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ManOnIce
Tag Archives: Mountains
Climate, Glaciology, Mountaineering, Photography
Seasons of Ice: Part 1 Spring
November 6, 2016 Noel Fitzpatrick 2 Comments
As Irish skiers go, I'm pretty average, which is to say, I'm a bad skier. I can survival ski down most things, but the grace and elegance that the residents of my current home display on the slopes still eludes me. The benefits of learning to ski before developing risk awareness is all too apparent.
This was on mind when talking over the phone with Ben Pelto (University of Northern British Columbia). Those of you who have read other posts on this blog will know that Ben and I regularly work together during our summer fieldwork campaigns on the glaciers of BC (see On Conrad Glacier: Part 1 and Part 2). It was January, and we were discussing plans for a spring trip to the mountains, specifically Conrad Glacier, to observe how the winter had treated the glacier, and to scout out locations for the coming summer's deployment of my weather stations. We were also planning to perform scans of the glacier using a ground penetrating radar (GPR), which would provide us with information on how thick the ice is, and the general shape of the underlying bed. This would all require some serious skiing.
Three months later, I am on a familiar road. With skis and camping gear in the back, I'm winding my way along the 750 odd kilometers from Vancouver to Golden, in eastern BC. Tonight, I'm meeting Ben and his sister, Jill, before an early morning helicopter flight to the ice.
Stopping off at Roger's Pass, en route to Golden.
Morning of departure at the Alpine Heli base, with Jill and Ben.
Happy for our mechanical problems to happen on the ground.
After a brief delay to fix a clogged spark plug, we were in the skies above the Purcell Mountains, in good flying weather. It was my first time taking this journey in what were essentially winter conditions, and I was glued to the window as we maneuvered between the snow-covered peaks. We landed on the west flank of Conrad Glacier at 2,300m. Our campsite overlooked the jagged crevasses of the icefall that lay above our summer field sites. We dug out level platforms in the snow for our tents, and built up walls on the upper side to keep out the cold, downhill 'katabatic' winds that can develop on glaciers at night. In the front vestibules, we dug out lower platforms for storing gear, and putting on our boots in the mornings. Finally, we dug out a table and benches, and pitched a tarp over it to serve as our kitchen.
Our mess tent. The option to get out of the elements for awhile to cook and eat can make all the difference.
One of the main goals for this trip was to get an idea of how much snow the glacier had received over the winter, and how much water this snow will produce if it melts in the summer. To this end, we needed to take regular measurements across the glacier of the depth of this season's snow, and its density. After setting camp on the first day, we skied down to the terminus of the glacier, and took a series of these measurements as we moved back up the slope. The weather was mild, and we were surprised to find a well developed melt water stream this early in the season, carving a channel into the surface snow. In the weeks preceding our trip, we had been keeping an eye on data from snow sensors located on mountains in this region. The early onset of spring was resulting in some significant snow melt, and the question on our minds was whether 2016 would prove to be as detrimental to the glaciers in this region as the record losses of 2015.
Late in the afternoon, with the weather beginning to turn, we pushed back to the shelter of our camp. After a warm meal, we watched the skies clear and felt the temperatures drop as the indigo twilight turned into a star filled mountain night.
Ben and Jill, ascending past an icefall on the glacier.
Ben, probing the snow depth to determine how much the glacier had received over the winter.
A well developed melt stream (supraglacial channel) was a surprise find this early in the year.
Returning to camp just as the weather began to close in.
Nights fall on our Conrad spring camp.
Day two saw the beginning of our radar campaign. Our objective was to ascend to the upper plateau of Conrad, taking measurements along the way. The GPR system consists of a transmitter, and a receiver, each mounted on skis, with antenna extending out in between. The transmitter sends out a pulse of energy that passes down through the ice, and reflects off the bedrock underneath. The reflected energy is detected by the receiver, and the time taken by the pulse to travel to the bed and back tells us how thick the ice is. That's the theory. The practical involves hauling this system over large swaths of the glacier, up steep slopes and icefalls, and around crevasses, trying to keep the system in line as much as possible. The relatively mild temperatures and strong sunshine made the hauling difficult, with the sleds prone to digging into the soft snow and tipping over. Despite this, we managed to cover significant ground with the radar, completing day trips of over 20km in some cases. Descending with the GPR was always an interesting experience, generally completed at the end of the day when we were returning to camp with already tired legs. We needed to act as brakes to stop the system from torpedoing down the mountain, requiring us to snowplow in our skis for kilometers downhill at a time, quad muscles screaming.
Ascending Conrad towards the upper icefall, with the GPR in tow.
Myself and Ben hauling the GPR across the stunning upper plateau of Conrad (Pic: Jill Pelto).
Shared slopes. We came across these wolverine tracks in the snow at 2,900m.
Cloud streams across the faces of the surrounding peaks.
Probing the snow depth as we moved up the glacier (Pic: Ben Pelto).
Completing a GPR survey on the glacier close to camp.
Our days on the glacier continued with combined snow depth/density measurements and GPR surveys. Working on the upper plateau of Conrad, the expanse of mountainous terrain around us was astounding. On every degree of the compass, snow covered peaks jostled for space on the horizon, like some jagged, storm blown ocean. A thought that keeps returning to me when working in these places, is what a privilege it is to be afforded such isolation and space in what is an increasingly crowded world. No traffic, sirens, voices, bleeping phones, or engines (apart from the occasional helicopter). To have access to the culture and community that living in a society provides is a great thing, but I am grateful for these opportunities to exist in solitude with nothing but survival and science to drive us on.
On one of our last days on the upper section of the glacier, we continued to record snow depth values to well over 3,000m elevation, and decided to push on to climb the summit of Mount Conrad; the peak which had loomed over us as we worked. We ascended on skies to within 50m or so of the 3,290 summit, before shedding our gear and scrambling the rock and snow of the final section. We climbed in beautiful weather (as had been the case for most of the trip; very unusual for Conrad), and our view from the summit was unimpeded in all directions. Turning from the summit, my thoughts were now fully occupied by the ski descent necessary to get off the mountain. The conversation I had had with Ben in January regarding my ski experience was echoing in my head as I clipped into my skis, and double checked my bindings. This was steep for me, but hesitating or leaning back would be the wrong option. I watched Ben and Jill drop in, took a solid breath, and followed.
Ben, checking some gear, on the ascent of Mount Conrad.
On the summit, looking south into Bugaboo Provincial Park; a climbing mecca I had visited a year previously.
My view from the top, prior to our ski descent.
On a very fun section of the descent back to camp. The beautifully symmetrical ski tracks are not mine (Pic: Ben Pelto).
Below the tumbled walls of one of the icefalls we passed through on the return to camp.
Light from a low sun highlights the textures of the glacier.
Back at camp after another rewarding day.
Ski boots that aren't your own can be unforgiving on long touring days, but it was little to complain about.
Looking north down the valley as the day ends.
Our spring visit to Conrad had been very successful, with a wealth of snow and ice thickness data recorded over much of the glacier. Throughout our travels , I had been scouting for potential sites for installing the weather stations in the summer; just two short months away. One would be deployed in a similar location to last year; lower on the glacier in the ablation zone (the area on a glacier where more ice/snow is lost than gained from year to year). The other would be a more ambitious venture. The upper plateau at 3,000m would provide a unique and intriguing location to gain information on the glacier's weather and melt relationships. It would also present a much harsher environment to operate in. Would we get a decent enough weather window to allow us to install the equipment (several days work), and if so, could the system withstand a season in tough and, as of yet, untested conditions? We would find out soon enough.
The moon sets behind Conrad as another day begins.
'What are men to rocks and mountains'? Ascending a western branch of the glacier.
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Climate, Glaciology
On Conrad Glacier: Part 2, and life since
May 5, 2016 Noel Fitzpatrick 3 Comments
There's a buzzing coming from somewhere. I switch off my two-way radio, expecting that to be the culprit, but the sound continues. We're on the glacier, in the middle of dismantling the second weather station, with cloud rolling in around us. I'm still looking to find the source of the noise, when I feel the hair on my arms start to rise.
Static. A build up of electrical charge induced by the clouds above. A precursor to a lightning strike. The noise is me; I'm buzzing, along with the metallic objects strewn around us. Stepping away from any potential lightning conductors, and slipping off my climbing harness with all its dangling metal, we wait for the clouds to pass us by.
Stopping to take in the view at Roger's Pass, on the road to Golden, BC.
It's been quite awhile since I've sat down to write here, and a brief update was needed to bring things up to speed. Eight months have passed since our run in with the electrical storm on Conrad glacier, and much has happened in the interim. Conferences, comprehensive exams, trips home, film competitions. More importantly, 2015 was confirmed as the warmest year on record; taking the mantle from the previous record holder, 2014. Months before this was confirmed however, the evidence was showing itself to us in the mountains.
Low cloud and convective storms delayed our flight into the mountains by a couple of days.
Unloading the helicopter after touching down. Our campsite was on a nunatak (rocky outcrop surrounded by ice) on the west edge of Conrad Glacier. (Photo credit: M.Mortezapour)
We had returned to Conrad Glacier in early September to dismantle the weather stations that had been in place all summer (see On Conrad Glacier: Part 1). They had been simultaneously recording the weather conditions and rate of ice melt over the season, in a hope to better understand what was powering the melt. Our party of 5 consisted of Ben Pelto, Brian Menounos, and Marzieh Mortezapour from UNBC, Clemens Schannwell (a visiting grad student from the University of Birmingham), and myself. The glacier greeted us with its usual box of atmospheric treats, alternating between showers of snow, hail, and rain, and the ever present katabatic wind. Camp was set on the rocky margins of the glacier, from where we would set out each morning to work on the stations and take measurements of how the glacier had responded to the summer.
Our autumn campsite.
Blue dawn.
The Mess tent.
Cold breakfast. Brian, Ben, Clemens, and Marzieh getting fueled up for the day.
I was delighted and greatly relieved to find both my stations operating when we reached them. As had been the case the previous year, I had no way to check on them over the two months since they had been installed on the mountain, and like an anxious parent, I'd had them on mind for much of this time. The data from Conrad (which is still being analysed), along with the observations by Ben on a series of glaciers in BC (and those from glaciologists throughout the region) told the story of what was the worst year for glacier loss since monitoring began.
Reunion. Station 1, still working away after two hard months in the elements.
The team, taking a moment to absorb a brief dose of sunshine.
The footage from the time lapse camera I had installed gives a clear impression of the speed of the melt, while only accounting for a portion (54 days) of what was a long melt season. The significant ice loss of summer 2015 made the Canadian news stations, with the footage appearing in CBC's 'The National', and on Global News television.
The end of the 2015 field season marked the beginning of preparations for my proposal defense, and is my main excuse for being absent from here for so long. Essentially, this process involves defining the final goals of your PhD, and convincing your supervisor and a panel of professors that you and your research are up to scratch, and that the project is worthwhile and moving in the right direction. Since getting over this hurdle, I've been working on my first paper, looking at the relationships between weather and melt on Nordic Glacier (see Notes from Nordic), and had a surprisingly successful entry into the NSERC Science Action film competition.
But the calendar, as always, has flicked around rapidly, and I am again preparing for the summer's field campaign; complete with new challenges and objectives. All going to plan, this may well be the last campaign of my PhD. I hope to start posting frequently again, and to give brief updates on the science, why it's relevant, and the life behind it.
Up Next: I've just returned from some spring field work on Conrad Glacier; spectacular conditions and views, but with ominous signs for the melt season ahead. Report coming soon.
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March 8, 2016 Noel Fitzpatrick 1 Comment
I recently submitted an entry to a one minute research film competition (NSERC Science Action). The objective was to present a broad outline of your research to a general audience in 60 seconds. It's a bit of a rushed production, but I hope the overall message is clear. Feel free to view and share.
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On Conrad Glacier: Part 1
September 14, 2015 Noel Fitzpatrick 8 Comments
High on a mountain glacier, sheltering from a thunderstorm. With hail and wind buffeting the blue plastic tarp I'm clutching on to, and lightning cracking above, I realise that the boxes I'm sitting on contain several large high capacity batteries. My science teachers would be proud.
Four months earlier, I had returned to Vancouver from Svalbard, and an arctic winter that I will never forget. Touching down in YVR airport though, my mind was already on the list of ideas and tasks that would need to be tackled before fieldwork in July. My field campaign on Nordic Glacier last summer (see Notes from Nordic and Return to the Field) had been successful, but this season would present a whole host of new challenges. New glacier, new sensors, new objectives.
The overall goal of my project remains the same; to measure the weather conditions over a glacier surface, and to better understand how these conditions affect melt rates. One of the main differences for this year was that two stations would be installed on the glacier rather than one. The idea behind this is to see how weather and energy patterns vary across different points on the surface of the glacier, and how this in turn affects melting. This would mean a doubling of the number of sensors that would need to be prepared and tested.
Test set up of the two stations for the 2015 field campaign, on the grounds of the University of British Columbia (UBC).
Feeling like a roadie: some of the gear that makes up one station.
One of the (mostly) complete stations, in testing at UBC.
One of the more challenging aspects of last year's campaign was ensuring the station remained powered throughout the summer. The nature of mountain weather means that persistent cloud can prevent a solar power system from providing enough energy to the sensors. In addition to doubling the number of stations this year, each station was fitted with a new, power hungry system for measuring turbulent air flow (an important mechanism for transferring heat between the atmosphere and glacier). The upshot is that a total of 12 large boat batteries and 4 solar panels are required this time in the hope of keeping everything beeping and recording over the season.
Each station was fitted with two 140W solar panels.
Modifying the Pelican cases. Each of these cases will house 3 large batteries for powering the stations.
Packing up in the lab, on the night before departure.
This year's destination is Conrad Glacier, in the Purcell Mountains of British Columbia. I had visited Conrad at the end of last season to scout it out as a potential research site. Aside from its scientific merits, it is a beautiful part of the world; flanked by snow covered peaks, with forested valleys below and miles without engines. Named after Conrad Kain, a pioneering Austrian mountaineer who unlocked several first ascents in this area, the glacier is one of many in this region at risk of total disappearance. A recent study has forecast a 70% loss of BC's glaciers this century, with almost total deglaciation in this region. Apart from global consequences to sea level rise, the loss of a glacier is the loss of a large water reservoir, putting pressure on ecosystems and communities (who use the water for drinking, irrigation, and hydro-power) during dry periods like we've had here this summer.
Being just a short journey south from last year's glacier (Nordic), we would again base ourselves in the town of Golden prior to our flight into the mountains. After spending a day on the always spectacular drive from Vancouver to Golden, Valentina and I met up with Ben, a glaciologist from the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) who would be joining us. Over some excellent burgers, we also had the chance to catch up with Tannis and Steve, friends of ours who run a ski lodge in the area, and have been consistently helpful. The plan for the next day was to drive to a staging area in the foothills to the south of Golden, and get all our gear into the mountains in as few chopper loads as possible (with thanks as always to Steve for his expertise on this).
A van-load of science: hitting the road for Golden, BC.
At the staging site, waiting for the helicopter to take us to the glacier, with Steve, Ben, and Valentina.
Summer snow storm, clearing over Conrad Glacier
Directing in the first sling load for station 1 (photo credit: Ben Pelto)
Three helicopter flights (and some delays) later, all crew and equipment were accounted for on Conrad. Our campsite was just off the ice itself, on a rocky outcrop overlooking the glacier. The first evening was a battle against the weather to get tents set up in between heavy showers and gusty winds. Dinner was a simple affair, with everyone retiring to their sleeping bags early; sleep coming to the sound of fluttering tent fabric.
After breakfast the next morning, we set about finding the best route from camp on to the glacier; navigating the broken and crevassed ice along the glacier margin. Two locations had been selected for station 1 and 2 not far from camp. Each station would take about two days to install, with some additional time to prepare and secure everything for a season in the mountains.
Camp, overlooking the glacier on the western nunatak (rock outcrop).
Setting a safety rope for one of the sketchier sections of our route (photo credit: Ben Pelto).
Ben and Valentina drilling holes
The bones of a station.
Working my way through the sensors and wiring (photo credit: Ben Pelto).
The weather had a constant presence throughout the week, with wind, thunder and snow storms slowing the work somewhat, and making cooking a frigid task at the end of the day. Despite what felt like a cold spell to us, it was clear as soon as we saw the glacier that it was experiencing a warm season. In combination with low snowfall during the winter, warm temperatures had resulted in significant melt across the surface by the time we had arrived. Although close to what would normally be the beginning of the melt season, this year's snow had already completely melted up to the high regions of the glacier.
Ben, getting a drink from one of the many melt water streams on the glacier
Wiring the radiometer, which measures the incoming radiation energy from the sun and sky, and the outgoing radiation from the glacier surface.
Setting up the power system for one of the stations.
The brains of the operation. Wiring up the datalogger, which is programmed to store all the data from the station, and to tell the sensors when to take measurements.
Sheltering from another hail storm
With the stations coming together, Ben and I ventured higher up the glacier, and spent an afternoon installing ablation stakes. These stakes, installed along the length of the glacier, provided a record of how many meters of ice are lost or gained at the surface each year, and give an indication of the health or mass balance of the glacier (see Svalbard Part 2: Balancing Act). During the week on Conrad, Ben was also involved in carrying out a kinematic survey; using detailed GPS measurements to create a map of the glacier.
Ben, navigating a crevasse field.
Due to weather delays, the final tasks for installing the stations were completed in the last few hours of the trip. With the helicopter due to pick us up that afternoon, I got moving early on the last day, and headed on to the ice before dawn to shore up the last few pieces of equipment from the elements, and to make sure all the systems were behaving. In the end, two full weather stations were installed, along with a time lapse camera to monitor conditions over the season.
A completed station (solar panels out of shot). This was the lower of the two stations, at around 2,130 meters elevation.
Time lapse camera, for observing the weather conditions on the glacier, and for keeping track of changes to the surface and the stations themselves.
Loading the helicopter for the journey back to civilisation, and a warm shower.
It remains to be seen how the the glacier will respond to this year's melt season, and on a personal level, how all the equipment will perform. A good or bad field campaign will have a major impact on the timeline for my studies and on the goals I hope to achieve. As our chopper lifted off from our disassembled camp and sped down the valley, I took one last glimpse at the stations and the glacier itself, before my eyes turned to home and my mind to the plan for the next trip.
The sun dipping below the peaks on the western margin of Conrad Glacier.
A Note of Thanks: Just prior to leaving for field work, I received word that I was being awarded the Chih-Chuang and Yien-Ying Wang Hsieh Memorial Scholarship for research in Atmospheric Science. A sincere thank you to the Hsieh family. I was honoured to received it.
UP NEXT: The return to Conrad, and what we found.
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Climate, Glaciology, Photography, Travel
Svalbard Part 5: The beauty of the North
April 27, 2015 Noel Fitzpatrick 6 Comments
Some shots from a landscape that I hope we can continue to be inspired by. Click on the images to see them in high resolution. They still won't do the place justice, but it's a start.
Triple point
Frozen air
Polar bear tracks
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Mountaineering, Photography, Travel
Svalbard Part 3: In search of Sun
March 6, 2015 Noel Fitzpatrick 8 Comments
The Sun has been absent since I've arrived here in Longyearbyen. The islands are deep inside the Arctic Circle; the line of latitude north of which it is possible to have 24 hour nights in winter. But Spring is fast approaching.
When a ray of sunlight was spotted hitting the mountain tops on the other side of the fjord, it was decided that a group of us would aim to get as much elevation as possible over the weekend, and try to catch some elusive light. Temperatures would remain well below -20°C over the two days, so warm clothes and moving fast would be essential.
Saturday morning saw us hiking up to Sverdruphamaren; an elevated plateau to the west of Longyearbyen. There is a real sense of wilderness here, and the view is an expanse of white peaks, sea ice, and reindeer. The sun however, remained just below the higher mountains to the south.
Setting out from Longyearbyen on Saturday morning
Ice mascara
The Svalbard Cold Feet Dance
Some opted just to get their feet off the ground altogether.
Chasing the sun across Svalbard's wilderness
Returning back across the plateau after a cold but beautiful day
On Sunday morning, we aimed higher, and set out for Trollsteinen; the peak behind which the Sun had hidden from us the previous day. With temperatures at sea level forecast to be around -30°C, we knew we were in for a cold summit. Our route would bring us south of Longyearbyen, up the glacier of Larsbreen, before ascending onto the main ridge of the mountain. The winds were calm, and the skies were perfectly clear, promising excellent views, and potentially some vitamin D.
Heading south, with Longyearbyen in the distance
Lone hiker on Larsbreen
Beginning to ascend towards the ridge
The Sun! The end of polar night, as viewed from the main ridge of Trollsteinen
The Sun is literally days away from reappearing here in the valley, and the community of Longyearbyen will mark its return this weekend with a festival in its honour. It's certainly something worth celebrating, but I'll still be happy to experience a few more Svalbard nights.
The Aurora over Longyearbyen
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Notes from Nordic
August 21, 2014 Noel Fitzpatrick 14 Comments
The winter snowpack was still hiding crevasses. Where it had melted, large swaths of cracked and yawning ice had been exposed, hinting at what may lie beneath the snow cover.
One day earlier, July 8th, Valentina Radic and I had left Vancouver, aiming for the town of Golden, near British Columbia's eastern border. Our route brought us on a nine hour drive, passing from the Coastal Mountains, through the vast Interior Plateau, and into the Selkirk range near the edge of the Rockies.
Golden was to be the staging point for this summer's field campaign. The plan was to install a weather and glacier monitoring station on Nordic Glacier. The station was to observe the melt rate of the surface of the glacier, and to record any meteorological varibles that may affect melting (see The Project).
Nordic was selected as its meltwater drains into the Columbia river. This is the largest river in the the Pacific Northwest, and the forth largest in the United States. It stretches for 2,000km, through BC and seven US states, with a drainage basin the size of France. Its waters are used for irrigation and hydroelectric power production, with 14 dams on the main stem, and more on its tributaries. I had encountered the Columbia before, but much further downstream in the state of Washington, while rock climbing (see Vantage Point).
On arriving in Golden, we drove straight to the home of our hosts for the night, Tannis and Steve. When initially planning this trip, we had intended to camp once we got into the mountains, but Tannis and Steve kindly offered us the use of their backcounty ski lodge (Sorcerer Lodge) which is located in the same valley as Nordic. Operating in the area for over twenty years, they have seen firsthand the changes undergone by the glacier. It was inspiring to see the interest and enthusiasm (and knowledge) that they showed for the project, and was a reminder that this research wasn't just an academic exercise. Joining us in Golden were Brian Menounus and Federico Ponce, two researchers from the University of Northern British Columbia. With our team of four assembled, we stocked up on some soon to be burned calories (with excellent burgers in Golden), and bedded down for an early departure.
Line of action. Morning of departure for the mountains, with Steve (pictured) assisting with the logistics of the helicopter transport. (Click on images to expand)
Loading the helicopter.
Ascending the valley towards the mountains.
Our flight to the glacier the following morning went smoothly, with Steve lending us his experience with helicopter transports. Valentina and I went in on the first run to scan for a suitable site for the station, and to get dropped off on the glacier with the main equipment for the station. Brian and Federico were to travel in on the second run to bring equipment to the lodge.
After several months of looking at Nordic in photographs and maps, seeing it grow larger through the window of the helicopter, I felt excited and nervous. As we drew closer however, I was concerned to see the extent of the snow cover in the area we had been planning to deploy. Working on a 'dry' section of a glacier (where there is no snow) has the major advantage of being able to see the location of the crevasses. Not only is this much safer, it allows you to move and work more efficiently, as precautions such as being roped together are not necessary. We had hoped that the winter snow pack would have melted from our site by the time we arrived, but it appeared that, for this season, we were a little early.
Initial fly over of the glacier to select a suitable site. It became apparent at this point that there was still significant snow cover.
We landed on the glacier, and unloaded our equipment with the engines still running. As soon as we were clear of the downwash from the departing helicopter, we roped up and started surveying the area for the flattest spot for our station, probing the snow as we moved to check for crevasses. After the helicopter returned to deposit the larger pieces of equipment, we flew down as far as the lodge to meet with Brian and Federico. With conditions the way they were, we decided we would hike up to the glacier together, and find the safest route to the site.
Traversing the moraine at the beginning of the hike to the glacier. Smoke from forest fires further down the valley can be seen hanging in the background.
Nordic Glacier. After descending the moraine, our route crossed the river, and followed the base of the mountain on the left side of the image as far as the patch of rust coloured rock to the left of the upper lake. This marks the beginning of the 'Wedding Band', which we ascended up to the left to gain access on to the glacier.
Each day, our hike to the glacier would begin with crossing the lateral moraine that separated the lodge from the main valley. From there, we would descend and traverse the valley to the other side, crossing the river to do so. The river crossing was a glacier monitoring exercise in itself. As the river's source is the melt water draining from the glacier, there was a distinct daily pattern in the strength and level of the flow. In the morning, when there had been little melting during the colder night temperatures, the water level would be well below my knee. Returning in the evening, after a day of warm temperatures and sunshine, the flow would be much stronger, pulling at already tired legs. As you'd imagine, the water was pretty cold, and it was incredible to feel how quickly your heat could be drained away.
Approaching the crossing. The river is fed directly by melt water from the glacier, meaning its temperature is very cold, and its flow varies greatly with the time of day.
Rock Ptarmigan. I came across quite a few of these, usually only noticing them when I was within a couple of meters, and they would burst from behind a rock , freaking me and themselves out.
The Wedding Band.
Ascending alongside the glacier, significant crevasses were visible in the ice where the snow cover had melted.
Setting out on the glacier towards the site where we had deposited our equipment by helicopter.
Probing for crevasses on the snow covered sections of the glacier (Photo by Valentina Radic).
Installing the station came together relatively quickly. Although the glacier is a very different working environment to the lab or test field, I really felt the benefit of all the trial runs and lab assemblies. The station was constructed, wired, and operating after one, albeit long day, and it was fantastic to have the additional manpower of Brian and Federico, who obliged me with some serious ice drilling. A second day was spent testing to see how the data and power system was performing, and also securing the various components of the station in preparation for two months on the side of a mountain.
A combination of steam drilling (above) and augering (below) was used to bore holes into the ice for mounting some of the sensors.
Mounting and wiring the sensors on the main 'quadpod' (Photo by Federico Ponce).
The completed station, looking northwest. The solar panel can be seen in the left background, which recharges the batteries housed in the yellow case. The rain gauge and the snow/ice level monitor mast is behind the main station. The blue tarp contains the tools and equipment used for the installation, and will be left secured on the glacier until the station is dismantled.
A camera for monitoring the glacier and the station over the season (see A Camera For all Seasons) was installed to the south, with its view similar to the previous image.
The weather during our field work was relatively warm and sunny, and we would notice a significant difference in the surface of the glacier between ascending in the morning and descending in the evening. Crevasses and meltwater streams were appearing as the summer melt season kicked in.
Mohammed Ali once said, 'it isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe.' In this case, it was the mosquito inside your mosquito net. We carried out our field work during the buggiest few days of a particularly buggy season, and these mosquitoes couldn't believe their luck when they saw us coming. I've spent time in the Amazon jungle, and this was comparable. Once on the ice however, the buzzing clouds would disappear, and we could work in peace.
My buzzing hat. The locals were out in force to welcome us (Photo by Federico Ponce).
Each evening, with duties on the glacier finished, we would begin our return hike back to the lodge. Despite being tired, this was always my favourite part of the day. No longer focusing on tasks that needed to be done, I could better appreciate the surroundings, particularly in the hour around sunset when everything would be painted gold and blue. To work in such an environment is a privilege, and time needed to be taken to set aside concerns and stresses, and simply take note of where we were.
Sunset on Nordic mountain.
Emerging stars.
On the morning of departure, we flew over the glacier to get our last view of the station for the next two months. I will return at the beginning of September to see how well it survived, to dismantle and transport it back to Vancouver, and to start working on what its data can tell us.
The station through a telephoto lens, as seen from the lodge on the morning of departure.
Flying over the moraine.
Station from above as we flew out.
Passing through the Selkirk range (images above and below) on the flight back to golden.
Returning to base.
We tackled the drive back to Vancouver on the day we flew down, utilising several food/coffee/ice cream stops to keep sleep and the 35°C of the Interior Plateau at bay. Arriving back to the city, I was tired but content that the work had gone well, and looking forward to taking it easy for a few days before preparing for my next trip (Alaska). Calling into the lab to drop off a couple of items before going home, I was greeted by a delivery of 4 large boxes; the starting components for next year's stations. It was time to get some sleep.
The beginnings of next year's field campaign.
Up Next: I've just returned from a glaciology summer school in Alaska; photo-journal coming in the next couple of days.
BCClimateGlaciersGlaciologyGoldenMountainsPhotographyResearch
Svalbard Part 6: Stories in the Ice
Lengthening shadows on Lake Garibaldi
Noel Fitzpatrick on The Parkway
Maureen Maughan on The Parkway
Noel Fitzpatrick on Seasons of Ice: Part 1 Spring
eamonfitzpatrick on Seasons of Ice: Part 1 Spring
Seasons of Ice: Part… on On Conrad Glacier: Part 2, and…
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Glaciology, Climate, Travel, Mountaineering, Photography
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What are your memories of the Forest Fair Mall?
The Journal-News recently dug into the archives to find old photos of the mall when it was brimming with activity, including from the air.
Click on the card below to view the photo gallery.


text:
Review board to hear more than 5,000 property appeals
Board of Review to hear more than 5,000 property appeals
By Amanda Roberts | September 10, 2019 at 10:57 PM CDT - Updated September 10 at 10:57 PM
NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) - More than 100,000 New Orleans property owners saw changes to their 2020 assessments and nearly 6,000 of them are still fighting to appeal.
Orleans Parish Tax Assessor Erroll Williams said more than 9,000 people walked through the assessors office to appeal their property values.
"We met with as many people as we could where we settled, we settled those assessments," Williams said.
According to Williams, the last time the office saw that many appeals was when the parish shifted to a one assessor system.
"It's a record year in that we did 129,000 changes. Normally we average between 35,000 and 55,000 as we phase in the four-year valuation," Williams said.
He said they're still working with property owners to settle some of the 5,800 appeals before they go to the board of review. They hoped to whittle the number of appeals to less than 5,000, but the board of review is scheduled to start hearing those appeals next week.
Property owners should be notified of their scheduled time to appear before the board of review.
While the city council acts as the board of review, appellants will not have an appointment to appear before the city council.
Councilman Jared Brossett said they hired a third party contractor, Hammerman and Gainer International to hear all those appeals.
"I'm not a certified appraiser, these are the experts and they're going to sit down with each appellant and go through each of their documents politely and respectfully," Brossett said.
Brossett said he's worried about the potential consequences from the quadrennial assessment. He said this is the highest number of appeals he's seen since his time in council, and said citizens' fears with doubled and tripled assessments are real.
"That you're forced out of Orleans Parish and that's frustrating to think of, when you think of what people have gone through the last few months with these appeals," Brossett said.
He said right now, the process needs to play out. After the contractors hear those appeals, Brossett said the group will compile a report of the appeal outcomes for each of the council districts. The council will then vote as they would a resolution, to uphold or reject the group's report.
Brossett said he'll be anxious to see the figures.
"[We're] asking for patience while we work diligently through our process now that we've started," Brossett said.
Hammerman and Gainer did not respond to FOX 8′s request for comment.
The schedule for the appeal appointments have been posted, and property owners should be receiving notification of their hearing dates and times. If after the council approves the appeals, property owners still have the ability to appeal to the Louisiana state tax commission.
Amanda is incredibly excited be a part of the Fox 8 News team. She is a Nashville, Tennessee native with strong ties to the New England North; she's now happy to have made it to what her family and friends refer to as the "Deep South."
JPSO investigating Metairie homicide
One man is dead following a shooting in Metairie late Friday night, according to police.
Jade Myers
Fans celebrate the LSU Tigers with a ceremony fit for champions
The awards celebration was more of a party than a ceremony.
Katherine Mozzone
Police: Two killed in I-12 crash; driver impairment suspected
Nicole Mumphrey
Arrest warrant rescinded for Odell Beckham Jr. in rear-slapping incident
Residents voice concerns and relief over city's plan to implode Hard Rock
Josh Roberson
Arrest made in St. Charles Parish bank robbery

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The BC Forensic Psychiatric Hospital has had a long history of violent patient attacks against nurses and other staff members.
Keeping an eye out for these types of actions and stopping a student before a situation escalates will enable school staff to maintain a safe environment.
A school security guard can be seen trying to break up a student fight as another starts behind her at Victory Collegiate High School in Brooklyn.
Penn State has been sued and Ohio State has been threatened with a lawsuit for not renting out space on campus to controversial speaker Richard Spencer.
Data from the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law indicates the overall 2017 crime rate will drop by 1.8 percent.
Protesters and counterprotesters clashed at the Thomas Jefferson statue on the UVA campus Friday night, leading to one arrest and multiple injuries.
As many as 200 teens were part of the mobs, although far fewer people are suspected of crimes.
Police believe Xinran Ji was assaulted by a group of men as he was walking home from school after midnight.


Originally from Ireland, Colin immigrated to Sydney in 2009, having previously lived in Sydney from 1998-2001.
My Foot health career began over 20 years ago working in ski and mountaineering shops, fitting ski boots and climbing boots, and making custom foot beds. Worked as a professional boot fitter in ski resorts in Europe before moving to the UK in 2002 to study a BSc (Hons) Podiatry degree.
After I qualified I worked in the NHS in the south of England for several years within a busy musculoskeletal department, with a special interest in neurological conditions and sports injuries, while working within a neurological team within the NHS trust. I have also worked within a hospital outpatients setting in Rheumatology and stroke units, treating a variety of musculoskeletal conditions through orthosis and rehab.
I decided to move back to Sydney in 2009 and have been working in private practice in all aspects of Podiatry and specialising in Biomechanics and rehab.
I have a 3 year old daughter that keeps me on my toes, and we are trying for our second child (gluten for punishment I'm told). I love my rugby, skiing obviously and mountain biking when time permits, and can usually find me out in the bush on the northern beaches or manly Dam.


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Washington, DC: Capital One customers who called to activate a new credit card, may have been routed to representatives who try to sell additional products such as "credit protection"or "identity monitoring." These services, or "add-on products,"are additional, optional services that will cost the customer money and are not mandatory. In some cases, the sales tactics may be high-pressure and confusing, and are considered deceptive marketing tactics.
In 2012, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced its first public enforcement action against Capital One Bank (USA), N.A. This action resulted from a CFPB examination that identified deceptive marketing practices used by Capital One' vendors to pressure or mislead consumers into paying for "add-on products"such as payment protection and credit monitoring when they activated their credit cards.
Misled about eligibility: Although most of the payment protection benefits kicked in when consumers became disabled or lost a job, some call center representatives marketed and sold the product to ineligible unemployed and disabled consumers. Despite paying the full fees, they could not get all the benefits of payment protection; some later filed claims that were denied because their "loss"(e.g. loss of job or onset of disability) occurred prior to enrollment.
Enrolled without their consent: Some call center vendors processed the add-on product purchases without the consumer' consent. Consumers were then automatically billed for the product and often had trouble cancelling the product when they called to do so.
I have received capital one "preapproval" mail EVERYDAY for my husband and I for the last 5 years. Even the same pre approval letter for my deceased mother in law. It's beyond excessive!
I had a Capital One secured mastercard to help build my credit, and the interest rates were ridiculous. I would like to get in on this lawsuit.
ABOUT RECENT APPLICATION FOR CAPITAL ONE CARD. WAS APPROVED FOR SECURED CARD BUT AM HEFTY FEES ON THE ONE I ALREADY HAVE.


Beijing: Japan's big three shipping lines face more headaches from a spiralling car carrier price fixing row. Bloomberg is reporting Beijing is now investigating the trio – Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK), Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line) – for their alleged price fixing. The three lines control a majority of the Chinese market.
Car carrier companies have faced a string of similar investigations around the world in recent years, including in the EU, Japan, Canada and the US.
Beijing's National Development and Reform Commission is understood to be looking at the Japanese trio's "monopolistic" position related to the Chinese car market.
None of the three lines has acknowledged this latest investigation.


text:
James Weston Dew Is TWO!
Two years ago we welcomed our second, and most likely our last, baby.
Happy birthday James Weston!
I could say all those cliche mom things like, "we don't know what life would be like without you in it" and "two years has gone by so fast" but I won't bore you with those sentiments. Instead I'll leave you with a little glimpse into life with James for the past two years.
James added a whole new level of love to my heart when he was born. My heart swelled bigger than it had ever been and I don't think I've ever been so in love as I was the moment he was born. I probably shouldn't say that because I have another child but it's true. I felt things when he was born that I had never experienced before. It could be because he was a boy and it could also be because we had a lot more alone time than I got with Kendall. Either way, my heart doubled in size that day.
He's the most adorable hunk of chunk I've ever laid eyes on. I swear that boy is too cute for his own good. I know everyone thinks their kid's the cutest but my golly, that boy is delicious. The other night I studied his little folds because while he still has that chubby part left he's getting really tall and leaning out so I know it's just a matter of time before that last bit of babyness is gone. He's always been the chubbiest baby I know but every day he's looking more and more like a little boy. Thank goodness for those puffy pillow cheeks, as long as he has those he'll still look like a baby.
James keeps me on my toes at all times. I mean, the kids already had a broken leg for crying out loud. He's rotten to the core and is usually up to no good. He climbs all the things, gets into drawers he shouldn't and hits his sister any time he gets the opportunity. He is smart too. We've had to rig our doors so that he can't get outside because if he even senses for a minute that the he can escape, he will. At the park he will climb the tallest thing and try to jump off. It's totally scary and from what I understand it's totally a boy thing. Whenever I share a picture of him at least one comment with say how ornery he looks and it's true, he is.
He's started talking a bit more lately and his latest words are "motorcycle" and "Popsicle" which he confuses and mixes up but it's really adorable. He calls Jimmy "daddy-o" all of the sudden and it makes everyone laugh who hears it. It's never "daddy" or "dad" or even "dada", he's always "daddy-o" and it's always my favorite. Every morning when he wakes up the first words out of his mouth are, "I ride tractor?" and I always say, "not today buddy" {we don't even have a tractor} and he always says, "pease". Melts my heart. Jibberish is still his main form of communication though.
The sleeping department has taken a turn for the worse lately. James has always been a good nighttime sleeper. Naps were nonexistent till he was about 10-11 months but he slept through the night starting at 3 months. For the past yearish he's been sleeping a solid 10-12 hours at night, going down at 7 and sleeping till 8-9. But since our vacation, almost a month ago, he's been fussing to go down and waking up at 6:30. He also started climbing out of his crib this week. We're working on that.
His daddy lights up his life. When Jimmy gets home from work he wants nothing more to do with me and it's all daddy until bedtime. But daddy gets to do fun stuff like take him on the RZR and 4-wheeler so I don't blame him. He's also his daddy's mini me, so there's that. He loves his sissy. It's a love/hate relationship really but it's more love than hate. She's the first one he'll say "sowwy" to and he will randomly lay his head on her and snuggle. But they fight more than they snuggle so don't get what I'm saying confused. But those rare moments they are sweet make me realize why we had another baby.
Two years ago life got a lot more hectic but it also got a lot more love. James has made our family what it is today, crazy, loud, chaotic and loads of fun. We will never be bored with him around, that's for sure. He's messy but he's the best. I couldn't ask for a more perfect fit for our family. He's exactly what we needed.
Happy birthday James Weston, you light up our lives.
Labels: baby dew #2, birthday, James Weston
Kenzie @ Life According to Kenz August 14, 2015 at 10:10 AM
I cannot believe he is two already! Happy birthday, sweet James!
That smile... I love seeing it on my fb and on the blog. Seriously thought...TWO! Happy Birthday Big Guy! I study Oliver's rolls every day because I know when #3 gets here it will be more about its rolls then Oliver's. The remedy to the tractor question is to get him a battery operated one... O loves his and he quit asking to ride the big ones, well until Monday when Tim showed him the new combine now he just wants to ride in the "bombine".
PS: I believe this post explains O to a tee too... Replace your K with my C and I think we have the exact same kid, except "daddy-o" is "pops".


text:
Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau
Last names beginning with R
Redwood, Henry
Kōrero: Redwood, Henry
Haurongo tūhonohono
Whārangi 1: Biography
Henry Redwood
Farmer, politician, racehorse breeder
I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Mollie Dickinson,, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau Ko te wāhanga , 1993.
Henry Redwood was born in the parish of Tixall, Staffordshire, England, on 24 January 1823. He was the son of Mary Gilbert and her husband, Henry Redwood, a farmer. With their nine children and son-in-law, Joseph Ward, the Redwoods sailed for New Zealand on the George Fyfe in June 1842. Henry, then aged 19, was already an experienced farmer and had ridden and raced his own horse. After a difficult voyage the family arrived at Nelson on 12 December 1842.
For the next 20 years the Redwoods farmed in Waimea West, 15 miles from Nelson. The early years were a fight for subsistence: ducks, quails, larks and wild pigs were frequently shot. In 1843 Henry junior established a butchery in Nelson, providing the market with mutton, beef and butter.
On 23 January 1845 he married Elizabeth Reeves, née Palmer, a widow, at the Redwoods' cob-built home, Stafford Place. They were to have two sons and a daughter. At Waimea West Henry built a new home, Hednesford, and stables of home-made bricks. He was a progressive farmer, one of the first to use a threshing machine and a steam plough. In 1863 Redwood moved with his family to Marlborough and settled at Spring Creek in the Wairau River valley. He was elected to the Nelson Provincial Council representing Waimea West in 1863 and the Marlborough Provincial Council representing Tuamarina in 1868. In 1865 he founded a flour mill at Spring Creek.
The Redwoods were stalwart supporters of the Catholic church. The family had attended Mass in Nelson, usually travelling on foot, and they had daily services at home or in the shearing shed or cow byre, as work demanded. They were hosts to all visiting clergy, including Bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier. Later, Father Antoine Garin became a close family friend and Henry's youngest brother, Francis, became archbishop of New Zealand.
Henry Redwood was prominent in sporting circles, serving as steward for the Nelson Jockey Club from 1848. An excellent shot, he became the Australasian champion for pigeon shooting; he also sailed his own yacht, the Torea. His great love was racing, however, earning him both locally and in Europe the title of 'Father of the New Zealand Turf'. At Hednesford, he established the first stud in New Zealand. Probably in 1852, the brig Spray brought in the stallion Sir Hercules along with 20 mares and fillies. Their progeny won races on both sides of the Tasman Sea. Redwood bought stock from Australia and France, later returning some of the offspring. On 4 March 1863 his mare, Ladybird, won the first New Zealand Champion Race against horses from Australia as well as New Zealand. In all, Redwood won the Wellington Cup and Dunedin Cup twice, the Canterbury Cup three times and the Nelson Cup and Marlborough Cup four times each. His colours, black jacket and red cap – carried for seven years by his son, Joseph (Joe) – were well known and his victories popular. He was a man of integrity and all his horses ran to win, although he seldom made money. For some years he raced in partnership with Hugh Stafford, and later with G. G. Stead. He was known for his sternness to his stable boys and his kindness to his horses. In Sydney he successfully raced Strop, then sold him. Not satisfied with the horse's treatment he bought him back, at a loss, to give him honourable retirement in Nelson. Henry Redwood's stud was considered to be 'outstanding', and as valuable 'as could be found in any British colony'.
A genial, burly man, with a beard like a mop surrounding his face, he had a fund of racing and pioneering stories, loved argument and could quote passages of Shakespeare. Elizabeth Redwood died on 5 July 1891. Full of years and honour Henry Redwood died in Blenheim on 9 November 1907.
Tiritiria tēnei whārangi
Tāngia te kōrero katoa
Whai muri:Hononga, rauemi nō waho
Mollie Dickinson. 'Redwood, Henry', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1993. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/biographies/2r7/redwood-henry (accessed 23 January 2020)


Time for a confession. Before the start of this year I had never heard of a Brown Argus. I didn't know that it was a butterfly. How bad is that. Moreover, I saw them in the results for the Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey, and assumed that they were a specialist that I would never see. I saw pictures on Facebook and then thought nothing much more about them. In fact I wasn't sure I would recognise one if I saw it.
Yesterday I took my camera out for a walk – for once the weather was warm and not very breezy. I saw a lot of gatekeepers, a very lovely small copper – a butterfly that I had never seen in Daventry before. I also saw some common blues flitting about the field edges. Lots of photographs were taken as you can probably imagine.
Today I decided to upload them and sort out the fuzzy from the sharp as well as those that might not be the best, but could be useful for ID purposes. After I had sorted and tagged them it occurred to me that I had assumed that the small brown butterflies were common blue females (which have wings that vary from blue through to brown) because they had frequently been disturbed by blue males. But, for some reason I thought I would see what the difference was between a brown argus and a female common blue.
A brown argus has no blue on the upper side of its wings, whereas there may be some blue scales on the female common blue. It also has more orangey spots along the edge and often a dark brown spot in the middle of its brown wings. Not much help because my photos were all of the underside of the wings. So, for the undersides the description was related to two spots with that form a figure of eight on the hindwing and the absence of a spot on the forewing for the Brown Argus. This didn't seem to be much help either – I was a bit non-plussed until I saw what they were talking about in pictures on the UK Butterflies website. Suddenly I knew what to look for and guess what? Yes, one of the butterflies I photographed was in fact my very first Brown Argus – colour me happy!
I'm not sure if this is a viable population as my Northamptonshire butterfly book states that their range has contracted a lot in the county and that their traditional food plant is rock rose and, where this is not available, they have moved onto crane's bill. Unfortunately the only things I could see around the field edge were ragwort and a chamomile, along with lots of grass. I will have to have a look around there to see if I can find the requisite flowers!


Abstract The present invention relates to the field of medical ultrasonics. The imaging method uses two-dimensional CVIB image as imaging factor and mixes the CVIB pseudo-color image of interested area together with B-type ultrasonic image to form the mixed-together By-type ultrasonic image of integration fluctuation cardiac muscle's backward scattering. The present invention utilizes IB curve in estimating the blood supplying state of cardiac muscle and CVIB as direct imaging characteristic quantity to establish two-dimensional CVIB image. The intuitive image pattern can reflect directly the periodic fluctuation of IB curve in points of cardiac muscle.


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text:
Петър Крумов Атанасов е български хоров диригент, композитор и аранжор.

Биография
Роден е на 6 август 1934 г. в град Стара Загора. Завършва хорово дирижиране през 1957 г. в Българската държавна консерватория (днес Национална музикална академия "Панчо Владигеров") при професор Георги Димитров. От същата 1957 г. е главен художествен ръководител на Добруджанския ансамбъл за народни песни и танци от град Добрич, който ръководи до 1982 г. До 1988 г. е ръководител на фолклорния ансамбъл "Силистра". Носител е през 1959, 1964, 1969 и 1984 г. на златни медали за национален фолклор. Автор е на книги за българския фолклор и българската музика.

През 2003 г. е удостоен със званието "Почетен гражданин на град Добрич".

Умира на 20 декември 2021 г.

Източници

Български диригенти
Български композитори
Родени в Стара Загора
Почетни граждани на Добрич
Възпитаници на Националната музикална академия

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


What is Freedom Self Publishing?
Freedom Self Publishing is the most complete Kindle training course available. It teaches you exactly what you need to know to be successful at selling e-books on Amazon Kindle, and how to start making passive income online!
As a member of Freedom Self Publishing you will also gain access to our bonus, members-only, Facebook group.
In this group you will have personal access to myself, as well as many other successful and aspiring Kindle publishers.
This is a super valuable area where you can get your questions answered, organise review swaps, meet like-minded individuals, and stay on the cutting edge of everything Kindle Publishing!
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My name is Adrian Ingram and for the past 3.5 years I've been publishing books on Amazon Kindle.
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Now it will take a bit of time to get started and get your book published in the first place, but once you've gone through the publishing process and have your book on Amazon, it will be almost completely passive!
Then, you can just continue to publish more and more books and build up a Kindle Publishing empire of your own!
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These strategies are seriously powerful, and are what you need to know to be successful with publishing in 2017 and beyond.
Here you will learn how to hire a virtual assistant. I use virtual assistants to make my publishing business passive, and also to scale it. Having virtual assistants is what allowed me to publish so many books, and it's also what let's me maintain my Kindle income in only 1 hour per week!
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text:
Q: Different geometric figures from trapezoids I have recently bought a very interesting a Brazilian kit to my kid to build mosaics:

It is easy to see that I am able to generate equilateral triangles, hexagons, parallelograms, Rhombuses etc. Furthermore, it is easy to see that the base angles are equal to 60 degrees. I wonder if there are other interesting geometric figures that can be built using this kit. If the bases angles of the basic trapezoid were equal to 45 degrees the Rhombus that I built would be a square. However, until now I am not able to build a square using this kit. Are there geometric algorithms that can be used to study this kind of problem?
EDIT:
What cannot be made with this kit? How can I prove this statement?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Barbara Gail Miller Older
November 8, 1951 — June 6, 2022
Barbara Gail Miller Older, 70, of Foster, WV went to be with the Lord Monday, June 6, 2022 surrounded by her loved ones after a short battle with cancer.
Barbara was born November 8, 1951 to James and Lorene "Penny" Miller. In addition to her parents she was preceded in death by her brother Jeffrey Miller.
Those left to cherish her memories are her loving husband of 52 years, Russell Older; her children, Jamie (Lori) Older and Rusty (Ashley) Older; grandchildren, Grant Older, Chloe Older, Luke Older, Claudia Older, Addy Older and Harper Older; her brothers, Kermit (Connie) Miller, Warren (Kay) Miller and Richard (Denise) Miller; and several nieces and nephews.
She was a longtime member of the Foster Church of Christ; and was a homemaker. Barbara was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend. She will be greatly missed.
Services will be 2 p.m. Thursday, June 9 at Handley Funeral Home in Danville, WV with Wendell Hill and Nate Dolin officiating. Burial will follow in Miller Cemetery on Miller Lane, Foster, WV.
Visitation will be from 1 p.m. until service time.
You may express your condolences to the family at www.handleyfh.com .
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Barbara Gail Miller Older, please visit our flower store.
439 Phipps Ave, Danville, WV 25053


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Mayor Murray publicly thanks Seattle police after Delridge apartment fire
SEATTLE – Mayor Ed Murray publicly thanked members of the Seattle Police Department and first responders Wednesday for their heroic efforts after a massive fire at a Seattle House Authority apartment complex.
Murray said at least 44 adults and children were displaced from the fire at the Lam Bow apartments, but no reports of injuries in part to the quick responses by a SHA maintenance worker and a Seattle police officer who happened to be in the area. Both men went door-to-door in the burning building and guided everyone to safety.
More than 100 firefighters joined by dozens of police officers responded to the blaze.
"Seattle police were first on the scene," Murray said. "These officers didn't wait because they knew lives were at risk. These officers ran into the building to make sure everyone got out."
The Red Cross sent volunteers to the site to work with residents on emergency housing and other needs.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Wednesday marks 2 years of COVID-19 in Washington


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Q: selecting columns specified by a random vector in R I have a large matrix from which I would like to randomly extract a smaller matrix.  (I want to do this 1000 times, so ultimately it will be in a for loop.)  Say for example that I have this 9x9 matrix:
mat=matrix(c(0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1,
          0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,
          1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1), nrow=9)

From this matrix, I would like a random 3x3 subset.  The trick is that I do not want any of the row or column sums in the final matrix to be 0.  Another important thing is that I need to know the original number of the rows and columns in the final matrix.  So, if I end up randomly selecting rows 4, 5, and 7 and columns 1, 3, and 8, I want to have those identifiers easily accessible in the final matrix.
Here is what I've done so far.
First, I create a vector of row numbers and column numbers.  I am trying to keep these attached to the matrix throughout.
r.num<-seq(from=1,to=nrow(mat),by=1)      #vector of row numbers
c.num<-seq(from=0, to=(ncol(mat)+1),by=1) #vector of col numbers (adj for r.num)

mat.1<-cbind(r.num,mat)
mat.2<-rbind(c.num,mat.1)

Now I have a 10x10 matrix with identifiers.  I can select my rows by creating a random vector and subsetting the matrix.
rand <- sample(r.num,3)
temp1 <- rbind(mat.2[1,],mat.2[rand,])      #keep the identifier row

This works well!  Now I want to randomly select 3 columns.  This is where I am running into trouble.  I tried doing it the same way.
rand2 <- sample(c.num,3)
temp2 <- cbind(temp1[,1],temp1[,rand2])

The problem is that I end up with some row and column sums that are 0.  I can eliminate columns that sum to 0 first.
temp3 <- temp1[,which(colSums(temp1[2:nrow(temp1),])>0)]
cols <- which(colSums(temp1[2:nrow(temp1),2:ncol(temp1)])>0)
rand3 <- sample(cols,3)
temp4 <- cbind(temp3[,1],temp3[,rand3])

But I end up with an error message.  For some reason, R does not like to subset the matrix this way.
So my question is, is there a better way to subset the matrix by the random vector "rand3" after the zero columns have been removed OR is there a better way to randomly select three complementary rows and columns such that there are none that sum to 0?
Thank you so much for your help!

A: If I understood your problem, I think this would work:
mat=matrix(c(0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1,
          0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,
          1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,1), nrow=9)

smallmatrix = matrix(0,,nrow=3,ncol=3)

 while(any(apply(smallmatrix,2,sum) ==0) | any(apply(smallmatrix,1,sum) ==0)){
      cols = sample(ncol(mat),3)
      rows= sample(nrow(mat),3)
      smallmatrix = mat[rows,cols]
}

colnames(smallmatrix) = cols
rownames(smallmatrix) = rows


We're pleased to announce that Planet Of The Abts will be playing the "Pre-Party" for the 8th Annual Mountain Jam Festival on Thursday, May 31st, 2012. Additional info will be provided shortly (exact time and stage) so check back soon! Tickets for the 8th Annual Mountain Jam can be found here.


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Facebook closes Italy pro-government fake news pages: rights group
The Avaaz rights group placed cardboard cutouts of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg outside the US Capitol in Washington last year, calling attention to what they say are many millions of fake accounts spreading disinformation on Facebook The Avaaz rights group placed cardboard cutouts of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg outside the US Capitol in Washington last year, calling attention to what they say are many millions of fake accounts spreading disinformation on Facebook AFP
Rome (AFP)
Facebook has closed 23 mostly pro-government pages in Italy which were spreading fake news and anti-immigrant content, after an investigation by Avaaz, the civil rights group said on Monday.
More than half of the pages, which had a total of almost 2.5 million followers, supported the far-right anti-immigrant League party or the anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which form the ruling coalition, Avaaz said in a statement.
The most active page translates as "We want the Five Star Movement in government" which had shared a quote wrongly attributed to anti-mafia writer Roberto Saviano that he would "prefer to save migrants than Italian earthquake victims."
Saviano was forced to publicly deny having said it.
A pro-League page shared a video which it wrongly said depicted migrants smashing up a police car.
The footage was in fact filmed for a movie, but was viewed almost 10 million times, days ahead of next week's European parliament elections in which Italian populist parties hope to do well.
"This is more proof that lies designed to sow hate and division in our societies are being spread deliberately on social media ahead of the EU elections," said Avaaz's Christoph Schott.
"Facebook has done a good job in taking these pages down, but it says a lot that a multi-billion dollar company is relying on a crowd-funded Avaaz investigation to defend Europe?s democracy. Facebook need to do more, and they need to do it fast."
Avaaz also noted the practice of "recycling followers" used by some supporters of the two ruling parties, whereby a page with non-political content changes its name to become political or partisan, retaining likes and followers.
One such page "was started as an agricultural breeders? association of the Messina province and eventually became a League-supporting local chapter. The change was made one word at a time, gradually, using the ambiguity of the word 'League' to avoid the automatic checks carried out by Facebook," Avaaz said.
Facebook and other social networks are regularly accused of not doing enough to eliminate fake news from its platform.


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Home/Culture/On Facebook: Disclosure, or Life Laid Bare in Shades of Blue
Mustafa Naji > Send an email
Language and expression are essential subjects of interest in the human sciences. The humanities are keen to study the concept of free time, the feelings, expressions and behaviors that arise within it. Individuals may not intend to document these blocks of time, but for the past decade Facebook has provided an ongoing record. A chronicle for a state of inertia that is documented in the form of a detailed diary, where individuals collectively monitor themselves.
In a previous article, I wrote that the lives of Yemenis revolve around social media platforms, especially Facebook.[1] There are many reasons for this, including the speed of interaction, as well as the political and social circumstances that accompanied the surge of Facebook use, at least since 2011. In her book, Mind Change: How Digital Technologies are Leaving Their Mark on Our Brains,[2] Susan Greenfield gives us a comprehensive account of the changes that occur in the brain and in the chemistry of the body when using social networks, specifically Facebook.
In this article, we will also focus on Facebook, since it allows for a greater maximum character limit compared with other social media platforms, and the majority of posts are public.
First, we will take a closer look at Facebook posts in terms of style. The aim is to provide a brief analysis that allows us to examine the freedom of expression facilitated by social media and the consequences of this expression on social life. Since the individual is the focus of the examination, our analysis will be limited to personal posts that do not include content related to public affairs, political activism or human rights advocacy.
This study arises from a group of Facebook accounts that I have been following for a long time. These accounts are unique because they bring new people to the social media scene and are publicly available. They rely on words more than images in their posts, which is a point of interest, and the reason behind this study.
Artwork by Maha al-Omari
The nature of Facebook texts
Literary studies are interested in the written text in social media in terms of its content, structure and expressive methods, as well as its interaction with its environment. The nature of social networks facilitates an influx of many news-oriented topics and instant comments, which closes the distance between the source of the text and the recipient. As a result, the flow of writing on Facebook is also instantaneous, urgent and interactive, corresponding to multiple and accelerating daily events.[3]
Facebook opened up the horizon for popular writing and created a platform beyond the limits of publishing and the monopoly of the printed page. In a way, it has created a community of writers. Everyone can create a page and gain followers and audiences who post comments to encourage and praise the writing outside of objective criticism. As a result, instant reflective writing flourished.
When we refer to Facebook writing, we are referring to writing that conveys experience, feelings, sensations, introspection, psychological perceptions and perspectives. All of which fall into the criteria of a literary work based on the techniques of the genre and its function: narration, description and aesthetic harmony.
In general, writing on Facebook contains descriptive news, which tells and transmits a story. It is closer to a report than an essay, which would make use of metaphors, expressions and figures of speech that belong to lavish language and vivid imagination. In other words, a smooth non-fiction does not necessarily require overly expressive and ornate language, but is colloquial, realistic and specifically local. At the end of the day, Facebook immerses the recipient in a flood of reports and dialogues that escape the intricacies of formal language and shorten the distance between the spoken and the written.
In terms of style, Facebook writing is divided into two genres. The first is colloquial and does not necessarily follow the rules and standards of formal Arabic writing. The second, however, is a genre that complies with the rules of grammar, but the literalism of its language distorts the formal Arabic sentence in its construction and style. Mainly it makes use of limited verbs that are repeated, and rarely uses the dual conjugation. It relies heavily on the use of emojis to express the emotional state accompanying the moment of writing, a supplement to the lack of body or facial expression in face-to-face conversation. This approach reflects a desire to increase the level of interaction between the writer and their intended audience through emojis, and reflects the writer's imagination concerning their virtual readers.
Hence, the writing is more of a disclosure than a philosophical reflection. Often it reveals a sense of longing and expresses grievances. In some instances, the language gives the impression that it is a literal translation from a language other than Arabic.
Self-disclosure: Between the duality of betrayal and free speech
Facebook is founded on the basis that it urges its users to express all aspects of themselves. The status update prompt on Facebook is 'What's on your mind?' The question varies according to the language; but across all languages, it is displayed in the status box in pale ink. Facebook places the user in the foreground, and urges users to express in first person. Once you start writing in the status text box, the letters become enlarged and the sharpness increases, making the process of writing more attractive in its embodiment of an answer to a public question. This is a call for self-disclosure that creates a feeling of participation and enhanced identity. It taps into the sense of pleasure and contentment in users' brains, similar to that of food, sex and dance.[4]
Reflective writing is a process that involves intensive reading. However, on Facebook it involves living a moment and transmitting it directly and literally. Many Facebook posts are everyday stories about family events, friends and daily experiences with food, fashion, music, wedding celebrations, life and death. Here we find relatively amusing anecdotes on Qat gatherings, 'gossip' sessions, weddings celebrations, dabab[5] tales, stories at the margins of language.
Often the events are confined to certain contexts and people, family, co-workers, fellow students or a close circle or group of friends, with all the intimacy, exclusivity and privacy which this carries. However, once published, these experiences appear in public and become a text produced for circulation. Whether amusing or scandalous, the customary group dynamic that involves singling out one person in the group to make fun of continues even on a virtual platform.
In his book, An Infinite Networked Modernity,[6] Hani al-Selwi writes about his experience with writing on the internet as an infinite network. When an individual sits at his computer or grabs his phone to write, he feels relieved "from the customary responsibility". This feeling facilitates free writing, unrestricted by social norms, on the one hand, and escaping the possibility of censorship, in the event of publication on print, on the other. Writing about one's daily life becomes a form of free association and rebellion, but it also risks betrayal of the sanctity of a gathering or place, where the rule is 'what happens here stays here'.
In Yemeni society, home has absolute sanctity, and the events that take place at home remain a private matter that must be strictly protected. Occasionally a child will innocently and naively tell one story or another to the neighbors, lending wood to the fire of gossip. The amusing fact is that 'home' in colloquial Yemeni is not only limited to home as a place but also refers to those who reside within it, mainly the wife or female members of the family. This local specificity increases the sensitivity of the concept of 'home' and its secrets in a patriarchal society that views women, whether mother or wife, as vulnerable and fragile.
Ruining family relationships and friendships
Facebook is the platform where some family members become the child who embarrasses the family by mentioning the mother's name (which is considered private in local customs) or revealing disciplinary measures taken at home, such as misplaced strictness or the authority of a 'cruel' mother – a narrative that is inconsistent with the classical idea of the tender never reproaching mother – or, more trivially, complaining about home cooking.
Some of these users later face harassment because they shared private family matters with the public and 'exposed' the mother's name, even if this involved news that concerns her, even if she is a grandmother. Often disputes arise because a user published a picture of a female family member, to the objection of other male relatives.
Family aside, sharing marital troubles publicly is considered the most grave act of all. In this case, Facebook becomes a window to express anger, pain or hurt in turbulent times. People often trade stories about couples who met on Facebook and got married, but there are barely any stories on divorces that were caused by Facebook use. It is not far-fetched to imagine such cases exist, and many countries have more detailed statistics on causes of divorce, including those related to social media.
Sharing private matters is not only taboo within the family. Many friendships are torn apart, occasionally because of posts that reveal a person's ideological position in a country that is full of political tension, but more often as a result of disputes on public disclosure.
I am 'not your idea of me'
Many argue that social media promotes narcissism among users. It maximizes the user's individuality and makes it a hypothetical focus of interest that demands the continuous production of something new. This hypothetical sense of stardom drives individuals to present the details of their life in this blue world, with all its contradictions and faults. From the praise of laziness and failure and letting ones friends down, we are at the stage of reshaping the value system, where people present themselves boldly, intentionally shocking, as if to tell others, 'I am not your idea of me'.
New forms of expression have emerged. Some are satirical, followed by an intensive use of hashtags, which often evoke sayings or local expressions in various dialects. Others are more subtle but include the casual slur, and the insult between the lines. There are no red lines. Many of those who write reveal the facts of their homes without fear. They include everyone in their desires, resentments and choices; interacting with the public in a way that resembles reality television.
Women on social media
Overall, the number of female users is low in comparison to male users in Yemen. Despite this gap, many women have managed to enhance their virtual presence, using real names and sometimes including a personal photo; both of which are a challenge in themselves. This additional barrier leads many female users to establish their accounts and public presence for a long period of time before they reveal their identity.
Similar to their male counterparts, the women's and girls' content ranges from everyday stories to political debates. Those who live outside Yemen often write nostalgic anecdotes about the past, longing for their home towns, local food and Qat gatherings.
Conflicts often arise on Facebook over the role of women in society and the extent of their openness on the platform. In response, women take fiercely defensive positions which are not free from verbal violence regarding the various forms of harassment they are continuously subjected to.
Generally, accounts of Yemeni women on Facebook include everyday reflections and musings, as well as political debate, while the disclosure of family or personal details is rare or limited to details of the past, which do not carry the same sanctity. There are even groups created to share past confessions, often filled with ironies or intimate stories.
Recently, Qat emerged as a theme of discussion, and writing about, or publicly professing chewing Qat, is another attempt to challenge social norms that consider this to be mainly male territory. The age range and social status of these account holders require a more careful examination in order to understand the specificity of the challenges these female users face.
Facebook users in Yemen write with boldness and are intoxicated by words to a degree of sheer exposure. It goes without saying that online behavior patterns are not free from the influence of the current situation and living conditions in Yemen. Prospects for economic and political reform are at a standstill, and the realization of ones identity in a country crushed by war seems impossible. Surrounded by a restricted public sphere and with limited possibilities of hope, both materially and morally, irony and satire become the last resort.
Facebook created a platform that made every user a writer and exceeded the limits of receiving and sending. In the long run, this could lead to a greater benefit because the desire to express could motivate users to improve their writing abilities. In the meantime, the current writing scene on social media favors diaristic informal writing at the expense of formal language and other genres. In many cases, it includes texts that are difficult to categorize into a specific genre.
Mustafa Naji is a researcher and former Yemeni diplomat based in France.
[1] Naji, Mustafa. "Life on Facebook and the Dematerialization of Death in Yemen." al-Madaniya, September 2019. https://almadaniyamag.com/2019/09/26/life-on-facebook-yemen/
[2] Greenfield, Susan. Mind Change: How Digital Technologies are Leaving Their Marks on Our Brains. Translated into Arabic by Ihab Abdul Rahim Ali, Knowledge World Series, No. 445, National Council for Culture, Arts and Literature, Kuwait, February 2017.
[3] Ahmed, Momen. وسائل التواصل ترسم خريطة جديدة للكتابة الأدبية [Social Media Redraws the Map of Literary Writing], al-Bayan, 18 December 2018. https://www.albayan.ae/five-senses/culture/2018-12-16-1.3435538
[4] Ibid, p.130.
[5] Dabab is the local name of a public transportation minibus.
[6] al-Selwi, Hani. الحداثة اللامتناهية الشبكية [An Infinite Networked Modernity]. Arweqa Foundation. Cairo, 2015.
Culture facebook fb Mustafa Naji social Social Media society Yemen Yemenis اليمن مصطفى الجبزي مصطفى ناجي
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