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Митрополи́т Влади́мир (в миру Влади́мир Са́ввич Котляро́в; 27 мая 1929, Актюбинск — 19 января 2022, Санкт-Петербург) — архиерей Русской православной церкви. Митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский (1995—2014). На момент смерти являлся старейшим по хиротонии и по возрасту архиереем Русской православной церкви.

Биография

До архиерейства
Родился 27 мая 1929 года в Актюбинске. Отец Савва Степанович Котляров (1898—1982), диакон, ставший впоследствии священником. Мать — Гликерия Ефимовна Котлярова (1901—1966). Помимо Владимира (самого младшего), в семье было ещё пятеро детей. Брат - полковник запаса, живет в Москве, пенсионер. Одна сестра работала учителем, живет в городе Майкоп, пенсионерка, другая много лет пела в хоре Владимирского собора Киева, пенсионерка, недавно переехала к брату в Санкт-Петербург. Остальные братья и сестры уже умерли.

Предки-крестьяне переселились в Казахстан в начале XX века. В 1933 году Владимир был при смерти от голода. Спасли его собранные и сданные в «Торгсин» золотые цепочки и крестики, а также — осколок разбитой в церкви ворами золотой причастной чаши, не замеченный ими второпях — по решению клира осколок был передан в семью отца. Вскоре Владимир перенес перелом позвоночника.

С детства мы воспитывались в вере. Другой разговор, что до тех пор, пока мне не исполнилось 13 лет, я и не догадывался, что мой отец — священник. Отцу приходилось скрывать свой сан, за ним охотились работники госбезопасности, мы много переезжали. Документы о своем рукоположении отец хранил в тайнике. Сам я, когда решился стать священником, то сначала приобрёл себе гражданскую специальность, которая, как я считал, может пригодиться мне в лагере.

О приходе к вере: «У меня не было борений, исканий, потому что я видел своего отца, присутствовал на богослужении. Я вошёл в Церковь просто и безболезненно, и решил остаться. Хотя, конечно, читал я и Белинского, и Чернышевского, и Маркса, и Энгельса — искал истину, но ответа в этих книгах не получил».

«Чтобы получить гражданскую профессию на случай если сошлют или посадят», он поступил на бухгалтерское отделение Джамбульского техникума статистики ЦСУ Госплана СССР, который окончил в 1948 году. Только после этого он поступил в Московскую духовную семинарию, которую окончил в 1952 году по первому разряду.

С августа 1952 года — псаломщик в Никольском кафедральном соборе Алма-Аты.

22 мая 1953 года в Никольском кафедральном соборе архиепископом Алма-Атинским Николаем (Могилевским) рукоположён во диакона, а 24 мая — во иерея и оставлен при том же соборе.

В конце 1953 года зачислен на заочный сектор Ленинградской духовной академии. Благословляя в 1954 году священника Владимира на поступление в Ленинградскую духовную академию, архиепископ Николай подарил юному пастырю свой академический значок в надежде, что в будущей деятельности в качестве студента он будет руководствоваться стремлением следовать лучшим традициям русской богословской школы предреволюционного времени. Поступив на заочное обучение, Владимир один раз съездил на экзамены. Но билет от Алма-Аты до Ленинграда и обратно был очень дорогим. Владимир попросил, чтобы ему помогли в следующий раз оплатить дорогу. Но епархиальному управлению это оказалось не под силу, и архиепископ Николай благословил ему переход на очное обучение.

В 1958 году окончил полный курс академии по первому разряду со степенью кандидата богословия и оставлен профессорским стипендиатом по кафедре истории Русской церкви. За курсовое сочинение по истории Русской церкви на тему «Троице-Сергиева пустынь Петроградской епархии» был удостоен учёной степени кандидата богословия и оставлен профессорским стипендиатом на кафедре истории Русской церкви.

В 1959—1962 годах преподавал в Ленинградской духовной семинарии литургику, затем — Священное Писание Ветхого Завета.

Во время учёбы и преподавания пять лет был священником закрытой в 1961 году домовой Крестовой церкви митрополита Ленинградского в Духовском корпусе Александро-Невской лавры.

С 1961 года участвовал в миротворческой и экуменической деятельности Русской православной церкви (РПЦ). В 1961 году входил в первую делегацию РПЦ на заседании Всемирного совета церквей (ВСЦ) в Нью-Дели.

В феврале 1962 года пострижен в монашество и назначен на должность заместителя начальника Русской духовной миссии в Иерусалиме.

Иеромонах Владимир был в числе делегатов от Русской православной церкви на III ассамблее Всемирного совета церквей (1962).

10 октября ЦК КПСС принял постановление: «Разрешить Совету по делам Русской православной церкви дать согласие Московской патриархии принять приглашение и направить на Второй Ватиканский собор в качестве наблюдателей Борового В. М., Котлярова В. С., Соколовского П. С. и одного переводчика на все время работы Собора».

В октябре 1962 года возведён в сан архимандрита и направлен наблюдателем от РПЦ на открывшийся Второй Ватиканский собор.

Архиерейство
29 ноября 1962 года постановлением Священного синода назначен постоянным представителем Московского патриархата при Всемирном совете церквей (ВСЦ) и одновременно определен быть епископом Звенигородским, викарием Московской епархии.

30 декабря 1962 года хиротонисан во епископа Звенигородского. Хиротонию совершали: патриарх Московский и всея Руси Алексий I, митрополит Ленинградский и Ладожский Пимен (Извеков), архиепископ Ярославский и Ростовский Никодим (Ротов), архиепископ Сурожский Антоний (Блум), епископ Венский и Австрийский Филарет (Денисенко).

30 марта 1964 года назначен епископом Воронежским и Липецким с освобождением от обязанностей представителя Московского патриархата при ВСЦ. На кафедре – с 16 мая 1964 года. Уполномоченный Совета по делам религии дал ему следующую характеристику: "Котляров В.С. в своей деятельности не останавливается перед нарушением советского законодательства о культах. Котляров В.С. работает над собой, регулярно занимается с преподавателем английским языком, читает иностранную прессу. Большая активность Котлярова В.С., широкий кругозор делают его особенно опасным идеологическим противником".

С 5 февраля 1965 года — епископ Подольский, викарий Московской епархии и представитель Московской патриархии при патриархе Антиохийском. Ближний Восток на тот момент был зоной острого соперничества между СССР и США, которые использовали все каналы, в том числе и церковные, для утверждения своего влияния.

В отличие от своих предшественников епископов Иоанна (Вендланда) и Леонтия (Гудимова), не только проявлял живейшее участие в проблемах внутренней жизни Антиохийской церкви, но и активно стремился влиять на складывающиеся обстоятельства в интересах группы прорусских митрополитов, которых также называли «левыми». При этом «левым» митрополитам и священникам Антиохийского патриархата, ориентировавшимся на Русскую православную церковь и СССР, противостояли «правые», которые ориентировались на США и греческие православные церкви, в первую очередь, Константинопольский патриархат. «Правые» группировались вокруг Движения православной молодёжи, возглавляемого Георгием Ходром. К числу недоброжелателей епископа Владимира относился и тогдашний патриарх Антиохийский Феодосий VI. Так, в ноябре 1965 года епископ Владимир откровенно заявил патриарху в ответ, как писал епископ, «на интриги Феодосия»: «мы стараемся укрепить Антиохийскую Церковь и патриарший престол, а в ответ на это я наблюдаю вот уже девять месяцев открытую кампанию против нашего Представительства. Лично для меня это не слишком важно, но, возвратившись в Москву, я должен буду откровенно сказать Святейшему и Синоду, какую благодарность я увидел здесь за все наши благодеяния».

С 19 ноября 1966 года — епископ Кировский и Слободской.

Борис Талантов цитировал слова епископа Владимира из проповеди 28 мая 1967 года: «Мы должны приспособляться к новым обстоятельствам и условиям жизни подобно ручейку, который, встречая на своем пути камень, обходит его. Мы живем вместе с атеистами и должны считаться с ними и не должны делать ничего, что им не нравится», и называл это приспособленчеством и «иродовой закваской»

7 октября 1967 года назначен епископом Берлинским и Среднеевропейским, Патриаршим экзархом в Средней Европе. 20 октября возведён в сан архиепископа.

20 октября 1967 года архиепископ Владимир назначен в состав делегации Русской Православной Церкви на 4-ю Ассамблею Всемирного Совета Церквей. Он вошел в состав Центрального Комитета Всемирного Совета Церквей, как представитель Русской Церкви.

30 июля 1970 года назначен представителем Московского патриархата на Международном старокатолическом конгрессе.

1 декабря 1970 года назначен архиепископом Ростовским и Новочеркасским.

31 мая 1973 года переведён на Иркутскую и Читинскую епархию с временным управлением Хабаровской и Владивостокской епархией, где под его началом находились города от Иркутской области до Курильских островов, а также Якутия, Бурятия, весь северо-восточный край России до китайской границы.

С 17 апреля 1975 года — архиепископ Владимирский и Суздальский.

24 апреля 1980 года назначен архиепископом Краснодарским и Кубанским.

С 1981 по 1988 год - член Комиссии по подготовке и проведению празнования 1000-летия Крещения Руси.

С 12 мая 1987 года — архиепископ Псковский и Порховский. Перемещение вызвало недовольство у части общины кафедрального Екатерининского собора Краснодара: до 1989 года миряне общины просили, а затем требовали на пикетах в Чистом переулке в Москве возвращения своего архиепископа. Священный синод отказал «за неимением достаточных оснований». Архиепископ Владимир встретился с жалобщиками и убедил их прекратить кампанию.

2 марта 1992 года в Успенском патриаршем соборе Кремля патриархом Алексием II возведён в сан митрополита. Патриарх Алексий II надел на его главу свой белый клобук, в котором он сам служил в Санкт-Петербурге, будучи правящим митрополитом.

23 февраля 1993 года вторично назначен митрополитом Ростовским и Новочеркасским.

27 декабря 1995 года решением Священного Синода РПЦ назначен митрополитом Санкт-Петербургским и Ладожским и соответственно стал постоянным членом Священного синода по кафедре. 12 января 1996 года, перед отъездом в Северную столицу, в Кремлёвском Успенском патриаршем соборе Патриарх Алексий II после литургии тепло напутствовал и благословил митрополита Владимира на новое и ответственное служение в Санкт-Петербургской епархии.

Прибыл в Петербург 13 января 1996 года. В день прибытия на Московском вокзале владыку встречал мэр города Санкт-Петербурга Анатолий Собчак, многочисленное духовенство епархии и большое число православных мирян. О своем прибытии в Петербург говорил как о возвращении 33 года спустя в город, с которым связаны самые юные и самые светлые годы его священнического становления. Стал настоятелем собора Владимирской иконы Божией Матери.

Владимира иногда называют одним из самых «нелюбимых» в народе петербургских митрополитов XX века. Он пришел на смену митрополиту Иоанну (Снычёву), который придерживался крайне-правых взглядов по многим вопросам церковной и общественной жизни и активно их пропагандировал, но при этом практически не занимался административной работой.

Последователи и почитатели Иоанна доставили Владимиру немало хлопот. Они неоднократно объявляли его «еретиком-экуменистом» и смогли убедить в этом значительную часть петербургской паствы. Несколько раз при появлении митрополита перед паствой они устраивали уличные беспорядки, разбрасывались листовки с осуждениями Владимира.

В частности, в 1997 году в день именин митрополита перед воротами Александро-Невской Лавры выстроилась группа верующих, которые требовали ухода владыки на покой. Перед началом Божественной Литургии на паперти Свято-Троицкого Собора пикетчики развернули плакаты: «Митрополит-еретик, уходи от нас!», «Анафема!» и им подобные. Листовки под названием «Избави нас от лукавого», которые раздавали участники пикета заканчивались обращением: «Владыка Владимир! Уйдите на покой, уезжайте за границу, куда угодно, только избавьте нас от своего присутствия. Духовенство наше, настрадавшееся от вас, не любит вас, народ не любит и не принимает. Не доводите дело до открытого возмущения, уйдите сами…»

Новый глава Санкт-Петербургской епархии отличался от своего предшественника митрополита Иоанна, известного своими право-консервативными взглядами. Часть клира и паствы выразила недовольство новым митрополитом, в частности, его либеральными взглядами и участием в экуменической деятельности. По мнению некоторых аналитиков, корни недовольства крылись также в усилении административно-финансового контроля за деятельностью приходов. Так, на епархиальном собрании 13 февраля 1996 года митрополит Владимир «настаивал на единообразии сокращений богослужебного устава, на согласовании между приходами цен на требы, утварь и предметы обихода, на незамедлительности и точности отчислений в епархиальную кассу, чётком ведении финансовой отчётности приходов… Была подчеркнута необходимость иметь при каждом храме опись имущества, богослужебный журнал, вести протоколы приходских собраний и всю необходимую документацию; содержать в храме такой штат, который обеспечит нормальное совершение богослужений и полную положенную занятость духовенства».

За время своего служения в Санкт-Петербургской епархии сумел наладить стабильный доверительный диалог с органами власти и администрацией Санкт-Петербурга и Ленинградской области, а также взаимоотношения с общественными организациями, учебными заведениями, культурными центрами, органами администрации Санкт-Петербурга самых разных уровней.

2 января 1997 года выступил с проповедью о необходимости перехода Русской Православной Церкви на григорианский календарь, за что получил порицание патриарха Московского и всея Руси Алексия II.

С 2002 года — почетный член Санкт-Петербургской духовной академии.

Митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский Владимир (Котляров) вошел в «Золотую десятку» людей северной столицы. Почетный «знак доверия» и диплом вручены ему 11 марта 2004 года во Дворце конгрессов в Стрельне.

27 мая 2004 года в Санкт-Петербурге отметил свой 75-летний юбилей со дня рождения. Согласно уставу Русской православной церкви, написал прошение о почислении его на покой в связи с достижением 75-летия. 17 августа 2004 года Священный синод постановил: «Просить Преосвященнейшего митрополита Владимира продолжить архипастырское служение в Санкт-Петербургской епархии».

17 августа 2004 года Священный Синод рассмотрев прошение о почислении его на покой в связи с достижением 75-летия, постановил просить продолжить архипастырское служение в Санкт-Петербургской епархии.

Юбилейная книга, изданная в 2004 году и посвященная его 75-летию, названа «Архипастырь – Храмостроитель». Недаром и в Токсовском приходе все благие начинания неизменно получали его архиерейские напутствия и благословения.

В 2005 году выступая на епархиальном собрании, митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский Владимир (Котляров) попросил клириков своей епархии одеваться, как им подобает по священному сану, не увлекаться иномарками, мобильниками и другими атрибутами обеспеченной жизни.

В 2007 году Митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский Владимир (Котляров) высказался за сохранение исторического центра Санкт-Петербурга. Отвечая на вопросы журналистов на проходящей в ЦВЗ северной столицы выставке «Православная Русь», иерарх РПЦ МП заявил, что «историческая часть города должна быть сохранена без изменений». «Высотный «Охта-центр» или, как его называют, «кукурузный початок», нужно строить не в центре, а в новых районах», — сказал митрополит. Приводя для сравнения столицу России, он добавил, что в последнее время чувствует себя в ней неуютно из-за обилия новых огромных домов нетрадиционной конструкции.

6 декабря 2008 года, на следующий день после кончины патриарха Московского и всея Руси Алексия II, согласно пункту 13 главы IV устава Русской православной церкви как старейший по хиротонии постоянный член Священного синода председательствовал на заседании Синода, на котором митрополит Кирилл был избран местоблюстителем Московского патриаршего престола.

27 июля 2009 года решением Священного Синода Русской православной церкви включён в состав в состав членов и президиума Межсоборного присутствия Русской православной церкви. С 29 января 2010 по 26 декабря 2011 года — председатель Комиссии по вопросам богослужения и церковного искусства Межсоборного присутствия, а с 26 декабря 2011 по 23 октября 2014 года — член той же комиссии.

Митрополит Владимир (Котляров) на ежегодном собрании Санкт-Петербургской епархии РПЦ МП 24 ноября 2011 года призвал ее клириков и мирян прийти на выборы в Госдуму, «даже если итог этих выборов прогнозируем».

Митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский Владимир подверг резкой критике «подчеркнутое проявление роскоши ряда священнослужителей» Санкт-Петербургской епархии. Особое негодование владыки вызвали дорогие иномарки, мобильные телефоны и видеомагнитофоны в монашеских кельях.

12 марта 2013 года решением Священного Синода Русской православной церкви в Санкт-Петербургскую епархии были выделены Выборгская, Гатчинская и Тихвинская епархии. В составе Санкт-Петербургской епархии остался только Санкт-Петербург. Эти епархии вошли в состав Санкт-Петербургской митрополии, главой которой был назначен митрополит Владимир.

C 28 мая 2016 года, после кончины митрополита Феодосия (Процюка), являлся старейшим по архиерейской хиротонии архиереем Русской Православной Церкви.

За время своего служения Владимир сменил 12 епархий. 12-й и последней стала Петербургская кафедра.

Одним из главных достижений митрополита Владимира считается возвращение Петербургской епархии комплекса зданий исторической Александро-Невской Лавры.

Митрополита Владимира поздравляли не с днем рождения, а с днем тезоименитства – 17 октября.

Был большим личным другом губернатора Валентины Матвиенко. Дважды выдвигали в почетные граждане города Санкт-Петербурга, и оба раза в этом звании митрополит утвержден не был.

На покое
19 марта 2014 года почислен на покой по состоянию здоровья в связи с достижением 85-летнего возраста. Его заменил митрополит Варсонофий (Судаков). Местом пребывания митрополита Владимира Синод определил Свято-Троицкую Александро-Невскую лавру. Синод постановил предоставить митрополиту также должность почётного настоятеля храма Владимирской иконы Божией Матери в Санкт-Петербурге с получением соответствующего содержания.

Не вошёл в новый состав Межсоборного присутствия, утверждённый 23 октября 2014 года решением Священного синода.

Кончина
Скончался 19 января 2022 года, на 93-м году жизни, после продолжительной болезни.

21 января 2022 года, в пятницу седмицы 31-й по Пятидесятнице, митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский Варсонофий совершил Божественную литургию в Свято-Троицком соборе Александро-Невской лавры в сослужении наместника обители епископа Кронштадтского Назария и духовенства Санкт-Петербургской митрополии.

Затем правящий архиерей возглавил отпевание новопреставленного митрополита Владимира (Котлярова).

Митрополит Варсонофий огласил текст Патриаршего соболезнования в связи с кончиной владыки Владимира и напомнил присутствующим вехи жизненного пути почившего.

Соболезнования в связи с кончиной митрополита Владимира выразили губернатор Санкт-Петербурга Александр Беглов, губернатор Ленинградской области Александр Дрозденко.

Его Высокопреосвященству сослужили митрополит Петрозаводский и Карельский Константин, епископ Выборгский и Приозерский Игнатий, епископ Кронштадтский Назарий, епископ Тихвинский и Лодейнопольский Мстислав, епископ Гатчинский и Лужский Митрофан, епископ Истринский Серафим, епископ Петергофский Силуан, секретарь епархиального управления протоиерей Сергий Куксевич, клир монастыря, духовенство Санкт-Петербургской митрополии.

В храме присутствовали губернатор Санкт-Петербурга Александр Беглов, спикер Законодательного собрания Санкт-Петербурга Александр Бельский, депутат Государственной Думы ФС РФ Михаил Романов, епархиальный древлехранитель Иван Раевский, начальник отдела по связям с религиозными объединениями Администрации губернатора Санкт-Петербурга Владимир Иванов. Проститься с усопшим пришли священнослужители, сотрудники Санкт-Петербургского епархиального управления, многочисленные верующие.

Митрополит Владимир (Котляров) был погребен 21 января на Никольском кладбище Александро-Невской лавры. Литию у могилы почившего совершил епископ Кронштадтский Назарий в сослужении епископа Тихвинского Мстислава и епископа Гатчинского Митрофана.

В Санкт-Петербургской епархии 27 января отметили 9-й день по кончине митрополита Владимира (Котлярова). Божественную литургию в Свято-Троицком соборе Александро-Невской лавры совершил наместник — епископ Кронштадтский Назарий в сослужении протоиерея Сергия Куксевича, братии монастыря и духовенства митрополии.

20 января 2023 года в духовно-просветительском центре Свято-Троицкой Александро-Невской лавры в Санкт-Петербурге состоялся вечер памяти митрополита Владимира (Котлярова), приуроченный к годовщине его кончины.

Награды

Государственные награды России
 Орден «За заслуги перед Отечеством» II степени (26 мая 2004) — за большой личный вклад в развитие духовных и культурных традиций, укрепление мира и согласия между народами
 Орден «За заслуги перед Отечеством» III степени (26 мая 1999) — за большой вклад в возрождение российской духовности и укрепление гражданского мира
 Орден Александра Невского (30 декабря 2012) — за высокую духовно-нравственную позицию и большой личный вклад в осуществление социально-образовательной и миссионерской деятельности
 Медаль «В память 850-летия Москвы» (1997)
 Медаль «За заслуги в проведении Всероссийской переписи населения» (2004)
 Медаль «В память 300-летия Санкт-Петербурга» (2003)

Поощрения Президента России
 Благодарность Президента Российской Федерации (13 января 2001) — за большой вклад в духовное и нравственное возрождение России, укрепление гражданского мира и в связи с 2000-летием христианства

Ведомственные награды
 Медаль «За заслуги в проведении Всероссийской сельскохозяйственной переписи 2006 года» (Росстат, 2007)

Награды субъектов Российской Федерации

 Почётный гражданин Санкт-Петербурга (2009)
 Знак отличия Ленинградской области «За вклад в развитие Ленинградской области» (2002)
 Грамота губернатора Санкт-Петербурга

Иностранные государственные награды
 Командор Национального ордена Кедра (Ливан, 1967)

Награды Русской православной церкви
 Орден Святого равноапостольного великого князя Владимира I степени (1967)
 Орден Святого равноапостольного великого князя Владимира II степени
 Орден Преподобного Сергия Радонежского I степени (1987)
 Орден Святителя Макария, митрополита Московского I степени (2004)
 Орден Преподобного Андрея Иконописца I степени (2002)
 Два ордена святого благоверного князя Даниила Московского II степени
 Орден Святителя Иннокентия, митрополита Московского и Коломенского II степени
 Орден Святителя Алексия, митрополита Московского II степени (2008)
 Золотая медаль Санкт-Петербургской епархии апостола Петра
 Орден Святителя Алексия, митрополита Московского I степени (2012)
 Орден священноисповедника Николая, митрополита Алма-Атинского и Казахстанского (2013)
 Золотая медаль Святого апостола и евангелиста Иоанна Богослова (27 мая 2016 года, Санкт-Петербургская духовная академия)

Награды иных Православных церквей
 Орден Святых равноапостольных Кирилла и Мефодия (Болгарская православная церковь)
 Орден и крест апостола и евангелиста Марка (Александрийский патриархат)
 Орден и медаль на ленте «Знамения» (Епархия Гор Ливанских)
 Орден и крест (Антиохийский патриархат)

Почётные учёные степени
 Почётный член Санкт-Петербургской духовной академии (2002)
 Почётный доктор Санкт-Петербургского государственного политехнического университета (2002)
 Почётный доктор Санкт-Петербургской государственной медицинской академии имени И. И. Мечникова

Прочие награды
 Лауреат премии «Человек года-2006» (от Русского биографического института)
 Лауреат международной премии Андрея Первозванного «За веру и верность»
 Две медали, в том числе одна золотая, Советского комитета защиты мира
 Императорский Орден Святой Анны 1-й степени (2009 год, Российский императорский дом)
 Императорский Орден Святого Владимира 2-й степени (12 июля 2013 года, Российский императорский дом)
 Высший почётный знак хора духовенства Санкт-Петербургской митрополии (1 ноября 2011 года)
 «Татьянин крест» — высшая степень Почётного знака Святой Татьяны (25 января 2012 года, Межвузовская ассоциация «Покров»)
 Орден Святого князя Александра Невского I степени от Академии проблем безопасности, обороны и правопорядка
 Знак ордена Святого Александра Невского — медаль «За труды и Отечество»
 Серебряно-золотой знак за труды и отечество Александра Невского от президиума клуба кавалеров ордена Александра Невского
 Церковно-общественный орден Святого Александра Невского.

Примечания

Публикации
 Статьи
 Критический обзор источников и литературы по истории духовного образования в России за синодальный период. Отчет професс. стип. ЛДА. Л., 1959.
 У братьев-христиан Индии // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1962. — № 2. — С. 23-31
 Малабарская Церковь // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1962. — № 2. — С. 70-76
 Путешествие Святейшего Патриарха Болгарского Кирилла по Святым местам Палестины // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1962. — № 6. — С. 55-60
 Праздник Благовещения в Назарете // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1962. — № 6. — С. 52-53.
 Вторая Всемирная Конференция религиозных деятелей в защиту мира (Токио, 27-29 июля 1964 года) // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1964. — № 12. — С. 40-44.
 Заседание Комиссии всемирной миссии и евангелизации Всемирного Совета Церквей // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1965. — № 2. — С. 66-67.
 Юбилейные торжества, посвященные празднованию 1400-летия основания монастыря св. великомученицы Екатерины на Синае // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1967. — № 1. — С. 55-60.
 Двадцатый Международный Старокатолический конгресс // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1970. — № 11. — С. 55-56.
 Заседание Центрального комитета Всемирного Совета Церквей // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1972. — № 11. — С. 53-59
 Заседание Центрального комитета ВСЦ в Женеве // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1974. — № 4. — С. 55-59.
 На мирной конференции в Индии // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1975. — № 4. — С. 49-51.
 Пребывание в Советском Союзе Генерального Секретаря Всемирного Совета Церквей д-ра Ю. К. Блейка // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1967. — № 6. — С. 13-17.
 Всемирная Лютеранская Федерация накануне Шестой Ассамблеи // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1977. — № 4. — С. 48-50.
 Свидетельство братской любви и церковного единения (пребывание делегации Русской Православной Церкви в Болгарии) // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1967. — № 1. — С. 9-19.
 Неделя экуменических молитв в Женеве // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1967. — № 10. — С. 65-66.
 Учреждение Африканской ХМК // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1978. — № 4. — С. 42-43.
 Международная конференция за запрещение нейтронной бомбы // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1978. — № 6. — С. 46.
 Международная конференция неправительственных организаций по разоружению // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1978. — № 6. — С. 47.
 На десятой, Специальной сессии ООН по разоружению // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1978. — № 10. — С. 34-35.
 Специальная сессия Всемирного Совета Мира // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1979. — № 5. — С. 49-50.
 Богословские собеседования с Епископальной Церковью в США // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1980. — № 2. — С. 59-61.
 Конференция неправительственных организаций в Нью-Йорке // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1980. — № 11. — С. 38-40.
 Коммюнике, принятое на встрече представителей Церквей Советского Союза и Японии // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1981. — № 11. — С. 47-48. (в соавторстве)
 С миссией мира и дружбы в Японии // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1982. — № 4. — С. 41-42.
 Третья мирная конференция представителей христианских Церквей Советского Союза и Японии: коммюнике // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1984. — № 5. — С. 48-51. (в соавторстве)
 На Всепольской конференции Христианской Общественной Ассоциации // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1984. — № 10. — С. 35.
 Экуменическая консультация о мире и справедливости в Северо-Восточной Азии // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1985. — № 4. — С. 67-68.

 Интервью
 Беседа с митрополитом Санкт-Петербургским и Ладожским Владимиром / интервью — ответы: Владимир, митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский, интервью — вопросы: Житенева Е. // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1996. — № 3. — С. 28—31.
 Наше дело — молиться (беседа с митрополитом Санкт-Петербургским и Ладожским Владимиром) / интервью — ответы: Владимир, митрополит Санкт-Петербургский и Ладожский, интервью — вопросы: Жилкина М. В., ответственный секретарь Издательского Совета и «Журнала Московской Патриархии» // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 2004. — № 7. — С. 54—61.
 Митрополит Санкт-Петербургский Владимир: «И служи верно…» // patriarchia.ru, 31 декабря 2012

Литература

 Наречение и хиротония архимандрита Владимира (Котлярова) во епископа Звенигородского // Журнал Московской Патриархии. 1963. — № 2. — С. 18-20.
 Приемлю и ничесоже вопреки глаголю: издано в честь 45-летия хиротонии во епископы митрополита Санкт-Петербургского и Ладожского Владимира. — Санкт-Петербург : Арт Деко, 2007. — 167 с. — ISBN 978-5-89576-018-5
 Санкт-Петербург. 300 + 300 биографий. Биографический словарь / St. Petersburg. 300 + 300 biographies. Biographic Glossary // Сост. Г. Гопиенко. — На рус. и англ. яз. — М.: Маркграф, 2004. — 320 с. — Тир. 5000 экз. — ISBN 5-85952-032-8. — С. 53.

Ссылки
 Владимир, митрополит (Котляров Владимир Саввич). // Патриархия.ru
 Владимир (Котляров): Русское Православие База данных.

Митрополиты Русской православной церкви
Митрополиты Санкт-Петербургские
Кандидаты богословия
Кавалеры ордена Святителя Макария, митрополита Московского и всея Руси
Почётные граждане Санкт-Петербурга
Персоналии:Ленинградская область
Персоналии:Санкт-Петербург
Санкт-Петербургская митрополия
Похороненные на Никольском кладбище Александро-Невской лавры

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


To get rid of fleas and provide lasting protection, you need a thorough professional flea treatment inside and outside your home.
For a flea treatment that gets rid of fleas, stops the bites and gets your home back to normal as quickly as possible, give Gold Coast Pest Services a call today.
A flea infestation can be very uncomfortable and difficult to control, and more often than not, they appear all of a sudden. With a flea infestation likely to spread quickly through your house and yard, treatments need to be very thorough and it's very difficult to get a complete and effective treatment with supermarket products.
What flea control treatments do we provide?
Gold Coast Pest Services specialise in dealing with flea infestations. To get on top of a flea infestation, we work with you to eliminate the problem as there are a number of actions that you will need to carry out in addition to our flea treatments.
Our treatment products are designed for use on carpets and internal areas and are safe to use around children and pets, although people and pets need to be kept out of the treatment areas until the treatment is dry.
End of lease pest treatments are often required by contract when leaving a rental home. Especially if pets have been in the home, the treatment will often specify a flea treatment.
Regular vacuuming is always a good idea and keeping pets off furniture and out of bedrooms makes sense from a hygiene point of view. However, the best way to keep fleas out of your home is to keep your pet's flea treatment up to date.
By understanding the flea life cycle you can understand how, when and why you can suddenly get a flea outbreak. It all starts when the female flea bites an animal for a blood meal, which she needs to lay eggs.
Eggs are laid on the animal, but the eggs are not very sticky and easily fall off. The eggs are spread wherever the pet goes, with the greatest concentration of eggs in the areas where the pet rests.
Young fleas actually look like thin, small hairy maggots. They will hide in the carpet, cracks in floorboards or in the sand in moist, shady areas outside (typically sandy soils) – under trees, under the house – and pet resting areas. Flea larvae need a warm, humid environment to survive, which is why the warmer months make up the main flea season.
When the larvae are ready to develop into adult fleas, they make a hard pupae. They can survive in this pupae for many months, only jumping out when they feel the vibrations of an animal walking by. Treatments don't always kill all the pupae, so a few fleas can still appear after a treatment, but when the fleas jump out they will be killed by the residual treatment in the carpet and any treated areas.
The adult fleas are the ones doing the biting. They prefer furry animals but will take a bite from us as well! The female needs blood to lay eggs... and so the life cycle begins again.


It is a fun and exciting way to look deeper into your true nature. Sometimes we can lose track of who we really are. The aura photograph can reconnect us with our inner self and guide us in the right direction for what is coming in the future.
When you have the right set of tools to completely change your life, enjoyably and with ease, you feel empowered and in command of your life because you ARE! Now offering our 5 class series, we delve deeply into the 5 pillars of success so you are able to harness your true power through proven methods of creating stunning success in the areas of personal positioning, mindset, abundance, relationships and health! This is a strategic compilation of over two decades of personal experience as well as guiding others through life mentoring over 10 years. The knowledge gathered through these various avenues has become a priceless method of obtaining awareness and ability to change your situation at any given moment. For more information on classes and events scheduled pertaining to the information available within this program, see our Events section.
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Brainstorming has long been one of the most effective ways for individuals of all walks of life to solve problems.
It's a method of processing and creating information that is as old as the hills, and for good reason — it simply works.
As any modern professional knows, however, technology has made it easier to collaborate with others than ever in the past.
Thus, we have a new method for solving problems in the information age, and it's called "crowdstorming."
At its most basic level, crowdstorming can be viewed as a symbiotic relationship between brainstorming and crowdsourcing, the latter of which has had a major impact on both small and large businesses over the course of the past decade.
It's important to identify the difference between crowdsourcing and crowdstorming before delving further into the topic, however.
Crowdsourcing typically refers to a process of getting outside opinions, perhaps in regards to a company's products or services.
It's a great method for gaining insight into what is working and what is not and has been put to good use in a variety of different industries.
The Internet has made it exceptionally easy for consumers to post comments and reviews about practically anything, and while this information isn't always called upon via an official request, businesses can get a lot of mileage by paying attention.
Crowdstorming is aimed more towards a collaborative effort, encompassing everything that is important about working with others to reach a greater goal.
It typically follows guidelines that have been carefully laid out and tends to be less casual in nature than crowdsourcing.
The "brainstorming" element is crucial here, as those who turn to crowdstorming typically do so because there is a problem that needs to be solved. It can be viewed as a collaborative method for fixing an issue or preparing a product/service for launch, and it's catching on like wildfire.
Before Crowdstorming There Was Crowdsourcing. And Before That, There Was Brainstorming.
While elements of crowdstorming have been around for quite sometime, the process (and term) itself is relatively new.
For many years, in-house brainstorming had been the secret weapon for many businesses. A challenge would present itself, and an individual or team within an organization would sit down to come up with and outline any/all potential solutions.
Brainstorming can be a very organic process, and at times it's quite effective.
This being said, there are some cases that can't be cracked without a little bit of outside information.
When crowdsourcing first began to enter into the collective consciousness of the business community, it was viewed as somewhat of a happy accident. Companies could now turn to the Internet to find unbiased opinions about their products and services, which could then be used to streamline future projects and improve product development.
Some businesses would actively call upon consumers for opinions, while others would sit back and simply take note of comments being made without their intervention.
Crowdsourcing added a major "social" element to the business landscape, allowing companies and consumers to interact in ways that were never before possible.
As one might expect, there's a certain level of interconnectedness between brainstorming and crowdsourcing that cannot be ignored — both can be viewed as effective methods for working towards solving a problem. It was only a matter of time before they would be combined to create crowdstorming, which takes the best elements of each and allows them to work in harmony with one another.
Crowdstorming, then, is one of the most modern and forward-thinking ways to tackle a difficult situation, and it's only going to increase in popularity as more and more people become aware of how to harness its power.
There are a few ways in which one can approach crowdstorming, and which you use most often depends upon the situation at hand.
At the base level, think of what task it is that the crowd is actually being asked to carry out.
The first type, In its simplest form, crowdstorming is used as a means for coming up with ideas, which could include plans for a marketing campaign, ideas for developing new prototypes, etc. Typically, either a specific community or the general public will be called upon in hopes of gaining this information — remember that targeting isn't necessarily "better" than looking to the general public for ideas.
Secondly, on a more complex level, there may be additional tasks associated with crowdstorming. At this stage of the collaboration process, a second or third group may be tasked with rating and evaluating a set of ideas created by the first group. This can be thought of in terms of being a filtration process of sorts, thinning out the herd of ideas until only those which are most viable remain. More often than not, companies that embrace crowdstorming end up at this point in the process when looking to develop a new product or service, as extra levels of validation can help to ensure that a launch is successful.
And the third most common type of crowdstorming is perhaps the most complex of all, thanks to the fact that the crowd is responsible for nearly every aspect of the process. In some scenarios, there are no means other than turning to crowds when attempting to source feedback or ideas. This is a common situation that happens with start-ups, as they don't usually have the same resources to go off of that an established business might. Even though there is more room for error the more complex a crowdstorming project gets, true magic can happen when everything comes together at this level.
Most people who are new to crowdstorming tend to think that the majority of the process involves calling on outside parties in order to gain information and ideas.
While there is a fair amount of validity to this notion, it's important to understand that crowdstorming can be performed internally as well as externally.
In external crowdstorming, the public (or a targeted subset) is called upon to submit ideas, comments and anything else that might be helpful to a company. When properly performed, external crowdstorming can yield great results, all the while furthering a company's social image. Internal crowdstorming is quite similar, although the pool of individuals being called upon is entirely different.
With internal crowdstorming, a firm extends its problem-solving methods beyond what it might normally, all the while sticking to those who are either part of or associated with the organization. This could mean calling upon employees from a different division or geographic location, or perhaps even enlisting the help and ideas of vendors/suppliers. Internal crowdstorming tends to be less loose and more organized than the alternative, although each comes with its own set of risks and benefits.
The most important difference to note between internal and external crowdstorming comes down to the fact that the former makes use of a crowd that is well-known to the company conducting the research. It could come in a variety of different forms, ranging from simple questions to employees from management (in which answers would be aggregated) to a dedicated portal created specifically for the submission of ideas and feedback.
Familiarity with an organization can be both a blessing and a curse when it comes to crowdstorming, which is why the most effective method for receiving ideas and information from a crowd is to take both an internal and an external approach, combining and analyzing the results of each method.
Crowdstorming in Popular Culture. The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly.
Sometimes, the best way to go about understanding a new concept, like crowdstorming, is to take a look at how and where it fits into popular culture.
Taking just the last few years into consideration, there are a variety of different examples of crowdstorming that are worth analyzing, some of which have been more effective than others.
Take a look at American Idol, for example, one of the most popular television shows in recent history. The show employs crowdstorming on a multitude of levels, in that it not only seeks to bring in and promote new talent, but also works to change the relationship viewers have with each of its contestants. It's a brilliant employment of crowdstorming, perhaps even more so because of the fact that most people don't even realize the connection until they really put some thought into it.
GE's Ecomagination project is another fine example of crowdstorming, allowing consumers to contribute ideas and knowledge that can be used to help reduce the company's environmental impact. It's a "win-win" situation that is turning a lot of heads, and for good reason.
On the other side of the spectrum are examples of crowdstorming in popular culture that haven't been quite as effective, most notably being the public-sourced "naming contests."
NASA held an online public vote, whereas they attempted to crowdstorm / crowdsource a name for a new room to be added to the international space station. This new room is slated to have lots of big windows and a machine that will turn astronauts' urine into water. So what happened? Comedian Stephen Colbert convinced many of his fans to write in his name. And guess what? He won. However, a NASA spokesman was quoted that "The name Colbert doesn't quite fit with the NASA theme." An example of a not-so-good attempt at crowdstorming.
Mountain Dew held a crowdsourcing campaign to name a new flavor of soda. They allowed people to type in names, hit a submit button, and the names appeared in a rated order on the website. Well, it didn't take long before the campaing was hijacked and ultimately spammed with names that were not so "family friendly." This caused Mountain Dew to have to bite the bullet and publicly state that "Dub the Dew definately lost to the Internet."
Now, there's a reason the "naming contests" are a dying breed, and it simply comes down to poor organization, little planning, and the underlying factors that motivate them.
Crowdstorming is best used as a method for solving a problem, yet "naming contests" are typically geared towards building conversation and engagement. As a result, such contests often end in failures, most often due to a lack of guidance and no true centralized goal for people to get on-board with.
Once you get a basic handle on the concept of crowdstorming, it typically seems as if implementing it in a way that might benefit your business would be relatively easy.
There's nothing more important than taking a methodical approach to crowdstorming that will lower your chances of running into a risky scenario.
For those who have never carried out a crowdstorming campaign before, this can be easier said than done.
Working off of the following tips, however, can serve as an excellent way to get started.
Clarify Your Question / Problem - Every solution starts with a problem, which is in many ways why crowdstorming exists in the first place. Clarifying the question or problem that you're seeking a solution to will help to streamline your crowdstorming campaign, as well as make it easier for a crowd to offer ideas and feedback. If your pool of individuals doesn't understand the issue at hand, after all, they're going to have an exceptionally hard time providing you with useful information.
Come Up with a Reward - While you might be lucky enough to stumble upon individuals who are willing to provide you with feedback without expecting anything at all in return, you'll have a much better chance of eliciting great ideas if there is a reward in place for candidates who have the best input. This can range from money to attention and everything in between, and the "right" reward will depend upon your industry, the crowd you poll and other factors. Make the reward known ahead of time whenever possible.
Choose Your Croudsourcing software platform - We have you covered here with our Communifire platform (shameless plug). However, there are plenty of other options out there if you do a simple google search.
Recruit Your Crowd - Choose carefully when recruiting a crowd to work with. It could be as diverse as the general public, which works great for large firms. Smaller companies, on the other hand, may do best by starting out with internal crowdstorming, or perhaps turning to a targeted subset of the community. Every type of crowd will elicit a different type of response, so keep this in mind when choosing who to work with.
Narrow it Down - Once you've been inundated with ideas and information, take the time to sort through it all and determine which ideas are the most viable. This can be a time-consuming process, but there's nothing more important than delivering on your promises and following the process through to the very end. You may want to work with a group of individuals at this stage of the game, as it can be overwhelming to make such decisions on your own.
Deliver the Goods - The key to an effective crowdstorming campaign typically comes in at the very end of the process. If you ever wish to work with a crowd again, you've got to deliver on the promises you've made. This means more than simply giving up those rewards you set in place early on, however — you've got to bring the ideas that you've chosen to life. If a crowdstorming campaign fails, it's typically because the products, services or plans discussed throughout the process don't actually get put into action, which basically means the entire campaign was a waste of time, energy and money. Whatever you do, don't allow your business to fall into this category.
Social intranet software is one of the most effective technological developments to affect the professional world in years. It allows firms to communicate not only internally, but externally with customers and partners as well.
Since it can be used as a platform for customer support, it should come as no surprise that this type of software can also serve as an excellent jumping-off point for businesses that are looking to conduct a crowdstorming campaign.
Social intranet software works best for crowdstorming when used on a targeted level, where a business might invite a specific subset of individuals to join an online community and thus begin offering ideas and feedback.
The beauty of using social intranet software for this reason is that it allows people to communicate back and forth with one another, creating a true conversation rather than a collection of random ideas. Because new ideas can come from having such a discussion, the process can often be expedited, saving money for the organization and time for the crowd being polled.
Results are typically higher in quality, less "all over the map" and, in the end, more viable than those gained from other crowdstorming methods.
It's fair to assume that crowdstorming has a bright future in the business community at large.
Technology has made it exceptionally easy to poll a crowd and gain outside information, and as things like social intranet software become more and more streamlined, crowdstorming will only get easier.
It's likely that it will also take a turn towards a more ratings-based system, not unlike that associated with credit scores, which so many people are already familiar with. A more effective, perhaps centralized rating system will help to quantify things in a way that will make it easier to choose viable ideas from a pool of information.
Even more exciting is the opportunity for crowdstorming to shift in a slightly different direction than it is moving in today.
While it's an excellent way to source information and feedback, there is a great deal of potential in crowdstorming for bringing together a team of experts to find the solution to a particular problem. When viewed at this level, crowdstorming extends far beyond the realm of business — it could change the way we approach problems as large as cancer, war, and political strife.
There's a lot to take into consideration when learning about crowdstorming, and it can take a while before you're ready to dive in. Once you get comfortable with the concept, however, don't hesitate to think of ways in which it can be used to benefit you or your business.
The more problem-solving methods you have in your toolkit, the more likely it is that you'll find success.
Wow! I was thinking exactly about building a website that's used for a public crowdstorming place. Where you can put your idea and let the whole world participate in growing it. Do you think showing your idea to the whole world is a successful starting point ?


People sometimes achieve very high level martial arts by accident. Accidents happen when we aren't paying attention, so they are often effortless.
A few years ago I was teaching Northern Shaolin to juvenile delinquents. A program was set up that was a collaboration between the school district, the sheriff's department, and Performing Arts Workshop. It was a lock down school which had a significant performing arts component. My classes always had a probation officer present watching on the side. All the students were between 13 and 16 years old and had been convicted of crimes.
Somewhere towards the end of my residency I brought my friend and Choi Li Fut expert Greg Mooney in as a guest artist. One of my rules is that students bow as they enter or exit the room. On this particular day, like most days, they were unruly, rude and disorganized as they entered the auditorium. As I introduced Greg they started pestering and shouting that they wanted us to fight, "We want to see you fight."
I looked at Greg, he is a performer, a stunt clown (he used to do 500 shows a year), we had sparred enough to know each others stuff. He looked game.
"OK," I said, "I'll make a deal with you guys." "You give us your full attention, you work hard, concentrate, and give todays class the best effort you've ever given, and we'll fight for you-- at the end of class."
"Really?" They asked, "If we do our best you'll really fight each other, for real?"
"Yes," I said. I knew I was taking a little risk, I looked over at the probation officer and he was motionless. "Alright, it's a deal then let's practice."
That day they practiced harder than they ever had before, it was a fun class. I guess they trusted me. So at the end I had them all sit down and Greg and I went at it.
Neither of us were looking to connect a punch, we were putting on a show. Our strikes were intentionally missing by just enough to make it look real, we each took a couple of dive rolls on the hard floor, our sweeps were slow enough to give each other time to fall the easy way, our kicks were to the meaty parts. The juveniles were screaming with delight.
Then I did a simple bagua zhang single palm change. Greg accidentally turned into it. I was trying to make all my movements empty of force, and at that moment I wasn't even aiming at a target, I was paying attention to my audience. But my elbow connected with Greg's temple and he flew backwards into the air. His temple opened up and blood spurted out everywhere. My movement at that moment was so effortless I didn't even feel my elbow connect.
I helped Greg to his feet and we had an eye to eye bonding moment. The juveniles were completely blown away, their enthusiasm was profound. They also found it incredible that after such an event we were showing all the signs of being best friends.
As they left class that day, each of them bowed with reverence and sincerity I hadn't believed possible. The staff of the school reported to me that a year later the students were still talking about it as their best day ever at school.


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Tag Archives: Genetics
A Possible Problem with CRISPR
January 5, 2018 BiologyCRISPR, DNA, Gene editing, Genetics, GMOGreg Laden
Viruses use the DNA of their hosts to help themselves reproduce. Bacteria have counter-attacked viruses by grabbing some of the DNA from viruses and using this to identify them and kill them back. That as an oversimplified description of an eons old arms race between viruses and bacteria.
Among the DNA sequences co-opted by bacteria is the famous gene-frag-family known as CRISPR. You've heard of it, and you probably know what it does. Briefly, genetic scientists can use the innate power of CRISPR to manipulate other DNA to "repair" or modify in situ DNA sequences in living organisms. Got a genetic disease? No problem. We get the good genetic sequence, and then use the CRISPR based technology to replace all your bad DNA with the good DNA.
Now, of course, that doesn't really work this way, and CRISPR technology has had fairly limited success so far. But there have been successes, and CRISPR is generally regarded as the Next Great Hope in the future of genetic therapy.
But now there may be a problem. Among the bacteria that use a CRISPER sort of sequence are two that are fairly nasty and common human pathogens. These are Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes. In fact, the specific CRISPER sequences that genetic scientists use to do the CRISPR thing, come from these specific bacteria.
So, think about this for a moment. If CRISPER is used by bacteria to do any of their dirty work, and the bacteria are common human pathogens, is it possible that some humans have built up an immunity to the CRISPER sequences, perhaps putting them off limits for future CRISPR therapy? Continue reading A Possible Problem with CRISPR →
Micro-Evolution In Greenland: Inuit Diet, Weight, and Stature
September 18, 2015 Uncategorizedadaptation, Anthropology, Archaeology, diet, Evolution of Diet, Genetics, Human Evolution, Inuit, Micro-evolution, StatureGreg Laden
There is a new paper in Science linking genetic variation in people living in Greenland with long term selection for managing a marine-oriented diet, affecting stature, weight, and probably, physiological processing of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs).
The vast majority of the variation we seen in stature (height) among humans is not genetic. That is a fact hard to swallow by so many of us who were told in biology class that "height is a complex genetic trait with many genes affecting it." It also seems wrong because the classic examples of variation in stature, the Pygmies of Central Africa (short) and the Maasai of East Africa (tall) are assumed to be populations under selection that caused them to be outliers. Of course, the Maasai are really not that tall by modern Western standards, but the story about them being tall, first told by relatively short European travelers who met them in the 19th century, persists, despite the fact that those travelers' offspring, such as Modern Americans and Brits, are in many cases significantly taller than their own ancestors without natural selection being the cause.
But there are some genetic factors that control height and weight and account for some percentage of variation in those phenotypes. Pygmies taken from their homeland and raised among people with unlimited food supply do not grow tall. They may become obese, but not tall, because one of the main genes that regulates growth in almost all humans simply does not function in Pygmies. (One individual Efe Pygmy I've met who was raised among Italian nuns, in Italy, was short but rather wide.) There may be other short statured populations with a similar genetically determined stature. But as far as we can tell, something like 20% (and that is probably an overestimate) of variation in stature in living humans over the last century or so can be accounted for by genetic variation. The rest is a combination of diet and, I suspect, an epigenetic effect linked to maternal size and diet. When a population of relatively short people get unlimited food the next generation is taller. But then, the next generation is taller still. It is as though mothers won't give birth to maximally sized offspring, just somewhat larger offspring, who then give birth to somewhat larger offspring, so the part of the demographic transition where everyone gets taller happens over a few generations. This is a well documented but not very well explained phenomenon, and the explanation I suggest here is merely a hypothesis.
A new study in Science looks at the Inuit people, and some Europeans living in the same place they live, in this case Greenland, and finds a genetic component to Inuit stature and weight. There are also other differences having to do with processing elements of their relatively unusual diet.
The key result with respect to weight and height is shown in the graph at the top of the post. The letters (GG, GT, TT) are the alleles (T is the derived allele). Homozygotes for the derived allele are quite a bit less massive, and a small amount shorter, than those without the allele, and heterozygotes are in between.
Here is the abstract from the paper:
The indigenous people of Greenland, the Inuit, have lived for a long time in the extreme conditions of the Arctic, including low annual temperatures, and with a specialized diet rich in protein and fatty acids, particularly omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). A scan of Inuit genomes for signatures of adaptation revealed signals at several loci, with the strongest signal located in a cluster of fatty acid desaturases that determine PUFA levels. The selected alleles are associated with multiple metabolic and anthropometric phenotypes and have large effect sizes for weight and height, with the effect on height replicated in Europeans. By analyzing membrane lipids, we found that the selected alleles modulate fatty acid composition, which may affect the regulation of growth hormones. Thus, the Inuit have genetic and physiological adaptations to a diet rich in PUFAs.
How long have the Inuit been living this lifeway, in this environment? Actually, not that long. The researchers, in their supplemental information, suggest that it could be as long as 30,000 years, but this is unlikely, or at least, the story is more complicated.
There are several complications to understanding the history of the selective environment of the Inuit, the environment that would have shaped this genetic adaptation. First, the environment has changed. Not only have we gone from an ice age to no ice age during this 30,000 year time period, but with sea level rise during the Holocene, the ecology of the arctic has changed considerably. Large areas of the continent have been inundated by the sea. Prior to that, most of the ocean adjoining land was immediately deep. With the inundation of the continent, vast relatively shallow areas of ocean would exist. Nutrients well up along the continental shelf, but shallow areas are also potentially nutrient rich because of sediments coming off shore. During glacial melt periods, there may have been frequent large scale fresh water incursions which would have had occasional disastrous effects on the local ecology. The position of estuarine settings, which can be very productive, would change. As sea level rise slowed, near shore sediments may have had a chance to build up, causing regional increases in productivity.
The migratory patterns, overall distribution, and abundance of marine mammals and common shoaling fish would have changed dramatically, and multiple times, during the last several thousand years. It would not have been until about five thousand years ago that things would have settled down allowing long term regional foraging adaptations to emerge. Prior to that there may have been periods when the marine environment was significantly more, or significantly less, productive.
Meanwhile, the ancestors of the Inuit themselves moved a great deal during this period. They were not in Greenland, or anywhere in North America, 30,000 years ago, but rather, in an unknown location in Asia. The Inuit ancestors were part of a later migration into the New World. The association (population wise) of true Arctic people and others living farther south is not known.
A second factor is cultural adaptation. When we look at the traditional Inuit foraging patterns and associated technology, together with the preceding prehistoric Thule adaptations, we can't help but to be impressed with the highly specialized effective approaches, both strategically and technologically, to acquiring marine resources. Boats, lamps, harpoons, and processing tools are highly refined and efficient. That material culture and strategic approach, however, is only a few thousand years old. Before that, in the region, were the Dorset, who simply lacked many of these tools. It is possible that the Thule and Inuit had sled and sled dogs, but earlier people in the Arctic did not. And so on. The ancestors of the Inuit, just a few thousand years ago, could not have had as specialized a diet as the traditional (modern ethnohistoric) Inuit. Cultural adaptations changing over time is as important as, if not more important than, the afore mentioned likely changes in environment.
So, I'm not going to argue that these adaptations are not 30,000 years in the making. Rather, I'll argue that strong selection for these alleles could be as recent a few thousand years or even less, and that prior selective environments (the combination of the natural environment and human cultural adaptations to it) may have different and the situation may have been rather complicated for many years. In other words, the new, and very interesting, results looking at the Inuit genome need to be integrated with a better understanding of Inuit history, which is probably going to require a lot more research in the region.
There is a second point I want to make about this paper. We see research suggesting a genetic explanation for a lot of things, but often, in the past, that has involved finding a correlation between this or that genetic variation and a presumed phenotypic feature. Often, the next key step to establish the link isn't, perhaps sometimes can't be, taken. This is the link between the observed genetic variation and a good physiological story. The present research finds genetic variation associated with physiological features that seem to be associated with a marine-oriented diet in an Arctic or Sub Arctic setting. That makes this research really valuable.
Greenlandic Inuit show genetic signatures of diet and climate adaptation
Matteo Fumagalli, Ida Moltke, Niels Grarup, Fernando Racimo, Peter Bjerregaard, Marit E. Jørgensen, Thorfinn S. Korneliussen, Pascale Gerbault, Line Skotte, Allan Linneberg, Cramer Christensen, Ivan Brandslund, Torben Jørgensen, Emilia Huerta-Sánchez, Erik B. Schmidt, Oluf Pedersen, Torben Hansen, Anders Albrechtsen, and Rasmus Nielsen
Science 18 September 2015: 349 (6254), 1343-1347. [DOI:10.1126/science.aab2319]
Temperature and sex determination
December 2, 2014 UncategorizedEvolutionary Biology, Gender and Sexual Orientation, Genetics, Sex determination, Temperature, TurtlesGreg Laden
Some interesting new research. The paper is, unfortunately, behind a paywall but they made a video, so it is worth posting.
Here's the press release for the paper:
Scientists know that temperature determines sex in certain reptiles—alligators, lizards, turtles, and possibly dinosaurs. In many turtles, warm temperatures during incubation create females. Cold temperatures, males. But no one understands why.
A recent study sheds further light on this question. The findings of researchers Kayla Bieser, assistant professor at Northland College, and Thane Wibbels, professor of reproductive biology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, will be published this month in the primary research journal "Sexual Development," and is now available online.
This study represents the most comprehensive, simultaneous evaluation of the chronology of how sex-determining genes express themselves during embryonic development and and looks at the impacts of estrogen.
Bieser and Wibbels followed five different genes and what was going on in the exact same turtle. To date, scientists have looked at a number of turtles and pooled the data but Bieser is the first to follow individual turtles. She wanted to know when and how they "express" themselves. For an example, Bieser describes expression as the physical manifestation of those genes such as blue or brown eye color.
She looked at turtle eggs incubated at male and female temperatures and documented what the genes were doing while sex is being determined. "Which genes 'turn on' and when, could be an indication of what is triggering sex," Bieser said.
According to Bieser, temperature-dependent sex determination species may be unable to evolve rapidly enough to offset the increases in temperature, which may ultimately result in their extinction.
"It's critical that we understand the genetic mechanisms for which temperature acts and incorporate this knowledge into management plans for the conservation of these vulnerable species."
Secondly, Bieser applied estrogen to eggs at a male-producing temperature. The purpose she said is to help determine the triggers for sex determination and how hormones, such as estrogen, can override the temperature signal.
In other words, would temperature or estrogen win out in deciding sex? The answer: in short, neither. What she found — and this is new information — is when estrogen is applied to eggs incubating at a male temperature, gonads—or sexual parts—do not develop. Or, if they do, they barely develop.
Why? "We don't know yet," Bieser said.
Scientists have been doing this experiment for some time but never reported these results. She suspects the reason is because scientists did not dissect the gonadal area specifically and that they took the general area but may have not analyzed the gonads to the same detailed level. In fact, this was a sticking point for one of the reviewers of this study—so Bieser provided photos of her findings.
"This research provides a critical understanding of how temperature acts on and above the genes in species where temperature determines sex—this is particularly critical in light of global climate change," Bieser said.
The original paper:
Bieser K.L. · Wibbels T. 2014. Chronology, Magnitude and Duration of Expression of Putative Sex-Determining/Differentiation Genes in a Turtle with Temperature-Dependent Sex Determination. Sexual Development 8(6).
It turns out that coffee is special
September 5, 2014 UncategorizedCoffee genome, GeneticsGreg Laden
But you knew that already.
The Coffea canephora Genome has been sequenced. This is probably more important than the Human Genome project because humans are completely useless first thing in the morning, but coffee is very important first thing in the morning.
Some important plant evolution involves wholesale duplication of large parts of the genome. This does not appear to be the case with coffee. Rather, diversification of single genes characterizes the genome, so, according to the paper reporting these results in Science, "…the genome includes several species-specific gene family expansions, among them N-methyltransferases (NMTs) involved in caffeine production, defense-related genes, and alkaloid and flavonoid enzymes involved in secondary compound synthesis."
Also of great interest is the apparent fact that caffeine related genes either evolved separately from, or engaged in the important work of making caffeine separately from similarly functioning sets of genes in tea and cacao (chocolate). I had always suspected tea was … different.
So, not at all unexpectedly, the most important molecule on earth evolved more than once!
Elizabeth Pennisi also has a writeup here.
Reviews of Nicholas Wade's "A Troublesome Inheritance"
August 11, 2014 UncategorizedGenetics, Nicholas Wade, Race, Race and Racism, RacismGreg Laden
A list of reviews of Nicholas Wade's book "A Troublesome Inheritance," mainly by anthropologists and others who have investigated issues surrounding the concept of "race" in humans.
Bethune, Brian: Inheritance battles
Daniels, Anthony: Genetic disorder
Dobbs, David: The Fault in Our DNA
Fuentes, Augustín: The Troublesome Ignorance of Nicholas Wade
Geneticists, Lotsofthem: An Open Letter
Goodman, Alan: A Troublesome Racial Smog
Johnson, Eric Michael: On the Origin of White Power
Laden, Greg: A Troubling Tome
Marks, Jonathan: The Genes Made Us Do It
Marks, Jonathan: Review of A Troublesome Inheritance
Myers, PZ: The hbd delusion
O, Josyln (AAA): Is Cultural Anthropology Really Disembodied?
Orr, Allen H.: Stretch Genes
Raff, Jennifer: Nicholas Wade and race: building a scientific façade
Steadman, Ian: "Jews are adapted to capitalism", and other nonsenses of the new scientific racism
Terrell, John Edward: A Troublesome Ghost
Yoder, Jeremy: Cluster-struck
Yoder, Jeremy: How A Troublesome Inheritance gets human genetics wrong
My Review of Nicholas Wade's Book, A Troublesome Inheritance: Genes, Race, and Human History.
June 17, 2014 UncategorizedA Troublesome Inheritance, Genetics, Nicholas Wade, Race, Race and Racism, RacismGreg Laden
I first heard about Wade's book when a colleague started talking about bits and pieces of it. He was reading it pursuant to a writing a review. I asked the publisher for a review copy, which they kindly supplied, and started tracking the pre-publication reactions. After reading the first couple of chapters, I realized that I needed to write a review of this book, but I wanted to do something a bit more than a blog post. So, I contacted American Scientist. I had reviewed two books for them earlier. American Scientist is actually my very favorite science magazine (among magazines that are not peer reviewed research outlets). It is a bit higher level than Scientific American (which is also a good mag) in its treatment of subjects.
The book review editor told me that American Scientist had shifted its book review approach to be more of a notice section, mainly talking about books that they recommended to their readers without intensive critical reviews. But they felt that my review of this particular book would be important so they agreed to try out a more extensive review to feature in the next issue.
For this reason I've been mainly quiet about Wade's book. I did attend an online seminar with him and Agustín Fuentes, during which I asked a few questions, but for the most part I decided to focus only on this printed review which would come out after the dust had settled around Wade's publication date. Keeping my mouth shut has been painful (as some of you know from our private conversations).
And now that review is done, in print, and thankfully, available on line.
My original plan was to point to the American Scientists review and at the same time provide a longer blog post with all the stuff that would not fit in the printed review. But as I wrote the review and interacted with the editors at American Scientist, the phrase "Normally our reviews are under 800 words" evolved into something more like "This is important, don't worry about length. We'll figure it out." This is not something you hear from editors very often, especially in print media! In the end, the review that got published is the review I'd write on my blog, significantly improved with editorial input form Scientists' Nightstand editor Dianne Timblin and the American Scientist's Editor in Chief.
Note: The online review is one of those muti-page web pages, so don't forget to read all of it!!!
Enjoy. Or rage. As you wish.
Is Human Behavior Genetic Or Learned?
March 7, 2014 Anatomy and physiology, Anthropology, Biology, Evolutionary Biology, Falsehoods and Skepticism, Race and RacismBehavioral Biology, Gender and Sexual Orientation, Genetics, IQ, Race and Racism, twin studiesGreg Laden
Imagine that there is a trait observed among people that seems to occur more frequently in some families and not others. One might suspect that the trait is inherited genetically. Imagine researchers looking for the genetic underpinning of this trait and at first, not finding it. What might you conclude? It could be reasonable to conclude that the genetic underpinning of the trait is elusive, perhaps complicated with multiple genes, or that there is a non-genetic component, also not yet identified, that makes finding the genetic component harder. Eventually, you might assume, the gene will be found. Continue reading Is Human Behavior Genetic Or Learned? →
How to do any genetic research you want without getting permission.
August 21, 2013 Uncategorizedethics, Genetics, Genetics, IRBGreg Laden
Let's say you want to do a market-related study in which you gain entry to one thousand homes representing sets of people defined by the usual variables of income, ethnicity, urban-suburban lifestyle etc. The first thing you do is to ask a few people, real nice like, if you can go through their stuff and take a lot of photographs and notes. Most of them say no, and you perhaps even discover that the one or two who actually agree to this are odd ducks. So you go to Plan B. This involves breaking into the homes when the people are out so you can get your data despite the fact that they don't want to participate. But you get caught and can't do that any more. So, now you are faced with the reality that your research plans are done for.
But wait, there is a way to get similar data without needing any permission from anyone and it is not illegal, and in fact, it could actually be cheaper and easier than your original proposal and, while it may not provide the same exact results, it could even provide BETTER results. Let's call it Plan C.
Plan C involves looking at every iteration of every single Google Street View picture ever taken anywhere in the US at any time. All of them. The vast majority of these photographs will show you nothing, but every here and there, you will get some data. There will be a shot that shows a thing in an open window, or an open door, or an open garage, or being carried into our out of a person's house, being delivered, thrown out on the curb, sold in a garage sale, sitting on the lawn after an explosion or fire, or in use (especially yard and garden implements). This is not the same thing as sampling hundreds of houses once each, looking at all contents. But it is sampling the homes lived in by hundreds of millions of people, and sampling them dozens of times over a few years. That could be some amazing data.
And nobody can stop you from studying this source of information or doing this research. If someone does try to stop you with silly regulations from a University or something, just change into a Journalist. Then you're golden. It would be WRONG to stop a journalist from using this information!
Turns out that this works with genes, but even better. One might want to study the relationship between a putative genetic marker and a possible behavioral thing, like maybe a psychiatric disorder or something, in a genetically bottle necked tribal group somewhere. You can try to get permission to do this, and maybe you'll get it. Maybe you won't get permission but you can certainly steal the genetic data from some place and do the research anyway. But people will get mad at you and you'll not get any more research money.
Or, you can go to Plan C.
Here's how Plan C works with genes. We have a good idea of the distribution of many genetic markers that have to do with geographical patterns over time. (Some people would use the term "race" in that sentence but that's incorrect and unnecessary.) So, something like "East Asian" or "Native South American" or "Central African" or whatever has a list of genetic markers that go with it. Genes are supposed to "independently assort" and act all random and all, but they don't. At the finest level, on chromosomes, genetic markers that are near each other travel together because of "linkage." More importantly, genes move in populations. So, those East Asian genetic markers are not going to get all mixed up with the Central African genetic markers too often. Also, if you have enough samples, some mixing up doesn't matter all that much.
So, if you want to study a disease-related "gene" (allele, a variant of a gene, really), if you think such a thing exists, you can effectively study it in a small population of repressed brown people who, tired of repression and exploitation decided to be totally unfair to you and not give you their blood, by looking at the association of LBP ("little brown people") markers and the alleles of interest. It does not even matter if many of those marker associations are found in totally non LBP people. They are still associated. Genetic lineages are the thing, not human lineages. Humans are merely reasonable approximations of genes, really. Or at least, you can make a case for the associations and get your research funded and published without asking anybody any permissions for anything, just using giant available genetic databases. OK, so, maybe this is not "any genetic research you want." But it is without permission!
This all sounds very nefarious but may not be. Or maybe it is. I'll leave that to the ethicists.
By the way, if you are interesting in a big fight on the Internet about genetic research, ethics, "IRB" permissions, LBP's and science and so on and so forth, I recommend the following, in the order suggested.
First, read this blog post: Is the Havasupai Indian Case a Fairy Tale? by Ricki Lewis (and if you have time, along with it, this related blog post)
DON'T READ THE COMMENTS YET
Then, read this blog post: The Empire Strikes Back by Jonathan Marks
Then, go back to the first blog post (Is the Havasupai Indian Case a Fairy Tale?) and read the comments.
Then, report back here and tell me what you think. Especially about that last comment on the PLOS blog post.
Photo Credit: tapasparida via Compfight cc
Regenesis: Taking over biology using readily available materials from your kitchen
December 3, 2012 Uncategorizedbiosynthesis, biotechnology, Books, Genetics, Genetics, GMOGreg Laden
I might be exaggerating slightly about the ready availability of the materials…
Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves
by George Church and Ed Regis looks like a futurist tome on what could happen when technology finally catches up with human imagination and everything changes. Except it isn't. Most futurists are people with some knowledge of technology, a fertile imagination, and a publicist. Regenesis
is by a scientist (working with a writer) who is busy making a different future and who has been involved in every stage of development of the technology under discussion, and for this reason is one of the more important new science-related books you can read right now. Regis is a multiply published science author (his most recent book is What Is Life?: Investigating the Nature of Life in the Age of Synthetic Biology
) and George Church is Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School who is one of the key players in the Personal Genome Project. He directs Personal Genomics.org, which curates the only OpenAccess human "Genomic, Environmental and Trait database. His work led to the first commercial genome sequence (for apathogen) and he has been involved in both genome sequencing (reading the genes) and synthesis (making new ones) in both the academic and private milieu. He is also director of the NIH "Center for Excellence in Genomic Science" which places him at the center of biosafety, gene privacy, and security policy development.
Church was finishing is PhD work at Harvard the same year that I started mine. We never met to my knowledge, but I remember the construction in those days of the new genetic research facility there. Cambridge, Massachusetts was the first and only city (and still maybe the only one) to write zoning and building regulations for genetic research facilities, and the building was right across from the museum I worked in. People were afraid of what might happen if some of the genes, or genetically modified organisms, they were working on in that building got out. That was a valid concern given the unknowns, but it would eventually happen that the details of what people needed to worry about shifted considerably over time. Had George Church been sent back in a time capsule and put in charge of that project, his understanding of and commitment to safety in genetic research would have been more than a little reassuring. Of course, this would have then affected his own future and thus … oh never mind, that damn Time Paradox is too confusing…
covers the history and current status of some of the most innovative and interesting research in genetic engineering, and it is organized in a way that I really liked. The book is written as a time line. The chapters run as follows:
-3,800 Myr, Late Hadan
-3,500 Myr, Archean
-500 Myr, Cambrian
-360 Myr, Carboniferous
-60 Myr, Paleocene
-30,000 YR, Pleistocene Park
-10,000 YR, Neolithic
-100 Yr, Anthropocene
-1 Yr, Holocene
+1 Yr, The End of the Beginning, Transhumanis, and the Panspermia Era
See what they did there?
Each of these past eras represents a change in the genetics, cellular biology, evolutionary stage, or environmental context in which live existed, with the human role coming along in a big way near the end. This allows the authors to discuss the nature of life at each stage, and related the last 20 or so years of genomic and genetic research to different levels of organization of life. This causes this book to be different from the average run of the mill futurist book in two ways: 1) You learn stuff about how things are and have been, detailed stuff, interesting stuff; and 2) There is a solid road map imposed on the discussion of what is being done now and what could be done in the future, which allows the authors to avoid the messing around we see in a lot of futurist books. In other words, this is not futurist manifest; It is a history of life and a detailed discussion of what humans are actually doing with life these days and what we seem poised to be able to do based on a solid grounding in actual ongoing research.
One of the most interesting themes that helps underscore the nature of this discussion is left- vs right-handedness in biology. Most complex biological molecules could be built with the structure and symmetry organized in a left handed vs right handed way. It is quite possible that we could encounter a planet (if we could get there) rich in life that is all built on molecules that are the opposite in orientation from what we have here on Earth. Not only that, but it is possible to build such a life form now. We could construct a human that is left-handed, and thus, fundamentally different from all other humans. Such a human could not be infected by many, perhaps most, cell-level pathogens because those pathogens would not be able to interact with the left-handed body. Obviously, this is a complex issue and there is a lot too it…you'll have to read the book to find out what the implications and complications of such a thing might be.
The most important theme in the book, and also very interesting, is the concept of synthetic biology. The goal of synthetic biology is to create an organism or set of organisms that use the standard biological machinery (proteins and enzymes and stuff building other molecules in a certain way) that will be instructed with their DNA to produce a certain product, such as oil, a house, a cute little furry organism that will replace your Roomba. Well, maybe not that last one. We use lots of synthetic biology now but we are at the chipped-stone tool phase. The basics are in place, the research is progressing, the market for the products is there. Synthetic biology is one of those "technologies" that many hope will come along and solve many of our problems. It should be relatively straight forward to create a thing that will make hydrocarbon based fuels, which one must admit are a very handy way of storing energy, from raw materials that do not include fossil carbon. My personal fantasy is to build large flat factories on the sea surface or in open arid regions that will produce a solid that we just pile up somewhere to contain carbon taken from the atmosphere, and a steady stream of a clean burning liquid. Down the street, I want to see a factory that consist of a giant, 30 acre leaf surface under which is constantly being built a layer of genetically engineered wood, with whatever properties are needed. Imagine 2X4s of just the right strength and flexibility, but indurated with anti-fungicidal and other preservative chemicals. A combination of balsa, ebony, maple, cedar and hickory. Left-handed, of course. Who needs plastic and concrete when we have Frankewood! Bwahahaha!
I interviewed George Church a couple of weeks ago on the radio. The podcast of that interview is located hare on iTunes
, or you can find out other ways to get it or listen to it directly here.
From the official description of the book:
Imagine a future in which human beings have become immune to all viruses, in which bacteria can custom-produce everyday items, like a drinking cup, or generate enough electricity to end oil dependency. Building a house would entail no more work than planting a seed in the ground. These scenarios may seem far-fetched, but pioneering geneticist George Church and science writer Ed Regis show that synthetic biology is bringing us ever closer to making such visions a reality.
In Regenesis, Church and Regis explorethe possibilities—and perils—of the emerging field of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology, in which living organisms are selectively altered by modifying substantial portions of their genomes, allows for the creation of entirely new species of organisms. Until now, nature has been the exclusive arbiter of life, death, and evolution; with synthetic biology, we now have the potential to write our own biological future. Indeed, as Church and Regis show, it even enables us to revisit crucial points in the evolution of life and, through synthetic biological techniques, choose different paths from those nature originally took.
Do you hate or like Cilantro? Turns out, it's genetic. Science Teachers Take Note!
September 12, 2012 Uncategorizedcilantro, Genetics, UncategorizedGreg Laden
A number of lines of evidence have converged on the apparent fact that how you feel about Cilantro is a relatively simple genetic system. That Cilantro hatred is inherited genetically and not culturally has long been suspected, but now it is becoming clear enough that this could be a new module in the Science Classroom where kids are forced to taste it and record their level of disgust. It's all written up here, in Nature.
In hopes of identifying the genetic basis for these traits, researchers led by Nicholas Eriksson at the consumer genetics firm 23andMe, based in Mountain View, California, asked customers whether coriander tasted like soap and whether or not they liked the herb. The researchers identified two common genetic variants linked to people's "soap" perceptions. A follow-up study in a separate sub-set of customers confirmed the associations.
The strongest-linked variant lies within a cluster of olfactory-receptor genes, which influence sense of smell. One of those genes, OR6A2, encodes a receptor that is highly sensitive to aldehyde chemicals, which contribute to the flavour of coriander. This makes OR6A2 "a compelling candidate gene for the detection of the odours that give it its divisive flavour", the researchers write.
Go to the source to get all the info. See also the I Hate Cilantro site.
Personally, I simultaneously think it tastes like soap and I like it.
Demonstration of the Double Helix
April 24, 2012 UncategorizedGeneticsGreg Laden
This is a proof of concept blog post. Please give it a try and let me know if it works for you!
Double Helix from the Wolfram Demonstrations Project by Sándor Kabai
The Genetics of Pesticide Resistant Bedbugs
January 19, 2011 Uncategorizedbedbugs, Genetics, Health, pesticide resistanceGreg Laden
Bedbugs (Insects of the Cimicidae family, commonly Cimex lectularius) are annoying, might carry diseases (though this is unclear, so probably nothing importat1, and are apparently becoming more common in the US. Interestingly, there has been very little study done of their genetics. A new study just out in PLoS ONE looks at the bedbug genome in an effort to better understand pesticide resistance in these pesky critters.
Continue reading The Genetics of Pesticide Resistant Bedbugs →
What is the most important human adaptation?
October 22, 2010 UncategorizedBehavioral Biology, Brain and Behavior, Development, Evolutionary Biology, Gender and Sexual Orientation, Genetics, Human Evolution, Human sexuality, Language, Sex DifferencesGreg Laden
Human infants require more care than they should, if we form our expectations based on closely related species (apes, and more generally, Old World simian primates). It has been said that humans are born three months early. This is not accurate. It was thought that our body size predicted a 12 month gestation, and some suggested that Neanderthals would have had such, but this research conclusion has been set aside based on new analysis. But it is still true that developmentally, human children do not reach a stage of development that allows some degree of self care for a very long time compared to apes. The actual sequence of development is not directly comparable: It is not the case that after a certain amount of time humans reach a specific stage reached earlier in the lifecycle by Chimpanzees, as the differences are more complicated than that. For the present purposes, we can characterize the human condition for early development like this: Human babies are more helpless in more ways and for longer than comparable ape babies.
Continue reading What is the most important human adaptation? →

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Players Leave After Mullin Steps Down
Nick Bello, Sports Editor
When the St. John's Red Storm was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament after losing to Arizona State in a first four game, many were confident that a Red Storm return next March could be possible with a solid core of players who were expected to return next season. That, however, was three weeks ago. Since th...
Tags: Bryan Trimble Jr., Cam Mack, Chris Mullin, Justin Simon, LJ Figueroa, Marvin Clark II, Matt Abdelmassih, Nate Tabor, Shamorie Ponds, sports, St. John's men's basketball, Valdir Manuel
LJ Figueroa


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We are proud to support UKSA, the only national disability sports organisation working with people with learning disability across the UK in performance/elite sport.
Our role as consultants to UKSA is to support their education programmes within sport and the wider LD community. We have supported various education campaigns including Change 1 Thing and My Sport, My Voice! which was funded through the Spirit 2012 trust. My Sport My Voice! Is a campaign that raises the profile of the UK's elite athletes with a learning disability by providing a platform to showcase their sporting achievements and inspire others to succeed. The project utilised Athlete Ambassadors who have all excelled at the highest level and have been chosen from each country of the UK. They include a Paralympic Gold medallist, several World Champions and two England LD national team captains. As UKSA continues on its journey supporting the United Kingdom's elite athletes we are invested in our work to help them in their educational and support role.
To learn more about UKSA please visit their website.
UK Sports Association for People with Learning Difficulties
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Divorce versus Marital Rape: A Tale of Hypocrisy
Posted on September 14, 2017 by sekyerek
By Sachin Dhawan*
As per recent reports[1], the central government of India (the government) has, in response to a petition filed before the Supreme Court, defended the statutory exception permitting child marital rape. The validity of the controversial exception to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code, which states that "sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under 15 years of age, is not rape"[2], has been challenged by the NGO Independent Thought.
The government has rightly been taken to task for its shocking stance towards child marital rape. In a brazen display of apathy, it pinned the blame for the social evil on "socio-economic realities"[3] implicitly washing its hands of the problem. In blithely condoning the heinous traditions that sanction the victimization of children, the government made its intentions clear: it was not interested in redressing the problem.
This antediluvian stand by the government is in stark contrast to the affidavit[4] it submitted last year in the case of Shayara Bano v. Union of India. There, it vigorously endorsed the demand for a constitutional abrogation of discriminatory divorce laws affecting Muslim women. The government went all out in this endeavor, proclaiming that "gender equality and the dignity of women are non-negotiable, overarching constitutional values and can brook no compromise"[5]. In this way, it positioned itself as the primary guardian of Muslim women's rights.
Importantly, most of the affidavit is devoted to detailing the vast network of international covenants and agreements mandating the institution of gender just measures to alleviate the suffering of women. The government takes pains to remind the Court of its past pronouncements on India's obligation to adhere to international law commitments on gender justice. Sharply expressing its indignation at the suffering of Muslim women due to the practice of triple talaq (instantaneous divorce), the government exhorts the Supreme Court to once again act on the basis of "international covenants to which [India] is a party"[6].
In embracing change for divorced Muslim women while upholding continuity for child brides, the government does not display a consistent attitude towards women's rights. Indeed, the international obligations cited to uphold gender justice for Muslim women are all but forgotten when it comes to dealing with child marriage, a social evil practiced mostly by Hindus[7]. In such situations, the government prefers to "protect the institution of marriage"[8] rather than invoke India's international obligations. Despite the severity of the concerns raised by Independent Thought, the government's response was timid and meek, devoid of the alacrity with which it condemned gender injustice afflicting Muslim women.
Sadly, such behavior is reflective of past conduct of the government. Prime Minister Modi waxes eloquent about the plight of Muslim victims of divorce but has nothing to say about the many more non-Muslim women abandoned by their husbands[9]. Criticizing this employment of a double standard is not to deny the suffering of many Muslim women. However, the selective memory on display when it comes to international covenants suggests that the government's interest in women's rights is piqued when the women in question happen to be Muslim, that too on limited occasions[10]. The government's aspiration to achieve the goals of gender justice as set out in a raft of international accords is laudable but it is an aspiration that should be pursued in the interests of all women.
* Sachin Dhawan is an Assistant Professor at Jindal Global Law School, India.
[1] https://scroll.in/latest/846733/centre-defends-ipc-clause-that-protects-husband-for-having-forced-sex-with-minor-wife
[2] https://indiankanoon.org/doc/623254/
[3] https://thewire.in/166569/minor-wife-rape-forced-sex/
[4] https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzXilfcxe7yucHNsQXpXa0VuZk0/view
[7] https://thewire.in/39885/of-12-million-married-children-under-age-ten-84-are-hindus/
[9] https://thewire.in/86335/abandoned-women-triple-talaq/
[10] https://thewire.in/132084/bilkis-bano-rape-case-narendra-modi/
This entry was posted in Child rights, Discrimination, Gender, Women's rights and tagged discrimination, divorce, India, marital rape, muslim, sachin dhawan. Bookmark the permalink.
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