalization of cortical activity might have had happened due to the treatment (e.g., Hemi-Sync.). The significance and the importance of our findings from this study motivated us to design other similar studies.
The Second Hemi-Sync Study Subject and Procedures
The subject was a 42 year-old right-handed white male who volunteered to participate in the study. He also had listened to Hemi-Sync tapes in the past but indicated to us that he had not been practicing with such tapes for sometime. Experimental procedures used in this study were exactly similar to those used in the pilot study.
A simple reversal design (ABA) was also used in this study. However, the treatment phase (B) consisted of listening to a different Hemi-Sync tape known as Free Flow 12. This and the Focus 10 tape are standard exercise tapes that are available through The Monroe Institute.
The subject’s cortical activity consisted of asynchronous Theta and Alpha waves during the baseline phase. However, a few minutes after the subject began listening to the Focus 12 tape, his cortical activity began to show bilateral synchronous Beta waves. The subject was able to maintain such high power synchronized state while he was listening to the tape. The remarkable shift in brain wave patterns and the phasic synchrony which was induced by the Hemi-Sync signal can be appreciated by examining the strip-chart recordings made during the session. The induction of such a hyper-synchronous state by means of audio signals is indeed unique and virtually unheard of in the literature.
The subject’s cortical activity returned to an asynchronous, but a more normalized state during the post-treatment phase. Because of the significant findings of this study, we decided to replicate this study at a later date.
The Third Hemi-Sync Study
During our third study we virtually replicated every condition, procedure, and methodology used in the second study. Again, the same subject’s brain wave activity was recorded during the baseline phase (A). He then listened to the Focus 12 tape while his cortical activity was being monitored and recorded (B). Finally, the subject rested while post-treatment recordings were made (B).
The results and findings of this study were virtually identical to those observed in the second study: asynchronous mixture of Theta and Alpha waves during the baseline phase followed by highly synchronized Beta activity across the cortex during the treatment phase. There was also a return to asynchronous Theta/Alpha activity during the post-treatment phase. The only difference between this and the previous study was that it took the subject even less time to produce synchronized brain waves. This may indicate that the more an individual is exposed to the Hemi-Sync signal, the easier it will for him/her to achieve whole-brain integration.
It has been documented that each day we experience brief moments of bilateral, phasic hemispheric synchronization. This phenomenon is however quite rare and outside the conscious control of the majority of us. Even certain adept meditators who seem to induce such a state while meditating, do not appear to have any control over the brain wave frequency at which such synchronization occurs. Furthermore, it may take many years before a serious meditator can achieve full cortical synchrony. Even after years of practice, of course, there are no guarantees that one may experience this unique phenomenon.
Because of the beneficial and therapeutic effects of whole-brain integration, a number of various pieces of equipment, recorded sounds, and technologies are now available which promise and claim to induce such a state. Unfortunately, based on our empirical studies, we have found that none of these approaches seem to even entrain the brain toward a state of synchrony. Thus far, we have been able to document that the only effect technology that indeed results in bilateral hemispheric synchronization is that of the Hemi-Sync signals developed by Robert A. Monroe.
Study after study we have been able to demonstrate that after brief periods of exposure to the Hemi-Sync signal subjects’ brain began to enter a state of phasic synchrony. This state appears to be similar to what is cortically experienced by some meditators except for the following exceptions:
First, unlike meditation, Hemi-Sync does not require years of practice. We have been able to demonstrate in our laboratory that after virtually minutes of exposure to the Hemi-Sync signal, full cortical synchrony is achieved.
Second, while the hemispheric synchrony experienced during meditation appears to be limited to a certain range of brain wave frequencies, Hemi-Sync appears to induce a variety of synchronized states at almost any frequency. In other words, the Hemi-Sync signal is capable of facilitating a variety of states of consciousness ranging from deep sleep to focused concentration and beyond.
Finally, after periods of exposure to the Hemi-Sync signal, we have observed that a phenomenon of cortical normalization tends to occur. This beneficial effect appears to be unique to Hemi-Sync since we have not observed anything similar to this with our meditation subjects.
Since we first demonstrated that Hemi-Sync does indeed do what it purports to do, we have continued our experiments with this fascinating brain entrainment modality. We are now documenting some the beneficial effects, both emotional and cognitive, that are induced as a result of moments of brief exposure to Hemi-Sync (see Sadigh, 1991). Studies with larger samples are needed in order to investigate individual differences and how Hemi-Sync may affect specific brain wave activities in different individuals.
Banquet, J. P. (1973). Spectral analysis of the EEG in meditation. Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 35, 143-151.
Carrington, P. (1977). Freedom in Meditation. New York: Doubleday.
Delmonte, M. M. (1984). Electrocortical activity and related phenomena associated with meditation practice: A literature review. International Journal of Neuroscience, 24, 217-231.
Green, E., & Green, A. (1989). Beyond Biofeedback. New York: Delacorte Press.
Monroe, R. A. (1982). The Hemi-Sync Process. Unpublished Manuscript, The Monroe Institute.
Ornstein, R., & Thompson, R. F. (1984). The Amazing Brain. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
Sadigh, M. R. (1991). Hemi-Sync and insight-oriented psychotherapy. Hemi-Sync Journal. Vol. IX No. 2, 1-2.
Schwartz, G. E., Davidson, R. J., & Goleman, D. T. (1978). Patterning of cognitive and somatic processes in the regulation of anxiety: Effects of meditation versus exercise. Psychosomatic Medicine, 40, 321-328.
Learn more about Hemi-Sync here.
Hemi-Sync Staff
A.J. Honeycutt
Creating Streamhaven
Interview with artist Byron Metcalf
M. R. Sadigh, Ph.D.07/19/2017
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Derek Kraus officially clinched the 2019 K&N Pro Series West championship on Saturday night at ISM Raceway. (Meg Oliphant/NASCAR)
Derek Kraus Celebrates Championship as Ty Gibbs Survives Overtime To Win at ISM
Davey Segal NASCAR.com November 10, 2019
AVONDALE, Ariz. — The 2019 K&N Pro Series West season finale showcased the up and coming talent in NASCAR. And when the lights shined the brightest, the young drivers delivered.
Derek Kraus officially clinched the series championship by taking the green flag, and allowed himself to get a little introspective once the title was finalized.
“It’s a dream come true to become a NASCAR champion and it’s all because of you guys,” he said over the radio.
Dream: meet reality.
#KNWEST And now presenting…
The 2019 K&N Pro Series West CHAMPION: @derek9kraus??#AZLottery100 | @ISMRaceway pic.twitter.com/uwMHswoDnx
— NASCAR Home Tracks (@NASCARHomeTrack) November 10, 2019
After failing pre-race inspection and starting in the rear, Kraus fought his way to finish inside the top five for the 11th time this season. Once he made the trip to Victory Lane, the gravity of what he’d just accomplished began to sink in.
“It feels really good,” Kraus said with a smile ear to ear. “We had a really good season this year. If we had a bad night, we were able to capitalize on it and do as much as we could do make the bad night as good as we could.”
“I really can’t thank all these (Bill McAnally Racing) guys enough. They work their tails off on this race car to get it as good as it is every single race. And to finish the year out strong finishing fourth after starting towards the back of the field, it was a really good night and I’m really excited for the following years.”
Kraus’ third full-time season in the series resulted in seven total wins (five West, two East) and an average finish of 4.0, a series best.
Racing-Reference: Derek Kraus 2019 K&N West Statistics
Further up front, Sam Mayer controlled the majority of the race, leading 68 laps total. But restarts plagued the 2019 K&N East champion all evening long, as he lost the lead to Ty Gibbs in Turns 1 and 2 with a little over 30 laps remaining
4?-wide for the race lead.
Ty Gibbs gets it. Sam Mayer gets sideways. And Ty Majeski gets a piece of the wall.
It's gettin' wild in the desert.#AZLottery100 | @ISMRaceway@FansChoiceTV ?? -> https://t.co/hcl13JCPiL pic.twitter.com/lCdFnxSdiy
Gibbs, who didn’t give the lead up after taking it on Lap 71, was able to hold off Mayer for two green/white/checkered overtime restarts and win his first career K&N West race and second this season.
MONSTER finish to 2019!
Ty Gibbs holds off Sam Mayer to get the ?#AZLottery100 | @ISMRaceway pic.twitter.com/RSZu8xnlkv
“There was a lot going on there,” Gibbs said of the finish to the Arizona Lottery 100. “Those restarts really kind of got me flustered there. I got nervous for a little bit. I could really set (Mayer) up on the restarts. That’s where I could get him the most. We just persevered, started in the back and the car was so good that we got to Victory Lane, it was a cool day.”
The win for Gibbs came under the Levin Racing banner in a partnership with Joe Gibbs Racing. The win is the team’s second in the organizations history (Sheldon Creed, Las Vegas 2018).
Corey Heim of Chad Bryant Racing crossed the finish line third. He was credited with a 25th-place finish, however. The No. 22 team, at the request of NASCAR Competition officials, ran an Illmor engine. NASCAR officials and the No. 22 agreed the team would be placed last in the official results regardless of their finish in the running order.
Kraus officially finished third, with his Bill McAnally Racing teammate Hailie Deegan fourth and Scottsdale, Arizona native Jagger Jones rounding out the top five.
Brittney Zamora, Trenton Moriarity, Trevor Huddleston, Todd Souza and Riley Herbst completed the top 10.
Racing-Reference: Arizona Lottery 100 Results
With his fifth place effort, Jones earned the runner-up spot in the 2019 standings, three points ahead of Deegan, who finished third. Huddleston and Zamora round out the top five.
DRIVER STANDINGS | OWNER STANDINGS
The Arizona Lottery 100 is scheduled to be broadcast on NBCSN on Thursday, November 14 at 6 p.m.
The NASCAR Touring Awards Banquet will take place on Saturday, November 23 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Ty Gibbs’ victory was his first at ISM Raceway and second in the K&N Pro Series. (Meg Oliphant/NASCAR)
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GOV NEWS
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