Jennifer was amazing, her communication and responsiveness was excellent. Jennifer helped us feel like we were in good hands... and we were! Thank you!
We are repeat clients of Jen Chapel! Jen is an amazing agent, as well as the entire Fountain-Timmons Team! We always refer to Jen and her team when we hear anyone is looking for an agent! Jen is thorough, knowledgeable, efficient and very aware of the market in the CT. We will continue to refer to Jen and the Berkshire Hathaway Team! Thank you so much!
Jen is friendly, positive, helpful, and meets her client's needs.
Jennifer was excellent every step of the way during our house search. Jennifer made very great suggestions to important decisions that I needed to make and always communicated effectively in helping me understand details during our process. Jennifer Chapel is excellent!!!
Jennifer really went above and beyond her duty to help me and my family get into a great home. Always eager to serve and find better options for us. Highly recommend her to all my friends and family!
Jennifer was outstanding. She was attentive and very responsive. She worked hard to make sure my family's needs and wants were taken care of and explained each step in the process!
Jennifer was very professional and kept me well informed about the process of selling my home!
Jennifer Chapel is very professional and knowledgeable about the entire process. She understood our needs and helped with what needed to be prepped and staged in the home we sold. Jennifer is easy to deal with and is always in communication throughout the process, on or off duty.
Jen was patient with us as we looked at house after house. She never made us feel rushed or pressured. She listened thoroughly, and she always responded to our e-mails, texts, and calls quickly. She explained things in everyday language and made sure we understood. When we started to lose hope in the process, she was like a cheerleader. The only reason we got our house is because she checks the MLS at the end of each night. She ensured we got in the next day, twice, to see the house. We were one of 3 people who put in offers on that day. If she hadn't been watching the MLS, we never would have had a chance at this house. We would highly recommend her to any friends or family in need of a real estate agent for selling or buying a house.
Jen is a phenomenal asset! Jen found our home for us and we love it! The home was only on the market for a few hours when she found the listing and called me. In this CT market, properties do not stay on the market long. Jen's perseverance in constantly searching for us allowed us to have our forever home! We would definitely refer Jen to others and have already done so! Jen goes out of her way for her clients. We have bought and sold many homes in 6 states and Jen is by far the best agent we have worked with! Thanks, Jen!


text:
Elsword Epic New Dungeon and Faster Download Time in EXCLUSIVE Share this article:
Article published on Sunday, March 4th, 2012
Kill3rCombo is now offering players the opportunity to begin dungeon crawling and battling adversaries faster than ever in its massively multiplayer online (MMO) game Elsword . At five times smaller than the full client, first-timers can now get in to the action faster via the new streaming system, while the game client continues to download in the background. In addition to decreased download wait time, Elsword is also introducing new content in the form of Henir's time and space dungeon.
Available to all players, but ideal for those with fierce combo skills, Henir is an amalgamation of all boss monsters from 35 dungeon stages. Gamers that wish to take on this intense test will need to obtain either Henir's Key or Henir's Hidden Key, depending on which mode they choose - normal or challenge. Once players clear challenge mode, they will be placed on Henir's Time and Space Ranking list and can bask in the glory of a new title. This exclusive dungeon consists of all five regions in Elsword - Ruben, Elder, Bethma, Feita and Altera - and should be played in sequence so as to complete the series and receive Monster Cards that can be exchanged for better equipment.
In Elsword, gamers can choose from five specialized and customizable characters as they explore immersive maps and battle to complete dynamic quests. As players progress through the game, they can evolve their fighting styles by upgrading to new job classes and watch as their chosen character matures and gains more fierce abilities and combos. With intuitive and straightforward controls, Elsword offers players of all skill levels the chance to defeat enemies and deal damage, either on a solo mission or cooperatively in a party of up to four players. For those who welcome a challenge, Elsword also delivers action-packed player-versus-player (PvP) combat.
To play Elsword and experience the latest features, please visit: http://www.elswordonline.com/.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Swimming pools are great for having fun and making memories with friends and family, particularly during the warmer times of the year. You can have an in-ground pool in your backyard and enjoy with your family. However, maintenance and safety should be a priority and this is where in-ground pool fences come in.
Why Do You Need an In-ground Pool Fence?
The main reason for having a pool fence is safety. We so often hear about a baby falling into a swimming pool and drowning, or someone in a wheelchair who went a bit too close to the pool and toppled over – accidents can and do happen!
In-ground pool fences safeguard against such accidents by shielding away the pool from any babies or unwanted persons. They act as lifesavers by providing protection first. You can control who gets into the swimming pool and have that needed peace of mind since you know that even if you are not in the vicinity, your baby or any other non-swimmer will not fall into the pool accidentally.
Pets are also susceptible to falling into the swimming pool. Granted, cats and dogs do have an innate ability to swim. However, older, less athletic or blind dogs and cats will struggle to swim. Others may swim for a short distance and then panic. Another potential problem is if the swimming pool has steep edges and they struggle to climb out. Other pets that cannot swim will definitely be in danger if they fall into a swimming pool. Pool fences keep away all ground pets and prevent any accidents.
Pool maintenance gets harder during the fall and you have to continuously remove all the floating leaves from your swimming pool. Having an in-ground pool fence, particularly a high one, will lessen this burden by preventing a large amount of leaves falling or being blown into the swimming pool. Safety regulations have it that for you to have an in-ground pool then you must install a pool fence. Depending on your jurisdiction, different criteria must be followed or a minimum requirement must be met in installing your pool fence. These can be in terms of height, spaces in between or even the type of fencing material. You can avoid a law suit being filed against you by installing an in-ground pool fence while enhancing your safety at the same time.
Another reason for having a pool fence is increasing the aesthetic value of your pool. With different fencing customization available, you can make your fence according to your own beauty taste. In-ground pool fences are thus way better than pool covers since they not only provide protection against outside falling materials but also your friends, children, and pets.
Glass Fences – An elegant type of fencing that is less visually obtrusive than aluminum and steel and provides safety. It is a popular option, however, it is very expensive and maintenance is also time-consuming.
Wood Fences – Wood provides a great deal of customization variation since you can cut according to taste. However, wood fences are fairly easy to climb and may not provide the greatest protection especially against outgoing children. Wood is also susceptible to wear and tear and attacks from termites.
Aluminum Fences – They are good for protection and increasing their height makes them hard to scale, but only to a certain degree. However, they are visually obtrusive and their pliability decreases their safety standards.
Steel Fences – Another popular alternative to iron fencing but are easily scalable.
Wrought Iron Fences – Iron fences are not good because of the rusting property of iron. This will mean that you have to replace them and suffer yet an additional cost.
Mesh Fences – These are the best type of pool fences. They are cheap, easy to install and low maintenance. They provide great security and are harder to climb up. They are easily removable which means that if you do not have any pets and plan to remove the fence when your children are old enough, you do not have to incur another cost. They are cost-friendly, versatile, durable, good-looking and convenient.
Black mesh with brown borders and brown poles – A very popular color scheme and also the least visually obtrusive. It blends seamlessly into the background.
Black mesh with gray borders and gray poles – This color scheme makes the fence blend in with the background and vanishes in the decor.
Black mesh with beige borders and beige poles – A neutral color scheme that is suitable for a light background.
While these are the most popular colors, you can always get different colors from fence makers and sellers to suit your taste and/or background.


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Discussion in 'Mac mini' started by jedisaga, Aug 19, 2016.
Like most in this forum thread, I'm waiting for Apple to give news about updating the Mac Mini. I have a question... Has any PC (Windows 10) users run VMWare on the computer and loaded Mac OS El Capitan?
Running OS X in a VM on non-Apple hardware is illegal.
But people do. It is called a Hackintosh and it is tricky to set up and it is not necessarily sure to work.
George Dawes and grahamperrin like this.
Well, the reason for the question, I watched a YouTube video showing how to get El Capitan running on a PC with Windows 10. Kinda knew it probably wasn't legal but wanted to get other's take on if they attempted to do it and if it was worth the hassle.
thequietaussie and grahamperrin like this.
Yeah I had a hackintosh. Got rid of it. Easy to do though. Tonymacx86 is a really good resource for it.
I think you could serve jail time for doing this.
Back on topic: @jedisaga sorry, I have not tried it. But a quick search reveals plenty of mentions under MacOS 10.12 Sierra Unsupported Macs Thread – http://forums.macrumors.com/posts/23068648 http://forums.macrumors.com/posts/23218618 and so on.
Like most in this forum thread, I'm waiting for Apple to give news about updating the Mac Mini.
New Mac minis with USB-C ports right around the corner, just wait patiently.
What's that thread have to do with running OS X in a VM on a Windows box?
Both of the linked posts show use of pre-release Sierra in VMware. The opening poster asked about El Capitan. I don't have experience with El Capitan. I assume that if Sierra runs, then so does El Capitan. And if the opening poster will run El Capitan in VMware, it's reasonable to assume that he'll update that virtual machine to a released version of Sierra.
But those posts show they're running Sierra in VMware Fusion on a Mac (OS X-based) platform - not using VMware Workstation running on a Windows-OS PC - which is what the OP was asking about.
its not illegal, its against the EULA, which is different. The police will not arrest you and throw you into jail for running OS X in a VM.
George Dawes, BeefCake 15 and grahamperrin like this.
If the OS runs in a virtual machine on one platform, then it should run in the same vendor's virtual machine on another.
No way is that true - the underlying hardware of the host OS can be way different on a Windows PC than on a Mac. With OS X tied so closely to Mac hardware, if VMware didn't decide to emulate Apple hardware on top of Windows, a Mac VM on a Windows machine is not possible. Thus the original question in the first post. If it was that easy - several people would have chimed in with a definitive answer by now.
Thanks for all the responses. Even the YouTube video I watched, the guy said it wasn't as fast as an actual Mac. Considering I have a new PC computer with an i5 processor, I doubt I'd be able to do so anyway. Oh and btw, MAME and roms are "illegal" as well but folks use them all the time on their devices.
I used my windows PC and turned it into a hackintosh. The core i7 was the best performing Mac I've ever had, not that it was a fair comparison to the Macs I have. I think it's a great performing product but I found it to be high maintenance. Some upgrades will break the computer, etc. The resources on Tony Mac were great though and I found I learned so much more about OS X and how to tweak it by having the hackintosh.
Eventually I got tired of fooling around. I wasn't learning anymore, I was just doing tedious tasks every now and then if an update broke the system. What it made me realize though is that I pay the Mac premium for how the product looks, and definitely not the performance.
Eventually I got tired of fooling around.
Same here, I was a long time Mac user prior to trying my hand at a hackintosh. Initially it was fun, and a great experience but when ever a major upgrade rolled out (this was pre-Yosemite), I had issues trying to get everything working.
I'm not knocking the use of a hackintosh, but for me, its not something I'm wanting to do going forward.
George Dawes and BenTrovato like this.
Hackintosh = best performance but much tinkering needed.
One has to weigh the differences and make a choice.
I bought the quad-4 late 2012 which I've booted and run from an external usb3 SSD from the get-go. For my (relatively lightweight home user) needs, it's still running fine 3.5+ years after I first booted it.. Even if Apple introduces a nicely-updated Mini towards the end of the year (unknown at this time), I'll pass on it and keep using what I have because it works so well as it is.
Celerondon and George Dawes like this.


The Slide House is intended as a self-sufficient space, a kind of an island that would allow its user to endlessly repeat the basic activities and moods. Stairs, which are a part of this project, are generally associated with effort and clearly defined goals, whereas the slide is recognized as an object that provokes emotions – fear as well as joy. Inside the tube one may experience a total isolation or just take a nap. The aesthetics of the whole structure is ascetic – white and neutral. This object is designed for the interiors of public buildings, but it would be equally functional in open spaces.
i radość. Wewnątrz rury można całkowicie odizolować się od otoczenia lub po prostu się zdrzemnąć. Całość z estetycznego punktu widzenia jest ascetyczna – biała i neutralna. Obiekt został zaprojektowany z myślą o wnętrzach budynków użyteczności publicznej, ale może też funkcjonować w przestrzeni otwartej.


text:
El pozo de nieve o nevero situado en la sierra Mariola, llamado Cava Gran, dentro del término municipal de Agres (Provincia de Alicante), data del siglo XVII y es uno de los más grandes y en mejor estado de conservación de los situados en las vertientes al norte de las sierras de Aitana, la Carrasqueta y Mariola.

Con unas dimensiones de 14,90 m de diámetro, 12 m de profundidad, 1.960 m³ de capacidad, se mantuvo en uso hasta 1906.

El perímetro exterior de este nevero es hexagonal, con seis arcos de piedra apuntados que arrancan del interior de la pared cilíndrica del pozo y que servían para sustentar la cobertura de la cúpula, hoy desaparecido, que remataba en una clave en forma de piña. Dispone de una boca lateral para extraer el hielo y en cada lado del hexágono contaba con un hueco por donde se realizaba el acopio de nieve.

En un lateral del nevero hay un muro poligonal construido para reforzar el gran hueco interior y formar una plataforma donde se levanta la pieza arquitectónica que está realizada en mampostería, con refuerzos de sillares en las esquinas, arcos y dinteles.

Arquitectura de la provincia de Alicante
Geografía de la provincia de Alicante
Agres

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


To thank you for becoming a Freedom Partner, you'll receive this exclusive Worth it for Freedom necklace, made by our friends at Starfish Project, who employ trafficked and exploited women. Wear it as a reminder of the freedom you are bringing and that you, and every woman and child around the world, are worth it.
Must be attending the event in Dallas to qualify.
If you are already a Freedom Partner, attending the event in person in Dallas, and increase your gift by $15 or more, you also qualify to receive a necklace.
Fair market value of your gift is $70.00.
The faithful support of Freedom Partners bring freedom, justice and restoration to children and families around the world who are trapped in slavery and violence. Their ongoing commitment makes rescue and lasting restoration possible.


text:
from lxml import etree

def parse_gml(gml_element):
    """Parse a GML element into a WKT representation."""
    qname = etree.QName(gml_element)
    try:
        handler = {
            "Point": parse_gml_point,
            "LineString": parse_gml_linestring,
            "Polygon": parse_gml_polygon,
            "Box": parse_gml_box,
        }[qname]
    except KeyError:
        raise RuntimeError("Invalid GML geometry element: {!r}".format(qname))
    else:
        return handler(gml_element)

def parse_gml_point(gml_element):
    coordinates, srs = get_ordered_coordinates(gml_element)
    wkt = "POINT ({x} {y})".format(x=coordinates[0], y=coordinates[1])
    return wkt, srs

def parse_gml_linestring(gml_element):
    coordinates, srs = get_ordered_coordinates(gml_element)
    wkt = "LINESTRING ("
    for x_coord_index in range(0, len(coordinates), 2):
        x = coordinates[x_coord_index]
        y = coordinates[x_coord_index + 1]
        wkt += "{} {},".format(x, y)
    wkt = wkt[:-1] + ")"
    return wkt

def parse_gml_polygon(gml_element):
    raise NotImplementedError

def parse_gml_box(gml_element):
    coordinates, srs = _get_gml_coordinates(gml_element)
    wkt = "POLYGON (("
    for x_coord_index in range(0, len(coordinates), 2):
        x = coordinates[x_coord_index]
        y = coordinates[x_coord_index + 1]
        wkt += "{} {},".format(x, y)
    wkt += "{first_x} {first_y}))".format(
        first_x=coordinates[0],
        first_y=coordinates[1]
    )
    return wkt

def get_ordered_coordinates(gml_element):
    coordinates, srs = _get_gml_coordinates(gml_element)
    ordered_coordinates = _order_coordinates(srs, coordinates)
    return ordered_coordinates, srs

def _get_axes_order(srs):
    order = {
        "http://www.opengis.net/def/crs/EPSG/0/4326": "yx",
    }
    return order.get(srs, "yx")

def _get_gml_coordinates(gml_element):
    namespaces = {
        "gml32": "http://www.opengis.net/gml/3.2",
        "gml2": "http://www.opengis.net/gml",
    }
    srs = gml_element.get(
        "srsName", "http://www.opengis.net/def/crs/EPSG/0/4326")
    try:
        coordinates = gml_element.xpath(
            "gml32:pos/text()", namespaces=namespaces)[0]
    except IndexError:
        try:
            coordinates = gml_element.xpath(
                "gml2:coordinates/text()", namespaces=namespaces)[0]
            coordinates = coordinates.replace(",", " ")
        except IndexError:
            raise RuntimeError("Invalid GML element")
    return coordinates.split(), srs

def _order_coordinates(srs, coordinates):
    if _get_axes_order(srs) == "yx":
        ordered = list(reversed(coordinates))
    else:
        ordered = list(coordinates)
    return ordered

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
The MSU Deer Lab is the premier deer research unit in the United States, addressing management issues of regional and national importance. We solve contemporary problems facing natural resource agencies, managers, and private landowners by conducting science-based research to better understand deer ecology and inform management.
The deer research program at Mississippi State University began with the arrival of Dr. Dave Guynn and Dr. Harry Jacobson in the mid-1970s. The synergism between these two young research biologists spawned many unique projects that generated national attention. Guynn left for other employment, and Dr. Jacobson expanded the breadth of deer research projects over a storied 20-year fulltime career, followed by continued interaction as Professor Emeritus.
Collectively, and working with numerous graduate students, cooperating agencies, foundations, and landowners, our current faculty have established the Deer Ecology and Management Lab at Mississippi State University.
St. John Family Professor of Wildlife Management
Extension Wildlife Specialist
Professional Member, Boone & Crockett Club
Phone: 662-325-8141
Email: bstrickland@cfr.msstate.edu
Location: Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Forest and Wildlife Research Center, Box 9690 Mississippi State, MS 39762-9690
Steve Demarais
Taylor Chair in Applied Big Game Research & Instruction
Dale H. Arner Professor of Wildlife Ecology & Mgt
Fellow of The Wildlife Society
Email: sdemarais@cfr.msstate.edu
Garrett Street
Garrett Street is a quantitative ecologist specializing in spatiotemporal dynamics in habitat selection and space use. His research focuses on linking fine-scale behavioral processes at the individual and population levels to broad-scale patterns of species distributions and abundance across broad geographic extents. He has addressed these issues using cutting edge statistical and simulation techniques in numerous deer species including moose (Alces alces), Roosevelt elk (Cervus elaphus roosevelti), and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and is dedicated to developing new ecological knowledge that can be applied to the improvement of wildlife management and conservation through the Southeast.
Email: gms246@msstate.edu
Marcus Lashley
Dr. Marcus Lashley started his career with a degree from MSU and returned in 2015 to serve as the wildlife habitat specialist in the department. Dr. Lashley earned his M.S. degree at the University of Tennessee and Ph.D. at North Carolina State University. His research has focused on several areas of deer behavior and diet selection, and habitat management with fire and timber harvests. Currently, he and his student Don Chance are evaluating the effects of forage availability and cover on deer habitat use following common habitat management practices.
Email: marcus.lashley@msstate.edu
Dana Morin
Dana Morin is a carnivore ecologist with expertise in methods for estimating population numbers. Her research combines tracking of carnivores with non-invasive genetic methods (sampling from hair and fecal matter) to estimate prey population size, predator diets and population sizes, and potential impacts of predators on prey populations. Using these methods, Dr. Morin aspires to untangle the complex interactions between carnivores and deer in the Southeast. As Dr. Morin specializes in spatially-explicit estimates of animal density, her work will also provide insight to spatial variability in risk of predation or disease to deer.
Email: dana.morin@msstate.edu
Current and Past Students
Moriah Boggess
Hometown: Elkin, North Carolina
Advisor: Marcus Lashley
Oaks have been declining in dominance across the eastern United States for decades as a result of fire suppression and other indirect effects. While this subtle shift in forest composition is difficult to notice now, the future of many wildlife species and upland forest communities will be in jeopardy if work is not done to improve oak regeneration in upland forests now.
Graduate student Moriah Boggess is working to identify how fire and deer interact with upland hardwood communities to affect oak competition with other tree species. He is specifically examining how diet selection of deer is affected by top-kill following growing season and dormant season fire. He uses seedling transplants, natural regenerating seedlings, and saplings to examine nutritional differences and deer diet selection between oaks and their competitors following fires.
He is also examining how good mast production can affect competition of oaks with other species by affecting deer behavior. To accomplish this, Moriah will collect approximately 75,000 acorns and distribute them under 25 oaks to simulate exceptional acorn crops, and he will measure deer use with trail cameras. With this data he will be able to determine relative deer use between trees with little mast and exceptional mast. He will then compare deer use with browse surveys of planted oak and blackgum seedlings under these trees to identify if and by what mechanism large mast crops may improve oak regeneration through attracting large seed eating mammals.
Additionally, Moriah is working on a project to determine the potential effects of fire timing and deer herd reduction on lone star tick abundance (the primary culprit of the spread of the red-meat allergy). He is also examining how supplemental feeding affects acorn selection and predation through a free-range acorn selection study involving 19 of the most common oak species in the southeast.
Hometown: Maryville, Tennessee
White-tailed deer rely heavily on their environment to gain the shelter and nutrition they need. Meanwhile, humans have the power to influence this environment through a variety of management techniques.
Graduate student Don Chance is uncovering how management techniques like herbicides, prescribed fire and thinning affect the nutritional quality of white tailed deer. To do this, Chance takes vegetation measurements to gauge the forage types, basal area, and forage production on managed sites.
He also uses trail cameras to examine how white-tailed deer utilize their habitat. With this information, Chance hopes to glean which vegetation types are considered most valuable by white-tailed deer-both in terms of cover and forage.
Because the cameras are set up to capture all wildlife, he is also able to collect data on other species, and may be able to draw conclusions about how other species navigate managed habitat.
Download thesis
Jacob Dykes
Hometown: Amory, Mississippi
We know white-tailed deer are picky eaters and that plant nutrients play an important role in their diets. But have you ever thought about how individual nutrients may affect what plants deer select to eat? It is often thought that deer are simply trying to maximize the amount of nutrients they ingest to ensure their nutritional requirements are met, however, too much of anything can be bad.
Graduate student Jacob Dykes is evaluating how the nutrient concentrations within a plant influence deer selecting that plant as a forage. In particular, he is investigating the idea that deer diet selection is determined by not only the pursuit of certain nutrients but also the avoidance of others. In fact, avoiding toxic amounts of a nutrient may be more important than preventing a deficiency because the effects of toxicity are likely more sudden and severe.
To accomplish this, he will use 15 popular food plot forages planted in separate adjacent plots. All forages will be protected with electric fencing until establishment. Fences will then be removed and deer selection for each plant will be measured using trail cameras. Each plant will be analyzed to determine the concentration of each individual nutrient.
In addition, Jacob will select 2 popular food plot species in which he will plant multiple adjacent plots of each. Within each forage species, he will manipulate nutrient concentrations in the soil of some plots by applying lime and fertilizer, while leaving the other plots untouched. He will then measure deer selection and nutrient concentration of each plant. This will allow Jacob to investigate the effects of soil nutrients on plant nutrient concentrations and ultimately deer diet selection. By using the same plant species, Jacob will be able to control for visual cues and thus, test whether deer use nutrient composition to discriminate between the same plant species.
With this data, Jacob hopes to identify key nutrients that deer are pursuing or avoiding when selecting their diets. He also hopes to offer a better understanding of how soil quality can affect the nutritional composition of a plant and ultimately change deer selection of that plant. With this research we can improve our understanding of white-tailed deer diet selection and make informed management decisions in the future.
Colby Henderson
Hometown: Starkville, Mississippi
Advisor: Steve Demarais
How do deer change habitat selection based on hunting risk that is on the landscape? What times of day do deer mostly use food plots? When acorns are dropping, how do deer respond to this abundance of food?
In order to discover how deer react to hunting pressure and how deer alter the landscape that they use, Colby Henderson and his advisors will be using GPS data on white-tailed deer to answer these questions. Deer will be captured with dart guns and drop nets on private properties in Madison and Yazoo counties, Mississippi. Capturing these deer with dart rifles will allow us to fit GPS collars on adult bucks. Over two years, these GPS collars will collect data on where these deer go, but also when they are in certain places.
During the hunting season, hunters try to choose hunting stands based off where they think the deer will be. It may be on a food plot or on the edge of a soybean field, but hunters want to be where they think deer will be. Hunters also wonder what times of the day are deer using food plots or soybean fields. Is it mostly the early morning or late afternoon or the middle of the night? Can hunters become more effective by knowing exactly when deer are in food plots, and how deer respond to hunters when one food plot is hunted repeatedly during the season?
Colby's project aims to answer these questions by using information collected from both deer and hunters. By answering these questions, we may not only help hunters in Mississippi, but also anywhere deer are hunted. We are excited about the opportunity to answer these unique questions and not only expand the scientific knowledge surrounding deer, but to also help hunters become more effective.
Miranda Huang
Hometown: Carmel, Indiana
Supplemental feeding of white-tailed deer is popular among landowners wanting to view wildlife and provide nutrition to the deer on their land. Contrasting these potential upsides are the possible negatives associated with congregating animals in a small area – such as increased likelihood of disease spread.
Graduate student Miranda Huang is studying how supplemental feeding may be affecting three potential sources of disease: ticks, aflatoxins, and gastrointestinal parasites. This study will use sites of year-round supplemental feeding and paired, ecologically-similar, unfed sites. The unfed sites will help to isolate the effects of supplemental feeding on these factors by controlling for regional and habitat variation. At each site, Huang will trap ticks and collect scat to test for the presence of diseases such as Lyme disease, Heartland Virus, and Giardia. Feed will be collected and tested for aflatoxins.
Huang is also using trail cameras to identify which animals are visiting sites to determine what species are at risk for contracting diseases found at the sites. All this information will be compiled to determine how supplemental feeding is affecting disease prevalence using ticks, fecals, and feed as models. Additionally, the number of years of supplemental feeding will be examined as a potential factor in the prevalence of aflatoxins, ticks, scat, and their associated diseases. Huang hopes this information will help improve our understanding of the effects of supplemental feeding and can provide guidance on how to mitigate any risks of feeding.
Hometown: New Prague, Minnesota
For as long as hunting season has existed, hunters have claimed that deer disappear as soon as opening day arrives.
In order to uncover exactly where deer go during hunting season, the Deer Lab has put science to the task. Under the direction of Dr. Steve Demarais, graduate student Ashley Jones will trap and collar 50 mature bucks this winter and track their movements to determine how they utilize the landscape with hunting pressure. "We'll be using a combination of dart guns and drop nets. The benefit of the dart guns is that they allow us to be very selective, which is good for this study because we only need adult males," explained Jones. The adult males that are caught will be collared with GPS collar, and then released. Over the next two years, data on their movements will be recorded.
This project is especially important in a state like Mississippi, where most recreational hunting is geared toward trophy hunting. Figuring out how adult males utilize landscapes is of particular interest to hunters.
The study also has other complicating factors that Jones will consider when analyzing her data. "Hunting season in Mississippi is four months long, which is far longer than most states. If it starts October 1, and goes until January, there's this whole time period where they are responding to hunting pressure, and then a secondary period where they're in rut, and so they have to contend with hunters and the need to mate."
The deer will be captured on private property in Madison and Yazoo county. "I'm very grateful to the landowners who have allowed us to use their land to begin to answer these questions. I hope that we can give something back to them by demonstrating how deer use the landscape during hunting season in Mississippi," stated Jones.
Dan Morina
Hometown: Raleigh, NC
Love works in mysterious ways. Master's student Dan Morina hopes to make it a little less mysterious, at least as far as white-tailed deer are concerned. Morina is conducting a study to see whether female deer are selective about their mates, and if so, and which characteristics are important factors.
To answer this question, he darts wild deer and brings them to MSU's Deer Pens, where he then rigs them with antler adapters that allow him to swap on antlers of different sizes. That way, large bodied deer can have small antlers, and small bodied deer can have larger antlers. Females are released into a pen between two males, and cameras are used to record which fence line she spends the most time on. With this data, Morina and his advisor, Dr. Steve Demarais, hope to hone in on the characteristics that female deer look for in mates.
This study will also contribute important information regarding Fischer's homeostasis hypothesis, which indicates that populations tend to have roughly the same number of male and female individuals because whenever a certain sex is rarer, more is produced of that sex.
Finally, Morina is also using bred deer to determine the fetal growth curve of white-tailed deer in Mississippi. Having an accurate fetal growth curve is important for managers, as they sometimes need to be able to estimate approximate breeding dates of deer. It also adds valuable biological information to the body of literature on white-tailed deer.
Carter Wolfe
Hometown: Stevensville, Michigan
Advisor: Dr. Barton (Dr. Demarais, unofficial advisor)
Do deer alter their behavior to contend with heat?
Carter Wolfe is studying how temperature alters deer foraging.
"In each habitat there are varied structures that can protect deer from thermal stress," explains Wolfe. "At the deer pens we've set up an experiment to discover whether deer utilize these structures when there is increased thermal stress."
Wolfe's study will become increasingly important as global climate change leads to rising temperatures; researchers need to understand how heat impacts the amount of food animals consume, and whether they will change their preferences based on the temperature.
"The simplified question is, do deer endure stress to feed, or do they change their behavior?" said Carter.
They are measuring feed consumption in single deer trials as well as in large scale groups. For this reason, Wolfe has broken the deer into two pens.
One pen holds a single animal with shaded and unshaded structures over food. Trail cams record 24-hour video that will later be used to parse out how much time the individual spends eating at the shaded vs unshaded food source.
The second pen uses trail cam photos to record the foraging preferences of a group of 15 deer. While the elements of shaded and unshaded food sources are still in effect, Wolfe has also added distance between each element in order to determine whether the distance the deer are willing to travel is altered by temperature.
Jordan Youngmann
Hometown: Hoosick Falls, New York
Can non-native deer be genetically distinguished from native individuals? And how did restoration efforts in the 1900s impact modern deer populations? Master's student Jordan Youngmann is working to answer these questions.
Youngmann's project has multiple objectives. First, he hopes to form a pictures of the genetic strains in today's deer by collecting samples from around the Southeast, as well as from other states around the US.
In the 1900s, deer populations were at an all-time low in the Southeast. In one of the most successful wildlife restoration efforts of all time, deer were imported from all over the country and released throughout Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee. While past studies have shown that today's deer populations still reflect their mixed ancestry, Youngmann hopes to delve deeper into the question of how deer from northern states, with radically different climates and pathogen regimes, fared in the south.
By comparing the genetics of southeastern deer with those from stock sources (like Wisconsin, New York, and Texas), Youngmann may be able to find micro satellite markers that indicate a northern influence.
This study could provide important information to other restoration projects about whether individuals being transported into radically different environments can successfully contribute to repopulating the area.
He also hopes to determine whether micro satellite markers can be used to distinguish between generations of white-tailed deer, a tool that would help scientists figure out when non-native deer were introduced to native populations.
Finally, Youngmann will create a protocol for other scientists to follow in determining when non-native deer were mixed into the population.


text:
Between Moscow and Beijing
Following developments in Russia-China relations
Russia's long-lasting turn to China
The bolstering of Russian-Chinese ties stands out as one of the key international consequences of the Ukrainian crisis. Attempting to push back against Western sanctions, Russia turned to the East and embraced China as a very close partner. Over the course of the past few months, both sides finalised decade-long negotiations leading to the signing of a 30-year gas deal. They also concluded numerous agreements on economic co-operation, including one envisioning Chinese companies constructing a high-speed railway linking the Russian cities of Moscow and Kazan. Russia's turn to China did not, however, start with the Ukrainian crisis. Its roots go even deeper than Putin's third presidential term with its increasingly anti-Western and conservative agenda. The focus on China is embedded in the 2008-2009 global economic crisis.
Ten years ago, in the mid-2000s, such a turn to China seemed implausible. Russian-Chinese relations were said to have run out of the post-Cold War steam they had been running on. Despite important positive bilateral developments, such as the signing of the border agreement, the creation of the Shanghai Co-operation Organization (SCO) and the provision of military equipment necessary for the modernisation of the Chinese armed forces, the Russian-Chinese rapprochement was facing a growing number of obstacles. No energy partnership materialised. Russia was at pains to avoid dependence on China in its plans for oil and gas exports to Asia and was repeatedly reaching out to Japan, South Korea and other potential customers. Moscow delayed decision on the construction of Asian pipelines, attempting to stir up competition for its natural resources. The arms sales to China stalled, with Russia unwilling to provide the most advanced weapons and unable to come to terms with China's illegal copying. As China's influence in Central Asia grew incrementally, the region was expected to turn into the field of competition and rivalry in the immediate future. Globally, despite shared criticisms of American international primacy, both states pursued different policies. Russia challenged US predominance while China searched for a modus vivendi. Taken together, these developments were, it seemed, not conducive to a more amicable relationship between Moscow and Beijing. China moved up the international power ladder and increased the distance separating it from Russia. The global economic crisis of 2008-2009 only reinforced these trends: China's rise accelerated, while Russia's resurgence hit the doldrums.
Surprisingly, Russia and China did not drift apart. On the contrary, Moscow turned towards Beijing. Following the economic crisis, energy co-operation recommenced. Russia constructed the first oil pipeline to China, and this was followed by the signing of a series of contracts on oil deliveries. These made Chinese companies Russia's most important customer in the Asian market. Chinese banks turned into the main source of financing for Russian energy behemoths, such as Rosneft and Transneft. Security co-operation encompassed not only regular military exercises on land (the Peace Mission) but also joint naval drills. Trade in arms revived and both sides expect to conclude new contracts on such weapons as the Su-35 fighters in the coming months. In Central Asia, Moscow and Beijing found ways to divide their influences, with China dominating the energy realm and Russia the security realm. Moreover, both sides seem able to reconcile their respective initiatives directed towards the region – the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union and the Chinese 'Silk Road Economic Belt'. Globally, China began to replace Russia as the West's key interlocutor and emerged as the major coordinator of non-Western states in multilateral forums, such as the G-20 or BRICS. Even the Russian-American 'reset' initiated in 2009 did not weaken ties between Moscow and Beijing. Moreover, in the early-2010s Russian and Chinese policies towards the US converged. Both states put pressure on the US (in Eastern Europe and East Asia respectively) and opposed global American initiatives (e.g. blocking intervention in the Syrian civil war).
The 2014 Ukrainian crisis had the potential to scupper this booming Russia-China co-operation. Having inspired a referendum in Crimea and annexed the peninsula, Moscow put Beijing in a highly uncomfortable position. Russia infringed upon the principles of non-interference and territorial integrity, cherished by China for reasons related to its own fears of separatism, particularly in Tibet and Xinjiang. Despite these serious doubts, Beijing decided to support Moscow. China explained its neutral position with regard to the annexation of Crimea with reference to specific historic circumstances and stopped short of criticising Russia for its 'silent intervention' in Eastern Ukraine. During subsequent bilateral and multilateral summits, Chinese leaders offered Vladimir Putin political and economic support rather than criticism.
The Ukrainian crisis did not open a new chapter in Russian-Chinese relations; it validated changes which had been underway since the global economic crisis: Russia's increasing acceptance of China's superior position and Beijing's policy of self-restraint towards Moscow. For a more nuanced account of the developments leading to this outcome, see my forthcoming book.
Posted by MK at 11/21/2014 No comments:
Chinese engagement, Russian withdrawal?
The past week saw a Chinese destroyer accompanied by a missile frigate and a supply ship all set off for the Hawaii archipelago. Although it may be tempting to make allusions to the Japanese navy approaching Pearl Harbour during the Second World War, this was part of a multi-national naval drill, the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC).
China has for some time now been regarded as key to the future of the international order. It is thus not surprising that every Chinese move, especially involving its military, is closely watched. The Sino-Vietnamese brinkmanship over the maritime borders in the South China Sea several weeks ago appeared to confirm China's image of an increasingly assertive great power, attempting to push through its ideas for the East Asian neighbourhood. However, recent steps taken by Beijing did not fit this pattern. In addition to participation in US-organised multilateral naval exercises, China deployed 850 troops to boost the UN peace-keeping mission in South Sudan. These are, of course, very different types of political-military engagement but the similarity in their interpretation is remarkable. They are treated by observers and commentators as strong political signals from Beijing.
RIMPAC is indeed a significant event as it is the world's largest international maritime warfare exercise hosted and administered by the United States. It makes claims that it is crucial for sustaining cooperative relationships critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. This was the first time that China decided to take part in RIMPAC. This move is interpreted as signalling Beijing's benign intentions, especially given recent Sino-American tensions. It also suggests China's growing readiness to become engaged internationally and reinforces the image of China as a responsible global actor. Peacekeeping in Africa is seen through similar lens, in terms of improving China's credentials as a stakeholder in the international order. Beijing makes use of this to demonstrate its benign face to the outside world. Moreover, South Sudan is not the only instance of Chinese military engagement in UN peacekeeping operations. In 2013, the UN mission in Mali was aided by 500 Chinese troops.
The question is whether China's participation in multilateral efforts to manage international security goes beyond the symbolic, whether China can make a tangible and meaningful contribution to peace and cooperation in the Pacific or to the solution of the Sudanese crisis. China has certainly been forced to leave its 'splendid isolation' from global high politics and to start sharing the problems of arranging the international order. It has to take care of its interests far away from the centre. The ubiquitous presence of Chinese workers worldwide makes it necessary for China to be prepared for contingencies. This was a lesson China took in the case of the 2011 revolution in Libya, when it had to evacuate its 30,000 citizens. The growing appetite for energy resources, oil in particular, is another thread which may explain China's readiness to make more vigorous foreign forays. Beijing's involvement in South Sudan was frequently interpreted as directly related to China's overarching goal of securing greater access to natural resources. Regardless of its incentives, China's engagement reinforces the Western ideas of how the international order should be arranged. Its acceptance of troops being sent to South Sudan followed on from a change to The United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) mandate, which now covers the protection of civilians and human rights monitoring as well as support for the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Against the backdrop of China's embrace of multilateral co-operation, Russia has neither taken part in RIMPAC 2014 nor contributed to the peacekeeping mission in South Sudan; or, for that matter, last year, in Mali. Does this abstention testify to Russia's diminishing interest in global issues and the 'change of places', with China gradually taking on more responsibilities globally? The reversal of Moscow and Beijing's roles has been more and more visible in the aftermath of the global economic crisis. Russia's economic interests around the globe are negligible when compared to China's. Russia does not export its workforce, nor does it import resources. Moreover, Western expectations towards both states vary. When Russia took part in the 2012 edition of RIMPAC, this was interpreted as hedging against China, not as a potential contribution to the safety and stability of global sea lanes...
Posted by MK at 7/04/2014 No comments:
Russia, China, and the future of the liberal international order
In recent weeks, China's assertive moves in the South China Sea have dovetailed with Russia's annexation of Crimea and its covert aggression in the eastern parts of Ukraine. Last year Moscow and Beijing successfully prevented the intervention against the Syrian regime. The return of power politics, with Russia and China singled out as the major culprits, has become the order of the day among the scholarly community. It has been said about both states that they are striving for hegemony in their respective spheres of interest or neighbourhoods and that they oppose liberal internationalism globally.
What are the outcomes of these policies for the international order? John G. Ikenberry optimistically argues that the liberal order will persist as the emerging powers do not wish to overturn it: 'it is a misreading of China and Russia, which are not full-scale revisionist powers but part-time spoilers at best, as suspicious of each other as they are of the outside world'. For Walter Russell Mead, Russia and China (supported by Iran) are revisionist great powers who challenge the international order created by the US. Charles Kupchan, in turn, takes a more centrist position, arguing that the liberal order dominated by the West will be replaced by a 'diversified world', which will be anything but one dominated by a single actor.
President Putin's visit to Beijing was preceded by ambitious declarations of elevating the two states' relationship to a 'new stage' and it is worth pondering the question of what the Russo-Chinese relationship actually means for the future of the liberal international order.
Russia and China have aspirations to dominate and reorder their adjacent regions. Their respective actions towards Ukraine and the South China Sea coincided but they can hardly be said to represent a coordinated action against liberal order. Although Moscow and Beijing continue to oppose liberal internationalism, with its practices of intervention and normative content focused on human rights and democracy, they are both on the defensive. Russia's engagement with R2P is very uneven, while China finds it increasingly difficult to reconcile global interests with keeping a low profile outside its immediate neighbourhood. Russia and China may have converged in terms of political systems, but they still represent two distinct types of non-democratic regimes.
The parallel nature of both states' actions can be very misleading and makes analysts place them in the same category, under the banner of the common challenge they supposedly pose to the West. But beneath the surface, Russia and China are in the midst of their own, bilateral 'power transition'.
Beijing is gaining the upper hand in the Russo-Chinese relationship and is beginning to dictate its terms. Russia's sophisticated plans for the diversification of energy export to Asia have been replaced with an increasing dependence on China, so far limited to oil but soon to be extend to the gas sector. The naval drills, organised regularly since 2012, have reflected first and foremost Beijing's strategic needs and the concerns it holds dear with regard to its neighbourhood. Russia has acquiesced to China's presence in Central Asia, while not being able to position itself as an independent player in East Asia. Even the success of Russian diplomacy in preventing US action against the Syrian regime cannot overshadow China's imprint on global multilateralism, from the G-20 to BRICS.
Hence, the relationship between the non-liberal great powers – Russia and China – and the West cannot be reduced to a simple 'them versus us' dichotomy or to a return of power politics. Moscow and Beijing are undergoing a complex process of re-arranging their respective places in the international hierarchy. The effect of this is still far from being determined, but it will certainly have an impact on the future international order.
The myth of the 10-year long gas negotiations
President Putin's upcoming visit to Beijing (20-22 May 2014) has once again raised expectations that a gas contract will finally be signed after a decade of negotiations. We have witnessed a similar 'fever' prior to every Russian-Chinese summit for the last couple of years. Let us have a glance at how Russia and China have repeatedly failed to agree or... how they have been faking their negotiations.
The very first agreement, which envisioned the construction of a pipeline and the deliveries of Russian gas to China, was reached during President Putin's visit to Beijing in October 2004. Two years later, another agreement followed and the major contours of a future contract were made public. Russia's proposal entailed the construction of two gas pipelines, along the western and eastern routes, to Xinjiang and coastal China. The total volume would amount to 68 billion cubic meters (bcm) per annum, 38 bcm for the western route and 30 bcm for the eastern one (Russian gas exports to Europe hovered between 120 and 130 bcm).
Already then it was the price which seemed to be the major obstacle. The price offered by China was at the level of US$ 100, while Gazprom's price for gas on the European market stood at US$ 250. In practice, however, neither side was determined to strike a deal.
For Russia, the talks with China were a way Moscow could put pressure on European states. The plan was for the western pipeline (named the Altai pipeline) to be supplied from the Western Siberian gas fields, i.e. the very source of deliveries to Europe. Demonstrating the possibility to 'switch sides', Gazprom attempted to convince the European companies to renew long-term gas contracts and to prevent the anti-monopolist regulation of the EU gas market. At that time, China's demand for gas remained limited, especially given that in 2006 Beijing signed a contract on a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan.
Following the 2008-2009 global economic crisis, Gazprom, faced with waning European demand and the disadvantageous EU law, seemed much more interested in striking a deal with China. The Russian government kept insisting on the priority of constructing the Altai pipeline first. For Moscow the pipeline to China continued to be primarily an element of its policy towards the European Union, providing convenient leverage and increasing its bargaining power. The western gas pipeline was also supposed to discourage China from finalising a gas agreement with Turkmenistan. In this case Moscow clearly underestimated Chinese resolution in acquiring access to gas supplies from Central Asia. The eastern route was regarded by Gazprom as a future development.
The series of agreements which followed between 2009 and 2011 seemed to conform to Russia's vision of gas co-operation with China. According to declarations from both sides, new details were agreed almost every three months. A comprehensive agreement on the western gas pipeline was allegedly reached in September 2010. This document foresaw gas deliveries to begin in 2015, with a volume of 30 bcm per year. In mid-2011 Gazprom went as far as declaring it would be concentrating on the Altai pipeline and abandoning the eastern route.
On the surface, the price remained the only hurdle. But there were more factors which spoke against the feasibility and profitability of the Altai gas pipeline. Even though China's demand for natural gas skyrocketed, Beijing's bargaining position vis-à-vis Russia strengthened. Having secured access to alternative gas sources – constructing pipelines from Turkmenistan and Myanmar and LNG terminals – China felt no pressure to close talks with Russia without obtaining serious concessions. China's primary needs for gas were concentrated on the eastern coast. The western route, promoted by Gazprom, would require additional investment in Chinese domestic pipeline infrastructure. Moreover, even Gazprom's own plans, the so-called "Eastern Gas Programme", assumed that the deliveries to China along the eastern route are necessary for the project to be profitable.
The Altai pipeline made no economic sense either to China or to Gazprom. Why did Russia promote this route so stubbornly? The only logical conclusion is that as late as the end of 2011 at least one of the sides was conducting negotiations on the western gas pipeline in bad faith. The Russian-Chinese talks were just a facade, which was supposed to help Gazprom gain concessions in the European market. Real negotiations started in early 2012, when Gazprom and CNPC dismissed the Altai project and re-focused on the eastern gas pipeline.
From Georgia to Crimea – China's problems with Russia's foreign policy
Neither Russia's intervention in Georgia in 2008, nor that in Ukraine in 2014, have infringed upon vital Chinese interests. The former was below the radar of Beijing's foreign policy and China reacted soberly to the latter. Ukraine has, though, certainly been more noticeable, not least because the country provided the Chinese military with technologies (including the first aircraft carrier) and was to supply it with grain. Beijing demonstrated self-restraint with regard to ties with Kiev, taking Russia's interests into account.
Nevertheless, both cases of the use of military force by Russia have left Beijing feeling uneasy and have complicated foreign policy-making. China has carefully avoided a for-or-against choice on Russia and has preferred to keep a low profile.
The main problem China recognises is that Russia's behaviour may fuel separatism, which Beijing considers its most serious challenge. Long gone are the times when both states supported each other against separatism (the triad of Taiwan, Tibet and Chechnya). The Kremlin does not seem to be wary of separatist forces and the relatively cost-free detachment of Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia has made it even more self-confident. China, meanwhile, has grown even more wary of separatist forces. The 2010 Russian-Chinese bilateral declaration included Moscow's support for China's policy not only with regard to Taiwan and Tibet, but also Xinjiang. Moreover, the form of Russia's support for Crimean separatism – a declaration by its inhabitants expressed in a referendum – creates a precedent which may be detrimental to China's core interests. It may reinforce those sections of Taiwanese society which would like to have freedom to decide about the status of the island. It thus seems implausible that China will accept either Crimea's independence or its annexation by Russia. It should also be expected that China will support other post-Soviet states in opposing any formal recognition of a Russia-imposed status quo, just as Beijing enabled the Central Asian members of the SCO to resist Russian pressure to recognise South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2008.
The Ukrainian crisis is, however, far from clear-cut from Beijing's perspective. The revolution in the Maidan is regarded as a Western-led conspiracy which overthrew the legal government (in a similar way to the Colour revolutions). Beijing perceived the protests in Tibet in 2008 and in Xinjiang in 2009 as having been inspired from abroad. The success of a democratic and popular protest does not bode well for China's ruling party. Seen in this light, Russia's intervention in Crimea is considered to be a 'proper response' to Western subversion, and China could implicitly support such methods.
Finally, the Western reaction, and in particular that of the USA, to the Russian intervention, offers Beijing a unique 'laboratory'. Asserting its territorial claims in the East and South China Seas in an increasingly aggressive manner, China can be expected to draw lessons from the Western response to the use of military force, equally as it now observes the West's reaction to the implicit Russian threat of full-scale invasion.
Given the complexity of Chinese interests, it should not come as a surprise that Beijing is avoiding taking a clear stance. The question is whether such a reaction can lead to any changes in China's relations with Russia. Will the absence of unambiguous support make Russia revise its approach to China? The Georgian War did not harm the ever closer relations between Russia and China. Moscow seems to have reconciled itself to the absence of support from China for the independent status of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as it has got used to Beijing's increased leverage within the SCO. The Crimean issue could lead to similar results. While not supporting Russia, Beijing has no reasons to condemn its actions.
On the other hand, however, China could be tempted to pressure Russia, which faces the perspective of semi-isolation from the West. Beijing could make additional adjustments in their bilateral relations and tilt it even more to its advantage. According to the Japanese media, China asked for Moscow's support in the dispute with Japan, concerning the Diaoyu (Senkaku) Islands (offering in return support for Russia's stance with regard to the Kuril Islands). So far, Russia has seemed uninterested. The need to gain support in the dispute with the West over Crimea could force Moscow to revise its approach and give in to Beijing's demands.
What are the consequences for the contemporary international order? The 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the WWI makes comparisons tempting (see the thought-provoking piece by Margaret Macmillan in International Affairs). The road from a minor crisis to war between great powers is indeed a short one.
The Russo-Chinese relationship is often depicted in the West in terms of a quasi-alliance hostile to the US and Europe. Conversely, Russia and China present their relations as the 'stabilising factor of international politics'. As the Crimean case demonstrates, neither depiction is precise. But, paradoxically, the limitations of ties between Russia and China revealed by the Crimean crisis strengthen international stability. Both Moscow and Beijing tend to avoid mutual obligations which would make them hostage to each other's territorial claims. Consequently, Russia and China are forced to pursue their assertive policies with much more caution. The situation, analogous to the one described by Margaret Macmillan in the heyday of the WWI seems a very distant prospect:
'Germany found itself backing its weaker partner of Austria–Hungary because it did not want to risk losing its one sure ally; that meant it was drawn into Austria–Hungary's rivalry with Russia in the Balkans. Not for the last time Germany was to discover that the stronger power cannot always control its weaker partner. Yet Germany could not easily abandon the alliance for fear of losing prestige.'
Russia's oil export to China: diversification or dependence?
The strategic goal of Russia's energy policy has invariably been to diversify oil and gas export and to reduce its dependence on the European market. This goal was outlined for the first time in the 2003 Energy Strategy and later repeated in other landmark documents. The initial forecasts were very ambitious: by 2020 almost one third of exported oil and one quarter of gas should be going to the Asian market. In the 2009 Energy Strategy, the Russian government corrected these assumptions: the share of export to Asia should amount to 25% of oil and 20% of gas by 2030. The most recent draft of the Energy Strategy foresees that 23% of oil and oil products and 31% of natural gas will be exported to Asian customers by 2035.
Russia's concept of export diversification assumes that potential customers for Russian oil and gas – China, Japan, South Korea, the ASEAN states, Australia and even clients from the West coast of the USA – should compete for Siberian resources. Moscow has been at pains to avoid dependence on a single customer who would be able to dictate the terms of co-operation.
Observers have for years now expressed scepticism towards the Kremlin's grand designs. Bobo Lo in his recent paper described Russia as 'a niche supplier' for the Asian market. The prospects of Russia becoming a key supplier for China have been met with similar scepticism. Linda Jakobson and her colleagues in the paper on Russian-Chinese energy and security co-operation commented aptly: 'Even if Russia fulfils its obligation to annually provide 15 million tonnes of oil through the ESPO pipeline, it will remain a minor oil supplier because of China's soaring demand for imported oil and intense efforts to diversify supply.' In his seminal 2012 study on Russian-Chinese oil and gas co-operation Keun-Wook Paik did not envision a bright future for the increase in Russia's oil export to China, pointing to technical difficulties and the demand from other Asian clients. Paik forecast Russia's export of crude oil to China as reaching a maximum of 24 million tonnes by 2015. As he succinctly put it, 'China did not get the massive and secure quantities of oil which it wanted'. Even in the most optimistic scenario, Paik assumed that 35 million tonnes of oil would be exported by Russia to China in 2020 and 45 million tonnes in 2030.
But in 2013 the picture changed drastically. Russia's Rosneft has been signing one agreement after another with Chinese companies. As a result, by 2020 Russia should be exporting 56 million tonnes of oil per annum to China. China will thus obtain more than 20% of Russia's total oil export (assessed to remain at the level of between 240 and 250 million tonnes for the next two decades). Even in the best-case scenario, not much oil will be left for the rest of Asia...
Rosneft's oil agreements with China
amount of oil (t)
Rosneft-CNPC*
(oil delivered via the ESPO** pipeline)
US$ 100 billion
Rosneft-CNPC
(oil for the Tianjin refinery)
following the refinery's construction
(oil delivered via Kazakhstan)
(oil to be delivered via a new spur of the ESPO?)
Rosneft-Sinopec
(oil delivered from the ESPO)
2014 (contract under negotiation)
US$ 80 billion
* CNPC – Chinese National Petroleum Corporation
** ESPO – East Siberia-Pacific Ocean oil pipeline
Assertiveness in unison
The series of recent commentaries on Russia's and China's international behaviour has focused on the challenge the two great powers pose to the liberal international order. Written in a rather pessimistic tone, the analyses have resorted to phrases such as 'the return of History' or 'the revival of the Great Power conflict'. The authors have also frequently made reference to past rivalries, including during the World War I and the Cold War in particular. Dominique Moisi laid the blame on Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping for the absence of statesman-like leadership. In his view, Russia's policy towards Ukraine and China's territorial claims in the East and South China Seas reveal a readiness towards brinkmanship and a lack of strategic self-restraint. Anne Applebaum reproached Russia and China for the return to Cold-War patterns of foreign policy, demonstrated primarily by the aggressive attempts to secure a privileged position in their neighbourhood. Walter Russell Mead put forward the most radical interpretation. In his view Russia, China and Iran form a revisionist coalition aspiring to overthrow the Eurasian status quo, which is advantageous to and protected by the US.
It cannot be denied that Russia and China have occasionally coordinated their actions towards the West, e.g. in the UN Security Council. They have tended to adopt similar positions on normative aspects of the post-Cold War international order, which in practice meant the objection to any kind of military intervention organised under the auspices of Western states. Interestingly, in the 2000s, a particular 'division of labour' emerged between Moscow and Beijing with regard to their roles in the global order. Moscow actively and noisily participated in the management of global affairs, eager to join all formal and informal forums (from the G-8, G-20 and BRICS to the Six Party Talks and the P5+1). Beijing, for its part, kept a low profile, engaging in global issues only when China's vital interests were at stake. In the realm of international security, it was Russia which stood out as the non-Western voice.
This 'division of labour' has been reflected in different strategies adopted by Moscow and Beijing towards the West. Russia challenged US primacy while China searched for a modus vivendi. Moscow openly contested the Western-led liberal order. Putin's speech in Munich in 2007 was the most pronounced declaration of Russia's unwillingness to accept Western rules. The 2008 war with Georgia, the purpose of which was to block the process of NATO enlargement, demonstrated Moscow's determination. Conversely, China chose to adapt to the Western-led liberal order, which was most clearly manifested in its accession to the WTO in 2001. China searched for benchmarks which could testify to its non-confrontational rise, such as the participation in UN peacekeeping operations. The concept of a 'peaceful rise', promoted in the mid-2000s, was quickly replaced by that of a 'harmonious order' as soon as it became clear that the former policy was a cause of concern among the neighbours of both China and the West.
These global roles ran contrary to the trends in the Russo-Chinese bilateral relationship. China allowed Russia, the gradually weakening partner, to enjoy larger international prestige and visibility. It was not until the global economic crisis of 2008-2009 that Russia and China opted for new strategies towards the West and US global primacy. Moscow toned down its assertiveness and improved its relations with the US within the 'reset' framework. Embarking on a modernisation agenda, it ultimately joined the WTO in 2012. Conversely, Beijing became more assertive towards the US and its own neighbours. It has pursued territorial claims with regard to the disputed maritime borders, thereby testing Washington's resolve to support US allies in the region. These shifts were in line with the new balance of power between Russia and China.
Putin's return to the presidential seat in 2012 has been marked by a growing assertiveness in Russia's foreign policy. Moscow has effectively dropped its modernisation ideas and has embraced an anti-Western and anti-American agenda. The change of the Chinese leadership, which also took place in 2012, has only intensified China's demands in the international realm. Russia and China have thus finally 'united' in their assertiveness towards the West.
But should the West be wary, as commentators suggest? While Russia and China demonstrate a similar approach towards their neighbours, they do not endorse each other's attempts to gain recognition of the 'zones of privileged interests'. Globally, Moscow and Beijing are striving to prevent the West from re-interpreting the idea of state sovereignty and thus oppose the practice of intervention. However, neither Russia, nor China has formulated a normative framework which would present an alternative to the contemporary liberal order. Selectively opposing US primacy, the two most powerful non-liberal states are not building an anti-hegemonic coalition. Russia's and China's ruling elites seem to care more about legitimising their international status as equal with the US within the existing order rather than overturning this order entirely.
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Marcin Kaczmarski
Researcher of post-Soviet politics and Russia-China relations
Russia, China, and the future of the liberal inter...
From Georgia to Crimea – China's problems with Rus...
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Canadian Centennial Scholarship Fund For students from Canada enrolled on postgraduate programmes in the UK.
Canada Memorial Foundation Scholarships For British students or graduates wishing to pursue a Postgraduate course at a university or other appropriate institution in Canada.
The Charles Wallace Trust The four Charles Wallace trusts (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Burma/Myanmar) support a number of fellowship schemes and aid for Postgraduate students.
Chevening Scholarships Chevening are the UK government's global scholarship programme, funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and partner organisations. The Scholarships are awarded to outstanding scholars with leadership potential. Awards are typically for a one-year Master's degree.
The Citadel Capital Scholarship Foundation Open to Egyptian nationals and those residing in Egypt wishing to study at Masters level.
Commonwealth Scholarships Open to citizens of a Commonwealth country other than the UK, seeking information about UK scholarships for full-time study at both Masters and doctoral level.
Commonwealth Distance Learning Scholarship Offers graduates the opportunity to study for a UK Master's degree while living and working in their home country.
Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships Applications are now open for 2018 Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships, enabling PhD candidates based in developing countries to conduct research in the UK, and for universities to develop their international research collaborations and partnerships. Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships are for PhD candidates from low and middle income Commonwealth countries to spend up to 12 months at a UK university as part of their doctoral studies in their home country. The applicant's home university must have an institutional or departmental link with the proposed UK university. These scholarships are funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and offered through the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK (CSC). The deadline for applications is 15 February 2018.
Council for British Research in the Levant Sponsors research throughout countries of the Levant (Cyprus, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria).
Crown Prince's International Scholarship Program Offers grants to citizens of Bahrain.
Daesan Foundation Research Grants for Korean Literature For postgraduate students working on Korean literature at overseas institutions (i.e. outside of Korea).
Daiwa Scholarships in Japanese Studies: The Daiwa Scholarship in Japanese Studies is a postgraduate Scholarship programme to fund UK graduates in Japanese Studies on postgraduate Japan-related courses in either Japan or the UK. Strong Japanese language ability will be a key selection criterion. The Daiwa Foundation is able to support up to six scholars at any one time. Application deadline: last Thursday in January.
Daiwa Scholarships: The Daiwa Scholarship is a unique 19-month programme of language study, work placement and homestay in Japan, following a month of Japanese tuition in the UK. They offer young and talented UK citizens with strong leadership potential, the opportunity to acquire Japanese language skills, and to access expertise and knowledge relevant to their career goals. Japanese language knowledge is not required.
The Toyota-Shi Trevelyan Trust Scholarships up to £5,000 per award to assist UK resident students pursue a course of study/work placement in Japan. Good knowledge of the Japanese language and pursuing a course in a related field essential.
Spotcap Fintech Fellowship Each year, the Spotcap Fintech Fellowship programme provides £8,000 to one British student studying a one year master's or MBA course in a Fintech related field (e.g. Finance, Business, Law).
Forty-Nine Thirteen Foundation Research Grant available to advance the education of the public through encouraging and/or conducting and/or making possible the conduct of research into the history of the Ottoman Empire and Islamic societies.
Fundacion Caja Madrid Scholarships Postgraduate scholarships to study at universities or research institutions of the awardee's choice in the United States, Canada or Europe (outside Spain). Subject areas: Social and Legal studies, Biomedical studies, Natural Sciences, Physics and Mathematics, and Music.
Fulbright Commission Scholarships For US applicants interested in studying in the US and vice versa.
Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme This Scheme aims to recruit and support the best and brightest students in the world to pursue their PhD studies in Hong Kong for a period of three years. The Department of Chinese Language and Literature at the Chinese University of Hong Kong warmly welcomes postgraduate students interested in their PhD programme in Chinese Language and Literature to apply through this Scheme.
Gerda Henkel Foundation Grants for research and PhD scholarships for German and foreign scholars in the fields of Historical Humanities.
Goa Education Trust (GET) Scholarship Open to any Indian national applying for a Master's Programme in the UK. The GET Scholarships will fund young Indians to pursue a Master's in the UK and will cover part or full tuition fees.
Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Grants for those undertaking research in the fields of violence, aggression, and dominance.
Horowitz Foundation Grants for current PhD candidates in Social Sciences.
The Indian National Trust for Arts and Cultural Heritage INTACH-UK Trust offers travel scholarships to India for UK citizens.
Indonesia UK DIKTI Scholarship Programme For lecturers in Indonesia to study for their doctorate programme.
Inlaks Scholarships For Masters and PhD candidates. Open to all Indians who hold a good degree from a recognised university and are resident in India at the time of application. All applicants must have done their first degree in India. Candidates must be below 30 years of age on the first of July in the year of application. Preference will be given to candidates who have not yet studied abroad.
Ishibashi Foundation Scholarships The Ishibashi Foundation offers a scholarship through Japan Educational Exchanges and Services (JEES) to graduate students who are planning to conduct research in art history in one of the selected universities in Japan.
Japan Foundation Endowment Committee Provides small grants to support research in the academic field of Japanese Studies within degree-awarding institutions in the United Kingdom.
The Korean Foundation Graduate Studies Fellowships For foreign MA or PhD candidates currently enrolled on a graduate program and conducting research on topics related to Korea within the contexts of Humanities, Social Sciences or Arts and Culture Studies.
The Leverhulme Trust Study Abroad Studentships support an extended period of advanced study or research at a centre of learning in any overseas country, with the exception of the USA.
London Goodenough Association of Canada Supports Canadians undertaking graduate study in London.
MastersCompare Postgraduate Scholarship Offers a Postgraduate scholarship to help Masters students and prospective Masters students in the UK.
Marshall Scholarships Offers scholarships to American graduates interested in studying at Masters and Research level in the UK.
MBI Al Jaber Foundation Scholarships Open to all Arab residents of the Middle East who have an unconditional offer for a Master's programme.
Nestpick Scholarship Offers grants to aid with student housing worldwide.
OFID Scholarship Award For students in developing countries.
Orient- Institut Istanbul Offers stipends to support PhD research visit to the Institut.
Prisoners of Conscience Appeal Fund Helps individual prisoners of conscience both in exile in the UK and overseas.
Rapid Formations Entrepreneur Scholarship Programme Applicants must have secured a place to study, have demonstrable entrepreneurial attitude and leadership skills and provide clear evidence of the need for additional financial support.
Reservation Counter Private scholarship opportunities for study in the United States.
Rueben Singh Scholarship For undergraduates at a UK university.
Richard Reeves Foundation Provides grants aimed at students from disadvantaged backgrounds for study in a range of subject areas.
The Society of for Architectural Historians in Great Britain Postgraduate Research Bursaries Supports students undertaking research in the discipline of Architectural History.
The Thouron Award Graduates of British universities receive support for up to two years for a graduate (post-graduate) degree program at the University of Pennsylvania. It offers a wide range of postgraduate courses – in the Schools of Arts & Sciences, Architecture & Regional Planning, Law amongst others.
Trudeau Foundation Doctoral Scholarships For Canadian citizens applying to a doctoral program in the disciplines of Social Sciences and Humanities, or for those studying full-time in the first or second year of such a program at a foreign university. Each university will have its own deadlines to select the students whose files will be forwarded to the Foundation before the final deadline. At SOAS, applicants are required to submit their applications 4 weeks before the Foundation final deadline.
Turkiye Scholarships For students interested in undertaking research in Turkey.
Wellcome Trust Funding a) Master's Awards in Humanities and Social Science: Enabling researchers to undertake humanities or social science Master's courses in any area of health. b) Doctoral Studentships. IMPORTANT: SOAS has internal deadline at SOAS, which is before the Wellcome Trust application deadline. If you are interested in applying for the Master's awards or Doctoral Studentships, you need to submit your Wellcome application form six weeks before the Wellcome Trust application deadline together with your admission application to the programme. Applicants are strongly advised to liaise with their proposed supervisor/Tutor well in advance. It is recommended that candidates interested in applying for this studentship contact the Scholarships Office (scholarships@soas.ac.uk) as soon as possible. Each university can put forward one candidate for a Master's Award.


Country House Amenities; Part I, Lighting with Candles.
A selection of candle holders 1700-1800.
Creamware candlestick. Leeds or Staffordshire 1770s-1780s.
This is the first of a series of four posts concerned with the particulars of running the country house through lighting, heating and cleaning. Their purpose is to bring together several sources in order to demonstrate how the country house operated at a domestic level, and perhaps in a way we might hope to understand today. As visitors we see the grandeur of the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the plush clutter of the nineteenth century and steady modernisation of the twentieth century, and yet we often ask how architectural arrangements affected daily routines. Many houses have opened their servants' halls, butler's pantries, or nurseries for the public to view over the past two decades, but many struggle within the laws of health and safety to reconstruct the 'feel' of daily living. Of course, as visitors we cannot expect to stay overnight in drafty chambers, clean our hands and feet in wash basins, read by candlelight, or sit by open fires but we can understand the needs of past generations in creating warm, well-lit, clean and secure homes. For the social microcosm that is the country house, these needs were expensive to achieve and demanded a great deal of manual labour.
Cut glass chandelier from Uppark, Sussex. Possibly made by Christopher Haedy, 1770s.
This post is a glimpse at how developments in artificial lighting changed the way in which the country house operated. There are four components to the history of lighting in the home; candle (naked flame), oil, gas, and electricity. The apparatus of which are usually still visible in some country houses, but in most cases have been swept away. There is a lot to be covered within this topic, so I shall begin with the humble candle!
I am most grateful to Anthony Wells-Cole and James Lomax whose knowledge of the Temple Newsam collections in Leeds have proved invaluable for this subject matter and the lighting of the country house generally.
The types of candle lighting; Spermaceti, the best were made from the fatty white substance found in the head of the sperm whale and produced a clear white smokeless flame; Beeswax produced a clear smokeless flame with an indifferent smell, and initially used only in churches; Tallow, the most common type of candle was made from the hard white fat found around the kidneys and caul of animals (mainly beef cattle and sheep), but they produced an inferior flame as well as a foul smell in comparison to the more expensive spermaceti and beeswax candles; Rushlight or dip candle, was the poor man's candle and was an ancient method of producing light made from the pithy part of a peeled rush dipped, often repeatedly, into hot liquid animal fat in order to build up layers around the wick.
A selection of rushlight holders with decorative hinged arms. The dipped rush would be held between the pincer-like nib. The holder third from right also has a candle socket.
The best thing when writing about the lighting equipment associated with the country house is that almost all these varieties would have been present at some point. Rushlights or hand-dipped candles were an ancient device and would have still been used by some servants when rising before daylight and completing their evening duties. They would also have been the presence of rushlights throughout dark basement corridors. On average they would burn for about fifteen to twenty minutes, and would need constant attention in order for the rush to be drawn up through the holder. Wax and tallow candles formed the backbone of the lighting industry from the Middle Ages with each having their own guild but with vastly different costs in the retail value of their produce. Influenced by specific laws on production and pricing, wax and tallow candles eventually fell foul of Customs and Excise when in 1709 a tax was introduced on all English and imported candles; the rate at this time on wax was fourpence per pound, and one halfpenny per pound on tallow.
In attempts to keep costs down in the country house, many candles were made from estate produce. In other instances, pure wax could be obtained from the open market, including scented and coloured waxes from the Colonies. At Castle Howard, Isabella Carlisle noted the cost of essentials in her own abstract of the household accounts between 1744 and 1755. 'Fire and Candle' as categorised by Isabella, came to £13 02s 00d for one week in May 1745, £5 17s 2d for one week in October 1748 and £5 2s 3d for one week in July 1753. Clearly the times of year and special occasions had a marked affect upon the costs of heating and lighting this particular country house.
as well as free standing cupboards and cabinets to keep a range of candles in. In other instances rooms may have had cylindrical tin boxes which were hung high on the wall – to keep the rats out – for the storage of tallow candles. Moreover, in her book of housekeeping, Susanna Whatman noted that the first thing a housekeeper should teach a new servant was to carry her candle upright, since it was no good wasting taxed consumables when the wax stub could be reused in lighting fires. Such careful action also stopped hot wax dripping to the carpets and floor boards.
From the second half of the eighteenth century, and with the rise of the whaling industry, a new kind of wax candle began to appear on the London market – the spermaceti candle. These were the best candles, and were initially more expensive than beeswax candles. The wax and spermaceti candles would have been used by the family, but probably reserved for special occasions. In the first half of the nineteenth century Elizabeth, Lady Breadalbane instructed her servants that, 'all pieces of spermaceti candles to be collected by the under Butler and given over to the Housekeeper at least once a fortnight for the lanterns and the lighting of fires.' The expense of these candles also dictated their recyclable qualities.
The candle tax was abolished in 1831, the beginning of the decade which also marked another key event in the history of lighting – the invention of the friction match. Previously, the method of striking a light involved the ignition of tinder with a sharp flint struck against another metal. Tinder was extremely dry linen or flax and other highly inflammable materials kept in special boxes at the hearthside or in designated stores again accessed by the housekeeper, butler or footmen.
Most rooms would have been lit by portable candlesticks and holders, which is why many rooms in country houses have not been adapted for ceiling lighting. This form of portable light was perpetuated well into the days of gas and electric lighting in many homes. Types of candlestick however were signifiers of wealth, and the materials they were made from covered a vast spectrum including cheap metals, ceramics, silver, a variety of woods, marble and glass.
One of a pair of girandoles supplied by James Pascall to Temple Newsam in 1745.
In the more public spaces and state apartments the permanent fixtures for candle lighting are the chandeliers, sconces, tourchieres and girandoles. The word 'chandelier' comes from the French 'chandelles' (tallow candles) and was understood from the fifteenth century, but became more common at the end of the seventeenth century. In the country house inventory a chandelier as we understand it may be written as 'branches', or 'hanging candlesticks'. Sconce also has origins in French and has been understood to mean the cover provided by the attachment fixing the candle socket or holder to the wall. Tourchiere is again of French origin and simply means torch and more specifically the apparatus providing upward lighting. The origin of the word girandole seems more charming in comparison and comes from the French (as a derivative of the Italian verb girare 'to turn' and 'girandola' a rotating firework similar to the UK Catherine Wheel); the setting of candle sockets on a girandole, often backed by a mirror displays a spiralling pattern and thus a turning sparkle of light.
If the rushlight and sparing use of tallow represented the servants' domain then so too were there degrees of opulance above stairs. Brass chandeliers were being used from the fifteenth century. Gilded wood and glass chandeliers were making an appearance by the first half of the eighteenth century, but the most extravagant and awesome of chandeliers were those of silver or crystal. Of course cleaning these would be considered both a tremendous and perilous job by the housemaids and a tense time for the upper servant. At twentieth-century Brodsworth Hall, Sylvia Grant-Dalton would announce when it was time to clean the glass crystals of the drawing room chandeliers 'when they'd lost their glitter', a phrase which would send shivers of apprehension throughout the servant hierarchy.
The colour of the room also mattered and may explain why whites and cool colours were preferable (as well as fashionable) before the 1800s and the introduction of gas and electricity. Isaac Ware noted in 1746 that a room 'which if wainscoted [panelled] will take six candles to light it, will in stucco [plastered] require eight or if hung [papered] ten' (Complete Body or Architecture). The decorative finishes were crucial in recognising the potential of lighting the space. The dark pannelling we see today is the result of age – or the nineteenth-century romantic disposition, since these woods would have been fairly pale and would have offered a warm glow next to candle light. The depth of colour produced by wallpapers in the large country house merely reinforced the conspicuous consumption of its owner. Its matt finish or dark flocking required extra candles, but the sparkle would have been tremendous and deliberately impressive for any visitor.
Today, candles are a different kind of necessity becoming our main source of light when the electricity sub-station fails or a mains fuse has blown. Otherwise they help set a specific mood with their scented qualities or romantic glow. But we are no longer governed by sunrise and sunset hours, so our stash of tealights and stubby candles remain tucked away in boxes with torches and spare batteries, or stored lovingly in the bathroom or dining room for intimate or familiar scenarios. Providing light for the home outside the hours of daylight was a cautious process before gas and powerful electric lighting. It recalls the comments of actors in period dramas when they complain about the restriction of dress compared to their modern-day clothing. When the electricity does blow, it's hard work especially without a proper candleholder (an old wine bottle might have to suffice in most situations), and ensuring wax doesn't spill on the floor normally means waxy fingertips. Yet, it's the movement from room to room which proves unappealing without a working light switch. The skills and levels of ingenuity we've lost to electric power are numerous, and understanding the gratitude felt towards a single flame is forgotten. In the country house, the necessity of candlelight for the early riser to the opulence of several burning and glistening candles suggests great variety of function, and yet a single flame offered any individual some peace of mind.
Jacqueline Fearn, Domestic Bygones. Shire Publications (2nd edition 1999).
Susanna Whatman, The Housekeeping Book of Susanna Whatman. (1776) Introduced by Christina Hardyment. The National Trust (1997).
The National Trust, The Argory, County Armagh and the history of lighting the country house http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-the__argory_lighting__list.pdf (2010).