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Can You Hunt For The Mysterious Numbers?
Jan. 15, 2021 , at 8:00 AM
By Zach Wissner-Gross
Filed under The Riddler
Illustration by Guillaume Kurkdjian
Welcome to The Riddler. Every week, I offer up problems related to the things we hold dear around here: math, logic and probability. Two puzzles are presented each week: the Riddler Express for those of you who want something bite-size and the Riddler Classic for those of you in the slow-puzzle movement. Submit a correct answer for either,1 and you may get a shoutout in the next column. Please wait until Monday to publicly share your answers! If you need a hint or have a favorite puzzle collecting dust in your attic, find me on Twitter.
Riddler Express
From Lucas Jaeger comes a "flute-iful" challenge:
You're a contestant on the hit new game show, "You Bet Your Fife." On the show, a random real number (i.e., decimals are allowed) is chosen between 0 and 100. Your job is to guess a value that is less than this randomly chosen number. Your reward for winning is a novelty fife that is valued precisely at your guess. For example, if the number is 75 and you guess 5, you'd win a $5 fife, but if you'd guessed 60, you'd win a $60 fife. Meanwhile, a guess of 80 would win you nothing.
What number should you guess to maximize the average value of your fifing winnings?
The solution to this Riddler Express can be found in the following column.
Riddler Classic
In a world of sudokus, KenKens and kakuros, Barbara Yew offers a different sort of number puzzle:
There are eight three-digit numbers — each belongs in a row of the table below, with one digit per cell. The products of the three digits of each number are shown in the rightmost column. Meanwhile, the products of the digits in the hundreds, tens, and ones places, respectively, are shown in the bottom row.
Can you find all eight three-digit numbers and complete the table? It's a bit of a mystery, but I'm sure you have it within you to hunt down the answer!
The solution to this Riddler Classic can be found in the following column.
Solution to last week's Riddler Express
Congratulations to 👏 Jacob Kopczynski 👏 of San Francisco, California, winner of last week's Riddler Express.
Last week, you were slicing one big square into smaller squares (not necessarily of equal size), so that the smaller squares didn't overlap, while still making up the entire area of the big square.
What whole numbers of squares could you not have sliced the big square into?
Many solvers began by trying out small numbers of squares. Of course, it was possible to slice the big square into one square by simply leaving it alone. The next smallest number of squares you could get was 4, each a quarter of the big square. That meant getting either two squares or three squares was impossible. (A rigorous proof of this is left as an exercise for you, the reader — hah!)
Another possible number was 9, since that would be a 3-by-3 array of equally sized squares. Similarly, any square number was possible. But what about numbers between the perfect squares?
As noted by solver America Masaros, if it was possible to create N squares, it was also possible to create N+3 squares by taking any undivided square and slicing it into four equally sized squares. This effectively replaced one square with four new squares — a net gain of three squares. That meant any number that was 4 or 9 plus a multiple of 3 (i.e., of the form 4+3k or 9+3k, where k is a whole number) was also possible, ruling out a whole bunch of numbers.
But there were still a few numbers less than 9 that had to be checked: 5, 6 and 8 (7 was 3 more than 4, so it was possible). While 5 was not possible (again, you are welcome to prove this!), both 6 and 8 were possible using unequally sized squares, as shown below:
Indeed, this strategy with one larger square and an elbow of smaller squares around it worked for any even number greater than 2.
Finally, since 8 was possible, any number that was a multiple of 3 greater than 8 was also possible, again by picking one of the squares and slicing it into four equal squares. That meant the only numbers that were not possible were 2, 3 and 5.
Meanwhile, Vince Vatter (of Battle for Riddler Nation fame) recognized this problem from one of his colleague's books:2
It remains unclear why a value of 14 was chosen for this exercise, rather than the actual lower bound of 5.
At least one solver extended the puzzle further, looking at how a cube could be partitioned into smaller cubes. But let's save that for a future riddle!
Solution to last week's Riddler Classic
Congratulations to 👏 Eilon 👏 of Chicago, Illinois, winner of last week's Riddler Classic.
Last week, Robin of Foxley entered the FiveThirtyEight archery tournament. She was guaranteed to hit the circular target, which had no subdivisions — it was just one big circle. However, her arrows were equally likely to hit each location within the target.
Her true love, Marian, had issued a challenge. Robin had to fire as many arrows as she could, such that each arrow was closer to the center of the target than the previous arrow. For example, if Robin fired three arrows, each closer to the center than the previous, but the fourth arrow was farther than the third, then she was done with the challenge and her score was 4.
On average, what score could Robin have expected to achieve in this archery challenge?
First off, a surprising and subtle fact about this riddle was that the geometry (in this case, a circle) didn't matter. What did matter was how close each arrow was to the center relative to the other arrows. That meant the target could have been a square, a line segment or even a sphere — the answer would be the same.
A good first step was then to restate the problem and forget about the geometry: If you pick random values between 0 and 1 uniformly — each representing the relative distance of an arrow to the center — how many consecutive decreasing values would you expect (plus one, for the arrow that broke the streak)?
Solver Balthazar Potet approached this by thinking about the values for the first N arrows Robin fired and the probability they'd result in a score of N. With any N values, there were N! ways to order them. For Robin to have a score of N, the smallest value couldn't have been in the Nth position, since it had to be greater than the previous value. And when each of the other N−1 values occurred in the Nth position, there was exactly one way to order the remaining values so that they formed a decreasing sequence. So of the N! orderings, N−1 resulted in a score of N, meaning the probability was (N−1)/N!
From there, you had to use these probabilities to compute an average score, which you could find by multiplying each score by its probability and then adding up all those products. The probability Robin scored 2 was (2−1)/2!, or 1/2, which meant a score of 2 contributed 2·1/2, or 1, to her average score. The probability Robin scored 3 was (3−1)/3!, or 1/3, which meant a score of 3 contributed 3·1/3, or 1 (again!), to her average score. In general, the probability Robin scored N was (N−1)/N!, which meant a score of N contributed N·(N−1)/N!, or 1/(N−2)!, to her average score. Since N was at least 2 — meaning Robin fired at least two arrows — her average score was 1/0! + 1/1! + 1/2! + 1/3! + …, a sum that converges to e, which is approximately 2.71828. Huzzah, another riddle whose answer was a famous mathematical constant!
For extra credit, you had to calculate Robin's average score when the target had 10 concentric circles, whose radii were 1, 2, 3, etc., all the way up to 10 (the radius of the entire target). This time, Robin had to fire as many arrows as she could, such that each arrow fell within a smaller concentric circle than the previous arrow.
Here, the geometry of the target was relevant, since there was now a nonzero probability that consecutive arrows could fall within the same ring. The chances that any given arrow landed in one of the rings (from the smallest ring to the largest) were 1 percent, 3 percent, 5 percent, 7 percent, 9 percent, 11 percent, 13 percent, 15 percent, 17 percent and 19 percent.
Having the discrete rings (perhaps counterintuitively) made the problem more complex, but several solvers persisted. Emma Knight was able to set up and solve a system of 10 equations, finding that the average number of arrows was approximately 2.5585. Josh Silverman was further able to come up with a closed formula for the solution and a precise rational result.
Meanwhile, solvers like Paulina Leperi and Angelos Tzelepis (whose results are shown below) approximated the answer by simulating many arrows.
That was the answer when there were 10 rings. As the number of rings increased, the average score also increased, approaching e in the limit of infinitely many rings.
By now, I bet you're curious how Robin of Foxley actually performed at Marian's archery challenge. Robin was such a good archer that she was able to fire off two arrows that were exactly the same distance from the target's center. Marian's mind was blown by this probability-zero event, and they lived happily ever after.
Want more riddles?
Well, aren't you lucky? There's a whole book full of the best puzzles from this column and some never-before-seen head-scratchers. It's called "The Riddler," and it's in stores now!
Want to submit a riddle?
Email Zach Wissner-Gross at riddlercolumn@gmail.com
Important small print: In order to 👏 win 👏, I need to receive your correct answer before 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Monday. Have a great weekend!
"A Walk Through Combinatorics" by Miklós Bóna.
Zach Wissner-Gross leads development of math curriculum at Amplify Education and is FiveThirtyEight's Riddler editor. @xaqwg
The Riddler (307 posts)


When I turned eighteen I decided that I wanted to see the world. It became my mission, a near addiction, a focal point that would impact the rest of my life. Although travel isn't my #1 priority (friends, family and health will always take the lead) I value travel as I value education and explore any opportunity to see a new place.
Travel takes both time and money. But anyone who desires to travel can find a way to incorporate it into their life. Think of it as an investment in your world perspective. Despite what advertising portrays travel is not dependent on your income bracket. You don't need an impressive salary to employ these tried and true strategies to maximize your earnings and fund your travels.
The secret is that there is no secret. I don't have any revolutionary ideas or get rich quick schemes for you. Quite the opposite. What I'm going to tell you is how to make travel happen based on logic and diligence. Several times I've heard "I'd travel like you if I won the lottery." Well, there's a 99.9% chance you will NEVER win the lottery. Instead of putting your bet on insurmountable odds, put it on yourself. Instead of wasting money on lottery tickets and slot machines set it aside in a separate account for new experiences.
People prioritize all kinds of things: family, their appearance, Fantasy Football. If you want to travel and you purposefully place it high on your list of priorities you will make it happen. Yes there exist socioeconomic exceptions but the fact that you are warm, dry, fed, and have an internet connection by which to read this article means you are not part of the more than 50% of the world living on less than $2 a day. You have choices. Use them! There are many complex external forces acting upon us but we still possess the largest impact over our futures. If you make seeing the world a priority you will make it happen.
Step back and take a look at your expenditures. What things can you cut out that don't Improve your quality of life? Examples include but are not limited to: daily starbucks, cigarettes, eating out, magazine subscriptions, bar tabs, and membership to a gym that you only wander into for the selfie photo. Banish cigarettes and coffee from your life to save money and improve your pearly white smile. Your body will thank you for it. Try cooking at home more and make bar nights a treat instead of the daily. Scrap the unused gym membership and ride your bike to work. It's the small consistent changes that add up to big results.
Are you a Starbucks addict? That almond mocha frappacino habit is costing you around $5 a hit. If you indulge four times a week thats $20 a week and a whopping $1,040 a year! That's a couple weeks backpacking in a foreign country.
Cigarette smoker? Don't even get me started on the endless negative side effects of this habit. Just the financial impact alone should be a deterrent. Let's say you're like most smokers and you burn through six packs a week at $7 a pop. This hazardous habit is costing you $42 a week totalling $2,184 a year! Hello bed and breakfast in the European cities of your choice.
Is the bar stool your go to? Let's say you like to frequent your local watering hole four nights a week with an average bill of $30 with tip. That's $120 a week and a startling $6,240 a year! Which is quite a traveling fund indeed.
These are just a few estimated examples but you get the picture. No money for travel? Look at where you can cut needless expenditures and invest in real life.
While it would be great to be a trust fund baby (I recently met an Irish guy who was gifted a lottery ticket for his baptism when he was an infant. He won, the money was wisely invested, and this lucky guy is set up for life) that's not the reality for most of us. Honestly, be thankful for it. If you were born into the lap of luxury and never needed to question a thing you probably wouldn't be the complex, inquisitive soul you are today. You'd be comfortable with occasional trips to Vegas and Hawaii and never branch out. Lame.
I often hear "I don't make enough money to travel." But the truth is people usually spend too much money to travel. The daily costs associated with their lifestyle eat up all the excess. These same people could experience a $20,000 salary raise and six months later will complain of the same state of affairs. This is a phenomenon known by Psychologists as the "hedonic treadmill". We earn more money so we seek more things for more happiness. We get a raise we want a new car, a more luxurious apartment, and nicer clothes. Basically we quickly adapt our lifestyle and possessions to our income instead of maintaining a balanced level of existing and seeking new forms of fulfillment. If you make $4,000 a month and spend $3,500 you really make $500 a month. If you make $4,000 a month and spend $2,000 you really make $2,000 a month. At the end of the day it's not what you make but what you spend that effects your financial freedom.
While you probably aren't going to make your millions while traveling there are opportunities for supplementing your travel fund on the road. Often the most marketable commodity you possess is your knowledge of the English Language. There are many countries hungry to learn English. Even without formal teaching credentials there are families that will gladly pay you to tutor their children. This is something you can often do without going through a school or getting your TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) Certification. Opportunities to tutor abound oversees. Network with locals and odds are you will find eager pupils.
Depending on your line of work, you may have the opportunity to work remotely in some capacity. For how to make the most of your job outside of the office I must refer you to the mastermind and author of The Four Hour Work Week Timothy Ferriss. He has perfected the art of traveling the world while working remotely and his book is rich with mind blowing insight.
Finding full time employment oversees is also an option. Take inventory of your work experience and skillset and start researching if these are commodities in other countries. Next, research what the requirements are for a work visa. There may also be opportunities to work under the table but this requires research and inherent risk.
I've funded my travels and my education based on the principles above. I've always worked more than one job, kept my expenses low and my dreams within sight. I've worked a variety of jobs (hospitality, administrative, marketing) always looking for the income generating edge. I've kept my costs low by renting a room in a house, riding my bike to work, and kept drinking an occasional treat. I traveled most of the time in a cost effective manner and always had back up plans. All this and not a sugar daddy to be found. But you know what? It's worked.
When you are old, withered and eating mashed bananas do you think you will remember the clothes you wore or the car you drove? No. You are going to remember your experiences, how you faced challenges and the people who enriched your life. All the physical stuff fades away eventually. But the first time you stepped foot on foreign soil, plunged headfirst into a new ocean, or pieced together a conversation out of second languages will not be forgotten. I promise.
Hope you're enjoying the beautiful weekend. I just found your website and love it! A lot of people talk about traveling but not many people understand what its like to always need to have a plane or train ticket booked for the next trip. I'd get on a plane tomorrow to just about anywhere. And I feel that way pretty much every day!
Where's your next trip to? I'm spending some time with my brother and parents in southern England and Normandy and then coming back to Boston by way of a week in Japan with short stops in Doha, Hong Kong, and Mauritius. I can't wait.


I transplanted five rose bushes three years ago, all from the shaded side of a garage to an area of 60% daytime sun and all in the same soil conditions. Two of them are doing well and have maintained their size and shape. The other three have become spindly and have never attained a height of greater than 10 inches. I have dutifully fertilized all of them and have kept them clear of insect infestation. Is there an additional fertilizer or treatment I can apply to the three that will assist in their growing ability? I love my roses and have over two dozen in the yard. Yet, these three are giving me the greatest concern.
I have also on numerous occasions transplanted roses even though most gardeners would say shame on us, it is generally considered a taboo. However I have yet to reap any poor results. Maybe this is why, I dig deep and create and even bigger deeper whole. I put nutrient rich water down in hole first then a little bit of standard rose fertilizer. After I have dug up the entire rose bush I then put the roots up to base stem in container of water with miracle grow in a diluted state. I clean up bush at this time trim dead stems etc. Then I carefully pick up rose bush not by stem bark but as a whole and lower into hole.I slowly layer soils on top and around I am fortunate to be able to compost and this is my gem for the health of my plants. I also found a terrific Miracle Grow product just for transplanting. It is a greenish solution I put now in that container as I am soaking roots prior to dropping onto hole. I would recommend moving or transplanting poor performing roses now while still early enough in season otherwise take really good care of failing roses with banana peels till next early spring. But for any rose I highly recommend the best free nutrient they need, potassium or better know to us as banana peels. Also consider staking or supporting your poor stems for strength building.Good Luck.


LOUISVILLE, Colo. – January 14, 2019 – For more than 55 years, the Design Automation Conference (DAC) has striven to foster a vibrant worldwide community of electronic design and systems professionals as well as improve the diversity among attendees. DAC's student fellow and scholarship programs are designed to give young students their first experience with the electronic design and systems industry.
To apply for the P.O Pistilli Scholarship, students must complete the application form. The submission site is open now through March 1, 2019. Qualifying students will be notified by April 4, 2019.


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Subscribe to Show Daily
Wag The Torso
by Joe Mandese @mp_joemandese, July 22, 2015
As far as body part metaphors go, it looks like the online video marketplace is moving beyond the so-called "long-tail" and beginning to think about the rest of the ad marketplace's anatomy.
"We view the world in terms of a head, a torso and a tail," Charlie Echeverrey, CRO of mitu, during the opening "New TV" panel at OMMA Art & Science in Los Angeles this morning.
He said that while the industry tends to focus on the big head propositions of content and creativity, it may only account for "10-20% of the people driving engagement."
"When we create a solution for a brand, we focus on all three," he explained, adding, "when they're all pulled together, they can create real value."
mpomma
Joe Mandese is the Editor in Chief of MediaPost. You can reach Joe at joe@mediapost.com.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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text:
require 'rails/generators/base'

module Excalibur
  module Generators
    # the install generator allows you to get a free to use and fully
    # documented initializer file for your rails app by running:
    # rails g excalibur:install
    class InstallGenerator < Rails::Generators::Base
      source_root File.expand_path('../../templates', __FILE__)

      desc 'Creates a Excalibur initializer.'

      def copy_initializer
        template 'excalibur.rb', 'config/initializers/excalibur.rb'
      end
    end
  end
end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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Free heritage advisory service
We offer a free heritage advisory service to assist property owners with the renovation and conservation of the region's buildings. The heritage advisor is an experienced conservation architect and provides advice on maintaining the character of historic properties and their surrounds.
This free service is available to all property owners of commercial, residential and rural buildings throughout the Toowoomba Region. Design consultants, land developers and tradespeople are also welcome to use this service. This service typically offers advice on:
Colour schemes: Heritage advisory note - exterior colours
Extensions: Heritage advisory note - alterations and additions
Carports and garages: Heritage advisory note - carports and garages
Fencing: Heritage advisory note - fencing
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Advice given is general and should be considered as the starting point for more extensive work that may ultimately require an architect, builder or designer. This service can potentially help prevent problems, save costs and avoid delays in the development approval process. Advice is available at all stages of a project and can be provided through a site visit, phone call or email. To request an appointment with the heritage advisor please contact us.
Last Updated: Thursday, 16 May 2019 15:14


Individuals are recruited onto strategic groups to provide a service user and/or carer perspective on a particular subject. Their input is not representative of a wider community but acts as an 'involvement conscience' to the group. They can advise on how best to gain wider involvement from other stakeholders on key issues as required.
For example: Local Commissioning Groups.
Has the potential to involve individuals at co-design and co-production levels.
Individuals(s) may not be able to contribute to the agenda beyond their own experience.


Each time the software is fired up, it checks to see that the proper dongle is attached to the computer. If it is not, the software shuts down. In this way, people who come into possession of an unauthorized copy of the software are prevented from using it.
Software developers often fail to register their works with the Copyright Office. This habit has arisen because developers are concerned about the requirement to deposit source code with the Copyright Office; because software is constantly being modified, so there is a continuous need to update the filing (what a hassle!); and because of a belief that technological measures are sufficient to prevent copying. If technology stops the pirate, why bother with copyright registration?
Developers going down this path have also had backup legal protection in the DMCA, which affords many of the same remedies as copyright infringement without the need to register with the Copyright Office.
In our September IP Update, we reported on the Fifth Circuit's opinion in MGE UPS Systems Inc. v. GE Consumer and Industrial Inc., involving software that had been hacked so that it would not check to see if an authenticating dongle was attached to the computer on which the software was running. The sole issue on appeal was whether this conduct violated the DMCA. To our surprise, the Fifth Circuit ruled that it did not.
There was no question that the dongle was a technological measure. Nor was there any doubt that the software was a work protected under the Copyright Act. The only question, for the purpose of determining whether there had been a DMCA violation, was whether the dongle in question controlled "access" to the software.
In its original decision, the court embarked on a philosophical frolic to conclude that the dongle controlled access only for the purpose of running the software, which, it said, is not the kind of access that the authors of the DMCA intended to prohibit. In the court's view, the DMCA bars only access for the purpose of making unauthorized copies of software, so running the hacked software was not a violation.
Never mind that the copy of the software being used was clearly unauthorized, since it had been hacked so as to avoid checking for the presence of the dongle. Never mind that the DMCA does not speak in terms of copying, but in terms of access, and that operating the software would seem to fall within any common sense understanding of "access".
Finally, the opinion's reliance upon the theory that there is no relationship between the dongle and unauthorized copying ignored the generally accepted notion  that a computer must copy the software into its memory in order to operate it, and that such copying without permission of the copyright holder is indeed a violation of the Copyright Act. If the dongle had not been circumvented, most of the code would never have been copied to memory from the storage device on which it resided. So nearly every facet of the court's logic was flawed.
Well, someone on the Fifth Circuit must have had second thoughts about their startling opinion. On September 29, it was quietly replaced with a revised opinionthat deleted the troubling analysis of what constitutes "access" to software. Instead, the court reaches the same conclusion – no DMCA violation – by noting that the record did not show that the company running this hacked software was the company that had hacked it.
To a work protected by copyright (check).
Nowhere in the DMCA is there a requirement that the circumvention be engineered by the defendant, only that the defendant in fact circumvent the technology designed to control access to the copyrighted work.
If the analysis of this newly-minted Fifth Circuit opinion were to gain traction elsewhere, then the use of any device that circumvents attempts to prevent piracy would fall outside of the DMCA as long as the user of that device bought it from someone else. Surely the authors of the DMCA thought that they were outlawing the burglar, not just the fellow who sold him his tools.
Where does this leave software developers? Out of concern that the peculiar logic of the Fifth Circuit might prove contagious, the time has come for developers to take a second look at registration of software with the copyright office. Copyright infringement offers most of the remedies available under the DMCA and an enhanced chance that the defendant will ultimately be responsible for the developer's legal fees in enforcing his rights. The deposit requirements of the Copyright Office are not onerous, and the advantage to be gained by registration is significant.
 See MAI Systems Corp v. Peak Computer Inc. (9th Cir 1993) and cases citing it.


text:
The Hub Announces Half Hour Live Action Series CLUE
CLUE, the iconic family-favorite board game, will come to The Hub as an original, half-hour live-action series, it was announced today by Margaret Loesch, President and CEO of the new network for kids and their families, which launches October 10 (10-10-10). The series, which will feature a youthful, ensemble cast (to be announced) working together to uncover clues and unravel mysteries, will be produced by Hasbro Studios.
Announcement of the Hub Original Series was made today during the new network's appearance at the 2010 Television Critics Association Press Tour in Los Angeles. The Hub is a joint venture between Discovery Communications and Hasbro, Inc., and will be available to 60 million U.S. cable and satellite households upon launch.
"We're excited to bringing CLUE to television, as the property exemplifies the qualities we look for: good storytelling, compelling characters, kids and family game-play together, and group problem solving," said Ms. Loesch. "The opportunity to develop a program based such an iconic and immensely popular game is unique, and we believe the television adaptation will be very popular with kids and their families."
The series "Clue" will join a diverse and ambitious lineup of Hub Original Series and U.S. Premieres previously announced by the channel. Hub Original Series announced to-date include: "Dan Vs.," "Family Game Night," "G.I. Joe Renegades," "My Little Pony Friendship is Magic," "Pictureka!" "Pound Puppies," "R.L. Stine's The Haunting Hour," "The Adventures of Chuck and Friends" and "Transformers Prime."
THE RESIDENT Season 3 Cast Photos
About The Hub: The Hub, a multi-platform joint venture between Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) and Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS), will entertain, enlighten, empower and educate children and their families. The cable and satellite television network will feature original programming as well as content from Discovery's library of award-winning children's educational programming; from Hasbro's rich portfolio of entertainment and educational properties built during the past 90 years; and from leading third-party producers worldwide. cptfc The Hub lineup will include animated and live-action series, specials and game shows, and the network will extend its content through a robust and engaging online presence. The Hub will launch October 10, 2010 (10-10-10) reaching approximately 60 million U.S. households on what is currently Discovery Kids channel. The online home of The Hub is www.hubworld.com. The Hub logo and name are trademarks of Hub Television Networks, LLC. All rights reserved.
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People or Company of Interest
Volunteer dive into shipwrecks excavations
In People or Company of Interest
By Cheryl Walker - UT San Diego
John Downing has always had a passion for archaeology. But instead of confining his explorations to ruins on land, he does his digging underwater — scuba diving to excavate shipwreck sites.
Downing, 61, of Valley Center, volunteers for the Anglo-Danish Maritime Archaeological Team, an international nonprofit, based in the United Kingdom.
Already an experienced scuba diver, joining the team was a natural fit for Downing.
"My wife and I love to go scuba diving, but after going so many times and seeing the fish enough times, I wanted to try something new," he said.
"When I read about maritime archaeology, it was natural to put the two together.
It became diving with a purpose." Downing's interest in archaeology began well before the "Indiana Jones" movies popularized the subject.
In junior high school he read about exotic temples and artifacts, but he never thought about pursuing archaeology as a career.
After graduating from high school, he enlisted in the Navy with the idea of learning electronics. He was reading Archaeology Magazine when he learned about maritime archaeology volunteering.
He immediately wrote to the director, Dr. Simon Q. Spooner, about signing up for the next class. There wasn't going to be another session soon, but Spooner, who was impressed with Downing's enthusiasm, offered to teach him personally.
Spooner invited him to come to the Dominican Republic for training. "I couldn't believe it," Downing said. "I was getting private lessons from a person with a Ph.D. in maritime archaeology.
It was a wonderful opportunity — one I couldn't say no to."
Full article...
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The Baltic Sea's floor is a marine archaeologist's delight: Shipworms and other wood-gobbling organisms can't survive in its cold, brackish water, and sunken ships are preserved intact for centuries.


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Parental Consent Bill Advances In Senate On Roe V. Wade Anniversary
WUSF Public Media - WUSF 89.7 | By Christine Sexton - News Service of Florida
Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, is sponsoring the bill. NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA
A Senate panel on Wednesday split along party lines as Republicans pushed through a bill that would require teenage girls to get consent from their parents before having abortions.
The Senate bill (SB 404) cleared the Rules Committee in a 9-7 vote on the 47th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade decision, which held women have a fundamental right to decide whether to have abortions.
Bill sponsor Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, said she wasn't aware of the timing of the bill being taken up on the Roe v. Wade anniversary. She and other supporters of the bill say parents need to be involved in minors' decisions about having abortions.
RELATED: The Key Issues During The 2020 Florida Legislative Session
"That's not an anniversary that I actually look to, so I actually didn't even know that was actually occurring," Stargel said. "Again, I think this is strengthening the family and making sure that when you have those difficult situations that there is a conversation. A discussion."
Wednesday's vote positions the bill to go to the Senate floor and keeps the measure on track to pass during this year's legislative session, handing conservatives a victory ahead of the November elections. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis in his State of the State address last week said he hopes the issue will "make its way to my desk during this session."
The House version (HB 265) also is ready for consideration by the full House.
The bills are not identical, but Senate President Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, told reporters he anticipates the House will take up and pass the Senate version.
The bills would ban physicians from performing abortions on minors unless the doctors have written consent from parents or legal guardians. Physicians who perform abortions without parental consent could be charged with a third-degree felony.
The proposal includes a judicial-bypass process that would allow teens to have abortions without getting parental consent. Minors could petition circuit courts for a waiver of the requirements, with the minors having a right to court-appointed counsel at no cost.
Florida already has a requirement for parents to be notified before minors have abortions, but a consent requirement would be more restrictive. The current law also has a judicial-bypass process.
Opponents of the parental-consent proposal contend, in part, that it would be dangerous to minors, who could turn to unsafe methods of abortion if they do not want their parents to find out.
The Florida Supreme Court in 1989 struck down a parental-consent law, finding that it violated a right to privacy in the state Constitution. But supporters of this year's proposal have expressed confidence that it would be upheld, at least in part because of a new conservative majority on the court.
The Senate bill also would increase criminal penalties for people who don't follow the state's "Infants Born Alive" law. The law says infants born alive during or immediately after attempted abortions are entitled to the same rights, powers, and privileges as children born in natural births.
The law requires health care practitioners to "humanely exercise the same degree of professional skill, care, and diligence to preserve the life and health of the infant as a reasonably diligent and conscientious health care practitioner would render to an infant born alive at the same gestational age in the course of natural birth."
The bill would increase the criminal penalties for violations from first-degree misdemeanors to third-degree felonies.
Health News FloridaAbortionparental consent2020 Legislative session
Christine Sexton - News Service of Florida
Parental Consent Measure One Step Away From Florida Senate Vote
Parental Consent Could Continue Moving In Florida Senate
Senate Panel Poised To Revisit Parental Consent
Senate President Backs Parental Consent Requirement
Florida Parental Consent Abortion Bill Has Tougher Road In Senate


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South Fulton County Economic Development to host career expo
Submitted by FeleciaChurch on Wednesday, August 19th, 7:01 am
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. -- Job seekers, get ready! The Unincorporated South Fulton County Economic Development Initiative will host a Career and Resource Expo on Aug. 26 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Delta Air Lines hiring flight attendants
Tuesday, August 11th, 2015, 6:59am
ATLANTA -- Delta Air Lines is hiring a brand new batch of flight attendants to begin training in 2016.
The Atlanta-based airline is looking for flight attendants who speak Danish, Dutch, French, Italian, Portuguese or Spanish in addition to English. Positions that do not require bilingual skills are also available.
Fulton County BOC approves funding to improve efficiency of the elections process
Submitted by AprilMajors on Monday, August 10th, 11:43 am
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. -- At the Aug. 5 board meeting, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners (BOC) approved the purchase of an election/asset management system and Poll Worker on-line training software system recommended by the county's Department of Registration and Elections. Both systems will align the department to continue resolving issues that arose during the general election and general election runoff of 2008 as well as the primary and general elections of 2012.
"The approval to implement these two systems should improve our department's ability to conduct elections more efficiently," states Rick Barron, Director of the Fulton County Department of Registration and Elections. "The 2016 Election Year is fast approaching and having these two systems in place will enable us to be better prepared for the expected increase in turn-out due to it being a Presidential Election year."
Bomb-making materials found in arrested teen's home
Friday, July 10th, 2015, 5:49pm
HAPEVILLE, Ga. -- A teenager was arrested, Wednesday, after being caught stealing mercury switches from an abandoned Hapeville warehouse.
When police searched the suspect's home, they discovered materials that can be used to make bombs.
Alexander Heath Mason, 18, was taken into custody Wednesday evening on a trespassing charge.
After Alexander's arrest, Atlanta and Hapeville police officers searched his house near Rainey and Virginia avenues, just north of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. While police did not specify what was removed from the home, the teen's father, Allen Mason, said investigators took chemicals.
Airlines accused of intentionally keeping fares high
Thursday, July 2nd, 2015, 12:14pm
ATLANTA -- The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether airlines, including Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines, are colluding to grow at a slower pace in an effort to keep fares high.
According to the investigation, major airlines are working together to limit seating and eliminate unprofitable flights. This allows them to increase ticket prices and extra charges. Airfares have risen 13 percent since 2009.
The Department of Justice sent letters to four airlines, asking for copies of all communications between them. Investigators also want to see conversations among the airlines, Wall Street analysts and major shareholders about plans for passenger capacity.
After a series of mergers starting in 2008, four airlines -- American, Delta, Southwest and United -- now control more than 80 percent of seats in the U.S.
Motorist jailed after wrong-way crash kills 3
Monday, June 22nd, 2015, 10:43am
ATLANTA -- An Atlanta motorist is behind bars, Sunday night, charged with killing three people in a wrong way crash in the early morning hours.
Police said the driver was drunk when he hit the other car head-on while going the wrong way on I-75.
Atlanta police said the suspect was driving north in the southbound lanes of I-75 when he crashed into a car carrying three kids and two men.
Now 20-year-old Jorge Solis is sitting inside the Fulton County Jail charged with the death of three people including two little kids.
It was around 5:30 a.m. when this tragedy struck.
Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater


When I jump on the plane, fly out of Arnhem Land. I'm leaving something that no one else has experienced but me and my family and the rest of the people that live in Arnhem Land and then when I do go into Darwin and travel around the Northern Territory, it's different again. When I leave Darwin, I'm stepping out of – in and out two worlds again, you know, two worlds.


Many couples find that the when they have children their romantic relationship takes a back seat to the more immediate demands of parenting. Unfortunately, this can lead to strain down the line if one partner feels neglected and ignored in favour of the children. Here are some ideas on how to reconnect romantically.
Rather than snatching a few exhausted hours for a date night when you are too tired to really talk, instead book a weekend away where you can also spend some time catching up on sleep as well as spending time together. A bed and breakfast can provide the perfect romantic setting not only for connecting with your partner but also relaxing and recharging emotionally.
Think back to some of the activities you enjoyed before you were married and were still getting to know each other romantically. It can be fun to start a class together where you both start learning a new skill such as cooking or sketching. Many bed and breakfasts offer 'themed' weekends where you can come and start the journey of learning a new skill, which you can continue with by taking regular classes with your partner when you get back to your day-to-day life.
Having children tends to bring your focus into the immediate challenges of keeping the family fed and making sure everyone is in the right place at the right time. However, it can also be useful to take this opportunity to talk about what your longer-term goals are both personally and for your family. As parents you make many decisions that guide the direction of the family, so discussing and agreeing to your family goals can make sure these decisions are aligned. This can help avoid arguments and frustrations as a couple.
Take this time to recommit to each other and take moments of time together to regularly check in and reconnect. Often by doing this you can see when one or the other partner is feeling particularly run down emotionally and might need another night away to get back on track. It's better to be proactive about this than to wait until one person is angry or frustrated enough to pick a fight, and it's much easier to have an enjoyable time when you start simply tired and distant rather than actively annoyed or frustrated.
If you are looking to reconnect with your partner, why not book a night in a bed and breakfast right now?


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Kori no Tatakai – Kitsune/Tanuki Battles
30 Jul 2013 13 Comments
by Zack Davisson in From Mizuki Shigeru, Magical Animal Stories, Tanuki Stories, Yōkai Stories Tags: From Mizuki Shigeru, mysterious animals, tanuki, Yōkai Stories
Translated and Sourced from Mizuki Shigeru's Mujyara, The Fox and the Badger in Japanese Folklore, Japanese Wikipedia, and OnMarkProductions.
Kitsune (foxes) and tanuki share much in common. They are the only two animals in Japanese folklore that are naturally magical—they don't need to live a certain number of years to manifest their powers. Their stories both come from similar source legends in China, and dogs are their bitter enemies. Like many tribes who share so much in common, they are also rivals.
And while they rarely (if ever) engage in knock-down, drag-out fights, confrontations between kitsune and tanuki do happen occasionally. Usually they are magical showdowns of shape-changing ability, in the most classic "demonstration of magical powers" –style combat. Kitsune vastly overpower tanuki in these contests, but tanuki are much better tricksters. And in these cases, the mischief of the tanuki beats the pure evil of the kitsune.
What does Kori no Tatakai mean?
Put the kanji for tanuki (狸) with the kanji for kitsune (狐) together and you get the word kori (狐狸). In ancient times, kitsune and tanuki were considered to be a single group, and the word kori was used in a association with both of them. It appears as far back as 702 CE, in Section VII of the Zokutō Ritsu (賊盗律; Laws Concerning Robbers) which warned against the practice of using smoke to force "kori" (tanuki and kitsune) out of their dens in graveyards.
(And because Japanese is an extra-confusing language, through the kanji for dog in the middle of kori and the word transforms into kokkori (狐犬狸; Fox, Dog, Tanuki) and refers to the Japanese name for a Ouija Board,)
Much simpler is the term no tatakai (の闘い) with just means "battle of."
Danzaburō Danuki and the Tanuki of Sado Island
Most Kori no Tatakai involved Danzaburo Danuki and his defense of the tanuki kingdom on Sado Island from invasion by kitsune. Danzaburo Danuki is a legendary figure, possibly based on a real person who lived on Sado Island in the 1650s. Danzaburo (the human) is said to have brought the tanuki to Sado Island as a dealer in meats and pelts. He released several tanuki cubs that soon populated the island. Or at least that was his cover—legends grew that said that Danzaburo was not a human at all, but a powerful bakedanuki (化け狸; transforming tanuki) smuggling his tanuki clan to the island to create a tanuki paradise free from the foxes and dogs that plagued them.
There are many stories of Danzaburo Danuki on Sado Island. He is somewhat of a folk hero. In by Kyokutei Baki's Enseki Zasshi (燕石雑志 ; ) Danzaburo was said to recover lost treasure from hidden valleys and homes abandoned to fire and war, then loaaned his wealth to the poor island fishermen. This is unusual for a tanuki figure, who deal in illusion and trickery. The money Danzaburo Danuki leant was real gold and didn't turn into useless leaves like is so many other tanuki tales. He wasn't entirely pure though—when the fishermen stopped paying him back he stopped loaning out.
But by far the most famous Danzaburo Danuki tales are how he defended Sado Island from the Kitsune.
Danzaburo vs Kitsune – Round 1
Danzaburo Danuki was preparing to take his boat across to Sado Island one day, when he saw a kitsune waiting on the shore. The kitsune said he was looking for a new home for his clan, and wondered if Danzaburo might give him a ride across in his boat—the kitsune could not swim and had no money for passage. Danzaburo agreed, but asked that the kitsune transform himself into a vest so that it would be lest suspicious when he arrived at the far side.
The kitsune agreed that this was a good plan, and transformed himself into a vest that Danzaburo pulled on. Pulling the oar, Danzaburo whistled to himself quietly making his way across the stretch of ocean to Sado Island. When they were about half-way across, Danzaburo calmly slipped off the vest and dropped it into the ocean, leaving the kitsune to drown.
Danzaburo Danuki met a powerful kitsune near Futatsu Iwa on Sado Island. Danzaburo was not about to allow a kitsune to set foot on Sado Island, and challenged him to a duel—a show of transforming powers. Danzaburo boasted "You may be hot stuff back home but your powers are nothing compared to mine. I don't just turn from one thing into another. I can transform myself into an entire Daimyo's procession!"
The kitsune—confident that no mere tanuki could out-transform him—accepted the challenge and settled back to watch Danzaburo make a fool out of himself. "Go ahead," the kitsune smirked, "show me what you can do."
In an instant, Danzaburo had disappeared. The kitsune was startled for a moment, but he was even more surprised when a Daimyo's procession appeared, complete with armored warriors and bearers carrying a heavy palanquin.
"Unbelievable!" He did it!" The kitsune couldn't believe that such a magical feat and been transformed, and leapt up on top of the palanquin to test the solidness of the illusion.
Unfortunately for the kitsune, Danzaburo was a better boaster and liar than a transformer. He timed his trick perfectly to disappear right when the very real Daimyo's procession would come along the path. The soldiers, seeing a fox leap on the palanquin and appear to attack their Lord, grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and chopped its head off with one swift blow.
More Kitsune/Taunki Battles
According to Mizuki Shigeru's Mujyara, the kitsune tried many times to invade Sado Island over the years, but where always beaten back by Danzaburo and his clan. That's why to this day, there are no foxes on Sado Island—all though there are lots and lots of tanuki.
Another legendary Kitsune/Tanuki battle appeared in the kamishibai theater. Attributed to Musashi Jūnin (武蔵住人), Flying-Dragon Tanuki vs Nine-Tailed White Fox ran for the 21-installments. The story told of the villainous Nine-Tailed White Fox spiriting off the beautiful maiden Hagino, and the Flying-Dragon Tanuki's battle to rescue her.
This was translated for Katriel Page, who knows way more about kitsune than I do. A big thanks to Mark Schumacher and his OnMarkProductions site, which any fan of Japanese folklore should already have bookmarked.
For more tanuki and kitsune tales, check out:
The Tanuki and the White Snake
The Belly-Beating of the Tanuki
Kitsune no Yomeiri – The Fox Wedding
by Zack Davisson in Uncategorized
Translated from Mizuki Shigeru's Mujyara, Japanese Wikipedia, Showa: A History of Japan, Tales of Old Japan, Kaii Yokai Densho Database, and Other Sources
On a day when the sun shines bright and the rain falls, wise parents advise their children to play indoors. It isn't that they are worried about them catching a cold. No, it is something more mysterious. For on such days the kitsune, the magical foxes of Japan, hold their wedding processions.
From Sakurai city in Ibaraki prefecture to Kashihara city in Nara prefecture, tales of Kitsune no Yomeiri appear all over Japan— with the sole exception of the northern island of Hokkaido. Most stories follow similar patterns with only slight variations. There are two phenomena referred to as Kitsune no Yomeiri—the bizarre weather called sunshowers where rain falls in broad daylight; and the procession of foxfire, called kitsune-bi (狐火), winding through the mountains late at night.
What does Kitsune no Yomeiri mean?
Kitsune no Yomeiri combines the kanji狐の (kitsune no; Fox's) with嫁入り (Yomeiri; Wedding). In a literal translation, yomeiri means to "receive a bride," as the custom is for the groom's family to receive the bride on the wedding day as a proper member of their family. Until the middle-Showa period, Kitsune no Yomeiri Gyoretsu (狐の嫁入り行列; The Fox Wedding Bridal Procession) was more commonly used. But most drop Gyoretsu in the modern age. Just getting lazy, I suppose.
While Kitsune no Yomeiri is the most common term, there are regional versions of the same phenomenon. In Saitama and Ishikawa prefectures it is known as Kitsune no Yomitori (狐の嫁取り; The Taking of a Fox Bride). In Shizuoka it is called Kitsune no Shugen (狐の祝言; The Fox Wedding Celebration).
In Tokushima, the Kitsune no Yomeiri is a less happy occasion. It was called the Kitsune no Soshiki (狐の葬儀; Fox Funeral) and seeing one is considered an omen of death.
The Foxfire Lantern Procession
The Kitsune no Yomeiri has long been a part of Japanese folklore, although with the rise of the Inari Fox-cult during the Edo period it gained a greater significance and cultural permeation. A description of Kitsune no Yomeiri comes from the book Echigo Naruse (越後名寄; Encyclopedia of Echigo) published during the Horeki period (1751-1764).
"On dark and quiet nights, in secret places, strings of lanterns or torches can be seen stretching out single file in an unbroken chain more than two miles long. It is a rare site, but an unmistakable one. It can be seen most often in Kanbara county, and it is said that on such night young foxes claim their mates."
The procession of lights became associated with weddings as it mirrored Japanese wedding ceremonies at the time. Based on traditions established during the Muromachi period (1392–1573), weddings were held at night and the bride was escorted over to her new home by a lamplight parade. This type of ceremony—called the Konrei Gyoretsu (婚礼行列; Wedding Procession) —lasted until the mid-Showa period when Western wedding ceremonies replaced traditional Japanese ceremonies.
Legends of the Kitsune no Yomeiri merged with existing stories of kitsune magic and bewitchment. People who tried to follow these foxfire lantern processions would find that they disappeared as soon as they got close—although on rare occasions traces of the ceremony were found. Shunjitsu Shrine in Saitama prefecture was said to be a popular place for fox weddings. Whenever a Kitsune no Yomeiri lit up the night, the mountain road leading to the shrine was covered with fox poop the following day.
Picture from this website
Stories of Kitsune no Yomeiri continued well into the Edo period. In Toshima village (modern day Kita-ku, Tokyo) Kitsune no Yomeiri was seen on several consecutive nights, eventually becoming one of the Seven Mysteries of Toshima. Mt. Kirin in Niigata prefecture is full of foxes, and Kitsune no Yomeiri was said to be a common occurrence. In both Niigata and Nara prefectures, Kitsune no Yomeiri was thought to be a good omen for the harvest, with the more lanterns being seen the more fruitful the harvest. A year with no fox weddings made people dread the upcoming famine.
The foxes of Gifu prefecture didn't just content themselves with lanterns. The foxfire procession was accompanied by the sound of cracking and blazing bamboo, although when examined the following day the forests appeared untouched.
Scientific Explanation for Kitsune-bi
The procession of lamplights is not only a widespread phenomenon in Japan; it is worldwide. Japanese kitsune-bi is different from foxfire in Western legends, which comes from a phosphorescent fungus. It is more akin to the Will-o'-the-wisp, also known as ignis fatuus or "Fool's Fire."
The most common explanation is that these fires are the oxidation of the chemical phosphine caused by decaying organic matter, such as can be found in forests. Other suggestions are that they are a mere optical illusion caused by the setting sun. But there is no scientific evidence for either of these theories.
The foxfire procession kind of Kitsune no Yomeiri are rarely seen today. This is most likely due to the 1950s deforestation of Japan's native forests and replanting with fast-growing industrial cedar. Whatever magic of the forests that produced the foxfire lights, it is now gone, sacrificed to industry.
Sunshowers and Fox Weddings
The Meiji period Tanka poet Masaoka Shiki wrote:
"When rain falls from a blue sky, in the Hour of the Horse, the Great Fox King takes his bride."
Another strange natural phenomenon goes by the name of Kitsune no Yomeiri, and in the modern era is much better known. On days when the sun shines and it still rains—a weather condition called tenkiame (天気雨) in Japanese or sunshowers in English—foxes are once again thought to hold their wedding ceremonies.
How sunshowers became associated with fox weddings is vague. Some say that it has to do with mountains where foxes are mostly found. There are times when mountains are covered in rain, while the town below is clear. People said that the foxes summoned the rain with their magic to hide their wedding ceremony. Others just think that because sunshowers are a mysterious occurrence, going against the natural pattern of clouds and rain, that people assumed a supernatural origin and associated it with foxes.
Although most pre-Meiji period accounts are of the foxfire processions, Katsushika Hokusai captured the sunshower-type in his painting Kitsune no Yomeiri-zu (狐の嫁入図; Picture of a Fox Wedding). The sunshower fox wedding was also mentioned in a 1732 Bunkraku puppet play Dan no Ura Kabuto Chronicles (壇浦兜軍記; The Chronicles of a Helmet of Dan no Ura).
As always, there are regional variations. In agricultural regions the sunshower version of Kitsune no Yomeiri was a good omen, promising rain for the crops and many children for the any new brides lucky enough to be married on such a day. In Tokushima, sunshowers are known as Kitsuneame (狐雨; fox rain) and not associated with weddings. In Kumamoto prefecture fox weddings are associated with rainbows, and in Aichi prefecture they are associated with hail.
How to See a Kitsune no Yomeiri
While most people go out of their way to avoid seeing strange phenomena (getting wrapped up in kitsune magic is rarely healthy in Japanese folklore) there are a few rituals for the brave and the curious.
In the Fukushima Prefecture, a bizarre ritual exists of wearing a suribachi mortar on your head and sticking the wooden pestle in your belt, then standing under a date tree. Of course, this only works on the 10th day of the 10th month of the Lunar calendar.
Aichi prefecture has a much easier method—just spit in a well and weave your fingers together. You are said to be able to view the Kitsune no Yomeiri though the gaps in your fingers.
But most stories advise against seeing a fox wedding—foxes are powerful in Japanese folklore, but dangerous. A wise person keeps well away.
Kitsune no Yomeiri in Literature
During the Edo period, numerous writers and kaidan-shu collections included first-hand accounts of Kitsune no Yomeiri, including those of people wandering into the middle of them and participating. The Kanei period (1624-1645) Konjyaku Kaidanshu (今昔妖談集; Kaidan Collection of Times Past), the Kansei period (1789-1801) Kaidanro no Tsue (怪談老の杖; A Cane for Old Kaidan Folk), and the Bunsei period (1818-1830) Edo Chirihiroi (江戸塵拾; Picked up Dust from the Edo Period) all contained first-hand accounts of encounters with Kitsune no Yomeiri.
Some of the stories can be grim. A tale set in the Warring States period (1467-1568) tells of a young bride who suddenly fell sick and died. The night of her burial, a foxfire procession passed over her gravesite. Some are more uplifting, like the tale of an old couple who cared for a wounded fox pup, and many years later were honored guests at the fox's wedding procession. Most stories, however, are of the voyeur nature—just a glimpse caught by a frightened soul hiding behind a tree when the wedding train passes by.
Mizuki Shigeru remembers being warned as a young boy against going outside during sunshowers. He writes about his memories of Kitsune no Yomeiri in his comics NonNonBa and Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan. Kurosawa Akira featured the sunshower-type Kitsune no Yomeiri in his film Dreams
From Algernon Freeman-Mitford's Tales of Old Japan, 1910
Algernon Freeman-Mitford describes the sunshower type of Kitsune no Yomeiri from the foxes' point of view in his 1910 book Tales of Old Japan: Folklore, Fairy Tales, Ghost Stories and Legends of the Samurai :
"Once upon a time there was a young white fox, whose name was Fukuyemon. When he had reached the fitting age, he shaved off his forelock and began to think of taking to himself a beautiful bride. The old fox, his father, resolved to give up his inheritance to his son, and retired into private life; so the young fox, in gratitude for this, laboured hard and earnestly to increase his patrimony.
Now it happened that in a famous old family of foxes there was a beautiful young lady-fox, with such lovely fur that the fame of her jewel-like charms was spread far and wide. The young white fox, who had heard of this, was bent on making her his wife, and a meeting was arranged between them. There was not a fault to be found on either side; so the preliminaries were settled, and the wedding presents sent from the bridegroom to the bride's house, with congratulatory speeches from the messenger, which were duly acknowledged by the person deputed to receive the gifts; the bearers, of course, received the customary fee in copper cash.
When the ceremonies had been concluded, an auspicious day was chosen for the bride to go to her husband's house, and she was carried off in solemn procession during a shower of rain, the sun shining all the while. After the ceremonies of drinking wine had been gone through, the bride changed her dress, and the wedding was concluded, without let or hindrance, amid singing and dancing and merry-making.
The bride and bridegroom lived lovingly together, and a litter of little foxes were born to them, to the great joy of the old grandsire, who treated the little cubs as tenderly as if they had been butterflies or flowers. "They're the very image of their old grandfather," said he, as proud as possible. "As for medicine, bless them, they're so healthy that they'll never need a copper coin's worth!"
As soon as they were old enough, they were carried off to the temple of Inari Sama, the patron saint of foxes, and the old grand-parents prayed that they might be delivered from dogs and all the other ills to which fox flesh is heir.
In this way the white fox by degrees waxed old and prosperous, and his children, year by year, became more and more numerous around him; so that, happy in his family and his business, every recurring spring brought him fresh cause for joy. "
Kitsune no Yomeiri Matsuri – Fox Wedding Festivals
Kitsune no Yomeiri remains a popular aspect of Japanese culture and folklore. Many towns hold Kitsune no Yomeiri festivals re-creating the famous processions. Most of these festivals are modern—coming from the 1950s to as recently as the 1990s—and were started as tourist attractions to draw people into town. Local politicians and businesses participate in the festival, and sometimes the fox bride and groom are selected as a sort of "beauty pageant."
Not all are modern tourist traps, however. The Yokaichi city, Mie prefecture Kitsune no Yomeiri procession to Suzakiha Mamiyashimei Shrine dates back to the Edo period, and is a ritual to drive out evil spirits and ask for blessings for the harvest. The festival in Kudamatsu city, Yamaguchi prefecture, has also been held since ancient times, although it bears little relationship to popular images of the Kitsune no Yomeiri. It involves asking the blessing of a pair of white fox deities whose wedding ceremony is re-enacted every year.
The latest entry in my series on yokai who appear in Mizuki Shigeru's Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan . In the story, a young Mizuki Shigeru is told about foxes and Kitsune no Yomeiri by his friend and mentor, the local wise woman NonNonBa. Mizuki does not believe her until, later that night, he hears foxes barking from the mountain that NonNonBa talked about. It is at that moment he realizes all of NonNonBa's stories—and the yokai themselves—are real.
For more yokai from Mizuki Shigeru's Showa: A History of Japan check out:
Hidarugami – The Hunger Gods
Sazae Oni – The Turban Shell Demon
Nezumi Otoko – Rat Man
For more kitsune stories, check out:
Tsukimono – The Possessing Thing
Countdown to Kitaro!
by Zack Davisson in From Mizuki Shigeru
As most of my readers are probably aware, August 6th marks the arrival of Kitaro from Drawn & Quarterly. Kitaro—known as Gegege no Kitaro in Japan—is THE yokai manga, created and written by Japan's most eminent yokai scholar, Mizuki Shigeru. It is thanks to Mizuki Shigeru that yokai are still known and loved in Japan, and it is thanks to Gegege no Kitaro that this website even exits.
This is the first official English-language translation of one of Japan's most popular and enduring comic books. Previously Kodansha published 3 Japanese/English bilingual volumes of Kitaro, but they were aimed primarily for a Japanese audience studying English and the translation was notoriously terrible.
Needless to say I am pretty excited about this. And you should be too!
What's in it?
Kitaro collects the first two volumes of Gegege no Kitaro into a single book. There are lots of classic Kitaro tales; like the Great Yokai War where Kitaro and company take on the Western yokai like Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, and the Werewolf, all lead by the bizarre Bacbeard; or the late night game of Yokai Baseball; Or possibly one of the first Giant Monster vs. Giant Robot battles where Zeuglodon dukes it out with Mecha Zeuglodon.
I didn't translate Kitaro (for my translation you have to pick up Mizuki Shigeru's next release Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan ) but I wrote all of the Yokai Files included in the volume. Matt Alt (Yokai Attack! ) wrote the introduction talking about Mizuki Shigeru's legacy and place in Japanese culture.
I think it is safe to say that this is the most important Japanese comic release of this year.
To read more about it, check out this blog posting from Kitaro-publisher Drawn & Quarterly:
http://drawnandquarterly.blogspot.ca/2013/07/mark-your-calendars-mizuki-fans-kitaro.html
Will There be any More Kitaro?
My most asked question about Kitaro is: "Will there be more?" And the only answer is—that's up to you!
Here comes my pitch …
Whether there will be more Kitaro—or even any more English-language releases of Mizuki Shigeru's excellent work at all—depends almost entirely on how well Kitaro does. If we can show that there is an English-speaking audience for Kitaro and Mizuki Shigeru—if this first volume is successful—then odds are good you will get more. If not, well … it's just like a movie; the first one has to do well in order to justify the sequel.
So I highly encourage you (beg? plead?) to pre-order a copy of Kitaro if you can. You still have a couple of weeks to get your orders in and ensure you get a copy right away. I guarantee you will love it. If you're a fan of hyakumonogatari.com, you're a fan of Japanese folklore and yokai. And that means you're a fan of Kitaro, even if you haven't discovered it yet.
You can pre-order on Amazon.com:
Whew! Pitch ended …
And Another Thing – Vote Mizuki Shigeru for Cool Japan!!
One last thing I encourage you to do (beg? plead?). And this one is totally free and easy. Just click a link and click "Like" and that's all there is to it.
As you may have read in the news, Japan is currently sponsoring a "Cool Japan" tourism campaign showing off some of Japan's cooler aspects, as well as being an appreciation of Japanese culture and creativity. In partner with this, the airline company ANA has started their own "Is Japan Cool?" website, where you can vote on what is cool in Japan.
Mizuki Shigeru and his Tottori Yokai Road is a candidate on the "Is Japan Cool?" website. To vote, all you have to do is go to the website and click "Like." When I wrote this post, Mizuki was in the #1 spot. Let's keep him there!
https://www.ana-cooljapan.com/dreams/movie/yokaiload/
If you don't know about Tottori Yokai Road, the "Is Japan Cool?" website has a great collection of images and a video talking about Mizuki's famous yokai. It's a cool website just on its own, and it's even better because you get to show your love for Mizuki Shigeru by throwing a Like his way.
That's all folks! Now get crackin! Kitaro is waiting for you.
by Zack Davisson in From Mizuki Shigeru, Japanese Afterlife, Yūrei Stories Tags: Cursed stories, From Mizuki Shigeru, haunted forest, Japanese ghost story, kaidan, Yūrei Stories
Translated and Sourced from Mizuki Shigeru's Mujyara, Showa: A History of Japan, Japanese Wikipedia, Kaii Yokai Densho Database, and Other Sources
If you are walking through a mountain trail, and find yourself overcome with a sudden hunger—a soul-killing hunger that drives you to your knees like true starvation—you might need to do more than reach into your backpack for an energy bar. You might be under attack by the Hidarugami, the Hunger Gods.
What Does Hidarugami Mean?
Hidarugami is written with the katakanaヒダル (hidaru) + the kanji 神 (kami; god). Things written in katakana have no inherent meaning. However, the word "hidaru" is most likely connected with饑い (hidarui), meaning hunger. Hidarui is a colloquial term, used mainly in Gifu prefecture. Hidarugami is also sometimes writtenひだる神 using the hiragana for "hidaru," also with no inherent meaning.
The fact that the kanji "kami" is used places the hidarugami on a higher level than most yokai, alongside such devastating deities like the Binbogami (貧乏神; God of Poverty) and Shinigami (死神; God of Death). This elevated status is due in part to arising from human spirits, from reikon.
There are other names for the Hidarutami. In Kitakyushu, it is known as the Darashi (ダラシ), in Mie and Wakayama prefectures it is sometimes called the Dari (ダリ), while in Nara and Tokushima prefectures it is called Daru (ダル). All of these use katakana for the names.
The Hunger Strike of the Hidarugami
Hidarugami are said to be the spirits of those who starved to death wandering the mountains. Because they died alone, with no marker for their grave or any ceremony, their spirits become evil and seek to share their death agonies.
They are found almost exclusively on mountain trails and passes. Hikers and travelers in the presence of the Hidarugami are suddenly overcome with acute hunger, fatigue, and numbness of the limbs. The feeling is said to be that of actual starvation. The victim is unable to move and often collapse. This attack is a form of possession. The Hidarugami enters your body. If no action is taken, the Hidarugami can cause death—actual death by starvation in a healthy body.
If you are killed, you join the Hidarugami group. In this way, Hidarugamai groups slowly enlarge to contain many souls.
Expelling the Hidarugami is easy, so long as you are prepared. Just a small mouthful of a staple food, such as rice or grain, staves off the attack and the starvation leaves as quickly as it arose. That is why—even today—hikers are advised against going into the mountains without a few riceballs or a bento to eat. Even then, they never eat the entire meal, always leaving a few grains behind in case of emergency.
Old Japanese kaidanshu and traveler's guides are full of stories of the Hidarugami. In a story coming from 1736 a man named Senkichi was found exhausted and unconscious on a mountain trail. Unable even to speak, he was loaded into a cart and carried back to town where he was fed and recovered. Senkichi related an account of an attack by Hidarugami. Another typical story tells of a merchant crossing the Noborio Pass towards Onohara. Only a few hours after finishing his lunch he became ravenously hungry, struggling to make his way to a nearby temple. A traveler's guide from 1861 warned of the dangers of going into the mountains without a few riceballs for protection.
Are the Hidarugami Yokai or Yurei?
Hidarugami defy simple classification, and show the complicated nature of Japanese folklore. Are they yurei? Are they yokai? Are they Gods? Yes to all three questions. (And yes, it is a trick question as all yurei are yokai. Smart catch there!)
Because Hidarugami enter the body and possess it, they are considered a type of the Tsukimono yokai – A Possessing Thing. While most tsukimono are magical animals, anything that possess can fall into this category.
Higarugami are most definitely yurei—they are referred to as either akuryo (悪霊; Evil Spirit) or onryo (怨霊; Vengeful Spirits). But they are not typical yurei. Like Funa Yurei and oddities like the Shichinin Dōgyō – The Seven Pilgrims, the Hidarugami act as a group and actively make new members. Because they are bound to their location, they would be considered a type of jibakurei (地縛霊; Earth-bound Spirit).
Hidarugami are also muenbotoke (無縁仏). This refers to the unworshiped dead, those who die without burial or ceremony. Special rites are often held on Obon, the Festival of the Dead, specifically for muenbotoke to try and get their spirits to pass one. One passage says that the Hidarugami's grip on the world is not particularly strong—that they are a weak god—and they should be banished by a simple muenbotoke ceremony.
They are also associated with Gaki ( 餓鬼), the Preta or Hungry Ghost of Chinese and Tibetan Buddhist mythology. The association is vague and only based on the dual obsession with hunger. Gaki are those whose sins of gluttony condemn them to be reborn as foul creatures with a rapacious hunger for disgusting things such as corpses or feces. Gaki are not native to Japanese folklore, and at sometime after their importation from China a link was made between the Gaki and the Hidarugami.
Hidarugami Across Japan
Like all widespread folklore, the Hidarugami have regional variations and associations. In Wakayama prefecture, —along the ancient pilgrimage route of Kumano Kodo—there is a deep hole called the Gaki Ana, or the Gaki's Pit. The exact location of the pit is unknown, but it is said to be someone near Mt. Okumotori and Mt. Shokumotori in Wakayama prefecture. Wherever it is, staring into the Gaki Ana is said to summon the Hidarugami.
In Shiga prefecture, possession by a Hidarugami is much more dreadful. The possessed person's stomach suddenly swells like a starvation victim, and they begs for a bowl of rice with tea. If someone answers that they had food, but have eaten it, the possessed victim will attack with a fury, ripping open their stomachs in search of undigested bits of rice to eat.
In Mie prefecture, Hidarugami are said to attack not only humans but also cattle being moved across mountain trails.
In Kochi, Nagasaki, and Kagoshima prefectures, there are small shrines set up along mountain roads and mountain passes enshrining the kami Shibaorigami (柴折様). Making a small offering at these shrines, even something so small as laying down a few token branches of wood, is said to provide protection against the Hidarugami.
This is the next in my series of yokai who appear in Mizuki Shigeru's Showa: A History of Japan. A young Mizuki Shigeru encountered the Hidarugami once walking through a mountain road. He survived the attack due to finding a few stray grains of rice. It was only much later in his life while reading a book that he learned to put a name to the strange phenomenon he had encountered.
To read more about Tsukimono and other sundry ghosts, check out:
Shichinin Dōgyō – The Seven Pilgrims
Translated and Sourced from Mizuki Shigeru's Mujyara, The Catalpa Bow, Myths and Legends of Japan, Occult Japan, Japanese Wikipedia, and Other Sources
There are eight million gods and monsters in Japan, and more than a few of them like to ride around in human bodies from time to time. Yurei. Kappa. Tanuki. Tengu. Kitsune. Snakes. Cats. Horses. Almost anything can possess a human. But when they do, they are all known by a single name—Tsukimono, the Possessing Things.
What Does Tsukimono Mean?
Tsukimono is a straight forward term. It combines the kanji憑 (tsuki; possession) +物 (mono; thing). There is a different word for actual possession憑依 (hyoi), which is the kanji 憑 (tsuki again, but this time pronounced hyo—because Japanese is hard) + 依 (I; caused by).
Although they are collectively known as tsukimono, different types of tsukimono use –tsuki as a suffix, such as kappa-tsuki (河童憑; kappa possession), tengu-tsuki (天狗憑; tengu possession), or the most common of all, kitsune-tsuki (狐憑; fox possession).
(憑 is an odd kanji by the way. It can do double duty not only as the verb tsuku (憑く; to possess) but also as a kanji for tanomu (憑む; to ask a favor). So in a strange way, possession means asking a favor of someone—really, really hard.)
Shinto God Possession
Spirit possession is an ancient and ubiquitous belief in Japan. In his 1894 book Occult Japan, Percival Lowell wrote:
"The number of possessing spirits in Japan is something enormous. It is safe to say that no other nation of forty millions of people has ever produced its parallel…."
Probably the most ancient form of the phenomenon is God Possession. There have long been mediums who could voluntarily drawn the power of kami or ancestor spirits into their bodies to serve as oracles. As in many spiritual traditions, the medium goes into a trance and clears their mind so that the kami can enter. The medium is just an empty vessel that gives voice to the kami.
The kami can be singular or plural, an ancestor spirit or merger of deities. Because of the obscure nature of the kami and their relation to the sorei ancestor spirits, it can be hard to tell. As Lowell says, "In Shinto god-possession we are viewing the actual incarnation of the ancestor spirit of the race."
However, this kind of God Possession—known alternately as kamiyadori (神宿り; kami dwelling), kamioroshi (神降ろし; kami descending), or kamigakari (神懸り; divine possession) –is different from tsukimono.
Tsukimono – Yokai and Animal Possession
Tsukimono are almost exclusively yokai or animal spirits invading human bodies. This is rarely a spontaneous event—often the yokai possesses the human as an act of revenge, for when a human kills one of the yokai's children, or destroys it's home, or something along that lines. Or it could be simple greed, like a fox who wants to eat a delicious treat that it normally can't get it's paws on. The reasons are as innumerable as the yokai themselves. But as opposed to the Shinto God Possession, it is always involuntary on the part of the possessed. No one invites a tsukimono into their body.
The effects of the possession vary widely as well. In most possessions the victim takes on the attributes of the yokai or animal. A victim of tanuki-tsuki (tanuki possession) is said to voraciously overeat until their belly swells up like a tanuki, causing death unless exorcized. Uma-tsuki (horse possession) can cause people to become ill-mannered, huffing at everything and sticking their face into their food to eat like a horse. Kappa-tsuki become overwhelmed with the need to be in water, and develop an appetite for cucumbers.
In general, the only way to free someone from a tsukimono is through an exorcist. Usually these were the wandering Shugendo priests called Yamabushi. They were the great sorcerers and exorcists of pre-modern Japan, roaming through the mountains and coming down when called to perform sacred services and spiritual battles.
Types of Tsukimono – Snakes, Foxes, and Everything Else
The types of tsukimono change depending on who you ask, and when. The great Meiji-era folklorist Yanagita Kunio split tsukimono into two distinct types, snakes (hebi-tsuki) and foxes (kitsune-tsuki).
The snake was found primarily in Shikoku, and went by various names. Hebigami (蛇神; snake god), Tobyo or Tonbogami. As you can see by the name, these snakes were not typical snakes, but where thought to be snake gods with the ability to possess humans. In many descriptions they do not even resemble snakes, but are more like great earthworms.
What Yanagita referred to as a kitsune was quite different from the usual fox. It was a small, four-legged furry creature that resembled a weasel or shrew more than anything else. The kitsune also went by regional various names, like ninko (人狐; human fox) or yako (野狐; field fox). The animal roamed over Kansai, Kanto, and Tohoku districts. Whatever the animal was called in the local vernacular, the description given was always the same; a distinctly non-foxlike animal that every called a fox.
Yanagita was quick to put the name kitsune to all 4-legged animal possessors. He linked the kitsune-tsuki to one of Japan's other great possessing animals, the inugami (犬神; Dog God), that moved throughout Shikoku and Chugoku districts.
Very few folklorists agree with Yanagita's fox/snake categories. Most who write on the subject have seen much, much more variety in tsukimono. Percival Lowell wrote:
" … there are a surprising number of forms. There is, in short, possession by pretty much every kind of creature, except by other living men."
Mizuki Shigeru agrees with Percival Lowell. In his Mujyara, series he identifies the following types of possession. It is is by no means meant to be a complete list:
• Jizo-tsuki – Possession by Jizo
• Kappa-tsuki – Kappa possession
• Gaki-tsuki – Hungry Ghost possession
• Tengu-tsuki – Tengu possession
• Shibito-tsuki – Ghost possession
• Neko-tsuki – Cat possession
• Hebi-tsuki – Snake possession
• Tanuki-tsuki – Tanuki possession
• Hannya-tsuki – Hannya possession
• Ikiryo-tsuki – Living Ghost possession
• Uma-tsuki – Horse possession
• Inu-tsuki – Dog possession
• Kitsune-tsuki – Fox possession
Kitsune-tsuki and Kitsune-tsukia – Fox Possession and Fox Users
Kitsune-tsuki is by far the most common type of tsukimono. It is also different from other tsukimono—instead of the possessed taking on fox-attributes, kitsune-tsuki feels like a bodily attack, with shortness of breath, phantom pains, speaking in strange voices, and epileptic fits. Kitsune-tsuki symptoms resembled classic demonic possession in Western culture.
Up until WWII, kitsune-tsuki in particular was treated with deadly seriousness, by both mystics and scientists. F. Hadland Davis wrote in his 1913 book Myths and Legends of Japan:
"Demonical possession is frequently said to be due o the evil influence of foxes. This form of possession is known as kitsune-tsuki. The sufferer is usually a woman of the poorer classes, one who is highly sensitive an open to believe in all manner o superstitions. The question of demoniacal possession is still and unsolved problem, and the studies of Dr. Baelz of the Imperial University of Japan, seem to point to the fact that animal possession in human beings is a very real and terrible truth after all. He remarks that a fox usually enters a woman either through the breast or between the finger-nails, and that the fox lives a separate life of its own, frequently speaking in a voice totally different from the human."
Another huge different with kitsune-tsuki is that, instead of the possession being the will of the yokai, it could be a deliberate attack. A breed of sorcerers known as kitsune-tsukai (Fox Users) were said to have invisible kitsune at their command, and could send them to possess people at will. This could also be for any reason, from revenge to profit. A particularly devious type of extortionist kitsune-tsukai would send their kitsune to possess someone, then appear in the guise of an exorcist to drive the spirit out—for a fee, of course.
Kitsune-tsukai gain power over their familiars in what is known as the Izuna-ho, or Izuna rite. The complete ritual is laid out in the 17th century Honcho Shokkan; find a pregnant fox and feed her and tame her. When she gives birth, take special care of her cubs. When her cubs are strong enough, she will eventually come and ask you to name one as thanks. With that done, the fox you named is under your control, and will respond to the power of its name. Continue to feed the fox, and you are know a Kitsune-tsukai. You can ask it questions that it must answer, or send it to perform your nefarious deeds.
A hallmark of the kitsune-tsukai is that they were the nouveaux riches—people of poverty who suddenly gained wealth and property. There was no possible explanation for the sudden rise in status of these people other than they had a magical, invisible fox at their command.
One strange aspect of kitsune-tsukai is that—along with the dog-possession called inugami—it is thought to be hereditary. Becoming a kitsune-tsukai taints your entire line, and from that time forward invisible foxes will hang around the houses of your ancestors. You are now part of a tsukimono-tsuji, a witch clan.
Kitsune-tsukai and tsukimono-tsuji were actively discriminated against. It was a taint that lasted forever, and people would carefully check the family background of potential marriage or business partners to ensure that they had no hint of kitsune-tsukai lineage. To bind your family to a tainted family was disastrous—you and all your heirs would now carry the taint. During the Edo period in particular people were vigilant against kitsune-tsukai. Accused families would be burned out of their homes and banished.
With no surprise, kitsune-tsukai discrimination is often linked to burakumin discrimination. Many burakumin families were accused of being kitsune-tsukai, and people said that when you walked through a burakumin village you could see the invisible foxes haunted the houses, waiting for their master's commands.
Predjudice against tsukimono-tsuji and kitsune-tsukai families lasted well into the 1960s when human rights laws were enacted forbidding discrimination against them. To this day, however, I am sure you can find a few people who would be shy to marry or do business with a known kitsune-tsukai.
This article was done for Brandon Seifert, who does the incredibly cool comic Witch Doctor . Is there a yokai-inspired comic in Seifert's future? I suggest you keep an eye out on your local comic shop!
I feel like I may have bitten off more than I can chew with this article—it started out as a simple explanation of tsukimono, but soon expanded into much, much more. And even this is just a glimpse; there is much more to tell about tsukimono, kitsune-tsukai, and the various other forms of possession than I can fit on this blog. Hopefully this will serve as a solid overview. Time permitting, I will do individual articles on the different types of possession in the future.
For now, anyone interested in learning more should check out The Catalpa Bow: A Study in Shamanistic Practices in Japan. The chapter on tsukimono—or Witch Animals—is available online here.
For more stories of possessing yokai and snakes, check out:
Inen – The Possessing Ghost
The Snake's Curse