text:
The West Wing: Only A Hollywood Fantasy
Linda Chavez
The West Wing is about to be demolished. No, not the edifice that is home to White House senior staff, but the television series that has aired on NBC since 1999. This week, NBC announced that the last episode will air on May 14. Like many viewers, I tuned out long ago. When Bill Clinton was still in office, there was something mildly amusing about the Hollywood fantasy version of what a White House should be. Josiah Bartlet was everything Bill Clinton wasn't: a devoted husband, a man who got down on his knees in the Oval Office only to pray, a leader who'd rather lose an important vote than compromise his principles. But the series became tedious, the liberal proselytizing more aggressive, and the premise ridiculous once George W. Bush assumed office. The series has been on life support for several seasons, with every effort to revive the excitement first generated seven years ago failing. Not even the prospect of heartthrob Jimmy Smits (Congressman Matt Santos) becoming president has been enough to woo back an audience.
With "West Wing" gone, Hollywood fantasies of wresting control of the White House from evil Republicans will have to rely on the staying power of ABC's "Commander In Chief." But Geena Davis as President Mom is a pretty thin reed. Although the show premiered to record ratings in September, it's been losing ground almost steadily since. Conservatives have criticized President Mackenzie Allen as a fictional stalking horse for Hillary Rodham Clinton, but Davis' President Allen may actually set back the chances of a woman becoming commander in chief any time soon. Do we really want our president grappling with teenage angst and sibling rivalry in the middle of the War on Terror? The show's creators seem not to realize that most women have long ago given up trying to have it all. Sure, working moms are now the norm, but the evidence suggests that most women who make it to the very top of their professions do so either after they have raised their children or chosen to remain childless. It's hard to balance work and family, even harder to balance becoming the boss in the workplace while maintaining the role of involved mom at home, and nigh impossible to manage a nuclear crisis while supervising the kids' homework.
But Hollywood keeps trying to remake the world in its own image, even if it doesn't sell to the viewing audience. And it's not just political shows that fall flat. NBC's new series "The Book of Daniel" has not only flopped in the ratings battle, it has scared off viewers and sponsors with its in-your-face iconoclasm. The main character, the Rev. Daniel Webster, played by Aidan Quinn, is a pill-popping Episcopal priest with a gay son, a drug-dealing daughter and an alcoholic wife. Jesus — more of the Jesus Christ Superstar variety than a biblical interpretation — makes regular appearances on the show to dispense Dr. Phil-type advice, but He, too, seems aimed more at irritating than attracting believers to the show. At a press conference with NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly this week, one TV critic noted that a recent episode ran virtually without ads: "Your commercial breaks were a festival of NBC promos; I think you had maybe one national ad in the whole show. Can you afford to keep putting that show on, or have these pressure groups . . . driven off literally all the advertisers?" A better question might be whether network executives are willing to air shows that drive viewers away if it suits their political agenda.
Hollywood used to try to entertain Americans, now it tries to indoctrinate them. And it has had some success. Shows like "Will & Grace" have made homosexuality appear non-threatening, indeed endearing, for example, advancing as well as reflecting greater tolerance toward gays. But the last four federal elections suggest Hollywood has yet to convince a majority of voters that Republicans are all simple-minded, greedy autocrats. They keep trying anyway, failing to advance their politics at the polls and losing viewers all the while. Maybe one day, they'll get back to trying to win audiences, not elections.
Republican Agenda Has Lost Its Sizzle
More War In the Works
Written By Linda Chavez
Mrs. Chavez is president of Stop Union Political Abuse.


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[Newsmaker] Chaos at court as murder suspect claims self-defense
By Kim Arin
Koh Yu-jeong, suspected of murdering her former husband, attended her first trial before a crowd of jeering spectators Monday.
During the trial at Jeju District Court, which started at 10 a.m., Koh maintained that she had acted in self-defense against a rape attempt by her ex-husband, identified only by his surname Kang.
Koh's attorney said that Kang attempted "unwanted physical contact" with Koh during the divorced couple's meeting with their son, "expecting the defendant to comply with his request for sex."
A courtroom spectator grabs Koh Yu-jeong by the hair as she walks out of the Jeju District Court on the first day of her trial Monday morning. (Yonhap)
"The tragedy is rooted in this excessive sexual demand from highly-sexed Kang, which went unmet," he said, adding her act had been without intent and not premeditated.
"If the defendant had the intention of murder, she would not have exposed herself on closed-circuit TV."
The attorney also claimed the zolpidem police found in blood at the scene belonged to Koh, denying previously raised accusations that she had drugged Kang before killing him.
Kang's attorney, on the other hand, said the defendant's claims "crossed the line" and "dishonored the deceased."
Koh, wearing pale green prison garb, kept her head down throughout the proceedings.
Court officials tried to hold back courtroom spectators as they booed and heckled, "Show us your face," "Murderer," "Disgusting lies."
When the judges asked Koh if she wanted a jury trial, she replied she did not.
Monday's trial marked Koh's first public appearance in about two months after her case was sent to prosecutors on June 12.
The court only admitted public observers with a pass, handed out in order of arrival, to observe trial over a case which drew nationwide attention.
Those who were denied admission due to the limited number of passes protested, and demanded the trial be held with the doors of the courtroom open. Some said they had come to Jeju from the mainland just to see Koh's trial.
As Koh walked out of the district court, she was grabbed by the hair by one of the spectators and had to be separated from the crowd by officials.
Koh is accused of murdering Kang at a vacation rental home in Jocheon, 20 kilometers outside Jeju City, between 8:10 p.m. and 9:50 p.m. on May 25, and dismembering and disposing of his body over the following week.
The next trial is slated for 2 p.m. on Sept. 2.
By Kim Arin (arin@heraldcorp.com)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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The 2021 Solgironès Open Catalunya was a professional women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the fifth edition of the tournament which was part of the 2021 ITF Women's World Tennis Tour. It took place in La Bisbal d'Empordà, Spain between 10 and 16 May 2021.

Singles main-draw entrants

Seeds

 1 Rankings are as of 26 April 2021.

Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:
  Marta Custic
  Victoria Jiménez Kasintseva
  Francesca Jones
  Ane Mintegi del Olmo

The following player received entry using a protected ranking:
  Irina Khromacheva

The following players received entry from the qualifying draw:
  Marina Bassols Ribera
  Cristiana Ferrando
  Guiomar Maristany
  Tereza Mrdeža
  Jessica Pieri
  Andreea Prisăcariu
  Olga Sáez Larra
  Simona Waltert

Champions

Singles

 Irina Khromacheva def.  Arantxa Rus, 6–4, 1–6, 7–6(10–8)

Doubles

  Valentina Ivakhnenko /  Andreea Prisăcariu def.  Mona Barthel /  Mandy Minella, 6–3, 6–1

References

External links
 2021 Solgironès Open Catalunya at ITFtennis.com
 Official website

2021 ITF Women's World Tennis Tour
2021 in Spanish tennis
May 2021 sports events in Spain

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Alterex has released ViCON, a freeware virtual monophonic synthesizer VST instrument for Windows PC.
ViCON is a free VSTi synthesizer with 1 VCO and sub oscillator with a 12/24db VCF – created using Synthedit.
The architecture of ViCON is solemnly based on the Microcon produced by Technosaurus. The ViCON is not intended to be a software clone or emulation of the Microcon.
Glide, trig (legato play) and master tune.
VCO (square/sawtooth) with -2 octave swith and mix control for mixing sub-oscillator (rectangular wave, one octave under the VCO's pitch).
LFO for cut-off frequency and pitch (square or triangle waveform). LFO retriggers at gate signal.
LFO speed is synced to internal bpm clock of your VST-host.
Envelope generator with Attack and Decay (knobs) and Release (switch).
VCF (filter) with cutoff and resonance controls and 12db/24db modes.
Filter modulation (LFO and enevelope for cutoff).
Filter CV mode modulates the filter, it opens with increasing pitch.
VCA with audio signal level control and mode switch (modulation of volume: AD = envelope, GATE = connected gate signal).
ViCON is available as a freeware VST instrument for Windows PC.
Visit Alterex for more information and a mp3 demo.


Tweak the prompt creatively - add to the challenge by using collage or paint.
Create your own fun list of 21 sketches.
Color your doodle/sketches or copy them to share.
Host a "doodle time" with family or friends.
Doodle prompt list of 21 tasks (see below or download here).
Pens, markers, pencils, crayons, colored pencils.
Whimsically write your favorite words.
Draw a tree with swirls.
Close your eyes, doodle a scribble, color it.
Draw/design a mixed up animal/monster.
Hide your name in a drawing/doodle.
Doodle a thank you to someone.
Doodle a scavenger hunt – no words.
Draw a door with decorative, interesting patterns.
Draw a flower with fun symbols or patterns.
Draw one item from what you had to eat today.
Draw how you traveled today.
Draw a favorite item from your room, home or nature.
Design an ad about art/creativity or your favorite hobby.
Trace your hand – fill it with patterns/doodles.
After 21 days see if you notice that doodling can be a tool for relaxation and/or a jump start for creativity.
Doodling is also a great way for children to express their feelings and process fears.


Changes at Walt Disney World – What's for Dinner Moms?
Sunday is my fun day! I write about my family or something that is going on in our world.
Lots of changes to the Walt Disney World theme parks were announced at the D23 Expo, a conference for those who love all things Disney, in California last week. I LOVE Disney. Let's start with that. My whole family loves Disney. But, all the changes that were announced the other day have our heads spinning and trying to picture our beloved Disney World with all these changes.
For years I have said that Disney was behind the 8 ball in trying to keep up with changes in the theme park industry and Universal Studios (just down the road). Disney rested on its laurels rather than continually update or tweak areas slowly. So, it now appears they are going hog-wild and trying to catch up all at once.
Though I do love some of the changes such as the new Star Wars land and the new Toy Story Land other changes have me saying hmmm. But, I fear each park is losing focus of what they were originally intended to be and soon fear that all four parks will just all run together in a mish-mash. Ratatouille, though I love the movie, being added to the France pavilion is one of these ideas that I question (as is the Frozen ride in Norway). I understand the tie-in and this will be a copy of the ride as it is in Disneyland Paris but I prefer the World Showcase without all the character clutter. I don't mind the topiaries of Lion King and Beauty and the Beast because they are fairly unobtrusive but I think to put in character rides waters down the authenticity of each country.
Are we going to stop going with all the changes? No. They are closing The Great Movie Ride and Ellen's Energy Adventure next month. More walls will go up in Disney Hollywood Studio (which is already under heavy construction with the new Star Wars area and Toy Story areas) and Epcot but there will still be plenty to see and do.
Off to book our next trip!
I'm way out of touch in Disney stuff. I'm happy with Donald Duck (voiced by Clarence Nash) cartoons. Throw in The Absent-Minded Professor. Leave out Old Yeller. I've seen film of the tea cup ride at Disneyland inspired by Alice In Wonderland.
With my nephew and his family living nearby, I suppose I should go.
I remember a lot of tourist-y places in Florida from the Fifties. I think there was a View Master disc of Cypress Gardens with women waterskiing.
Love it! I love the old Disney movies. The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes and The Absent Minded Professor are great!
Thank you! My son can't wait for the Star Wars hotel.
Yes! All these changes at once are tough when there are still things from the past I miss.
My husband works for Disney! ☺ Enjoy!
I loved every moment of it. I'm suffering major Disney withdrawal!! There was very little to do in HS but everything else made up for it. Already planning a November trip next year!
Oh my goodness, I'm so glad you had a great time! I think we are planning for May of 19….we have a Tennesse trip coming up this spring.
We just got back from Disney Today, and yep, saw all the construction at Hollywood studios for the Star wars build… I like change, so bring it on.
Lol! I am such a creature of habit!
It didn't take away much for us. We knew where to go and what we wanted to see. Disney Hollywood Studios was a half day park for us as my family has seen Indiana Jones, Beauty and the Beast, and the Little Mermaid tons of times so rather than stay in the park to see those they were happy to go to other parks or to Disney Springs for an evening.
Ok, that is good information to know! Thank you so much!
Yes, the Changes at specifically the Hollywood studios were so much construction and ALOT of closed exhibits. I would not go to that specific park until it was open after construction. I felt we paid for less.
True. If you are paying for parks then no it is not worth it. Because we had 8 day hoppers we were fine only going for 1/2 the day and then heading somewhere else.
We are currently in the planning process of our very FIRST Disney vacation! There is so much to research my head is spinning!
Great post! I love Disney, change may be scary but I can't wait to see what they will do! I hope you can check out my blog!


text:
Q: Symfony Twig: Truncate undefined characters from string I got a string from DB that return the address of an user, I want truncate the first part of this leaving only the City and Country.
Stored strig is like:
514 S. Magnolia St. - 32806 - Orlando - FL

I want it to be:
Orlando - FL

How I can do using Twig? I got the datas fetching an object using Doctrine
public function profileAction($query)
{
    $user = $this->getDoctrine()
    ->getRepository('AppBundle:User')
    ->find($query);

    if (!$user) {
        throw $this->createNotFoundException(
            'User '. $user . ' not found.'
        );
    }

    return $this->render('profile/profile.html.twig', [
        'user_info'=>$user,
        ]);
}

I'm getting the values using regular Twig: {{ user_info.address }}

A: If your format of the address is always the same you can rely on the split filter of Twig, which works the same way as explode in PHP
{{ ('514 S. Magnolia St. - 32806 - Orlando - FL' | split('-', 3))[2] }}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Made in USA. For subcutaneous vaccination of healthy dogs 6 weeks of age or older as an aid in the prevention of disease caused by canine distemper, infectious canine hepatitis, canine adenovirus type 2, canine coronavirus, canine parainfluenza, canine parvovirus (CPV), Leptospira canicola, Leptospira grippotyphosa, Leptospira icterohaemorrhagiae, and Leptospira pomona. This product contains a CPV 2b strain.
The dosage is 1 mL injected subcutaneously. Open syringe by twisting or tapping the cap against a hard surface to break the heat weld. Prepare the vaccine by injecting the diluent into the vial containing the desiccated vaccine cake. Shake well. Withdraw entire contents into the syringe. Thoroughly prepare injection site with antiseptic. Lift the loose skin behind the neck or behind front leg and insert needle. Inject entire contents of syringe. Do not inject directly into blood vessel.


Errant transactions are a major issue when using GTID replication. Although this isn't something new, the drawbacks are more notorious with GTID than with regular replication.
The situation where errant transaction bites you is a common DBA task: Failover. Now that tools like MHA have support for GTID replication (starting from 0.56 version), this protocol is becoming more popular, and so are the issues with errant transactions. Luckily, the fix is as simple as injecting an empty transaction into the databases that lack the transaction. You can easily do this through the master, and it will be propagated to all the slaves.
What happens when the master blows up into the air and is out of the picture?
What happens when there's not just one but dozens of errant transactions?
What happens when you have a high number of slaves?
Things start to become a little more complex.
A side note for the first case: when your master is no longer available, how can you find errant transactions? Well, you can't. In this case, you should check for errant transactions between your slaves and your former slave/soon-to-be master.
Let's think alternatives. What's the workaround of injecting empty transactions for every single errant transaction to every single slave? The MySQL utility mysqlslavetrx. Basically, this utility allows us to skip multiple transactions on multiple slaves in a single step.
Now we have an errant transaction!!!!!
After this, the errant transaction won't be errant anymore.
Okay, let's add another slave to the mix. Now is the moment where the mysqlslavetrx utility becomes very handy.
You can run mysqlslavetrx from anywhere (master or any slave). You just need to be sure that the user and password are valid, and have the SUPER privilege required to set the gtid_next variable.
As a summary: Take advantage of the MySQL utilities. In this particular case, mysqlslavetrx is extremely useful when using GTID replication and you want to perform a clean failover. It can be added as a pre-script for MHA failover (which supports GTID since the 0.56 version) or can be simply used to maintain consistency between master and slaves.
Thank you! Fixing bug into feezy squizy lead to environment improoving although litium requiring.
Establishment and standard impact factor so It'has been realizing.
Is mysqlslavetrx can be use in MariaDB 10.2, can't find 'executed gtid-set'. How can i fix errant transactions in MariaDB 10.2? Thank you.
William, of course not. MariaDB has completely different GTID implementation then MySQL, and mysqlslavetrx is an official MySQL tool, not MariaDB one.


text:
January 17, 2018 / 11:39 PM / a year ago
U.S. enterprise telecoms firm Avaya trades again after bankruptcy
Liana B. Baker
(Reuters) - Avaya Holdings Corp shares started trading on Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange, the first time the enterprise telecommunications provider has been public in more than a decade.
Shares ended down 0.9 percent at $20.80.
Avaya spent the past year sorting its financials in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy process before listing its shares publicly this week. It was acquired in a leveraged buyout in 2007 for $8.2 billion by Silver Lake Partners LP and TPG Capital LP.
When Avaya was under the strain of its former debt pile, "it was like driving a car with the parking break on," Chief Executive Jim Chirico said.
One new challenge for Avaya, which now has a market capitalization of about $2.2 billion, as well as $2.9 billion in debt, will be attracting a new set of shareholders after being private for so long. It converted its debt to equity in order to list its shares.
"With the debt converting to equity, I would imagine we would transition over the next few months to new value equity shareholders," Chirico said in an interview.
Chirico, a longtime Avaya executive who was named CEO last October, brought in a new management team, formed a dedicated cloud software unit and increased spending on research and development. The company hired Mercer Rowe, a former IBM executive, as well as a new chief financial officer, Patrick O'Malley, from Seagate Technology Plc in recent months.
"We are going to have an execution focus that we haven't had at the company before," Chirico said.
The Silicon Valley-based company, which was spun off from Lucent Technologies Inc in 2000, is now in better financial health and said it had more than $300 million in annual cash flow.
"What a lot of people don't know is that we are a very profitable company," Chirico said. "The competitors took their best shot while we were in Chapter 11, but we added customers and we're stronger now that we've ever been."
Chirico added that "our eyes are wide open" to do acquisitions as well.
Before Avaya entered its restructuring process, it explored a sale of its unit providing software to call centers for about $4 billion. When asked about whether the company would ever consider a sale of that unit again, Chirico said "it's all about shareholder value" but added that the company is closely linked to its other main business line that provides telephone and cloud services to companies.
Reporting by Liana B. Baker; Editing by Susan Thomas


text:
A Mann's Man
Swedish native Hakan Edstrom labored for years as chief operating officer at MannKind Corp., a Valencia company established in 1991 that sought for decades to develop a breakthrough method of insulin delivery for diabetics. The company, without any products on the market, survived on nearly $1 billion in investments from founder and chief executive Alfred Mann. Then, on Jan. 12, it announced that Edstrom would become chief executive, replacing the 89-year-old serial entrepreneur and billionaire who now holds the title of executive chairman. The move came just a month before MannKind finally launched sales of Afrezza, its brand of inhalable insulin, following a global marketing agreement with French drug company Sanofi. Edstrom met with the Business Journal in MannKind's headquarters, where, in a pronounced accent, he discussed the ups and down of the drug-development process, the business impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks and how he came to believe in never betting against Mann, who personally recruited him from Bausch & Lomb. Question: How have your duties changed compared to when you were chief operating officer? Answer: The company duties have been much the same. The external contacts – board seat invitations and other community-related activities – have increased as I have become a more visible person. When did you start running MannKind? Title: Chief Executive Company: MannKind Corp., Valencia Born: Ostersund, Sweden, 1950 Education: MBA, Stockholm School of Economics Career Turning Point: Recruited by billionaire entrepreneur Al Mann to manage portfolio companies Most Influential People: Al Mann, grandfather Erik Edstrom, and Jon Eric Wallin, product manager at Best Foods Corp. Personal: Lives with wife in Newhall; two adult sons; no pets. Hobby: Fast cars and motorcycles. "I just love speed." Owns a 2014 Ferrari 458 Italia, a 1989 Porsche 911 Speedster and BMW i8 hybrid, in addition to BMW and Honda motorcycles. His commuter car is a BMW 535. Officially, just a few weeks ago. How did you run a company for years with no product or revenue? It was certainly different. You need to look at opportunities and challenges in a different way. You are operating on shareholder money, but you still have to produce results that hopefully in the future will generate a return for those investors. How did you measure results? Scientific studies. You ask yourself, are we moving in the right direction and communicating that to the marketplace? Are we delivering at the speed we would like? The background is that you need to believe you are doing something that is right and good for your patient population. That's where Al Mann is incredibly inspirational. Look at his personal dedication and his belief that MannKind's Afrezza could be the biggest product he has ever made for patients with diabetes. Did you ever question the project's viability? There have been moments of doubt. Not necessarily with respect to the product. That's insulin, and you know it works for diabetes. It's basically looking in yourself and asking if you believe in what you're doing. Probably the biggest challenge was when Pfizer launched Exubera, which also was an (inhalable) insulin product, and then withdrew from the market. What happened? They launched Exubera on the idea that convenience was enough of a compelling reason for doctors to prescribe it. But when you put it together with not really offering any clinical benefit, an inhaler that was as big as a tennis ball can that needed replacement parts during its month of use, and a cost that was a premium over available therapies. It failed. They just couldn't get the sales going. How did you react? At that point, we were sitting here in the development phase, saying, "If Pfizer, with billions of dollars behind them, has withdrawn from the market, how can little MannKind go on?" That was the question from the market. We said, "We have a different product. There is a clinical rationale for our product." So what is the rationale? It's faster. The technology is FDKP, a chemical. At a Ph below 6.5, it is a white powder, very fluffy with a big surface area. You can attach the insulin molecules to that surface. When it reaches a Ph above 6.5, it instantly turns into a watery substance. So you inhale it, it goes into the deep parts of your lung, becomes liquid and it's one cell away from your bloodstream. Tell us about how the company has evolved now that Afrezza is hitting the market. We are pursuing two distinct paths. In Danbury, Conn., we have a very up-to-date manufacturing facility that is now 24-7 making product for Sanofi. They are introducing the product to doctors. The patients, once they meet with their doctors, get a 10-day test supply. Then they come back, have a discussion with the doctor. And from there, they can get a prescription. What is the second path? FDKP is a tremendous technology platform. We are looking to use it in a number of other areas: hypertension, pain management and cancer, where we apply this same technology to different drugs. So you think you could have a second product on the market in the next few years? Yes, that's our plan. We are now a manufacturing and a development company. Could you have accomplished this without Al Mann's name attached to it? Certainly, don't bet against Al Mann. I've used that philosophy many a time. When I've disagreed with him, I told him, "Al, I know of your success, I'm not prepared to bet against you, however … " And then we have our discussion. But I would say, we would still be successful, but under very different circumstances. How? Al has the resources and commitment to take almost any project from A to Z. Without the resources and personal investment of his time and money, we would have partnered on this project much earlier. The scientific rationale is strong enough that we would have found a partner. What is it like working with Al Mann? Inspiring. Once you have an agreement with Al, he delegates responsibilities and stays out of the way. How do you stay in communication with him? We have a set schedule that we tend to follow. If there is a need to contact each other outside of this set schedule, time of day is not important. We will talk at our earliest convenience. Working with Al is like being part of a family. Where did you work before MannKind? I ran the surgical and ophthalmology business for Bausch & Lomb (in Santa Clarita). They made equipment, lenses, solutions and drugs for eye surgeries. How did Al Mann recruit you? I got a phone call on Monday morning. I was about to go out the door and fly to Rochester, N.Y., to Bausch & Lomb headquarters. I pick up the phone and he said, "Hello, this is Al Mann." I thought – "Wow, the Al Mann?" He said, "I am looking for someone who can help me take a number of companies public. Your name came up, and I'm interested in meeting with you." I was really surprised. I said, "When, Mr. Mann, would you like to meet?" He said, "What about lunch today?" He is a man of instantaneous action. I rearranged my trip and went to Marie Callender's in Valencia and met with Al. What was the proposal? He told me about three development companies that he had. One was in cancer, one was in allergies and one was MannKind as we know it today. He asked me if I could help him take them public. He also had technology at Advanced Bionics that needed leadership, and he said that could be an opportunity. When did you decide? I took the rest of the week to think about it. I got back to Al on Friday, saying I was interested but wanted to meet with management teams and discuss what role I might play. I met with the teams over the next couple of weeks and made my decision – yes, I wanted to do this. When was that? April 2001. I started to work with banks to take this company public. We were planning to do that in early August, but it didn't happen. And then we had 9-11. That stopped everything. How? The market collapsed. It killed the IPO market for a while. We took a deep breath. We had to look at how we could survive, if not flourish, in that time. What happened to those other businesses? In the allergy business, a couple of companies licensed the technology. It's now a small operation, but we don't see that as a viable opportunity. On the oncology side, we kept that business going until about two and half years ago. At that time, we signed agreements with companies that are pursuing those technologies. So tell us a bit about your background. Where did you grow up? In the northern part of Sweden near the Norwegian border. How did your parents make a living? My dad was an electrician. My grandfather Erik Edstrom was the field head of a forestry company. He was probably my biggest inspiration. He had one of the first cars in our little village. It was very fascinating, because I've always loved cars. How did you come to the United States? I started with Nestle in the food business. Then I was recruited by General Foods when they moved into Scandinavia with their coffee business. Then I was recruited into a Swedish pharmaceutical company called Pharmacia. If you wanted a career with Pharmacia, they said you need to spend a couple of years abroad. You had to prove you can operate in a multicultural environment. Where did they send you? Montreal, Canada for two years. After 18 months, the company sent me to New York for another year. How did you arrive in Santa Clarita? I did an analysis of the business that we needed to complement our products. We found a company, Interocular in Pasadena, and bought it in 1986. In the spring of 1987, I went to the president of Pharmacia and said it was time to move back to Sweden. He said, "Now you've bought a business in the U.S., you better stay and take care of it." We moved to Santa Clarita in 1987. What happened to Pharmacia? Pharmacia and Upjohn merged. They never allowed me to go back to Sweden, and I've been here 30 years. My boys grew up here and got married here. How do you feel about never moving back to Sweden? We are set in the U.S. now with grandchildren and our boys' families. Luckily we still have a summer residence in Sweden, so we can go back at our leisure. Do you go back for visits? For me, it's about once or twice a year. My wife will go back several times a year. What are your hobbies? Fast cars and motorcycles. On weekends, I see which one I should take out for a little tour. I do more motorcycling than anything else. Why? The combination of power, speed, riding skills and total concentration. Man and machine in sync. When did you discover your "need for speed"? I remember sitting on the gas tank of my father's motorcycle when I was 4 years old and wanting to twist the throttle to go faster. I was always fascinated by cars and motorcycles. What are your favorite vehicles to drive? The Ferrari 458 Italia and the Lotus Super 7. What is your favorite story about Al Mann? When he sold MiniMed in 2001, his friends and associates convinced him to buy a plane. It's probably the biggest reward he ever offered himself. And to this day, it's fun to see that because he's a very down-to-earth, simple man. When he says, "Let's go out to eat," we could go to a fast-food place. He is not someone who needs a spectacular life. He's remarkable from that point of view. But flying that plane brings him tremendous joy. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and space reasons.
Disney Bets $250 Million on Sports Gambling Site
Briefs: Wesco, Amgen, IPC


Cannabis is one of the plants that have been known to treat a variety of health issues and hence most of the states have legalized the use of this product for medical purposes. When you are looking for somewhere to buy weed and its products then, you must be searching for a cannabis dispensary. It is necessary that you confirm you will choose the most appropriate dispensary in the market knowing that not all can provide you the quality of products and services that you want. One of the most excellent weed dispensaries in Las Vegas is the Inyo Fine Cannabis Dispensary because of their commitment to quality products and services. The item looks at the tips that should prove significant when picking the right weed dispensary in Las Vegas.
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Working on old cars is never easy and indeed when parts have not been separated for over 40 years - then the fun really begins. We are currently undertaking some engine work on one of our clients 246 GT Dino and this has also involved taking off the heads. This is a task which had to be managed very carefully and with the utmost care and attention. Essentially one of the studs had become stuck due to corrosion over the years and it took two days, a special base plate tool and a lot of patience to finally separate the heads from the block. Now that we have full access we can move forwards with the agreed works.


Hello! My name is Bergen DeLeeuw. I am a painter and designer adventuring from the sunny North Carolina coast with my sailor hubby and baby boy. There is nothing as sweet as discovering the beauty of life with the ones I love, and my art is an expression of joy flowing from the incredible details found in God's creation.
I have always found so much richness in discovery and exploration, and my work pulls the organic uniqueness and unending vastness from nature in a way that both mirrors my heart and exemplifies my client's taste.
If you have a project in mind or big event in the works, I would love to meet you and work together to create something unforgettable!
Some suggest thinking outside the box with creative projects. Here, the box does not exist. Trends can be fleeting and mass produced products rarely reflect the intricate beauty of your heart. I believe your event should be as unique as you are! I craft paper goods that exude effortless elegance pulling elements from nature in custom illustrations, brush calligraphy and soft watercolor lettering.
Whether you have a detailed vision for your big day or are just beginning the planning process, I will create goods that celebrate your individuality and richly reflect your personal style!
Now accepting custom clients from 2019 onwards.


The Shimano XT M775 Resin Disc Pad is a replacement pad for use with the Deore XT hydraulic disc brake system. The resin compound is ideal for the general town / city road user. It offers excellent short term braking at low temperatures, very low disc wear and is much quieter than other compounds.


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Category Archives: Object of the Month
Ptarmigan in Winter Plumage
Our 'Object of the Month' for January is a Ptarmigan in white winter plumage. This bird was collected between 1835 and 1899, after Saffron Walden Museum opened in 1835 and before the end of the nineteenth century. It is a stuffed specimen mounted on an imitation rock with a painted wooden base. Sarah Kenyon, one of the Natural Sciences Officers at the Museum, chose it because snow has already fallen in Britain this winter.
Ptarmigan Lagopus mutus
SAFWM : NB229C © Saffron Walden Museum
Winter Feathers and Fur
As cold temperatures and snow descend over Britain animals put on their winter coats. In Scotland several species change the colour and thickness of their fur and feathers to stay hidden, or camouflaged, and warm. They are the Mountain Hare, Pine Marten, Stoat, Reindeer and Ptarmigan. This adult male Ptarmigan, Lagopus mutus, shows the white winter plumage which helps the bird blend in with the snow and remain safe from predators, especially birds of prey. The feathers around their legs also help to keep in warmth. These small, plump game birds can be found on Scottish mountains, such as the Cairngorms, and on heather moors at high altitudes. They have a characteristic walk. In summer their feathers are speckled grey and brown which blends in with rocks, scrub and heather.
The fur of Mountain Hares turns from grey-brown to completely white in winter as they also need to avoid being caught by birds of prey. They live on heather moorland and in woodland above 300-400 metres in Scotland.
The Pine Marten is found in the north and centre of Scotland. Numbers of this predator are low but stable now that they are protected from persecution. They live in old native forests where the trees lose their leaves in winter. Their fur is brown with a yellow 'bib' on the chest. The brown fur becomes lighter in colour during winter to help blend in with the trees and snow. A thicker coat is grown to keep warm.
A herd of Reindeer live in the Cairngorm mountains. In winter they grow a thicker, lighter coloured coat of fur to protect against cold mountain temperatures and harsh arctic winds.
Stoats are predators in the same family as Pine Martens. The fur is light brown, white on the belly, and the tail has a black tip. This distinguishes them from Weasels which are smaller in size and have a brown tail.
In northern Scotland the fur of Weasels and Stoats turns white in winter to blend in with the snow, except for the black tail tip. This white fur colouration of stoats is called ermine and the fur was used to trim robes.
Weasel from Barley, Hertfordshire
(SAFWM : 1982.164)
You can see a Weasel and Stoat in the wildlife display case in the museum
Stoat from Newport, Essex
(SAFWM : 2009.23)
Stoat in its white winter ermine fur
(Image Wikimedia Commons)
This entry was posted in Collections, Natural History, Object of the Month and tagged Ptarmigan, stoat, weasel on January 5, 2022 by Museum Administrator.
In 1855, Robert Driver Thurgood, decided to demolish his mansion in the centre of Saffron Walden, between Market Street (Market End) and Common Hill, to sell the land to provide additional space for the town's cattle market.
The house was one of several previously owned by John Harvey (d. 1593). Harvey was a gentleman farmer, master rope-maker, and notable as well as the father of Gabriel Harvey (c.1550-1650) a famous scholar and poet.
During the demolition work sections of oak panelling were removed from the house, which revealed underneath them, three heavily carved chimney pieces. One of these carved overmantels was rescued and has been on display in the museum ever since. It is referred to by specialists as one of the earliest examples of "Alciato" emblems, based on Andrea Alciato, an Italian humanist's writings, being used in England.
The overmantel has been made from clunch, a form of limestone which was used because it was relatively easy to carve. The central section depicts Harvey's rope-making business. A ropewalk is shown, the area where the master roper and his assistants' twisted hemp, jute or flax yarn into ropes and cordage. The figures shown are dressed in late 16th century clothes, with winged and tabbed doublets or jerkins, breeches, stockings and latchet-secured shoes. Presumably the ropemaking scene is being used to symbolise the value of labour and effort, and the link to its owner's profession. Around the rope-making scene are depicted flowering plants and what appears to be a silk moth. There is a small building and an oak tree with a pig beside it eating fallen acorns. The motto in Latin here reads NEC ALIIS NEC NOBIS (Neither for others nor for ourselves).
The scene on the left of the rope making features a mule eating a thistle, a goose-like bird perched on a single tree branch, a series of stylised flowering plants and a tree full of oranges. The motto in Latin which reads ALIIS NON NOBIS (For others not for ourselves), could refer to the idea of not benefitting from your own labours, essentially doing something for the common good. To the right of the rope-making scene is pictured a deciduous tree with birds, a swarm of bees going backwards and forwards to their straw beehive. Here the Latin motto reads ALIIS ET NOBIS (For others and for ourselves), which makes sense with the image of the bees, as their honey benefits the bees themselves as well as humans.
Beneath all three sections of the symbolic emblems, the Latin motto appears to read NOSTRI PLACENTE VNT LABOR, but there are some letters and words missing, it possibly means "Our cakes are our labour," presumably meaning labour brings its own rewards.
The recessed panels feature a cockatrice (a mythic beast which was said to have plagued Saffron Walden before it was killed) and a gryphon segreant (combined eagle and lion), which both appear to have been used in the design like heraldic crests, as there are twisted ribbons pictured around them. Other emblems carved here include flowers, leaves, fruit and trefoils.
Peter Daly and Bari Hooper. John Harvey's Carved Mantle-piece (c. 1570): An Early Instance of the Use of Alciato Emblems in England, Saffron Walden Historical Journal, 2003.
Alison Saunders. Emblems in Applied Arts and Crafts with Particular Reference to Alciati.
Peter Daly (ed.,), Andrea Alciato and the Emblem Tradition, New York: AMS Press, pp.177-204
Watercolour showing the back of Gabriel Harvey's childhood house, The Bell, showing the side which faced The Common. The house was pulled down in 1855. The sketch is by GN Maynard in 1886 based on one by Fry.
The mantelpiece as it appeared in the museum on display in the late 19th / early 20th century
The carved mantlepiece or over-mantel
This entry was posted in Collections, Human History, Object of the Month on December 9, 2021 by Museum Administrator.
1914 Christmas Gift Box for the Troops
The Museum's 'Object of the Month' provides an opportunity to explore interesting and unusual objects from our stores.
December's Object of the Month chosen by Jenny Oxley, Collections Officer (Human History) is a Princess Mary Christmas gift box, an embossed and monogrammed tin which was intended to be distributed to all members of the armed forces of the British Empire on Christmas day 1914, during World War I.
Following the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, the British Expeditionary Force was sent to the Western Front and was soon joined by troops from the Empire, those from India arriving before the end of the year. In October 1914, George V's 17-year-old daughter, Mary, Princess Royal, launched a public appeal to fund every member of the armed forces receiving a Christmas gift. Shortly before Christmas 1914, advertisements were placed in the British press seeking donations for the "Soldiers and Sailors Christmas fund" and £513,000 was quickly raised.
The funding was used to manufacture small boxes made of silver for officers and brass for all others. However, there were metal shortages. Supplies of 45 tons of brass strip, destined to make more boxes, was lost in May 1915 when RMS Lusitania was sunk off Ireland on passage from the USA. In the latter stages of the war when metal became even more scarce, some of the tins were made from plated base metals or alloys.
Each tin was decorated with an image of Mary and other military and imperial symbols. They were typically filled with an ounce of pipe tobacco, a packet of cigarettes in a yellow monogrammed wrapper, a pipe, a tinder cigarette lighter, and a Christmas card and photograph from Princess Mary. Some contained sweets, chocolates, and lemon drops. There were also variations on the contents of the boxes for non-smokers, who received a packet of acid tablets, a khaki writing set comprising a case with pencil, paper and envelopes.
The Committee was also obliged to consider the tastes of other minority groups and it was recognised that if the dietary rules of various religious groups were to be respected, changes would have to be made in the gifts intended for Indian troops. It was decided that The Gurkhas were to receive the same gift as the British troops; Sikhs the box filled with sugar candy, a tin box of spices and the Christmas card; all other Indian troops, the box with a packet of cigarettes and sugar candy, a tin box of spices and the card. Authorised camp followers, grouped under the title of 'Bhistis' were to receive a tin box of spices and the card.
The smokers' and non-smokers' gifts were both deemed unacceptable by the committee for nurses at the front in France who were instead offered the box, a packet of chocolate and the card.
However, suppliers of the content items had trouble and it was realised that there were still not enough to go round. The Committee resolved the problem by hurriedly buying in an assortment of substitute gifts: bullet pencil cases, tobacco pouches, shaving brushes, combs, pencil cases with packets of postcards, knives, scissors, cigarette cases and purses. Those sailors who should also have received the lighter as part of their gift, were given instead, a handsome bullet pencil in a silver cartridge case which bore Princess Mary's monogram. The 'pencil bullet' was not fashioned out of real bullet parts – it was simply a pencil with a rounded white metal end that looked like an unfired round when stored inside a brass tube resembling a cartridge case.
The boxes were originally intended for "every sailor afloat and every soldier at the front" on Christmas day 1914, but with the charity fun in surplus and some feeling that they had been left out, eligibility was soon extended to everyone "wearing the King's uniform on Christmas day", later prisoners of war were included, as well as the next of kin of 1914 casualties. It is estimated that 400,000 were delivered by Christmas 1914, with full distribution completed in 1920, by which time approximately 2.5 million had been delivered.
A Princess Mary Gift Fund Box was a treasured possession of many veteran soldiers of the First World War, even when the original contents – usually cigarettes and rolling tobacco – had long been used. The embossed brass box was air-tight, and made a useful container for money, tobacco, papers and photographs, so was often carried through subsequent service. Some troops repacked their tins and sent them home to their wives and families.
Further information and acknowledged sources here:
Tommy's War: British Military Memorabilia, 1914-1918 by Peter Doyle (The Crowood Press Ltd, Marlborough, Wiltshire, 2008)
https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/look-inside-the-princess-mary-gift-fund-1914-box
A gift for Christmas: the story of Princess Mary's Gift Fund, 1914 by Diana Condell in IWM Review (No. 4–1989) p. 69–78.
This entry was posted in Human History, Object of the Month and tagged Christmas, commemorative, First World War, Social History, soldier, Wartime on December 1, 2021 by Museum Administrator.
Object of the Month – November
November's Object of the Month is a bronze and iron lynch pin from an Iron Age chariot wheel, chosen by our Curator Carolyn Wingfield. It is at least 2,000 years old and was found in Radwinter parish by local detectorist James Patmore, who has kindly loaned it to the Museum.
This lynch pin is far more than just a functional piece of metalwork from a horse-drawn cart; it is a beautifully cast and decorated piece of late Iron Age bronze work and was made for the chariot of an ancient British warrior.
The lynch pin keeps the hub of a wheel in place. In Britain, there is evidence for the use of horses and wheeled vehicles from the Bronze Age, but the use of horses in warfare seems to have developed among the warrior class of Iron Age society. Their mastery of lightweight, two-wheeled chariots, drawn by a pair of native ponies, was described and admired by Julius Caesar, in his campaigns in Britain of 55 and 54 BC:
"In chariot fighting the Britons begin by driving all over the field, hurling javelins, and generally the terror inspired by the horses and the noise of the wheels are sufficient to throw their opponents' ranks into disorder….even on a steep incline they are able to control the horses at full gallop, and to check and turn them in a moment".
(Julia Caesar, The Conquest of Gaul, translated by S A Handford, 1951, Penguin Classics)
Some chariot lynch pins have enamel inlay surviving, as on another example on display in the Museum, though this lynch pin, acquired in the 19th century, has one end missing and no record of where it came from. Iron Age lynch pins like these are found occasionally across Britain, and are thought to date from around 300 BC to AD 100. So the Radwinter lynch pin is a very welcome addition to the displays. Who knows, maybe its owner was fighting during Caeser's campaigns, or the Roman invasion of AD 43, or even Boudicca's revolt of AD 60-61?
This entry was posted in Archaeology, Object of the Month, Uncategorized on October 29, 2021 by Museum Administrator.
Object of the Month – October
October's Objects of the Month are pieces of fossilised plants.
Fossils can form in different ways depending on where they form and the type of plant or animal. Most fossils come from the hard parts of animals such as bones, teeth or shells. For plants, wood is the most common material to fossilise because it is quite hard, and takes longer to rot away than other parts.
Soft leaves and flowers need to be buried quickly in deep sediment like mud or volcanic ash where the low oxygen levels mean they won't rot. Once underground, plant material can fossilise in different ways.
This flower is probably preserved by compression, like pressing and drying it in fine mud over millions of years. Heat and pressure deep underground turned the mud to stone and forced moisture and gases from the leaf at the same time.
The main ingredient in living plants is carbon, so a thin, black, carbon-rich film is all that's left. In most fossils, new minerals replace the original material. But because this is a compression fossil, the carbon-rich film is the exact same carbon that was in the plant millions of years ago. Soft-bodied animals like squid can also be preserved like this.
© SWM
This fern leaf, or frond, is preserved as an impression. When something soft is preserved by compression, the shape of it is also preserved as an impression, like pressing a leaf into soft mud or clay and then removing it.
This fossil is one part of a small rock nodule which was split in two to show the leaf – this part shows the impression of the frond. Because compression and impression fossils usually form together, the word 'adpression' describes both at the same time.
Petrification
Fossilised wood is often called 'petrified' wood, meaning wood 'turned to stone'. It happens when the materials (cellulose and lignin) that make up the solid part of wood are replaced by minerals, turning it to stone.
Minerals dissolved in groundwater seeping through the sediment settle as solids in the microscopic cell walls of the wood as the cellulose and lignin slowly rot. This can create a perfect stone copy of the original structure of the wood.
See these objects up close in Curiosity Corner throughout October.
This entry was posted in Collections, Object of the Month and tagged biology, botany, fossil, Fossil Friday, geology, museum, museums, natural sciences, object of the month on October 1, 2021 by Museum Editor.
Object of the Month – August 2021
August's Objects of the Month have been chosen by Jenny Oxley, Collections Officer (Human History)
Wampum is a traditional shell bead of the Eastern Woodlands indigenous tribes in North America. It includes white shell beads hand fashioned from the North Atlantic channeled whelk shell and white and purple beads made from the quahog or Western North Atlantic hard-shelled clam.
The highly decorative wampum belt on the right is currently on display in the Museum's world cultures gallery, whilst the remaining bead strings and belt are currently on display at The Box in Plymouth for an ongoing touring exhibition commemorating Mayflower 400: Legend and Legacy with the exhibition title Wampum: Stories from the Shells of Native America, in association with Wampanoag partners in the US.
Between May and July the museum's wampum items were visited at the Box in Plymouth by over 25,000 people.
This entry was posted in Human History, Object of the Month on July 27, 2021 by Museum Administrator.
New Archaeological Treasure Acquisitions
Roman ring and silver coins
Saffron Walden Museum celebrates Uttlesford's ancient heritage with three new archaeological treasures on display from 10 June.
The first two are a gold Roman ring from Broxted, set with a polished amethyst, and a hoard of ten silver coins from Barnston. The coins date from AD 395-402 and were probably buried in the early fifth century. When the last Roman legion left Britain in 410 and the supply of new coins dried up, silver coins like these continued in use into the fifth century, and are often found in hoards. The ring and coins were metal-detector finds and acquired by the Museum through the Treasure Act, with thanks to the Gibson Walden Fund who generously supported the purchase of the ring.
Ring surrounded by the 10 silver coins is © Saffron Walden Museum
Close-up of ring with amethyst ©Portable Antiquities Scheme
Bronze Age Gold Bracelets
This pair of solid gold bracelets, found in North-west Essex are nearly 3,000 years old. They date from the late Bronze Age, around 900 – 750 AD and seem to have been deliberately buried on their own. The Museum purchased them through the Treasure Act thanks to generous support from the Arts Council England / V&A Purchase Grant Fund, Art Fund, the Beecroft Bequest and two local donors.
Two members of Creative Walden's Writers' Room model the Bronze Age bling!
ACE / V&A Purchase Grant Fund: www.vam.ac.uk/purchasegrantfund
Art Fund: Twitter and Instagram @artfund Facebook facebook.com/artfunduk
For website include link to https://www.artfund.org
This entry was posted in Archaeology, Object of the Month on June 9, 2021 by Museum Administrator.
Object of the Month – June 2021
Humpback whale photographs taken by Barry Kaufmann-Wright in New Zealand, in 2013.
BK-W © Saffron Walden Museum
All Images BK-W © Saffron Walden Museum
Barry took and kept over 72,000 photographs in his lifetime, almost all of wildlife and the countryside. Barry grew up in Buckinghamshire but his first job was at Jersey Zoo, working for the famous naturalist Gerald Durrell.
When he returned to the UK, Barry joined Essex police and was posted to Thaxted, where he began duties as Wildlife Crime Officer and, later, Wildlife Liaison Coordinator for Essex. His photographs from all over the world are a modern treasure in the Museum's collection, which also includes two slide projectors which he used when giving talks – up to 250 times a year (that's 5 per week)!
Barry's wife Pat very kindly donated his photographs and equipment following his death in 2016.
Humpback whales live in oceans all over the world, except the far north of the Arctic Ocean and around Antarctica in the Southern Ocean, where the sea is covered in ice. Whales are mammals, so sea ice stops them coming to the surface to breathe air.
They are grouped into four major populations in the north Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Southern Ocean and Indian Ocean. They usually migrate between summer and winter ranges, but there are year-round groups around Britain and Norway, and in the Arabian Sea between India and east Africa.
– They can grow up to 16 metres long
Humpbacks are one of the largest whale species. Females are slightly larger than males, usually up to 16m (50ft) long. They can weigh 30 tonnes – the same as 2½ double-decker buses.
This picture shows the size of a humpback whale compared to a human swimming next to it, and its long pectoral fins. Image: Jjw, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
– They have 'big wings'
The scientific name of the humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, means 'big wing of New England'. Their 'big wings' are their giant pectoral fins – one female had fins that were 6m (20ft) long, as tall as a giraffe!
The 'New England' part comes from where humpback whales were first discovered by European whalers, off the coast of New England in the far north-east of the USA.
– Each animal's tail is unique
A whale's tail is called a fluke, and has a wavy pattern along the rear edge. Like our fingerprints, this wavy pattern is unique to each whale and is an easy way to identify animals in a group.
Compare this image to Barry Kaufmann-Wright's photograph of a humpback's fluke, above.
Image: Terry Howard CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
– They use nets to catch fish
Humpbacks migrate between summer and winter ranges and only eat for 6 months of the year, in the cooler waters of their summer range. Hunting and eating for 22 hours a day means they can build up enough fat reserves to survive their winter breeding season without eating.
Some populations of humpbacks have learned to feed in groups using the 'bubble net' technique and use vocal calls to work together. The whales swim in circles below a school of fish, blowing bubbles from their blowholes to create a 'net' that the fish won't swim through. When one whale gives a feeding call, all the whales swim upwards inside the net with their mouths open to catch the fish.
A humpback whale using the bubble net technique on its own. Image: Christin Khan, NOAA/NEFSC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
– They sieve their food
Humpbacks are one of a group of whale species called baleen whales, which have bony, comb-like plates inside their mouths. With a mouth full of water and food animals, baleen whales partly close their mouths, and push water out through the baleen plates using their tongue. The baleen lets the water through but keeps in food such as fish and krill, which the whale then swallows.
Baleen plates and bristles in the mouth of a young gray whale. Image: Marc Webber/USFWS, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Whale ear bone, probably from North Pacific right whale (Eubalaena japonica)
The North Pacific right whale is a baleen whale like the humpback.
This bone is the tympanic bulla and may have come from a North Pacific right whale. It's a hollow shape but made of heavy, dense bone which helps sound resonate in the whale's middle ear, inside the head. In life, it would have been attached to the petrosal bone, which has snapped off.
© Saffron Walden Museum
Smaller bones called the hammer, anvil and stirrup would sit inside the hollow space, and actually transmit the sound from the outer inner to the inner ear, just like in humans.
The North pacific right whale got its name because it is a large whale (up to 18m long but weighing 80 tons) with plenty of valuable blubber, it moved slowly, and would float after it was killed. It was the 'right' whale to go for because it was easy to catch and made lots of money for the whalers.
Image: John Durban (NOAA), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
More than 15,000 were killed by whalers in the 19th and 20th centuries. Today, estimates say there are fewer than 400 North Pacific right whales left, split between an eastern and a western population, making them the smallest known population of all whale species, As a whole, they are listed as Endangered on the IUCN red list, while the eastern population is Critically Endangered, with less than 40 animals.
Use this link to listen to a song about the dangers of whaling, based on the songwriter's own experiences in Australia in the 1950s – www.swmuseumlearning.com/general-5
This entry was posted in Natural History, Object of the Month and tagged animals, conservation, ecology, eubalaena japonica, featured object, humpback whale, hunting, local people, megaptera novaeangliae, museum, museums, natural history, natural sciences, object of the month, photographs, photography, right whale, whale photographs, whale photography, whale spotting, whales, whaling, wildlife, wildlife photographs, wildlife photography on June 1, 2021 by Museum Editor.
On this Day……7th April 1914…….The Great Fire at Little Chesterford
On the 7th April 1914, a fire broke out at Bordeaux farm in the parish of Littlebury. Newspaper reports at the time suggested that in high winds, sparks from a traction engine caught light to some dry thatch. The flames ran along the river path to Little Chesterford and then spread rapidly across the village. Many of the timber framed thatched properties were burnt to the ground whilst the ones built using clunch (chalk bedded in rammed powered chalk) fared better.
The fire also highlighted the lack of effective fire-fighting equipment and poor communication that existed between local fire fighters at that time. Littlebury had no fire pump, whilst Little Chesterford had only a small portable one for estate purposes. The closest fire engine was based at the Mill in Great Chesterford, but it took over half an hour to attend once the alarm had been raised. The Saffron Walden brigade was hampered in its efforts to attend, as they reportedly "lost their coal on the journey to the fire." Eventually additional brigades from Hinxton, Audley End estate and Sawston attended as well as the police, but the response had sadly come too late to save many of the properties.
Within 30 minutes of the fire starting it had already destroyed 2 farms, 2 pubs (The Crown and The Bushel & Strike) and 9 houses, leaving 43 out of 100 villagers homeless. The fire had taken everyone by surprise and spread so quickly that the alarm had been raised too late to make a difference. The town's labourers working in the fields saw the fire spreading at huge speed, they returned home to find their wives and children making frantic efforts to save themselves and their belongings.
Newspaper reports from the time tell the dramatic story of 100 year old Mrs Law who was rescued from her burning first floor room by Stacey Dyer and her son, who lifted her into a wheelbarrow and got her quickly to safety. Stacey Dyer was reportedly scarred on his face for the rest of his life following his heroism. It must have been pandemonium as villagers and their animals ran from the flames. One baby was missing for 2 hours before it was found safe.
Photographs show the village roads strewn with salvaged furniture and crowds gathering shocked by the scale of the fire and how quickly it had spread. The landlady of the Bushel and Strike (Pampisford Brewery) hastily prepared a shed so that they could continue to serve drinks to their shell-shocked customers. A fire relief committee was established and the village reading room was used as a shelter for the homeless and store for their surviving belongings. A fundraising campaign was advertised in the Daily Mail Newspaper. However, not everyone appreciated outside help, with Reverend John Stewart, vicar of both Chesterfords quoted in a subsequent edition of the newspaper as saying:
"We're a proud people and like to help ourselves. Tell all the kind people who want to send money that we thank them, but do not need their help."
Cheques from the Daily Mail campaign were reportedly returned to their senders! Archive material suggests local gentry stepped in and helped with the rebuilding work and financial loss. Lessons were learnt following the fire, as all the local brigades vowed to work on better communication and to pool resources.
This entry was posted in Human History, Object of the Month, Uncategorized on April 6, 2021 by Museum Administrator.
Object of the Month : April 2021
April's Object of the Month has been chosen by Jenny Oxley, Collections Officer (Human History) and is not strictly one object but a collection, in this case, items made from barkcloth, which form part of the museum's world cultures collections.
The museum holds around 80 barkcloth items, originating from all around the world, but largely from the Pacific region. Over the last year the museum has been involved in an international project: "A Living Tradition: Expanding engagement with Pacific barkcloth" being led by Glasgow University, which has provided us a great opportunity to shed more light on the cultural traditions surrounding their production, design and use.
Barkcloth is made from the inner bark of paper mulberry, breadfruit or banyan trees, which is soaked and stretched, then naturally dyed and hand-painted, printed or stencilled, to create often highly decorative barkcloths (sometimes referred to as Tapa). It is believed there are over 90 different pattern variations in existence. The barkcloths are used for utilitarian items as well as for ceremonial purposes.
In addition to large textile rolls and flat sections of barkcloth, the museum also holds clothing made from barkcloth. Notable examples include a barkcloth poncho believed to have originated from Samoa, as well as a lace-bark dress and matching bonnet from Jamaica, which were donated to the museum in 1833 by the Marchioness Cornwallis.
This entry was posted in Costume and Textiles, Object of the Month and tagged barkcloth, textile, world cultures on March 26, 2021 by Museum Administrator.


A Bad Start to 2012?
I know you're supposed to begin the new year with these great expectations of becoming a fitter person with a bigger bank account all while achieving spiritual growth and a gaining inner peace. After the past week I think I'll settle for just surviving.
Perhaps it was the way 2011 ended that has led to a challenging 2012. My wife and I spent New Year's Eve in the hospital ER as she got blood tests and other exams done. We spent ten hours at the hospital on Saturday night with an IV in her arm (do I even want to know how much ER charges?) but at least when we got home at 11pm we were cleared of any immediate health threats. But I still hadn't finished my sermon for the 9am service the next morning so I rung in the new year working on a sermon while my wife and toddler slept.
Speaking of the move, we finally received the last of our stuff from our nightmare moving company that poorly packed our valuables, broke Avery's crib, smashed much of our wedding china and crystal, destroyed Kati's design projects from school, and mislabeled most of our boxes. That means we have to go through every one of our boxes just to see what's actually in there, determine what was lost or damaged and then repack it ourselves properly like they should have done in the first place.
Speaking of getting settled in our new home. Our new rental home doesn't come with a stove. Who doesn't provide a stove? This one apparently. We had the tv guy come early Saturday only to find out that he can't install it at our home because of the rental restrictions in our lease agreement. Internet won't get set up until next week so I've maxed out my Iphone data plan using it as a wifi hotspot (several warning messages from AT&T hasn't stopped me from using it to write this post). The trash guy dinged us for not properly distributing the trash according to city rules. Two more strikes and they take our trash bins away.
And, like most churches, and especially for a small urban church like ours, we will struggle to make budget in 2012 even though we're growing.
But before you tire of reading this post please remember what friend of mine wisely said: "The path to praise is through lament." The writers of the Psalms have taught me through their own lament that eventually turned to praise. This is my 2012 lament that deep inside I know will (eventually) lead to a place of praise. But I need to lament in order to get there. Me writing this is helping me get there just like it did for the Psalmist.
Though the darkness covers me: I will remember your light.
I need to hear this word today amidst of ER visits, sniffly noses, moving company nightmares, and the hassles of getting settled in a new home.
I can already feel His light as I write this. I have insurance to go to the hospital. I can buy medicine for my sickness. I have a home to live in. The moving company…well, nothing good yet comes to mind!
So I share these words with all who I know are also lamenting the early days of 2012.
To friends who have lost jobs this past week.
Though the darkness covers you: remember His light.
To those who have recently received distressing financial news.
To those who are lacking the relationships they long for.
And if you can't remember His light yet, that's okay. You can sit in the darkness with me for a bit until we can find the light together. We'll keep lamenting until we find that place of praise. Thank God that He is patient with us and can handle our complaints. That's how good of a God He really is.
And a big thank you to the many friends who stopped by this week offering to help, bringing a meal and commiserating with us as we lamented. You have each helped us see His light by bringing the presence of Christ yourselves into our darkness.
Yes, Lord, I will remember. But help me overcome my lack of remembering.
Tim, sorry to hear about the disasters going on. Remember, that stuff that got broken while moving is just stuff. Your health and your family's health is most important and I'm glad your wife is doing better. God throws challenges our way to see how we respond and your are responding well. When I have things go wrong, I just read Job then I don't feel so bad and Job has a good outcome too. I will keep you in my prayers.
Your family is alive. You have a roof over your head, food in the fridge and an income. I think you need to look for better ways to describe how hard your life is. As it is, it doesn't even register on the "Richter scale" of human suffering.
I totally agree. But it was through lamenting that I was able to fully embrace gratitude amidst the relatively small challenges in my life. What do you do when your family has struggles? I find lamenting helps me to find praise, just like the Psalmists.
Oh Tim! I am so sorry to read this sad post. God is taking you thru the ringer lately. But I am glad you remind yourself daily of God's great love for you. I will be praying for your families health and transition into your new, but temporary home.
Sorry to hear about all this but glad you are basking in His light. And I had to laugh about the not finding the positive in the moving company.
Hope you are settling in and feeling better soon!
So Sorry! I agree that lamenting can bring us around to healing and hope.
I just finished "Unbroken", which gave me some much needed perspective.
Hope it is smooth sailing for awhile.
Tim, I am teaching on journaling next week at women's bible study at my church. I am going to quote this post. So good. Hope you don't mind. If you do, let me know and I will change your identity.


text:
Ein Hoch der Liebe war der deutsche Beitrag zum Eurovision Song Contest 1968, der von der norwegischen Sängerin Wencke Myhre in deutscher Sprache gesungen wurde. Myhre belegte mit elf Punkten den sechsten Platz. Sie war die erste von drei skandinavischen Schlager-Künstlerinnen, die Deutschland Ende der 1960er und Anfang der 1970er Jahre beim Wettbewerb vertraten. Im darauffolgenden Jahr 1969 folgte die Schwedin Siw Malmkvist Deutschland mit dem Titel Primaballerina. Die Dänin Gitte Hænning trat 1973 mit dem Titel Junger Tag für Deutschland an.

Ein Hoch der Liebe wurde international von Sängerinnen wie Birthe Kjær (in Dänisch Sig Ja Til Kærlighed), Patricia Paay (in Niederländisch Dat Is De Liefde) oder Simone de Oliveira (in Portugiesisch Viva O Amor) aufgenommen. Myhre selbst nahm das Lied auf Norwegisch und Schwedisch auf.

Chartplatzierungen

Weblinks
 Liedtext auf eurovisionworld.com
 Punkteverteilung auf esc-history.com

Einzelnachweise

Deutscher Beitrag zum Eurovision Song Contest
Lied 1968
Schlager (Lied)


text:
Peter Lemiska
Americans get a taste of socialized medicine
By Peter Lemiska
It's no secret that Obamacare is in trouble. Some have likened it to a beached whale, floundering, and suffocating under its own weight. A recent CBS poll indicates that just seven percent of Americans want Obamacare kept in place, and that 93 percent believe it should be changed or repealed.
All along, Democrats have played the humanitarian role, arguing that the law provides health insurance for millions who cannot otherwise afford it. The number they cite varies between 30 to 47 million, roughly 10 to 15 percent of our population. But the figure becomes a gross exaggeration when we consider that many of those uninsured actually qualify for Medicaid or other assistance. Millions of them are in the country illegally, and are not about to sign up for health insurance. Others, for whatever reason, simply don't want insurance.
The actual number of Americans who benefit from Obamacare is extremely small. In fact, those seven percent who want the law kept in place may represent the most accurate number of Americans who want health insurance, but cannot buy it.
Ostensibly, to help that small percentage, Democrats have devastated an entire industry and are overseeing the loss and potential loss of insurance for a much larger sector of our population, hard-working Americans who will be left to scramble for new and outrageously expensive policies. A great number of them will lose their trusted doctors or their hospitals because of limits imposed by those new policies. The dogged determination of the Democrats, despite those consequences, exposes their true agenda. They are not humanitarians, but fanatic ideologues, bent on the redistribution of wealth and control over the health care industry.
Obamacare supporters join the chorus of America's critics, who are being taught that our country is deeply flawed. They point to European socialist countries and complain that we are the only industrialized nation without universal health care. They ignore the immense cost of socialized medicine, the ever-increasing taxes needed to support it, and the resulting economic strain on those countries. They are ignorant of other consequences – the Spartan medical facilities and the exodus of doctors due to wage controls, accompanied by long waits and rationing. They envision a classless society offering equal, affordable, and quality health care to all citizens, but fail to understand that no country in the world offers that. The wealthy and well-connected always have access to the best care, even in socialist societies.
They also fail to understand that those other countries are not dealing with 300 million citizens, and they are not governed by our Constitution. That document does not guarantee health care for everyone, but it does offer something else. It guarantees freedom from an overreaching and oppressive government. It protects us, or at least should protect us, from the kind of government intrusion Obamacare represents.
Now Americans are experiencing the effects of government control over health care. They've gotten their first taste of socialized medicine, and they don't like it. They now understand the injustice of requiring all citizens to insure themselves against certain health issues they will never experience. They see the absurdity of compelling private companies to insure against something that already exists. Those with pre-existing conditions face financial hardship and need our help, but forcing insurance companies to offer them the same policies offered to healthy customers drastically increases premiums for everyone and can only lead to bankruptcy for insurance companies.
So instead of asking why we don't have universal health care or why the new website still doesn't work, we should be asking more relevant questions: Does this law help or hurt most Americans? In a free society, does government have the right to compel its citizens to buy something – anything? When did we abandon those principles upon which our country was founded?
Obamacare is still alive. It's like a wrecking ball the instant before it strikes its target. The worst is yet to come, and there's no stopping it. And as more Americans see their health plans shattered, Democrats do what they do best. They blame others, like the insurance industry. And incredibly enough, they blame Republicans, who have opposed this law from the beginning. In desperation, Democrats are stooping to new lows. They exempt favored and select segments of society from Obamacare, they tinker with the Senate rules to weaken the opposition party, and in a particularly cunning and cowardly move, they are delaying key provisions of the law, hoping to win reelection before more chaos unfolds.
Everyone agrees that all Americans should have access to health care, and there are real problems to solve in the insurance industry, including rising premiums, pre-existing medical conditions, and unfair practices by insurance companies.
Democrats have falsely argued that Obamacare will solve these problems. They remain determined to force-feed measured doses of socialized medicine to Americans until they learn to like it.
The national outrage over this has paved the way for Republican gains in the midterm elections. They can close the deal with voters if they can offer an alternative to Obamacare that helps the uninsured and protects consumers without crippling an industry. If they fail in 2014, we'll all learn what it's like to live under a single-party system, and we'll just have to learn to savor the taste of socialized medicine.
© Peter Lemiska
Peter Lemiska is a freelance writer and former Senior Special Agent of the U.S. Secret Service... (more)
Peter Lemiska is a freelance writer and former Senior Special Agent of the U.S. Secret Service. He has a BA degree in psychology.
Having spent more than 28 years in government, including eight years in the Air Force, he is deeply concerned about various issues affecting our society, particularly ethics in government.
Peter has lived abroad at various times for more than seven years, and had the opportunity to learn Italian. More importantly, his extensive worldwide travel has given him a broad perspective on American politics.
You can see more of Peter's opinion pieces at opinioneditorials.com. He welcomes feedback at plemis2@
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hotmail.com.
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