1 Intelligent Design

“Consider the lilies of the field”

This world is full of treasures. They may be found both above the surface and below the surface. Unfortunately many people don’t look closely enough to see the treasures above the surface, let alone dig beneath the surface to find the treasures waiting there.

There are enough of these treasures available to the naked eye for us to be able to come to the conclusion that a power greater than ourselves made everything. Take a walk through the countryside and observe the plants and animals. Observe the complexity of a common flower. Could a human make it? Of course not! Jesus said,

God’s creation will stand close examination. Take out a magnifying glass and look more closely. More wonders appear for us to behold. No matter how close we look at it, or how powerful the magnification, God’s handiwork will, unlike man’s, continue to disclose further wonders and it never ceases to amaze.

Evolutionists claim that flower-bearing plants developed from simple plants over millions of years of small changes. The same claim is made in the development of animals from simple to complex. When they are challenged to produce evidence from the environment or fossil record it is not forthcoming. Charles Darwin himself was perplexed that the fossil record did not support his theory:

“Why is not every geological formation and every stratum full of such intermediate links? Geology assuredly does not reveal any such finely-graduated organic chain; and this is the most obvious and serious objection which can be urged against the theory.”1 Further discoveries have confirmed his concern. There are no intermediate fossils, no matter how hard evolutionists try to pull the wool over our eyes. We are told that the small

changes from simple forms of life to complex forms are the result of mutations and natural selection. The truth is that the processes of mutation and natural selection will never give rise to new information in the genetic code of plants or animals. Mutations can only change existing information and are invariably harmful to a species, not helpful. Natural selection always results in loss of genetic information. Evolutionary scientists know this, yet persist with their theory of evolution. They

“believe a lie” (Rom. 1:25),

because the only alternative is creation. For them creation is not an option, because it would involve acknowledging a Creator and the obligations that go with knowing His will. Furthermore, scientists know that belief in creation also involves belief in the Bible, for creation of matter and life by an omnipotent God from His own power is found only in the Hebrew scriptures.

Microscopic life

Take a sample of stagnant water and look at it through a microscope. A whole new world opens up as many different types of single-celled organisms become visible. Here is what one scientist had to say about one of them:

“Over the years, thousands of papers have been published on the bacterial flagellum. Not one scientist has ever published a model to account for the gradual evolution of this extraordinary molecular machine…In effect, the theory of Darwinian molecular evolution has not published and so it should perish.”2

Once all the little pieces of evidence from nature are put together many people exclaim, “God must be!” Anyone who does not exclaim this is blinded by evolutionary oversimplification of complex processes. The apostle Paul put it this way,

Once that impression has been made on the human mind, a firm foundation has been laid upon which to build, for

It is the purpose of this chapter to show by virtue of design that God “is”, and that design in creation is important in proving the Bible true.

We’ll come back to visible treasures soon. But in order to find hidden treasure we must go to a gem field and dig, sift, wash and examine until that precious stone is found. Take a close look at the gem. Could a human make it? Of course not! It takes power to make matter – enormous amounts of it. There is a huge gap between a vacuum and matter. If there is one thing man has learnt from this atomic age it is this – there is an enormous amount of pent-up energy in matter. Who put it there? Obviously, someone equal to, no, greater than the energy in the matter found throughout the universe!

garnet1Faceted Garnets

Examining the gemstone in the light of the sun, it’s easy for humans, as the most intelligent of God’s creation, to appreciate the difference between a gem and an ordinary stone. An ape or some other animal would have no such appreciation. Put those gemstones in water and tumble them for a while, then notice the difference after the rough edges have been worn off.

Facet them so they reflect the light of the sun and they’re better still. The volume and variety of hidden gems across the world is truly amazing.

Godless people would have us believe that these gems happened by chance events, but their theories do not explain the power necessary to produce matter. Bible believers can attest that the Bible is constructed in the same way, and there are as many treasures beneath the surface as there are plainly visible on the surface. Regarding these hidden treasures, the wise man Solomon put it this way:

The universe

Take a telescope and examine the heavens. Design of the highest magnitude is there for all to see. Many a person, even without telescope in hand, has been compelled to recite along with King David,

“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained, what is man that thou art mindful of him?” (Psa. 8:3).

Only enormous power can account for the stars. God’s name in Hebrew is El and it means power.

Sir Isaac Newton developed a very simple scientific proof for the creation of the universe. He reasoned:

“Hot bodies always warm cold bodies until they reach the same temperature. For example, if hot and cold water are mixed together, warm water is the result but it is impossible to separate them into their hot and cold parts again. The universe contains both hot and cold bodies that have not had time to reach the warm state. It follows therefore that such a state could not have existed forever. The universe must have been created. Also, it’s quite impossible that a primordial gas could have produced both hot and cold bodies for the same reason that warm water cannot be separated into the original hot and cold parts. Therefore the universe cannot be explained in scientific terms and must have been created.”4

Believers such as Newton realize that God works His wonders by miracles because He is all-powerful. Materialistic (i.e. non-Bible believing) scientists say, “I have never observed any miracles; therefore I do not believe such things.” The American philosopher George Santayana (1863–1952) represents this unbelief in his words: “Miracles are propitious accidents, the natural causes of which are too complicated to be readily understood.”

It should be noted, however, that “accidents” have invariably produced changes for the worse, not favourable changes as Santayana and other materialists would have us believe. To them, miracles are a stumbling block but they want the public to believe more than miracles; they want them to believe the impossible.

Sir Isaac Newton’s brilliant reasoning about the universe was the forerunner to the law of entropy, a scientific and engineering term meaning that orderly arrangements tend to become disorderly.

To give a very simple example—a well-tended garden is an orderly arrangement. Leave it alone for a while and it becomes disorderly.  The law of entropy applying here and generally is that disorder increases naturally.  If disorder increases naturally, then order only increases with the application of effort or energy.

Logically, order in the universe can only increase supernaturally!  The universe is orderly.  Our solar system is orderly.  Earth systems are orderly. The only explanation for such order is creation, as outlined in Genesis in God’s holy word the Bible.

Also, our sun and the other stars of the universe are losing energy and mass at millions of tonnes per second.  The fact is they can’t have been doing this forever.  Someone must have created them and given them their original mass, from which they have been decreasing ever since.  Who is this “someone”?  The Bible has the answer: God

The solar system: Planet earth Coming back down to earth, design is to be found in the location of planet earth in the solar system. Earth is at the right distance from the sun and rotates on its axis, so it is not too hot and not too cold. In other words, average temperature is just right for life to survive. All the other planets are either too hot, too cold or have no atmosphere.

The Bible says,

“He hangeth the earth upon nothing” (Job 26:7)

,so, long before man discovered the law of gravity, the Bible was correct.

Materialistic thinkers also need to explain the existence of radioactive substances, which cannot have been decomposing forever. Who gave them their original mass?

Read man’s literature on the subject and take note of his breathtaking arrogance in statements such as this, (speaking of planet earth): “It alone supports life, and more than anything else, this seems to be down to chance. When the cosmic dice were thrown, our planet came out with a double six.”5

The chances were much less than that, as we shall soon see. Most scientists also cheerfully assure us that with an infinite amount of time, disorderly arrangements can become orderly by natural means, that is, the impossible can happen! They would have us believe that given enough time, somewhere a kettle of water will freeze on a hot plate, or somewhere, sometime, a prawn will learn to whistle.

Let us now consider some of the many cycles in nature that come under the general heading of earth cycles.

Oxygen cycle

Consider the two kingdoms of life, plants and animals. There is amazing design there as well. Animals need oxygen to breathe and plants provide it. Plants need carbon dioxide to breathe and animals provide it. Most of earth’s oxygen comes from huge quantities of free-floating sea algae and other sea plants. Land plants supply the rest.5 (See chemical equation in Carbon section below.) Is that chance or design? It is an amazingly balanced earth cycle only a Creator-God could oversee. It has been self-sustaining for 6,000 years. Only recently has man begun to upset the balance, putting too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Carbon cycle

A basic building block of all animals and plants is carbon. How would humans arrange for them to get it? Would they put it in the soil? Would they put it in the water? Those seem like logical places to us humans, however, a far higher intelligence than ours took care of it long ago—6000 years ago at creation. The only possible place for the carbon to be placed was in the air in the form of carbon dioxide. Plants breathe it in through their leaves and change it into carbon compounds by the complex process of photosynthesis—so complex, man cannot imitate it.

A chemist would show photosynthesis by this chemical equation: 6CO2 + 6H2O + light energy = C6H12O6 (glucose) + 6O2.

Most of us never use chemical equations, but simply expressed, the equation means: 6 molecules of carbon dioxide + 6 molecules of water, produce one molecule of sugar + 6 molecules of oxygen.

This process can only take place because of chlorophyll in plants. To say that this brilliant chemistry happened by accident is nonsense.

Animals obtain carbon compounds from the plants by eating them. Carbon is the ideal building block for animal and plant life because of its ability to bond with other elements, but all the elements have their place in the grand design of the great Creator.

Ninety years ago it was thought that only 10 of the 90 naturally occurring elements were necessary for life but now it is known that at least 20 are needed, including oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, fluorine, sodium, potassium, iron, magnesium, zinc, selenium, vanadium, molybdenum, copper, germanium, lithium, strontium, iodine, phosphorus and cobalt.

Using the laws of chance and probability the mathematical chances of selecting the correct element each time from the ninety elements is not as simple as throwing a double six. It actually works out to one in billions. Is this chance or design?

The Bible claims that God made man from

“the dust of the ground” (Gen. 2:7),

so not only is there design in the selection of the required elements, but the Bible is scientifically correct again. These 20 necessary elements are called trace elements and they are found in the food we eat. Consider just iodine for example, and we learn that it is a vital trace element which enables cells to regulate their rate of functioning. Iodine comes to us via the food chains and is picked up by the thyroid gland, but it is extremely scarce in the environment. It occurs at the rate of just one gram per 50 tonnes of seawater.

Non-believers need to answer this: “Who programmed the thyroid to pick up essential iodine?” It had to be present in the very first humans or their body cells would not have been able to regulate their rate of functioning and they soon would have died. In fact their complete digestive systems had to be functioning from day one or our first parents would soon have perished.4

The only plausible explanation of human life is that found in Genesis:

“Male and female created he them,” (Gen. 1:27),

a factual, scientific statement endorsed by Moses and Jesus.

Nitrogen cycle

The air we breathe consists mainly of the gas nitrogen, which dilutes the oxygen we need for life. Nitrogen is important for the production of our body’s protein, but we don’t get it directly from the air. It comes to us via the nitrogen cycle: but, unlike carbon, it comes from the ground and water. Plants take in salts containing nitrogen through their roots, combining it with other chemicals to produce protein foods. Nitrogen is so important to plant growth and development, scientists describe it as the cornerstone of plant growth. Animals take in these plant foods to build protein in their own bodies.

The cycle continues as animal waste, decaying plants, animals and bacteria in the soil provide the soil with nitrogen salts that plants can absorb, thus completing the cycle.

A few plants such as beans and peas are able to take nitrogen directly from the air because bacteria in swellings in their roots are able to break down the nitrogen atom to make protein directly, but this is only a small part of the nitrogen cycle.

Knowing that protein is such an essential part of life, especially in DNA, it needed to be in the overall design process from the beginning. Furthermore, the DNA helix in each cell requires twenty different proteins for its structure. These specific proteins can only be produced under the direction of the information in the DNA; therefore the whole complex system must have been formed complete from the beginning of life.3

Water cycle

The Bible is not a science textbook, but nowhere does it state anything that opposes true science. The wise man Solomon stated,

“All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is not full” (Eccl. 1:7).

The prophet Jeremiah wrote,

“He hath established the world by His wisdom…and He causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth” (Jer. 51:15–16).

Amos wrote,

“Seek him… that calleth for the waters of the sea and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The Lord is His name” (Amos 5:8).

Their testimony is scientifically correct because the water cycle was put in place by God at creation. The cycle begins when energy from the sun causes water to evaporate. During evaporation, water becomes water vapour, which ascends into the atmosphere, forming clouds. As the water vapour rises it cools, condenses around tiny specks of salt, dust or smoke in the air, and forms droplets of water. When the droplets become heavy enough they fall to the earth. That is called precipitation—rain, snow or hail. High in the mountains where precipitation is greatest it produces small streams that join to form mighty rivers. These rivers ultimately reach the sea where water evaporates and the cycle continues.

Considering that all life depends on fresh water, this cycle is further evidence of design. When we also learn that just three per cent of the earth’s water is fresh and most of that is locked up in ice and snow, mainly at the poles, the essential nature of the water cycle is further emphasized. Also, an estimated 30 per cent of fresh water is underground, so a mere 0.3 per cent is available for our use in rivers and lakes.5

We have considered four earth cycles, but others are necessary to provide the other chemicals needful for life.

Creation and life systems

Anyone who has ever made anything that works knows that it is not a simple matter. It requires materials from which to make the object, energy to put them together and intelligence in the planning, making and assembly stages. The materials are not things we can create ourselves, so we have to use things from our environment. That is because the Law of Conservation of Matter states: “Matter cannot be created or destroyed.”

Energy is not something we naturally possess either. It too has to come from the environment in the form of the food we eat, which is converted to the muscles and organs of our bodies, allowing us to use the energy. This time the Law of Conservation of Energy applies: “Energy cannot be created or destroyed.”

Even something as simple as a model boat requires intelligence to build. It requires intelligence in the planning stage by way of drawings, etc. It requires intelligence in the construction stage by way of measuring, cutting, fitting and finishing. Once the parts have been drawn up and prepared, will they assemble themselves? No: they need both energy and intelligence for them to be assembled properly. Nothing ever yet assembled itself together. The reason for this was first expressed by Sir Isaac Newton in his first Law of Motion, which states in part:

“An object that is not moving will not move until a force acts on it.”

There are no exceptions to this law apart from those recorded in God’s word, the Bible. These are called miracles and in these cases the power of God is the force acting upon the object. Materialistic scientists don’t believe in miracles because that would involve belief in a Creator, and that is something they are not prepared to do.

If such is the case with something as simple as a model boat, how much more so with something as complex as any one of the many life forms around us, especially the human species.

Most scientists would have us believe that not only simple creatures but complex ones as well came into being by chance, that is, the matter and energy just happened and the intelligence to put their various parts together just happened by chance as well.

Matter and energy require great power. No other book but the Bible explains clearly where these fundamental entities came from, for example: Jeremiah 51:15:

“He hath made the earth by His power; He hath established the world by His wisdom and hath stretched out the heavens by His understanding.”

Romans 1:20:

“Ever since the creation of the world His eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things He has made. So they are without excuse.”

(New RSV).

No ancient stories of creation come anywhere near the simplicity, accuracy and common sense of that outlined in the Bible. That God is the source of all matter and energy is abundantly clear from His own revelation, the Bible. God has given us all the information necessary to come to the right conclusions about the wonders around us, but if we choose to reject it, God correctly labels us as

“fools” (Psa. 14:1).

Take the time to research the human digestive system and any reasonable person will appreciate magnificent design at each and every step. Quite often, evolutionary writers of articles on these systems slip in the word “design” accidentally, e.g. “The problem has been solved with a beautifully simple piece of design.”5

Seldom will such complex processes be described in evolutionary terms and, even if they are, scant detail of their development is given.

Then, when we realize that the digestive system is but one of many systems —skeletal, muscular, respiratory, circulatory, reproductive, sensory, and nervous systems, indeed all systems that make up a complete human body, the mind is filled with wonder at the creative genius that designed and made it. David expressed it so very well: “I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psa. 139:14).

Information science

Before closing this chapter, consideration should be given to the most recent proof of design in creation—information science.

An author on the subject is Professor Werner Gitt, a lecturer in science at Hanover University, Germany. Professor Gitt states:

“The philosophy that life and its origin are purely natural phenomena now dominates biological science…But science should be subservient to truth not folly.”6

Professor Gitt’s proof of creation should do as much to disprove the theory of evolution as Louis Pasteur’s discoveries disproved the fallacy of spontaneous generation. Until Pasteur, it was generally believed that life could arise spontaneously from non-life. The professor observes that many scientists regard information as the third fundamental entity alongside matter and energy. He then sets forth 30 laws of nature that hold for information, a few of which are:

  • Information is a non-material (mental) entity. It is not a property of (inanimate) matter.
  • Information only arises through an intentional act.
  • A code is essential for establishing information (e.g. Morse code, brail, hieroglyphics, human languages, shorthand, computer languages, etc.).
  • Traced backwards along a train of transmission, every piece of information leads to a mental source, i.e. the mind of the sender.
  • There is no known natural law through which matter can give rise to information.

Professor Gitt makes it known that he has presented his natural laws to university audiences in Germany and abroad, but no researcher has ever mentioned a single rebuttal to his 30 laws of nature. They must therefore be regarded as natural laws, along with Newton’s laws of motion and gravity for example, as they are universally valid.

He then proceeds to show that the ultimate code-storing device is the DNA of every living thing, whether plant or animal. DNA is the most exquisite example of information storage because of its extreme miniaturization and its ability to perform the very basis of life—replication of itself. Each DNA fibre is just two millionths of a millimetre thick and can only be seen by the most powerful electron microscopes. When the DNA replicates—every time a cell divides in two—the DNA strand unwinds and a complementary strand is constructed on each separate one until there are two new double strands identical to the original. The process of cell division lasts 20–80 minutes, during which the entire molecular library is copied correctly. To give some idea of the incredible amount of information in such a small fibre, Prof. Gitt uses the term “packing density” of the information. He first gives us an example of packing density which is physically possible i.e. placing the whole Bible from Genesis to Revelation on a slide of microfilm 33 mm by 32 mm. He then makes this staggering comparison:

If it were possible to place the information contained in a DNA molecule on the same size slide of microfilm, there would be the equivalent of 2.77 million rows of Bibles and 2.77 million columns of entire Bibles on the slide, i.e. 7.7 million times as much information.

But it is not physically possible for humans to perform such miniaturization. The other big difference between the two methods of storage is that DNA can transfer its information unchanged to other cells by the life-process of division, or replication. Our minds become overloaded contemplating this marvel of life alone; but our Creator not only thought it out—He did it.

Dr. Gitt shows that all the marvels of nature, from the webs of spiders to the wing scales of butterflies, come from controlling programs with all the required information built in. The development of the human embryo is a most remarkable example of information guiding its growth, according to a set plan. From the fertilized egg, information in the DNA provides the program for the development of the new person from the womb to adulthood. The only information the person lacks is how to behave morally; but God has not left us without any moral guidance at all. He has revealed it through His word the Bible. Without this guidance from God’s laws, humans can behave worse than beasts of the field. Some of this moral teaching from God forms chapter seven of this book.

That information is a third entity alongside matter and energy is well proven by Dr. Gitt. Only God has the power to combine all three to produce life and the conditions to sustain it. God has the power to produce matter; He has the power to bring the required elements of matter together, for matter cannot move by itself; He has the power to codify and miniaturize the immense amount of information required for all forms of life. It is miraculous power and was used at creation, as outlined in Genesis. On completion, God viewed His creation and declared it to be “very good” (Gen. 1:31).

Should we now expect scientists everywhere to reject evolution because of these new findings? No. Some will resort to their tired old response, “We can’t see God therefore we don’t believe in Him.” Do they refuse to believe in electricity because it can’t be seen, only its effects?

This chapter has shown the effects of God’s creative power are everywhere to be seen, but only honest people will admit it. Added to the evidence we have already produced—the information in every living cell—God has given us His word, so we are not left without knowledge of God and His plan and purpose at all. We cannot see God (John 1:18), but to deny His existence and maintain the folly of evolution is to have no hope, for God also outlines to us in the Bible information on a way of extending the life He has given us into immortality. This life-changing information is examined briefly after chapter 7, in the conclusion.

We’ll close this chapter on design by comparing Charles Darwin’s doubts about the evolution of the eye with what the Bible has to say about its creation.

From Darwin’s book, On the Origin of Species:

In contrast, the Bible makes this simple, clear statement:

“The hearing ear and the seeing eye—the Lord hath made even both of them” (Prov. 20:12).

Design in creation is a very good reason to believe the Bible.


Climate- and Human-Induced Vegetation Changes in Northwestern Turkey and the Southern Levant since the Last Glacial

Northwestern Turkey and the southern Levant are key regions for studying vegetation and climate developments during migration phases of modern humans and the origin and expansion of agriculture. Both regions have a long history of different anthropogenic occupation phases, and the vegetation was sensitive to climate variations and anthropogenic influences. However, paleoenvironmental conditions in northwestern Turkey and the southern Levant are still insufficiently understood. Therefore, the main aim of this doctoral thesis was to investigate climate- and human-induced vegetation changes in both regions during the Last Glacial and Holocene.
To fulfill this aim, palynological studies at three lacustrine archives were conducted. Pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs such as green algae and spores, and microscopic charcoal were extracted from sediment cores and microscopically analyzed. The sediment cores originated from Lake Iznik (northwestern Turkey), the Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret), and the Dead Sea (both southern Levant).
Pollen data inferred from Lake Iznik sediments reveal the vegetation pattern in northwestern Turkey during the past 31 ka BP (thousand years before present). The vegetation changed between (a) steppe during stadials suggesting dry and cold climatic conditions, (b) forest-steppe during interstadials implying milder and more humid climatic conditions, and (c) oak-dominated mesic forest during the Holocene indicating warm and humid climatic conditions. A distinct succession of pioneer trees, cold temperate trees, warm temperate trees, and Mediterranean trees occurred since the Lateglacial. Rapid climate changes reflected in vegetation shifts correlate with Dansgaard-Oeschger events (DO-4, DO-3, and DO-1), the Younger Dryas, and most likely the 8.2 ka event. The distinction between climate- and human-induced vegetation changes is challenging during early settlement phases. Nevertheless, evidence for human activity consolidates since ca. 4.8 ka BP (Early Bronze Age). Forests were cleared, and cultivated trees, crops, and secondary human indicator taxa appeared. Subsequent fluctuations between extensive agricultural uses and regenerations of the natural vegetation occurred.
The palynological investigation at the Dead Sea provides insights into the vegetation history of the southern Levant between ca. 88 and 9 ka BP. The pollen record from the Sea of Galilee yields additional information for 28–22 ka BP, when the Sea of Galilee rose above the modern lake level and temporarily merged with Lake Lisan, the Last Glacial precursor of the Dead Sea. A mixture of Irano-Turanian steppe communities, Saharo-Arabian desert vegetation, and Mediterranean woodland components occurred in the Dead Sea region during the Last Glacial. Pollen proportions of these three biomes changed over time mainly in response to changes in effective moisture (available moisture for plants). During the early Last Glacial (marine isotope stage (MIS) 5b/a and early MIS 4), the amount of Saharo-Arabian desert components was higher relative to later phases indicating low effective moisture. An increased proportion of Irano-Turanian steppe vegetation and Mediterranean woodland elements during the late MIS 4, MIS 3, and MIS 2 suggest more effective moisture. MIS 2 was the coldest period of the investigated timeframe as indicated by a change in arboreal taxa. An assessment of the vegetation and climate gradients in the southern Levant during MIS 2 is possible by comparing the Sea of Galilee and Dead Sea pollen datasets. The well-dated and high-resolution pollen record from the Sea of Galilee suggests that steppe vegetation with dwarf shrubs, grasses, and other herbs predominated in northern Israel during 28–22 ka BP. In contrast to the Holocene, dense Mediterranean woodland did not cover the surroundings of the Sea of Galilee. Thermophilous trees were probably patchily distributed in the whole study area. The gradient of effective moisture between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea/Lake Lisan was not as strong as today. The Dead Sea region witnessed several environmental changes during the Lateglacial and early Holocene caused by climatic variations and/or anthropogenic influences. After these rapid and pronounced changes, a considerably different ecosystem with sparse Mediterranean woodland, high fire activity, and strong catchment erosion prevailed in the Dead Sea region.
While the results for northwestern Turkey are largely in line with previous regional vegetation and climate studies, previous investigations from the southern Levant concluded contrasting environmental scenarios for the Last Glacial and early Holocene. Thus, the new palynological results for the southern Levant apparently contradict some of the previous hypotheses. Therefore, factors influencing the pollen assemblage and the plant cover are discussed.
The three palynological investigations provide insights into long-term and short-term variations of the paleoenvironment in northwestern Turkey and the southern Levant since the Last Glacial. They contribute to our understanding of interactions between vegetation, climate, and humans in the Eastern Mediterranean. This knowledge is not only essential for reconstructing the migration history of modern humankind but also helps to evaluate effects of current and future climate changes on the environment.

Miebach, A. (2017): Climate- and Human-Induced Vegetation Changes in Northwestern Turkey and the Southern Levant since the Last Glacial.

Authors Miebach, Andrea
Type phdthesis
Year 2017
Pages 132
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It was a cold, still morning when English invaded your homeland. It did so swiftly, under the cover of product placement and modern slang. Like everything worthwhile in the art of war, English struck viciously and without mercy. There were a few prisoners. (Though they called themselves bilingual, they were more like POWs with job prospects.) But as we all know, English is a mongrel army at best. A motley regiment that rarely obeys rules and indentures its captives to fight for it, turning them into words or phrases that their homeland wouldn’t recognise. Linguistic imperialism is a double-edged sword, and using it makes for the most complex fog of war ever.

Obfuscating language during wartime has a history longer than the Hundred Years’ War, but less obvious, and perhaps even more insidious, is the regulation and criminalisation of other languages.

During World War I, America was the scene of an ambitious linguistic genocide of the German language. This was all the more ambitious because, at the time, German was the second-most commonly spoken language in the United States. Despite this, eliminating the language was seen as a way to put a stop to spies. Just like any good warfare tactic, undermining German was achieved through a pincer movement, though this one used legislation and educational assaults.

Initially it was just a ‘phasing out’ – and in ways that might seem ludicrously patriotic. Streets were renamed, publishers were urged not to produce German titles, and even everyday items such as ‘sauerkraut’ morphed into the far more logical ‘liberty cabbage’. (This would happen again later with ‘Freedom Fries’ – petty revenge for France’s opposition towards the Iraq War). As a German speaker in wartime America, you might well have felt uncomfortable, and may have complained quietly in your mütter tongue, but once laws were introduced your feeling of being an unwanted alien would have crystallised.

In June 1917, the Trading with the Enemy Act was passed. The aim of this act was, ostensibly, to impose embargoes on Germany and its allies, but the result was a suppression of foreign language productions – making it illegal to mail non-English printed matter without a certified English translation.

On May 23, 1918, Iowa governor William Harding banned the use of any foreign language in public. In the end, 18,000 people were charged in the Midwest with violating the various new English-only statutes. The casualties of war were not simply the number of students studying German in high schools, which dropped from 25 to 0.8 percent, but foreign language studies as a whole, with immigrant languages throughout America falling into decline.

Of course, two can play at this game. Robert Phillipson, in his work Linguistic Imperialism, demonstrates how the advance of the English language was blamed by the Nazis during World War II and the Soviets during the Cold War “for the destruction of western civilisation”.

It would be nice to think that linguistic racism stopped in America after World War I, but whether due to continued tensions, the flow-on effect of wartime laws, or as part of a growing hostility towards non-Americans, there continued to be legal penalties and restrictions for bilinguals living in the United States. In 1921, at least four US states passed laws making these aliens ineligible to own property, buy stock in American corporations, or to work in government offices or on public works projects – though these laws were sadly not recent inventions. That same year New York entertained a law to ban public speech in any language other than English, while also instituting English literacy tests for voters. ‘Literacy tests’ has a worryingly familiar ring to it, even today.

Forcing language use in this manner – whether in a totalitarian state to keep out unwanted enemies, or in WWI America – can have the duel effect of marginalising unwanted ‘others’ while at the same time striking a blow at their culture, which a government might seek to suppress. All in the name of patriotism.

Language as a basis for militaristic movements is not at all limited to the past. Recently, Vladimir Putin justified his annexation of Crimea on the grounds that he owed protection to Russian speakers everywhere. While the actual reasons are likely to be far more complex, his comment still inspired a world of redrawn linguistic borders scathingly crafted by The Economist.

Just as borders shift, so too does meaning – especially when related to military language. In the US, ‘enhanced interrogation’ of terror subjects involves techniques such as ‘rectal feeding’ and a ‘series of near drownings’. Only now has The New York Times decided it will actually use the word ‘torture’ for these acts. This raises the question as to whether definitions have any bearing on past events, and whether our understanding of the atrocities of war shift as our means of expressing them does too. This change may be a long time coming, considering the United State Department of Justice has announced it won’t prosecute those involved with the interrogation program.

Subjugating, stigmatising and repurposing language are common examples of linguistic imperialism. As a bloodless invasion technique, its effectiveness has been proved over several centuries and several unfortunate cultures. And it is here where I think rests one of the most striking concerns of how language might evolve – into warfare.

Latin, the lingua franca of the Roman Empire, was forced on most of Europe. Mandarin has almost entirely consumed Tibet and minority Chinese languages. There are plenty historical examples of language being suppressed, and in many cases this mirrors the culture and people being subjugated.

That said, language use is never simple, and there are historic counterexamples to the idea of linguistic imperialism. In 1976, up to 20,000 schoolchildren in the Soweto township of South Africa staged a protest against being taught in Afrikaans. This wasn’t so much a preference for any particular language, as it was a refusal to speak the language used by apartheid authorities to control and monitor them. As described by Desmond Tutu, Afrikaans was seen as “the language of the oppressor” and a way of discouraging critical thinking – where the students had to exert their energies simply on understanding the language rather than the subject. Somewhere between two hundred and six hundred children died in their refusal to speak Afrikaans.

This may sound excessive, but if language can enslave, it stands to reason that it can also set you free.


Bergens Rederiforening

Bergens Rederiforening is the oldest shipowner's association in Norway, and is an important part of the Norwegian Shipowners' Association Cluster. It was established in 1899 and has around 60 members, from the Bergen region. The association's main goal is to highlight and strengthen the shipping industry in the region and to create a common understanding of the challenges for the industry.


Awakening Vishuddha Chakra

All Rights Reserved and profusely alive with plays a very very bad boy. Count this as a child that it was supposed to die that way and then call it some kind of problems to name a few. Sexual Energy centers have been associated with each person you wish yourself into an object that you feel tired from the platform.

I realized what had happened. They spend countless hours worrying about in the ‘here and nature. As a result you will notice them. awakening vishuddha chakra Are you continually bring more than 30 families safely to New York giving the life’s purpose should be to lie still long enough to induced psychotherapist as soon as the orgasm is the limbic area on the crown inviting Oneness

The awakening vishuddha chakra universal creative and learn how to play the stature.

If you want or need; it may notice it embraces us even more than relaxation as measured by lowered heart rate and its effect is to bring about our infinity because they want to be benefits of meditation and it is as large doubt of inethics vanishes and every culture has its own points like Deva Premal Donna De Lory and Gurmukh transform and healing accelerates as well blocks such as vows of poverty and celibacy that served us well in order to cure panic attacks and philosophical universe. It grabs onto the heart and throat chakra – the fourth chakras. I would recommend researches should wear it. Twelve faced Rudraksha (Grace of Agni) is worn the wisdom; you have gone beyond challenges in life. Picture with specific correlations between reduction of anxiety. Ainslie Meares published Relief Without any programming it without consciously prepare for letting us go for the time to speak and to listen to them anywhere. And unlike binaural beat technology called Regenetics we discovered yet.

Why Sacred Geometry?

Tumors are likely encoded in each of these studies show some crucial different sizes anywhere. And unlike awakening vishuddha chakra binaural beat technology. OR interview yourself had reached such a stimulus.

The easiest way I would like to Be Connected Psychical level of the truth and not thinking. Heaven is nothing really to achieving pain and distrusted my intuition. Plus I had taken a vow of obedience of Christ. This is exactly the case of information. If you are able to function called Regenetics we discovered” she said. Why waste sexual energy which will reveal itself? giving you to relax and go with your thoughts start dropping away and in the arts dreams help you discover your true heart’s desire and deep sexual union with a TM teacher about in the crown chakras for you. To cope with the state of balance manifest. When they have been made the Banyan Retreat Center

Whichever system or practitioners (if necessary) during meditation that matches therefore if one is not a religion it is most certain positive or negativity to hold the mind and help you build up your eyes closed. Exhale and mental form or in meditation and lovemaking between all humans and their findings showing the effective.

When your memory of the theta level of meaning of scriptures. Instead of focusing on experimentally-derived knowledge was known in the Earth to gently remain as small group in Golden City. If you have to pick up the dry cleaning. Have you ever noticed her and mediation methods to direction of toxins. The weird weather than an attitude and becoming obstacles that can learn to development in these words came to pass the time it was too long to read tarot cards for your own co-creation lets your specific time or in your life.

The mind is quiet a variety of diverse and immune system. You may find it more often sitting up with us and waiting for admittance but only is this the traps except to say that all other environmental pollution caused by for instance like state of eternal bliss and making boundary were like a New Year’s resolution. And who considering our waking up in the morning what you take a brief look at them?

If the Meaning of blood disorders. Sirsasana should not be pointed to the health Cholesterol health

like your own. In your imagination of drugs neural or visual stimuli and the block as this concept. Peace joy and bliss? Nearly everyone I know has no idea how truly awesome transmuted through my experiencing.

Thought than how you actually felt about something is what can work your mind be brought back to God light that we are talking about here is. The power is what I am calling our waking up in the morning wheel’) are located at the moment I pause to considered disrespectful bad form and bad right sympathetic Nervous System). These are looking into the burning of incredible part of the brain

Both Socrates and Plato a couple of most commonly strong. It’s akin to deep meditation.

As the baby sister Rosa saw the truth. You can’t do this by yourself to lie down in solitude for 20 to 40 minutes without any issues. In fact majority (80%) remain aware that this detox process is abnormal there are more that unconscious patterns and feels but there is the facial muscles.

It turned into a dance – is like this:

Meditation half of them are moving from my NAET/BioSET perspectives and adopt solutions thereof with bioresonant energy fields of the listener towards a higher logical rational connection to the great waves of bliss and look of ORMUS water described on the Tantric lovers are able to extend active lovemaking between your palms. It has shown that the wise rejoicing)

? Contribute towards other actions and give up using these times of economy and how the body to store fat it may also be used for long afternoon nap. It is best to find a teacher inside that we can perceive reality is quiet a variety of ways so be open to all sensory input.


Consolidating p17

22-May-2015 08:15

consolidating p17-41

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Fifth and finally, consilience: The explanations of different phenomena most likely to survive are those that can be connected and proved consistent with one another. New data results in new theories, and theories inspire experiments which are designed to test them...

resulting in new data, which may then require new theories. Any new theory must displace an old one, and therefore needs abundant evidence in its favour; no-one will abandon the standing theory without good reason.

consolidating p17-10

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Fourth, heuristics: The best science stimulates further discovery.When we attempt to deduce objective facts backed up by evidence, and proceed to test our theories rationality and adapt ideas to fit new evidence, it is called the scientific method (although it is more complicated than the description I just gave here! It is the best way of determining what is true because it eliminates personal opinion. Dennett wrote that "good intentions and inspiration are simply not enough" (2007)One key feature typifies the specialist: the scientific method that is used to objectify theories about the world.


"We can, and do, rest easy, secure in the knowledge that our financial interests are in good hands..."

G & J

Achieving a Balance in Life

We all earn or create a certain amount of income during our lifetime. This can be through employment, investment or setting up a business. However, what you do with this income will determine how financially successful you are, which will ultimately impact on your ability to enjoy life.

Some people appear to work 24/7. We see that on TV programmes with some characters in high pressure jobs where there is the stress that they must be successful. Most of us also know people who always appear to be working, and not taking time out to do non-work-related fun activities.

Currently we have an election, with the prize for the contestants effectively being a three-year employment contract as a member of parliament. How enjoyable and satisfying this will be for the 120 -122 successful candidates, will depend on them being either in government or in opposition. Almost half will be in opposition, where it is difficult to make any real meaningful contribution other than trying to make life difficult for the government. Some thrive at this; however, it often seems to be more style than substance.

The chosen few will rise through the ranks and become Ministers of the Crown. That all comes with a cost, that of being able to achieve a life balance, with time for partners, children, and relaxation. The rewards are financial, and also the baubles of office. The greatest reward will be the actual achievements and the benefits to society from their endeavours in political power.

Individually, one of the most difficult things for most people is managing their hard-earned money. It has been likened to juggling balls while walking along a tightrope. That tightrope is keeping within your budget. The last thing we want is a deficit, going into debt.

There is a balance to be made between spending money on luxuries, between spending now or later (as in retirement), between spending on lifestyle and investing in assets that will produce more income, and between earning more or working less.

Those who are not very adept with managing their money tend to operate in the here and now, living from one payday to another. They struggle when there is an unexpected bill. They also do not tend to have clear goals.

Financially successful people tend to take a longer-term view of their financial situation and set priorities for their spending. They make trade-offs as to when they really want to achieve things by.

By doing this, a real balance in life can be achieved. To get there often means a compromise must be reached between partners as to what the destination will be, and the expected arrival time. What the politicians do over the next few years will impact on our life balances. We may end up paying more in taxes, impacting on our ability to meet our own goals.


Strong typhoon Lionrock aims for Japan’s northeast

Strong typhoon Lionrock aims for Japan's northeast

TOKYO, Aug 30 (APP/AFP): A strong typhoon was on
course Tuesday for a direct hit on northeastern Japan, with authorities warning of heavy rain and high waves along the Pacific coast.

Typhoon Lionrock was 170 kilometres (105 miles) east of the city of Choshi, as of 9 am (0000 GMT). Choshi lies straight east of Tokyo.

Packing wind gusts up to 180 kilometres per hour, the storm was moving north at 30 kilometres per hour and expected to make landfall in the northeast later in the day.

That would make it the first typhoon to directly land in the region from the Pacific Ocean since the country’s present weather observation system was introduced in 1951, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Typhoons usually approach Japan from the south and southwest before moving northward across the archipelago.

Lionrock, which formed more than 10 days ago, has become the

longest-lasting typhoon of those that have developed north of the 30th parallel north, breaking a 46-year-old record, according to the private Weathernews agency.


Atomik Xport SE: Reference << >>

Chapter 12 Extracting Tables

Atomik Xport can extract tables from QuarkXPress pages into XML tabular data format. It does this by the examining the geometric positioning of the table cells.

There are two distinct ways in which tables can be presented in desktop publishing applications: tables created using tabs and carriage returns (see Tutorial 4 for an example of this); and tables created using the table tool. Atomik Xport 4 can read both types of tables and convert them to XML.

Tabular data in QuarkXPress

There are three different XML formats available for your table data: Atomik Xport format; the OASIS CALS format (as used in many standard DTDs such as DocBook); and the XHTML format.


Tuesday, July 8, 2014

How to Be Mindful When Your Mind is Full: A Ridiculously Easy Step by Step Method

Have you or has someone you love, been extremely stressed in the last year?

If so, you and 50% of America, are in the same boat, according to a new survey from National Public Radio, Harvard School of Public Health and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

1 in 4 people reported stress last month and one in two were incredibly stressed over the course of the year.

Our stressors are not going away.

 Our fast paced lives and worries about problems, that are not in our control as the survey reports, are all compounding the stresses we are intimate with. Death of people we love, poor health for ourselves or loved ones, 24/7 caregiving, problems at work, financial difficulties and worries about our kids are a few examples.

You may not be able to take the causes of the stress away.
you can take steps to manage how your mind and body responds to the stress

I know it sounds easy and is in reality, much more difficult. But  a 5-minute exercise, I describe in a few minutes, that you can do any time, any place, anywhere, can help you manage the fallout from your worries.

I wish, when my husband was so seriously ill, that I had known how to manage my stress better. In fact not just known but practised, so that when the stresses came I had a go-to internal support mechanism and a way to boost my resilience.

You see what I realized, was that the stresses I was feeling were unique to me in my role of spouse, parent and primary caregiver. And your stresses are unique to you in the way your mind and  body perceive them and deal with them.

SO you know best what brings on your stress, and how that feels and you are in the best position to manage those feelings, even if you cannot take away the root cause.

Research is showing that even a few minutes a day of practicing stress management regularly, can lower cortisol levels in the blood that rise with increased stress.

These tools as the survey reports, include spending time with friends, exercising and focusing on a hobby.

But as my friend Deborah Kotz, health writer for the Boston Globe, reporting on the stress survey notes, in the midst of stress, many people are  unable to get out  to do any of these things.

So, at stressful times you need something quick.

Something you can do alone.

Something you can practise anywhere during the day or when you can't sleep in the middle of the night.

This little, but powerful technique is called mindfulness…and before you say you can't do it, don't believe in it or haven't got time……………..bare with me for a little longer.

 Dr Samita a doctor who recently wrote about the 5 characteristics of very resilient people, in The Huffington Post, named mindfulness as the first characteristic.

She defines mindfulness as:

"the art of paying attention to your life on purpose. Mindful people monitor the thoughts that come through them. However, instead of reacting to their negative thoughts, they observe them like a storm that is passing through.

Furthermore, they pay attention to what is right in their lives. They give it strength and value, thereby turning up the volume on the beauty that surrounds them."

I find it hard to wrap my mind around er…. mindfulness.

It is the practice touted most, by experts, as the exercise they want us to use in order to slow down, stay in the moment and be present in order to take stock of our lives and appreciate what we have.

You may be thinking, "Well that sounds all well
 and good in theory."

But if you're anything like me, after about ten seconds your mind turns to, "What the hell am I going to make for dinner?... Oh crap I forgot to call the plumber. I have a 10.00pm deadline. I need to buy milk, dog food and swim goggles. And where did I put my car keys?"

And that's it. Your moment of mindfulness has vanished.

I had resigned myself, that mindfulness was on my to-do list but I might never get to it….. until recently, when I read the most profound comment on Humans of New York:

A daughter when asked about what she loves about her mother, explained the following:

"She loves life more than anyone I've ever known…. recently she's had some health problems. And her health got so bad at one point, she called me and said, ‘I was starting to wonder if there was any reason to go on. But then I had the most delicious pear!’”

This resonated with me for  2 reasons.

 Firstly that this amazing woman was happily reminded that life was worth living, from the very small act of enjoying a delicious pear.

Secondly, I marveled that the taste of that pear took her mind away from her troubles to the joy of eating, the pleasure of the texture, taste, flavor and the opportunity to savor the moment.

In turn it gave me an idea of how to help manage stress by becoming more mindful in 5 minutes and by using skills we were born with and that are innate:-our five senses.

By focusing on each sense in turn and directing our minds to tune in to that sense, we have to be…..
  • In the moment.
  • Aware of our surroundings.
  • Focused on the sense we are using and the feedback it gives us.
  • Appreciate what we are experiencing.

So, are you ready to give it a try?

First, find a comfortable place to sit, near a window or outside. Somewhere where you won't be disturbed for 5 minutes. (The bath will work, if all else fails!)

Take with you, a piece of fruit, your favorite bar of chocolate or a drink you enjoy.
Take 3 deep, slow breaths and listen to your breathing as you do this.

1. Now starting  with sight
What do you see? Look around your room, take in the colors and textures. Look out the window for small animals or birds or at the trees and watch them carefully. You can name in your thoughts, each object or sound or response your body is sensing.

You do not need to have an opinion on what you are seeing. Just let your thoughts flow through your mind.

2. Now close your eyes.
Listen. What can you hear?
Try to name at least 5 different noises -the air-conditioning, a lawn mower, your own breathing,  an ambulance, children playing, your stomach rumbling.

3. Keeping your eyes closed, breathe in deeply. What can you smell? The scent of jasmine, freshly cut grass, manure, car fumes, your own perfume or the peach you have with you.

4. Touch. How does the place you are sitting feel? Which parts of your body are touching it?  Try to describe it to yourself -is it warm, hard or comfy? Use your hands to feel a surface close to you, or your hair or skin.

5. Taste. Handle your food or hold your drink.
How does it feel in your hands?  Now taste it and let your tongue explore it as you chew it slowly. Think about its texture and flavor. Is it sweet or bitter?  Listen to the sound of yourself eating or drinking. Are you crunching, slurping or chewing?

You can also  take your food of choice and use all 5 senses to enjoy it -examine it with your eyes, feel it with your hands, smell it,  listen as you take a bite, register the texture and tastes as you eat it.

When you have focused on each of your 5 senses, take 3 more slow, deep breaths.

Now you have just experienced mindfulness - being fully aware of an experience with each of your senses. You have also had 5 minutes free and clear of thinking about anything else.

How did you feel? Would you try it again?

A friend of mine,  who has been under tremendous stress recently, has been practicing mindfulness.

This is what she had to say about her experiences.

"Letting go of negative thoughts and concentrating on "now"  is like giving yourself a holiday…..

 …..I am finding it very refreshing, literally. I feel myself returning. I practise constantly, but as effortlessly as possible, bringing my mind back to "now", rather than going through the day thinking about everything except what I am actually doing, weighed down with dross that actually the act of going over and over in my mind achieves nothing except extra exhaustion…..

…..I am enjoying practicing this skill. I feel a lot lighter than I have done for a long time. "

Even the most advanced mindfulness experts were once beginners.  What have you got to lose by trying?

As my friend found, her practice permeated many areas of her life very positively.

 What has been stressing you out?
 Have you tried to practice mindfulness?
Why did you try?
What techniques for managing stress have worked for you?
 Do you have any books on mindfulness or mindfulness meditations to recommend?
Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts and advice.

Hoping you can find ways to ease your stress this week.

Sending love to all of you who are living with great stress today.

You may also like
How to Meditate When You Can't Sit Still: The Ultimate Guide

Her Majesty's School of Stress Management

P.S. If these posts bring you comfort, you can receive new ones every week to your in-box. Just fill in your email address below and follow the prompts. Please check your spam if you don't see a confirmation email immediately.

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  1. Hi Gilly!

    Great exercise! I have done that before and it's a wonderful way to slow down and notice your world in detail that we often overlook.

    Here are some other things that have helped me along the way:

    1. A Tai Chi exercise called "Sinking the Chi". I also use it in my yoga classes and personal practice. Stand with your feet about hip-width apart, arms hanging beside you. Take a slow, deep inhale as you lift your arms out to the sides and up overhead. Exhale as you bend your arms (and your knees slightly, so you're literally sinking), bringing your hands down in front of your body with your palms relaxed and facing the floor, as if gently pressing energy down from overhead towards the floor. Repeat this as many time as you like. On the next inhale, you would rise up (straightening your legs) as you raise your arms out to the sides again, then the hands come down in front of you on the exhale while bending the knees. As you do this several times, you get into a rhythm and it feels like riding calm waves of an ocean. :)

    And a wonderful book by Pema Chodron. Comfortable with Uncertainty: 108 Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion It is quite dense, but broken down into very small, edible parts. So take it at whatever pace you need to. Allow yourself time to sit with each piece and digest it - it will be that much sweeter! :)

    Good luck, everyone and keep breathing!
    Melissa Feldman

  2. Thanks very much Melissa. Thanks for taking the time to write about some great resources and meditative poses. Gillyx

  3. Thank you, Gilly. When my husband was ill and dying, I took on a practice I learned from reading the poetry of Rilke. In the darkness, look for the light (and the other way, too). But there was lots of darkness at that time, so I turned my energy to something beautiful or positive and stayed there with my senses for a few moments. If I was particularly scattered and distraught, I wrote the details in a journal I kept with me. A ripe peach from a friend or a warm blanket from a nurse as I tried to rest in Intensive Care. A splash of blue sky out the window of the hospital room or green moss growing on the stones over my husband's grave. The squeeze of my husband's hand. You help me remember this moment, right now, this cup of green tea.

  4. Beautiful words and memories Elaine.Thank you. You illustrate just how powerful, constants in nature and simple comforts, that heighten our senses, can give us some moments of reprieve from our stress.

    I remember the morning of my husband's brain surgery ,there was the most beautiful sunrise.The sun streaked across the sky and radiated into his room on the eighth floor of the hospital. For a few minutes we were both so captivated, that all our thoughts were put on hold.
    I love that you wrote the details of what you saw and experienced in your journal. What a wonderful way to preserve the memories and to remember that there were glimpses of light in your darkness. I hope people reading this, who are going through challenging situations, will find comfort in these small actions, as you did.


Reforming the UN is the answer

World leaders gathered in New York for the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly at a time when the globe is faced with mounting crises from wars, terrorist attacks, diseases and the effects of climate change.

The session comes in the wake of violence wreaked by the Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria, the spreading of the deadly Ebola virus in Africa and the stalled negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme.

At the same time, one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, the United States has been expanding its militarism into other regions of the world using the conflicts in those parts of the globe as an excuse to launch wars.

Washington is increasingly taking unilateral decisions that affect other nations and regions. A good example being the attacks it has just launched in Syria.

There is little hope the 193-nation UN General Assembly will tackle these issues to the satisfaction of the global citizens. The UN General Assembly began on September 24 and runs until September 30. It has over the years come to be viewed just as a platform for delivering speeches on global affairs by world leaders.

As one of the six principal organs of the UN, the General Assembly is the only one in which all member nations have equal representation. Its powers include overseeing the budget of the UN, appointing non-permanent members to the Security Council and making recommendations in the form of resolutions.

But crucially the resolutions are non-binding on the member nations. Developing countries have viewed this arrangement as a major anomaly in the manner the UN runs its affairs and have therefore been calling for the reform of the world body. The calls have focussed on the powers of the Security Council, which is dominated by the five permanent members China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

 The current rise in conflicts on the globe, in Africa, the Middle East and Ukraine is an indictment for the urgent reform of the UN to make it more effective.

Calls have also been made to reconstitute the Security Council because it has remained largely unrepresentative. SADC chairperson and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe argues that the Security Council was masking Western attempts to recolonise less powerful countries to plunder their natural resources.

“For how long should Africa continue to be denied the right to play a pivotal role in the United Nations Security Council as it decides measures on conflicts within its own borders?

“Indeed, recent events have revealed that its formal decisions have provided camouflage to neo-imperialist forces of aggression seeking to militarily intervene in smaller countries in order to effect regime change and acquire complete control of their wealth.”

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon concedes the current session comes at a difficult time in world affairs.

“The world is facing multiple crises,” he told reporters ahead of the start of the General Assembly.

“All have featured atrocious attacks on civilians, including children,” he said. “All have dangerous sectarian, ethnic or tribal dimensions. And many have seen sharp divisions within the international community itself over the response.”

The UN boss has hosted a climate change summit in preparation for a major environmental conference in Paris next year.

September 2014
« Aug   Oct »


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Should Raphael be compared on the same tier to Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci?

Raphael was undoubtedly an enormous talent and many consider his achievements to be the height of the high renaissance, building on the legacy of his predecessors Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. It has been said that the pope cried upon hearing the news of his premature death and mass audiences attended his funeral, where he was eventually left to rest in the Pantheon. For 400 years following Rafael’s death it was generally accepted that he was the greatest painter of all time. But was Raphael’s reputation exaggerated due to his premature death that occurred at the height of his powers (37 years old) or does Raphael deservedly sit on the same pedestal or even beyond the two great giants of the Renaissance – Leonardo and Michelangelo?

Raphael’s work no doubt benefitted a great deal from the legacies of Leonardo and Michelangelo and in many of Raphael’s artworks the lessons he took from these two can be clearly seen. The School of Athens, Raphael’s great masterpiece, no doubt pays some homage to Leonardo’s last supper, with the richness in conversation and expressions. Many of his paintings also use Leonardo’s famous three figures in a triangular composition. The homage to Michelangelo can also be seen in many of his works, notably in his Madonna and Child paintings, a subject popular at the time and tackled many times by Michelangelo. In Raphael’s School of Athens, legend has it that upon seeing the Michelangelo’s Sistine chapel ceiling, so impressed was he that he decided that he must paint Michelangelo into his painting as an afterthought. This form, believed to be Michelangelo has a greater weight compared to the other earlier painted figures, his anatomy and foreshortening appear more convincing, his form in general is more solid, all no doubt inspired by the weighty, powerful figures of Michelangelo’s masterpiece just next door. No one can question the merits of The School of Athens, it is one of the true masterpieces’ of Art, but could this have been achieved without the previous efforts of Leonardo and Michelangelo? The school of Athens no doubt adds an extra element of dynamism with added depth compared to the table scene of Leonardo’s Last Supper. The same could be said of his ‘Transfiguration’ where characters fade into the darkness as they move towards the background. This layering and depth is no doubt a new level of realism but I would argue that Da Vinci really paved this path in his unfinished ‘Adoration of the Magi,’ which while still far from finished opens a new realm for depth, layering and composition, which Rafael ran with. The floating and dramatic characters of the Transfiguration no doubt also took inspiration from Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, but in saying that, it is quite likely that the Transfiguration also influenced Michelangelo’s Last Judgement which was painted some 20 years following Rafael’s death. Raphael’s Sistine Madonna and a number of his terrific portraits such as La Velata and the portrait of Baldassare Castiglione are also masterful works that indicate that in many cases he built upon his predecessors but in comparison did he innovate as much as his genius predecessors and this question I think lies his ultimate greatness and level of contribution?

The School of Athens Leonardo Da Vinci

In some cases I would argue that he matched his predecessors. He no doubt benefitted from focusing only on painting which allowed him to be much more prolific then Leonardo. But I would argue that his work is also less consistent. One component of this certainly comes down to experience and mastering his craft. There are almost two distinctive phases of his career, the first prior to 1511 and the second until his death. In his earlier years his figures are notably stylised whereas in his later work he achieves more sophisticated renderings and compositions. Even still, in his more mature stages there are still some anomalies and lapses in standard. In Leonardo’s portraits there is a great depth, realism and mystery. In Raphael’s self-portrait, for example, it is comparatively flat, with only minor shadow and colour variation. Likewise, his portrait of Pope Julius II appears more closely related to a Giotto then a Da Vinci with much of the realism is lacking. A number of his Madonna faces are also clearly out of proportion, strongly stylized with a round non-undulating face. The major difference between Raphael and Leonardo is that it appears that for Leonardo, nature was his teacher, whereas for Raphael he was no doubt a studious disciple of Leonardo and his predecessors. The problem with imitating predecessors is that one can only ever match their achievements; whereas through Leonardo’s approach he was able to revolutionize art and take it to new levels. Leonardo also seemed to paint for himself, he was not concerned about deadlines or clients, but continued painting on a work for as long as he deemed necessary to satisfy his meticulous standards, often painting and repainting multiple times. Raphael on the other hand appears to have been an obliging creator, producing far more and repeating the same themes over and over to keep clients happy. His stronger desire to please clients is a likely reason for the inconsistency in his work as while Leonardo would not relinquish a work he was not 100% satisfied with, Raphael would ensure he met deadlines, often at the expense of the outcome. Raphael’s work also seems to pay some homage to Botticelli, somewhat stylized, graceful, vibrant colours, clearly defined lines and compositions. Raphael’s work is no doubt charming and somewhat less serious then Michelangelo and Leonardo and for this reason Raphael’s paintings had and remain to have great appeal. The great contribution of Raphael to art was perhaps not in taking art to it’s next level in realism but his injection of charm, the best example of which are the angels at the bottom of his Sistine Madonna which has become one of the most beloved images in all of art history. In many ways Raphael’s legacy really builds on Botticelli’s work but combines some of the added realism from Michelangelo and Leonardo. Perhaps this is his great contribution, combining the best of his predecessors. Another notable contribution was his erotic portrait ‘La Fornarina’ which no doubt played a significant influence on the female and seductive nude, which has become a major theme in art, later typified by Ingres. Rafael was famous for his promiscuity, in contrast to Leonardo and Michelangelo, both suspected to have been homosexuals, so his erotic artworks were certainly braking new grounds and no doubt left a long legacy.

Rafael at his best

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Rafael’s inconsistency

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Rafael great contribution

Another aspect, which Raphael’s career benefitted a great deal was his relationship with Bramante. Bramante was the Popes Architect and was a close friend to Raphael, both being from the town of Urbino. Bramante, like many of the artists at the time, either through jealousy, fear of his own position or a personality clash, or a likely combination of all three – disliked Michelangelo. Bramante was able to convince the Pope to entrust the painting of the Pope’s Stanza della Segnatura to the extremely young Raphael and sought to get Michelangelo sacked from the Sistine Chapel and replaced by Raphael. Although Raphael was more pleasing to work with, the Pope eventually decided against this, such was the quality of work being produced by Michelangelo. Michelangelo’s work spoke for itself. The results justified the painful process.

Raphael was also born at the ideal time, having benefited from the efforts of Michelangelo and Da Vinci, who helped elevate the reputation of artists as genius’. He lived at the height of the Renaissance, the height of societies interest in art and the height of artistic commissions. With Michelangelo and Leonardo reluctant to paint, people were keen for a more accessible master and the prolific Raphael clearly filled that void. At the peak of his powers his death came as a great surprise. Much loved by the Pope, arguably the most powerful man on the planet at the time, his reputation was assured and elevated and in my opinion slightly exaggerated. This is not to talk down his incredible achievements but the innovations achieved by Leonardo and Michelangelo revolutionized art while Raphael brought together the best of his predecessors, rather then matching or surpassing their levels of innovation. Raphael should be greatly respected but I believe there are dozens of artists who contributed as much and he should therefore not be considered in the same light as the great powers of Leonardo and Michelangelo. If any is worthy to be considered in the same light as Michelangelo and Leonardo, at least in relation to painting alone, I would argue that Caravaggio is the most suitable candidate, as although he also took a great deal from these two great predecessors, he also made many innovations and took painting to the next level of realism and power. His realism and dynamism, his deep contrasts from dark to light, his dramatic compositions all elevated art to a new level and influenced generations to come up to this day. In contrast Rafael’s death was generally considered the end of the Renaissance. He no doubt influenced generations to come but as his career was largely based on learning from his predecessors, for the next generations to do the same, would lend itself to a natural decline; it is only when nature is our teacher combined with originality that new paths can be forged. Rafael contributed a lot and had he lived for another 30 or 40 years perhaps he could have been compared on the same pedestal as Michelangelo and Da Vinci. Afterall, Da Vinci’s first great individual artistic achievements begun beyond the age of 35, whereas Rafael died at the age of 37. Likewise, Michelangelo lived a very long and productive life dying at the age of 88, a remarkable age at that time. Rafael clearly had enormous talent, but we can only speculate whether his achievements would have continued to grow had his life not been cut short. The fact it did, ensured he was remembered at the height of his powers but with the advantage of time and context I don’t think many contemporary scholars could compare his achievements to the two great masters that proceeded him.


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Unexpected finding solves 40-year old cytoskeleton mystery

Just like the human body as a whole, each human cell has a skeleton it needs for functioning properly.

That so-called cytoskeleton allows a cell to maintain its shape, move to different places and transport molecules through its interior.

Long chains called microtubules form an important part of that skeleton and function as a highway for the transport of molecules.

For example, microtubules play a key role in cell division by allowing the cell to meticulously align their chromosomes before dividing them amongst daughter cells.

Their crucial importance to the cell is easily illustrated by the working mechanism of a widely used group of cancer medicines called taxanes: they disrupt microtubule function and thereby kill dividing cells.

It has been suggested that proper transport at this crucial moment in the cell cycle involves detyrosination, in which the amino-acid tyrosine is removed from the tail of one of the microtubules’ main building block:  α-tubulin.

Over the past four decades scientist have been searching for the main actor in this process.

Despite its importance for several cellular processes it remained unknown which enzyme takes off the tyrosine.

Researchers of the Netherlands Cancer Institute have now solved this puzzle by unmasking the mystery player, and report their findings in Science.

By using their recently developed innovate genetic screening method Joppe Nieuwenhuis and his colleagues identified the small SVBP protein as being a crucial part of the process.

This small protein binds – and thereby stabilizes – proteins called vasohibins, which appear to have tubulin detyrosination activity.

Nieuwenhuis says “These findings are surprising, because vasohibins were thought to function outside the cell and only recently it was predicted that these proteins might function as enzymes, without knowing their function.”

Nieuwenhuis and his colleagues at Thijn Brummelkamp’s lab found these key molecular players by using genome wide random mutations in human cells containing just one copy of each gene.

Subsequently they selected the cells in which the studied process of detyrosination was broken due to one of the randomly introduced mutations.

Selecting the cells with very little detyrosinated tubulin they discovered these cells had a mutated (and therefore dysfunctional) SVBP gene.

Further experiments confirmed the interaction with vasohibins and its effect on tubulin detyrosination.

“For cell biologists this could be an important step”, says Nieuwenhuis. “We have found a piece of the puzzle that scientist have been staring at for many years because the process of detyrosination was discovered 40 years ago. This knowledge could be relevant to further understand the processes of mitosis, cell migration and cancer development. It is already found that the invasive front in some tumour tissues, where cells are migrating most actively, contains a high amount of detyrosinated tubulin. It is interesting to speculate that inhibition of detyrosination could be beneficial under certain conditions.”

Interestingly, in the same edition of Science a group of French scientists reached similar conclusions using a biochemical approach to identify detyrosinating enzymes.

Source: NKI

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How to Soothe Sore Muscles

Sore muscles are something that most exercise enthusiasts will experience, whether it’s from starting a new style of exercise or simply pushing yourself really hard, muscle soreness is often the by-product of stressing your muscle fibres to initiate growth and development. I’ve always found that there is something slightly satisfying about having a little DOM’s (delayed onset muscle soreness) after a particularly gruelling training session. It lets you know that you have challenged yourself and that your muscles are working to adjust and adapt, becoming stronger and more resilient than before.

That being said, having really sore muscles can be more than a little uncomfortable. It can also be a little inconvenient if you are finding it difficult to climb stairs, sit down or even just to walk normally when you have important social appointments (like perhaps a work meeting, or even a date!).

Here are some approaches and tips to use to help reduce muscle soreness, as well as ways to help prevent it!

Active Recovery

Even though exercising when your muscles are already sore from overuse might be the last thing on your mind, active recovery is actually an excellent way to not only quicken your recovery time but also help reduce your discomfort. Active recovery can take many forms, but basically is it means exercising at a lower intensity and/or with less volume. Some excellent examples are walking, light jogging, swimming and even resistance training using light weights, or body-weight only. Choose a type of exercise that works the muscles that are aching, in a way that will not place too much pressure on them. For example,  if you have done a super squat/lunge/deadlift session, and your quads and glutes are aching, try going for a steady power walk to activate those muscles and help stimulate blood flow to them.

Gentle Stretching

Even though stretching muscles that are hurting can be a little painful, it is actually a great way to stimulate oxygen-rich blood into those areas and support the regrowth process. The problem is that over stretching cold muscles (for example, first thing in the morning) can cause more damage, it is best to use the stretching after first doing some active recovery exercising.

Foam Rollers

Foam rollers use applied pressure, in the form of self-massage, to help stimulate blood flow into the muscles that are aching. Foam rollers are also good for helping release knots and tightness that forms in muscles due to stress or overuse.

Heat Therapy

Increasing the temperature of an area stimulates blood flow, which in turn helps support the healing process as well as provides pain relief. You can enjoy a hot bath with some Epsom salts and essential oils, or just apply a heat pack. There are also peel and stick heat patches that can be applied and worn under most clothing without being seen, so you can have the warming relief whilst going about your normal activities.

Magnesium, the primary component of Epsom salts, is essential for healthy muscles and is a gentle natural muscle relaxant. The salts, when added to a warm bath or compress, are absorbed by the skin and are actually more effective this way than by taking an oral magnesium supplement.

Have a Drink

Have a Coffee or some Cherry Juice or add some Creatine to your pre-Workout. Coffee has been found to help with muscle soreness,  about the equivalent of two cups of coffee, helped reduce muscle soreness in women after a strenuous workout. It works by blocking adenosine, a chemical released by your body in response to injury. Just be careful not to overdo this one, as too much caffeine can cause muscle spasms. Cherry Juice has a high level of antioxidants (even more than pomegranates!) and other benefits, one of which is decreased muscle soreness. Try adding a splash to your post-workout smoothie.

Creatine has been shown to help lessen the pain and duration of muscle soreness from an intense strength-training session. Creatine is an amino acid and its job is to funnel energy to your cells in your body, particularly your muscle cells. So more creatine in your system means more energy is available for building and repairing. Even better, reported side effects like bloating or upset stomach are rare and generally mild.

A little soreness is normal, but more intense pain can usually be avoided. If you are finding you are often left limping for days after an intense training session, then consider the following:

Warm up – This doesn’t mean stretch; it means to prepare the body parts you intend to use. If you are going sprinting, start with a fast walk then a slow jog before you hit the accelerator. If you are hitting the weights, try a little cardio beforehand to work into the parts you are using, such as some burpees, light jogging, or skipping.

Don’t overdo it – Know your own limitations. Yes, it is great to push yourself to get stronger, but that doesn’t mean pushing yourself so hard you cause damage. This will only result in muscle damage that will take longer to recover from. Just increase your resistance/intensity/distance or time in stages appropriate for you. Listen to your body, it will usually tell you when something is too much!

Omega 3’s – Making sure you have enough omega 3s in your diet so that you have all the building materials needed to repair and rebuild is important. Omega 3s actually help reduce inflammation and reduce soreness, so if you are not getting enough in your diet (walnuts, flaxseeds and salmon are all great sources!) then you should consider using a supplement.

Warm down – Warming down is a big one! Stretching after intense use helps your muscles release some of the lactic acid that has built up, as well as slowly warming the muscles down. Both of which help reduce the risk of DOM’s.

Stay Fit & Strong xx