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Tag Archives: Stephen Poliakoff
Ready for lift-off
May 21, 2019 IN FOCUSBBC, Helen Flint, Little Island Productions, Stephen Poliakoff, Summer of RocketsMichael Pickard
Espionage thriller Summer of Rockets is the first screen work from acclaimed writer/director Stephen Poliakoff to draw on his own life, set in 1958 at the height of the Cold War. He and executive producer Helen Flint talk to DQ about merging fact and fiction.
As a writer and director for the screen over the past four decades, Stephen Poliakoff has been behind work that has amassed numerous Bafta, Emmy, Golden Globe and Peabody awards. The playwright, who learned his craft in the theatre, counts series and films such as Perfect Strangers, The Lost Prince, Friends & Crocodiles, Gideon's Daughter, Joe's Palace and Capturing Mary, as well as recent dramas Dancing on the Edge and Close to the Enemy, among his extensive credits.
Yet for all his fascination with the past – among many examples, Dancing on the Edge trails a black jazz group in 1930s London and Close to the Enemy is set in the aftermath of the Second World War – his latest series is the first to draw on his own family and life experiences.
Written and directed by Poliakoff, Summer of Rockets is a semi-autobiographical drama set during 1958, a year that marked the height of the Cold War as fear and suspicion clashed with the start of the mobile revolution and the Space Race. It was also the last time debutants were presented to the Queen at Buckingham Palace and the year of the Notting Hill riots in West London.
Stephen Poliakoff, writer and director of Summer of Rockets, pictured during filming
Poliakoff says the fact it is partly based on his own life marks Summer of Rockets out as "significantly different" from anything he's done for the screen before.
"My first real memories are from this time – I was five in 1958 – so I could feel, even as a small child, the apprehension in the air, the feel of nuclear war," he says. "The Russians were the enemy and yet I was half-Russian, so that made me feel an extraordinary sense isolation as a child. I was also sent to boarding school, as we see in the story, and was the only Jewish boy there. That was why I was drawn to this time.
"There's a lot of resonance for us now, as Russia again seems to be our enemy and there is also unfortunately, tragically, anti-Semitism in Europe and it's coming back to the UK. Well, it never goes away. But above all, it was a sense of the absolute epicentre of the Cold War; the fact nobody could be trusted, especially if they were foreigners."
Another parallel between that period and today, he notes, is the "humiliation" of the Suez Crisis in 1958, which left Britain "a laughing stock" on the world stage. "Things have happened since I've written the piece and we've become a laughing stock for very different reasons, with people harking back to a sense of our past glories, which also plays a part in the story," Poliakoff says. "This is not a story about Brexit or a metaphor for it, but nevertheless there are resonances in the piece."
Toby Stephens (Black Sails) stars as Samuel Petrukhin, a Russian Jewish émigré modelled on Poliakoff's father Alexander, an inventor and designer of hearing aids, whose clients include former UK prime minister Winston Churchill. The series also focuses on Samuel's wife, Miriam (Lucy Cohu), and their children, Hannah (Lily Sacofsky) and Sasha (Toby Woolf). In the show, having developed a new paging system for hospitals, Samuel is is approached by the UK's domestic intelligence agency MI5 to demonstrate his work.
Set in 1958, the series stars Toby Stephens as Samuel, who is based on Poliakoff's father
However, it's not his inventions the agency (led by Mark Bonnar's mysterious Field) is interested in but his fledging friendship with MP Richard Shaw (Linus Roache) and his wife Kathleen (Keeley Hawes), who also introduce him to Lord Arthur Wellington (Timothy Spall). As Samuel's life becomes intertwined with his mission, he is left to question how far he is willing to let things unravel for his cause and who he can trust.
It was Poliakoff's discovery that his father had been suspected of bugging Churchill's hearing aid, a revelation he first heard when a journalist contacted him about newly released government papers in 2007, that sparked the story behind Summer of Rockets,
"It took me a long time to think about writing it because it meant revisiting my youth and a very traumatic time at boarding school," he says. "I also tend to write slightly away from my immediate family experience because I find it easier to invent like that. But, after quite a considerable while, because the story kept haunting me, I broached it to the BBC."
His father's work, he explains, is truthfully reflected in the story by his hearing aids business, the deaf workers he employs in the factory and his invention of the paging system, which he created for St Thomas' Hospital in London.
"But I always saw that as a jumping-off point for Keeley's side of the story," Poliakoff continues. "My father was besotted with everything English; he was a real anglophile. He was a Russian Jew but he wanted to be an English gentleman, so there's the story of him being involved in this English upper-class family who have their own darkness and trauma hidden away in a magnificent house. They have charm and grace, they entertain people, but this covers a deep unhappiness.
"My father would have loved to have been entertained in such a house, so that was what led me from that jumping-off point for the fictitious side of the story, but it's based on the sort of things my father loved and was attracted to by English life and aspired to. The story curve shows Samuel learning that he doesn't want to be the perfect English gentleman."
Bodyguard and The Durrells star Keeley Hawes plays Samuel's wife, Miriam
Through the first episode, the story is laid bare against the backdrop of rockets being launched and rising anxiety over what might lie ahead, coupled with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder that stem from the still-raw fallout of the Second World War. Samuel's technological achievements also shine a light on how industry was set to move forward rapidly over the next decade.
"When you have six hours of television drama, it's a big canvas. The joy of longform is that you can build a complex world and you can delve deeper into character than you can in a two-hour movie," Poliakoff says. "It's great to try to be ambitious when you're given that length of screen time."
Helen Flint, MD of Little Island Productions and Poliakoff's long-time producing partner, admits the writer's outlines need very little development as they are often fully formed, "very detailed and very ambitious" by the time she becomes involved.
"The thing is to identify where and how you're actually going to make it happen," she says. "Both of us have been around far too long. Therefore, between us and the heads of department, we can work out how to put this on the screen, which is our craft."
With all of Poliakoff's work filmed on location, the first task on Summer of Rockets was to find the house belonging to Richard and Kathleen Shaw, which is a constant presence during all six episodes. They eventually settled on Benington Lordship, a grand setting close to Stevenage, 35 miles north of London, which is notable for the Norman keep adjoining the 17th century house and expansive gardens.
Catastrophe's Mark Bonnar plays the head of MI5
"The other important thing was when to film it, because getting lucky with sunshine in this country is not a given – so the schedule is everything," Flint says.
Finding London streets that could double for the time period also proved problematic, with the slums of Notting Hill in 1958 far removed from the affluent neighbourhood it is today. Another set piece saw a queue of 1950s cars lined up along The Mall, leading to Buckingham Palace, which was filmed early in the morning to avoid the crowds of tourists usually occupying the area.
"It takes a huge amount of work, more work than anybody would imagine, weeks and weeks, and then huge amounts in post-production just to paint out silly lines and stuff like that," Flint says of filming in London. "After that, it's all of the countryside, the driving [scenes] and the minutiae. But because we've got a cast that is working all the time, we have to try to jigsaw them all in, which is very complicated at certain points. Once you have those actors, the schedule is dictated by that. Then other problems come to the fore because if they're not available, you can't do the locations. London exteriors are the hardest, and then piecing it together is a massive jigsaw."
In some cases, however, the reality on which some of the series is based was too extreme to be dramatised. Poliakoff decided to tone down scenes where Sasha is at boarding school, as his own experiences at school were too "draconian" to be depicted exactly as he remembered.
Summer of Rockets debuts on BBC2 tomorrow
"When I started writing it, I realised it had to be more interesting and more inventive than the actual thing I experienced, which in reality was relentlessly grim," he says. "A little bit of that was fine, but I didn't think an audience would stand for that being repeated in each scene. So, oddly enough, the bit that was closest to reality was the most difficult to write."
The series sees Poliakoff reunited with Stephens, who starred in his 2001 family reunion drama Perfect Strangers, while this was his first time working with Hawes despite having known her since she was just 19. "She starred in my wife Sandy Welch's adaptation of Our Mutual Friend 20 years ago," he recalls of the actor, who has recently starred in Line of Duty, The Durrells and Bodyguard. "I've known her for some time and we've always wanted to work together. She's phenomenal in her role, which is a really very juicy role, so I'm thrilled. I think she gives one of her greatest performances."
Following Summer of Rockets' launch on UK pubcaster BBC2 tomorrow, all six episodes will be made available on the pubcaster's VoD platform iPlayer. The drama is distributed internationally by BBC Studios. "'Bingeable' is not the prettiest word but, actually, I think my work was born to be binged," Poliakoff notes. "People over the years have always told me they've sat down to watch something like Perfect Strangers, which is only four hours long. They tend to watch the first part and then they're there four hours later.
"So I very much hope the story has that effect. It does have quite a powerful story that gathers and evolves and changes. It's great for people to watch it in a linear way or in an immersive way. Either way, I hope people will really get into it."
tagged in: BBC, Helen Flint, Little Island Productions, Stephen Poliakoff, Summer of Rockets
Know your Enemy: Stephen Poliakoff discusses his new show
February 2, 2016 SHOWRUNNERBBC2, Close to the Enemy, Dancing on the Edge, Endor Productions, Little Island Productions, Stephen PoliakoffStephen Armstrong
Look to the past to find a good story, says Stephen Poliakoff, as a bomb-damaged hotel in post-war London provides the stage for his latest BBC drama, Close to the Enemy.
In this burgeoning world of multinational, cross-cultural scripted drama – where Canal+ makes Versailles as an English-language show, Deutschland 83 plays on US primetime and Scandinavian writers and directors are in charge of half the UK's output – there's a risk that nations will forget exactly what's unique about their home-produced drama.
In the UK, if they ever forget, they can simply watch the latest from Stephen Poliakoff: the patron saint and reigning heavyweight champion of high-quality British drama.
In a career that's ranged from radical 1970s theatre through intense movies about incest to scathing assaults on the nation's disregard for its own culture and history, Poliakoff's early years were spent writing for the stage and the big screen.
Poliakoff: 'I'm like a talent spotter for the BBC'
For the past 20 years, however, he has concentrated on writing and directing for television. Quirkiness and eccentricity have always been present in Poliakoff's work – his love of elaborate montage sequences, odd juxtapositions of sound and image, and extended narratives have always seemed more comfortable on serialised television than his earlier, slightly over-complex movies.
For his latest project – Close to the Enemy, pictured top – the writer effectively mounts a dramatist's investigation into the post-war recruiting of Nazi scientists to serve the West. It's becoming a theme of Poliakoff's work – revisiting the crucible of the 20th century with ambitious projects about appeasers in the British ruling elite like Glorious 39 or the overlap between the Jazz Age and fascist princes in Dancing on the Edge. Where do such ideas begin?
"I usually start with a moment in time – in this case when the victorious Allies, the Americans, the Russians and the Brits, were literally seizing scientists off the streets of Germany, bringing them over here and giving them new identities so the world didn't discover what they'd been up to during the war," he explains.
What follows is a period of intense research from the sweeping vista of history to the daily minutiae of life. Poliakoff worked through the history of these street snatches – the British nabbed several hundred, which was dwarfed by the industrial scale of the Americans and the Russians, who took thousands – but also realised that, despite the tradition of post-war movies showing London as grey and foggy, the reality was that the absence of so many buildings meant the light was blindingly bright, and this shapes the look of the show.
"I start with the situation but then try to develop it into a gallery of memorable characters facing complex decisions in difficult situations. At seven hours, this is the longest thing I've ever done so the story has to be as compulsive as you can make it. I try to work purely through character, rather than making ranty points about torture or war crimes. I mean, it is fascinating that we were torturing people after the war but it's not the real journey of the show."
Many of Poliakoff's scripts, it's interesting to note, are about the perfidy of the British establishment. It's a problem he returns to partly because of his own curious relationship with the British elite. "A lot of people would say I was very much a member of the British establishment," he says. "I was brought up in very English landscapes and had a classic public-school, Cambridge education."
Dancing on the Edge was nominated for three Golden Globes in 2013
The son of a Russian émigré businessman and aristocratic Anglo-Jewish actor, Poliakoff was packed off to boarding school in Kent at the age of eight, where he encountered plenty of low level anti-Semitism – both putting him at the heart of the elite and giving him an outsider's perspective.
Some argue that his education explains the leeway he has at the BBC – suggesting a sort of old boys' favour system that allows him the scope to deliver slow-moving but compelling dramas like Shooting the Past, which flew in the face of accepted broadcasting wisdom at the time.
Although it's true, Poliakoff concedes, that the BBC grants him an enormous amount of freedom, he insists he won this himself: "I think the BBC trusts me and I hope it has been mutually beneficial. The great thing about that freedom is that I can cast whom I like and I actually have a very good track record of discovering stars – I'm like a talent spotter for the BBC."
Poliakoff gave early breaks to Gemma Arterton, Tom Hardy, Matthew Macfadyen, Rebecca Hall, Ruth Wilson, Clive Owen and Emily Blunt, who won a Golden Globe for her role in Gideon's Daughter. The BBC consulted him over casting Jenna Coleman as Doctor Who's most recent assistant, Clara, after he helped discover her in Dancing on the Edge.
In Close to the Enemy, produced by Little Island Productions and Endor Productions for BBC2, he has cast Jim Sturgess as an intelligence officer charged with recruiting August Diehl's German scientist to help the RAF develop the jet engine. Freddie Highmore plays Sturgess's shellshocked younger brother, Charlotte Riley plays his best friend's fiancée and Phoebe Fox plays a tough war crimes investigator, keen to bring Diehl to justice.
"There are one or two people in the show I have worked with before – Lindsay Duncan and Alfie Allen, for instance – but I'm new to Highmore, Sturgess and Riley and I think I'm giving them breakthrough roles," Poliakoff says. "They're all strong talents but I think you'll see them differently after this piece."
Poliakoff has cast and directed all his own work for the past 25 years. "It's always an interesting exercise in a project when you move from being its writer to its director, but it does mean all my work is made on a brutal schedule," he explains. "That's partly why I do a lot of rehearsal. Some people do a week, but I do three weeks and I do everything in my power when we hire actors to persuade them that is part of their contract," he says with a quick grin.
The BBC consulted Poliakoff before casting Jenna Coleman (right) in Doctor Who
"I'm slightly surprised more people don't do that. It doesn't cost a lot of money, because the actors get rehearsal pay that isn't reflective of their fees for the main shoot. So it's quite a small investment but it pays off enormously. It helps to build up the actors' confidence and it helps me to realise what I have written, too. It's a sleight of hand really. You can achieve the quality of a feature film on the budget of a TV series."
Another trademark Poliakoff technique is his extensive use of location – to keep costs down and to avoid overusing CGI. With Close to the Enemy, this was especially complex, as the show is set in heavily bombed post-war London.
"I was very keen to make a period show with hardly any CGI because I think CGI tends to make all period drama look a little bit the same," he argues. "You show panoramas that are like animated paintings and viewers don't quite believe it. A bombed London with virtually no CGI meant shooting among real destroyed buildings – and there are none in London so we shot most of it in Liverpool with other wrecks around the country. That posed a lot of problems with the schedule but it was worth it – the places really looked like they were bombed."
Poliakoff is hands-on when it comes to location scouting – in part because a good location can influence his writing. In the case of Close to the Enemy, the team found the hotel at the centre of the story before he'd finished all of the scenes set within, and the building shaped the script to some degree.
"The danger of looking for locations before you've written them is that, if they fall through, you've already written rough sequences and you then have to adapt the whole script," he says. "But that's the great advantage of being a writer-director – you can swim with the tide of the production more easily."
Despite these local details, Poliakoff is keen to stress that Close to the Enemy isn't just a British story – he's cast German actors in all the German parts, including Inglourious Basterds star Diehl as an ex-Nazi jet expert. The same goes for US parts, although Brit Charlotte Riley takes the prime American role.
It's tempting to think it's this global element that persuaded US broadcaster Starz to coproduce with the BBC. In fact, Poliakoff has already done surprisingly good business for the Spartacus and Da Vinci's Demons network, with Dancing on the Edge picking up three Golden Globe nominations back in 2013. Is this Anglophilia pure and simple? Poliakoff doesn't think so.
"If you tell good stories about the past, they resonate with people today," he insists. "If you look at the events in Close to the Enemy and compare them to the situation in the Middle East now, you can see that the sense of your enemy becoming your immediately useful friend as soon as circumstances change never leaves us and is as perilous to the world now as it ever was."
The key thing for any creative in this time of opportunity, Poliakoff argues, is to stick with your tried and tested ways – without trying desperately hard to please the entire world, tempting though such success may seem. "Everyone wanted a sequel to Dancing on the Edge," he points out. "The BBC in particular was keen on another chapter, as it did quite well for it. But I don't like sequels – I like to keep moving, to visit new stories and characters. As long as they are colourful and compelling, people want to watch."
tagged in: BBC2, Close to the Enemy, Dancing on the Edge, Endor Productions, Little Island Productions, Stephen Poliakoff
Writers go global
December 3, 2015 The Writers RoomAnna Winger, Charlie Higson, Chip Johannessen, Clive Bradley, Content London, David Farr, Frank Spotnitz, Hans Rosenfeld, Harlan Coben, James Dormer, Paula Milne, Sarah Phelps, Simon Mirren, Stephen Poliakoff, Tony JordanAndy Fry
Hans Rosenfeld is currently writing Marcella
At timing of writing this column, the C21 Drama Summit is taking place at the British Film Institute in London. In among the numerous producers, broadcasters and distributors attending the event, there has also been a star-studded line-up of screenwriters.
In no particular order, the summit attracted the likes of Stephen Poliakoff, Frank Spotnitz, Harlan Coben, Tony Jordan, Sarah Phelps, Paula Milne, Anna Winger, David Farr, Hans Rosenfeld, James Dormer, Charlie Higson, Simon Mirren, Clive Bradley and Chip Johannessen.
What's interesting about these scribes is the unusual and idiosyncratic journeys that many of them are currently embarked upon. Rosenfeld, for example, is one of the main architects of acclaimed Scandinavian series The Bridge. But now he is writing an English-language crime series set in London, called Marcella. Winger, meanwhile, is an American who lives in Germany with her husband Joerg. Between them they created the well-reviewed period spy drama Deutschland 83, currently airing in Germany on RTL and around the world.
If it seems odd that an American co-wrote D83, then consider that British writer Paula Milne (The Politician's Wife) has just done something similar, delivering The Same Sky to ZDF in Germany. In this case, she wrote scripts in English that were then translated into German by director Oliver Hirschbiegel. Clive Bradley, meanwhile, is an English screenwriter who has just finished working as the co-writer on Trapped, a pan-European coproduction set in snowy Iceland.
Deutschland 83, created by married team Joerg and Anna Winger
Harlan Coben, a novelist, has just written his first TV drama, The Five, in collaboration with Danny Brocklehurst (Shameless, Clocking Off). Farr, meanwhile, is a playwright adapting a John Le Carre novel The Night Manager for TV. In one of his anecdotes at the Summit, Farr talked of meeting Le Carre in a north London pub and having to pluck up the courage to tell the great man the last 100 pages of his novel wouldn't work on TV. Sarah Phelps must have felt just as nervous when she met Hilary Strong of Agatha Christie Ltd to discuss how she would go about adapting Christie's classic novel And Then There Were None.
Poliakoff's session was enlightening, providing an insight into the way he has honed his skills as a writer-director. While many would think of him first and foremost as a playwright and screenwriter, Poliakoff spent much of his session discussing the directorial dimension of his latest project Close to the Enemy. Casting, rigorous rehearsals and location selection were as significant to the realisation of Poliakoff's vision of the series as story and dialogue.
Stephen Polliakoff is working on Close to the Enemy
Frank Spotnitz, an American residing in Europe, was at the summit to discuss his latest project for Amazon, The Man in the High Castle, while Chip Johannessen provided insight into the adaptation of Israeli show Prisoners of War into his hit series Homeland. Simon Mirren was in town to talk about the creation of Versailles, the English-language, French production of a quintessentially French subject. That seems a long way from where his career started – as a writer on Casualty.
So what does all the above tell us? Well, it shows that the idea of the writer as a solitary creature is something of a myth. While part of the job inevitably involves shutting the study door and blocking out distractions, just as much is dependent on a willingness and ability to interact with other parts of the production chain.
At the same time, the shift towards international coproduction (in order to realise ambitious creative ideas) means writers have to be surefooted on the international stage. It's noteworthy just how many of the above scribes have had to collaborate across borders or set scenes abroad. Milne talked about watching rushes of The Same Sky after her words had been translated in German, and having to make a judgement on whether the emotional impact of the dialogue had survived the shift to a new language. Rosenfeld, meanwhile, discussed the support he needed to ensure Marcella's London life was authentic.
Chip Johannssen turned Prisoners of War into Homeland for Showtime
Another theme throughout the summit has been the way the current era of ambitious international drama production allows writers to cut loose creatively. Farr talked about how writers used to be scared to set a scene outside – let alone in a foreign country. But this concern has been blown away as dramas head for increasingly exotic climes.
This freedom is also evident in the range of literary reimaginings currently on show. Charlie Higson's interpretation of Jekyll and Hyde (in which he injects his own mythology), Tony Jordan's literary mash-up Dickensian and James Dormer's reworking of the Beowulf saga are all examples of how traditional budgeting and commissioning constraints have fallen away.
Of course, a key implication of the above is that writers need to be trusted to deliver against bold objectives. And this is creating a challenge for the scripted business. Understandably, the broadcasters and distributors that put up millions of dollars to make drama projects a reality are anxious to ensure they work with proven writers. This is causing a logjam, with the best writers often booked up for years to come.
While this is good news for those writers who are in demand, the clear message is that the industry needs to improve the flow of new writing talent coming through. C21 and Red Planet are both playing their part with scriptwriting competitions, but there needs to be a more formal solution to this issue if the drama business is to keep up its extraordinary creative momentum.
tagged in: Anna Winger, Charlie Higson, Chip Johannessen, Clive Bradley, Content London, David Farr, Frank Spotnitz, Hans Rosenfeld, Harlan Coben, James Dormer, Paula Milne, Sarah Phelps, Simon Mirren, Stephen Poliakoff, Tony Jordan
Master adapter gets real
September 16, 2015 The Writers RoomA Nation's Health, All3Media International, Andrew Davies, Closer to the Enemy, Directors Guild of America, Kevin Williamson, Starz, Stephen Driscoll, Stephen Poliakoff, Time After Time, War and PeaceAndy Fry
Welsh screenwriter Andrew Davies is primarily known for his superb adaptations of literary classics. Among his many, many TV credits are To Serve Them All My Days, House of Cards (the original version), The Old Devils, Middlemarch, Pride and Prejudice, Moll Flanders, Vanity Fair, Doctor Zhivago, Tipping The Velvet, He Knew He Was Right, Bleak House, A Room with a View, Sense and Sensibility, Little Dorrit and the in-production War and Peace.
To this list must be added film credits such as Circle of Friends, The Tailor of Panama, the two Bridget Jones movies and Brideshead Revisited – confirming the view that Davies could probably adapt any book on the planet.
In a 2014 interview Davies was asked why he invested so much time on adaptations and came up with a beautifully succinct answer – that "fuck all happens to you" when you are a full-time writer. "There was plenty of material in the early days about infidelity, friction and all those kind of things. But I've settled down to a very even plane. So I haven't really got material I would want to write about from my own life."
As if to support this observation, one of Davies' most famous original creations was A Very Peculiar Practice, a 1980s drama about a young doctor who takes up a post as a member of a university medical centre. This series, reportedly, was based on Davies' experiences as a lecturer at Warwick University. In hindsight, it's remarkable that Davies didn't become a full-time writer until 1987, aged 50 – juggling his teaching responsibilities with a burgeoning career as a TV writer.
Davies' adaptation of the classic novel War and Peace is currently in production
While Davies' work on War and Peace shows that he continues to be in demand as a novel adapter, he has entered an interesting new dimension in his work in recent years – dramas based on real lives. The link is obvious, which is that both areas provide source material to work with. But the beauty of the real-life/biopic format is that Davies can take greater liberties with storytelling. On the one hand, he doesn't have to try to shoehorn any book-based dialogue into his screenplay. On the other, he can enter the central character's story wherever he chooses, taking a pivotal period in their life and using it as the starting point to provide a coherent character analysis.
ITV's Mr Selfridge, for example, focuses on Harry Selfridge as he begins setting up Selfridge's department store in London. But TV movie A Poet in New York looks at Welsh poet Dylan Thomas as he moves towards his untimely death (aged 39).
The idea for the Dylan Thomas project was initially brought to Davies by comedian/presenter/producer Griff Rhys Jones via his indie company Modern TV. Davies has talked about it in affectionate terms because of similarities between his own upbringing and that of Thomas. With both Welsh and born into teaching families, Davies says Thomas was "very big in my life."
Now, Davies is writing another film-length biopic about a Welsh icon, Aneurin (Nye) Bevan. Once again the idea, entitled A Nation's Health, has come to him via Modern, and once again he will take a tangential look at his central character's life.
A Poet in New York, another Davies show, focused on Dylan Thomas's last days
Bevan is best known as the post-Second World War health minister who founded the UK's National Health Service in 1948. But that could potentially make for quite a dry piece of TV. So Davies is going to drive the narrative along by focusing on Bevan's fiery romance with his wife Jennie Lee. Speaking to The Sunday Times, he said: "I want it to be both personal and political. They would argue a lot. She kept him socialist and would have the last word on political matters, last thing at night in bed."
The timing of the project is interesting, given the polarisation of British politics being witnessed at present. With the BBC also at loggerheads with the UK government over its future funding model and the question of impartiality, telling the story of an ardent Tory-hating socialist could be seen as bear-baiting. So the way Davies handles the story will attract close attention. That said, Davies is the man who adapted Michael Dobbs' wicked political satire House of Cards for TV, so if anyone can steer a steady course through political controversy it's him.
There was good news for another of the UK's screenwriting titans this week with Stephen Poliakoff's Closer to the Enemy being picked up by pay TV channel Starz in the US.
The six-part series, distributed by All3Media International, is a post-Second World War thriller that sees actor Jim Sturgess playing British intelligence officer Captain Callum Ferguson. Ferguson's final task for the Army is to convince a captured German scientist (August Diehl) to hand over cutting-edge military technology crucial to national security – the jet engine.
The show will premiere in the UK on BBC2 before appearing next year on Starz, which previously picked up The Missing from All3. Stephen Driscoll, senior VP for sales at the distributor said: "Stephen Poliakoff and this wonderful cast of actors are creating a thrilling miniseries that will enthral audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. We look forward to announcing further deals in the near future."
The movie version of Time After Time
Still in the US, there was news this week that Kevin Williamson (Dawson's Creek, Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer) has been commissioned to write the script for Time After Time, a TV adaptation of the 1979 novel of the same name by Karl Alexander.
Time After Time, which has already been adapted as a movie, imagines a world in which author HG Wells has invented a time machine that is then stolen by Jack the Ripper. Wells pursues the Ripper to 1979 in a bid to bring him to justice. Williamson is writing the script for Warner Brothers TV with Disney-owned ABC the commissioning network.
Another interesting story to come out of the US is a new Directors Guild of America (DGA) study that shows TV series with female showrunners are more likely to employ female writers, directors, editors and actresses than those exclusively run by men: "The findings suggest that creators and executive producers play an instrumental role in shifting the gender dynamics," says the report's author, Dr Martha Lauzen, executive director of the Centre for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University.
"For example, on broadcast programmes with at least one female creator, women comprised 50% of writers. On programmes with no female creators, women comprised 15% of writers." It's not too surprising, but this kind of statistic clearly warrants attention.
tagged in: A Nation's Health, All3Media International, Andrew Davies, Closer to the Enemy, Directors Guild of America, Kevin Williamson, Starz, Stephen Driscoll, Stephen Poliakoff, Time After Time, War and Peace
June 10, 2015 The Writers RoomBaskets, BBC, Breaking Bad, C21 Drama Summit, David Fincher, Dennis Kelly, Emmy Awards, Flesh and Bone, Gillian Flynn, HBO, Louie, Louis CK, Moira Walley-Beckett, Sherlock, Starz, Stephen Poliakoff, Steven Moffat, UK, US, UtopiaAndy Fry
Moira Walley-Beckett won an Emmy last year for the thrilling Breaking Bad episode Ozymandias
Few people would be surprised to learn that Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad) and Game of Thrones duo David Benioff and DB Weiss were nominated in last year's Emmys for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series. But how many of us would know who won without resorting to Google? Well, the answer is Moira Walley-Beckett, who became the first solo woman to win in this category since 1994. Ironically, perhaps, Walley-Beckett won for a Breaking Bad episode called Ozymandias, thus beating Gilligan.
Walley-Beckett started her career as an actress and dancer, which probably explains why her first post-Breaking Bad project, Flesh and Bone (which she created), tells the story of a young dancer who has just joined a New York ballet company. Scheduled to air on Starz from November 8, the series features Sarah Hay (Black Swan) as "an emotionally wounded but transcendent ballerina navigating the dysfunction and glamour of the ballet world."
Part of the challenge with projects like Flesh and Bone is ensuring the dance sequences look real – a bit like trying to write a script about footballers or stand-up comedians. Recognising this, Walley-Beckett made heavy use of real-life accomplished dancers.
While this will undoubtedly provide Flesh and Bone with an air of authenticity, it does present logistical difficulties in terms of renewing the show – because it's hard for professional dancers to juggle their day jobs with their acting commitments. This may explain why Starz has already decreed Flesh and Bone will come to an end after a run of eight one-hour episodes. Chris Albrecht, the channel's CEO, told Deadline: "Moira is one of the most talented auteurs in television today, and the work she and her team have done on Flesh and Bone is nothing short of spectacular (but) after seeing all the film, we realised this is not serialised TV, but rather an eight-hour movie."
The Flesh and Bone trailer suggests the show will further enhance Walley-Beckett's credentials, so it will be interesting to see what direction she heads in next.
While the Writing for a Drama Series Emmy category was dominated by US talent last year, Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special resulted in a win for British scribe Steven Moffat. His work on Sherlock: His Last Vow trumped rivals on titles such as American Horror Story, Fargo, Luther, The Normal Heart and Treme.
Steven Moffat is working on a Sherlock special set in the Victorian era
Moffat has become something of a screenwriting icon thanks to his work on Doctor Who and Sherlock – and it is these projects that continue to occupy his time. His most recently finished Sherlock project is a special that will place the show's central characters in the Victorian era, rather than the contemporary setting that has been used for the first three series. Commenting on this at a recent event, he said: "The special is its own thing. It's not part of the run of three episodes… It's Victorian. [Co-creator Mark Gatiss] and I wanted to do this, but it had to be a special, it had to be separate entity on its own. It's in its own bubble."
When not working on series four of Sherlock (due in 2016), Moffat's remaining time is largely taken up with Doctor Who, which will return for series nine later this year. Although Moffat shares screenwriting duties on Doctor Who with a number of others, he has already confirmed that he is writing the first two episodes of the new series, a double-header. Titles for his episodes are The Magician's Apprentice and The Witch's Familiar.
The other Emmy-winning writer last year was comedian Louis CK, whose sitcom Louie secured him the Writing for a Comedy Series award. That's quite an achievement when you see that he was up against writers from Episodes, Orange is the New Black, Silicon Valley and Veep. However, it's not the first time CK has picked up this award, having previously won it in 2012.
Louie, which airs on FX, is an unusual show that combines stand-up and scripted comedy, often involving special guest stars. Echoing the earlier observation about Flesh and Bone, it manages to pull this off because CK is a genuine stand-up, not an actor pretending to be one. This blurring of genres is exacerbated by the fact that the show doesn't always feel like a comedy. Its slow pacing and lack of rapid-fire gags make it much more like an indie film than a traditional sitcom, with some comparing Louie to Woody Allen's work. This was certainly the case with So did the Fat Lady, the episode that won CK his 2014 Emmy. The last section of that episode was a poignant insight into the psychology of dating that barely resorted to jokes.
Louis CK has twice won Emmys for his show Louie, which airs on FX
The recent fifth season of Louie finished on May 28, taking the total number of episodes to 61. There have been no announcements yet about the possibility of a sixth run. But alongside his commitment to this franchise, CK also has a deal to create new comedy series for FX. This has led to a greenlight for Baskets, a 10-part comedy that CK is co-writing with Zach Galifianakis. The series, which will also star Galifianakis, is scheduled to air on FX during 2016. It tells the story of Chip Baskets as he haphazardly pursues his dream of becoming a professional clown.
The Emmys, it should be noted, have a slightly less well-known sibling called The International Emmys which, as the name suggests, are for shows from outside the US. The International Emmys don't have a specific award for writers, but 2014's winner Utopia owed a lot to the unique voice of Dennis Kelly, who created and wrote the show. Kelly's work to date has mostly been for theatre – with his best-known project being Matilda the Musical, co-written with musical comedian Tim Minchin. However, he also co-wrote sitcom Pulling for BBC3 with Sharon Horgan and, more recently, wrote Black Sea, a Kevin Macdonald film starring Jude Law.
Utopia is the story of five comic-book fans who become targets of a shadowy organisation called the 'Network' after they discover an unpublished manuscript for The Utopia Experiments, a sequel to a cult graphic novel that appears to predict a range of global catastrophes. It ran for two series on Channel 4 and was then cancelled, much to the irritation of its fans. C4's response was that "it's always painful to say goodbye to shows we love, but it's a necessary part of being able to commission new drama, a raft of which is launching on the channel throughout 2015."
There's no word yet on what Kelly's next screen project might be, but Utopia is set to get a new lease of life in the US. HBO, no less, has ordered a US version that will be directed by David Fincher (Se7en) and written by Gillian Flynn, who worked together on the film version of the latter's novel Gone Girl. All it needs now is for Scarlett Johansson and Carey Mulligan to sign up as stars and it would be the coolest conspiracy drama in the history of Hollywood.
Drama heavyweight Stephen Poliakoff is among the confirmed speakers at this year's C21 Drama Summit
And finally, C21's Drama Summit has started revealing the identities of this year's speakers. One standout session will see writer Stephen Poliakoff examine his present and past work and discuss the challenge of writing drama in the 21st century.
Poliakoff started his career as a playwright, coming to prominence in the 1970s. While he still writes the occasional work for the stage, the balance of his output has moved much more towards film and TV in recent years. Among his best-known works (all for the BBC in the UK) are Perfect Strangers, The Lost Prince and Dancing on the Edge, which was nominated for three Golden Globes, winning one. His latest project, which he will discuss at the Drama Summit, is Close to the Enemy.
A six-part series for BBC2, Close to the Enemy is a Cold War drama set in a bomb-damaged London hotel in the aftermath of the Second World War. It stars Jim Sturgess (One Day) as an intelligence officer trying to persuade a captured German scientist to work for the British RAF on developing a jet engine. The production is being shot in London and Liverpool with planned transmission in 2016 on BBC2. International rights are with All3Media International.
tagged in: Baskets, BBC, Breaking Bad, C21 Drama Summit, David Fincher, Dennis Kelly, Emmy Awards, Flesh and Bone, Gillian Flynn, HBO, Louie, Louis CK, Moira Walley-Beckett, Sherlock, Starz, Stephen Poliakoff, Steven Moffat, UK, US, Utopia
Killer cop
Sharpening Sabre


text:
Q: FPPopover UITableView return value i don't know if anyone is using this open source library for replacing UIPopovercontroller for an iPhone.
i'm trying to deploy the FPPopover into my project, everything is working like i want, but the problem is that i'm not able to return any value to my ViewController.
i'm trying this in didSelectRowAtIndexPath
myParentViewController *parentController =(myParentViewController*)self.parentViewController;

but the problem is that self.parentViewController is (null)
i have also another problem, how can i dismiss the FPPopoverController from within didSelectRowAtIndexPath.

A: I dismissed the view by adding a popoverView property to the table view controller that is popping up (in this case ATableViewController), and then assigning the FPPopoverViewController to that property.  Like this:
ATableViewController *aTableViewController = [[ATableViewController alloc] init];

FPPopoverController *aPopoverController = [[FPPopoverController alloc] initWithViewController:aTableViewController];

aPopoverController.delegate = aTableViewController;
aTableViewController.popoverView = aPopoverController;

Then in didSelectRowAtIndexPath of aTableViewController you can just call:
[self.popoverView dismissPopoverAnimated:YES];

If you are trying to return values to the "parent"...since the parentViewController property is null here, you can just make your own property for it (let's call it "parentView").  So when setting up the above you would use:
aTableViewController.parentView = self;

Then you can access any of the properties of the parentView and return values from the aTableViewController that popped up.  A bit of a workaround, but that's what I did...hope it helps!

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


This article does not have much to do with the accidents, but it can certainly cause a few. In the last few years we've seen all kinds of design clothes, but one definitely caught our eyes, and not just ours. Since it is one of the most luxurious clothing pieces ever, it is not surprising that draws so much attention. What kind of attention we speaking about? Well, the fact that it was committed to an entire edition of the largest sports magazine in the world - Sports Illustrated speaks enough. Futuremore, it was most luxurious edition of that magazine devoted only to swimwear pieces.
Of course, I believe that all of you have already guessed - it is a most luxurious bikini ever made. Ultimate diamond bikini designed by Susan Rosen in collaboration with Steinmetz Diamonds. It is the most expensive jewelry to wear ever made. The bikini is made up of over 150 carats of D Flawless diamonds, some of the rarest in the world including a 51 carats D Flawless Pear Shape, a 30 carats D Flawless Emerald Cut, a pair of 15 carats D Flawless Rounds and a pair of 8 carats D Flawless Pear Shapes and all of these diamonds are set in platinum. If you want to make this diamond bikini adorns your girl body will need to spent $30 million dollars. But if you want to start collecting money, and you have a few diamonds for sale, you should visit the best place to sell a diamond, and see the best offer for selling your diamonds.


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Your Pickwick lake dream home is waiting for you. Resting on a beautiful shaded lot in River Cliff subdivision. You can enjoy panoramic main lake views from just about every room in the house. This home has been tastefully remodeled in the past few years and has been extremely well cared for. The property comes with a day dock just steps from the house and two covered boat slips in River Cliff's private marina. Pictures and words can do no credit to this truly spectacular property.


The biggest worry for any student is balancing the books, which, in the confusing world of loans and grants, is a significant challenge. However, there are many tricks and tips that can help students save money and stay frugal while still having a good time at university.
To begin with, it is important to keep an eye on your spending. At the start of the term, your bank balance may look like a world of opportunity, but if you don't keep track of things, you'll quickly find money trickling out of your hands, leaving you drowning in your overdraft. Either keep a weekly or monthly budget, or make a note of what you're spending and where so that you can adjust and balance as necessary. It may also help to categorise your spending, which can be split into five general categories, as explored below.
This may not be the most exciting way to spend your money, but unfortunately food is a necessity of life. It may be tempting to nip to Sainsbury's once a week to avoid the long walk around time, but you may find that you're spending a lot more than someone who shops around. While the free Sainsbury's bus from campus each week is a fantastic thing to take advantage of, it doesn't stop you looking in each supermarket for the best deals. Another tip is to make sure to never go shopping when you're hungry. You will end up spending a ridiculous amount of money on impulse buys, which can quickly eat into your bank balance.
While you're shopping, be sure to check out apps such as Quidco, who offer cashback for purchases that you make on the high street, including day-to-day items, such as milk. If you have an NUS Extra card (which is absolutely worth the small fee), don't forget that The Co-op will offer you 10% off of your shop.
If you're happier to order food in rather than go out and drag a handful of bags back to your flat, try checking out Approved Food. They offer food at discounted prices because they are nearing their 'best before' dates, but are still completely safe to eat. Delivery is around six pounds, but holds up to 25kg of food, so this may be an option where your whole flat can chip in together.
You should also check out the market on campus held once a week. They offer great quality food at affordable prices and even the atmosphere of walking through the market is a treat. Just try not to spend too much money on the cakes!
If you're on campus all day, it can be tempting to pick up food while you're there, or to grab a meal deal every day. £3 may seem like a small spend each day, but it very quickly adds up. You'd be better making your lunch at home and taking it with you. Not only will it save money, but you get complete control over what you're eating that day.
It's a well-known fact that academic books are extremely expensive and will eat up a large chunk of your loan, but they don't have to.
Don't be fooled into thinking that you have to buy everything off of your reading list, as you will probably find that your lecturers upload set texts each week. Some other books may only be used for one or two seminars, never to be opened again. The best thing to do is to make use of the library. It is currently being renovated and holds a huge collection of books, though be aware that some of the more popular ones are only available on a 24 hour loan.
For books that you absolutely need to buy, check Facebook pages for ex-students selling off their old copies, as well as websites such as eBay and Amazon. Again, if you have an NUS Extra card, Amazon will offer an extra 5% off of any books that they sell. If you join Amazon Prime for £39 per year, you get free next-day delivery, which means that you can order a book and have it in time for the next day's lecture.
If you're anything like me, you will be tempted to spend the remainder of your loan on a brand new wardrobe, but it really isn't worth spending the rest of term living on beans on toast.
Lancaster have a brand new Primark opening up, which is well known for having cheap clothes.
Again, shopping online could save you a lot of money as well, with popular websites such as Boohoo and Asos offering great deals and a nice student discount. Most shops that you find on the street will have an online sale, which can save a penny or two.
Another favourite website is Everything5Pounds, which, as the name suggests, has everything on sale for £5. From tops to dresses and jackets, you can end up saving a small fortune on that new wardrobe.
The best way to save money on a night out is to pre-drink. With such a large choice of bars on campus, it may seem easy to pop along before heading into town for the clubs, and they do offer some great deals, but it will always be cheaper to buy your own drinks and start at home. Not only will it save money, but it's much easier to talk to others and play a whole host of drinking games in the comfort of your own kitchen.
In terms of saving money while you're out, doubles are much cheaper than single measures of drink and make sure to keep an eye on what offers the clubs are hosting on the night that you're out.
If you're at Sugar, make use of the free Sugar bus on the night which will take you back to campus, or if you do get a taxi, make sure to share with a group of friends heading to the same place.
If everyone in your house uses Amazon regularly, it is worth purchasing Amazon Prime together. It gives you free one-day delivery, exclusive deals and Prime Video, which is a strong contender for websites such as Netflix.
As well as streaming shows, if you don't watch live television often and can wait for things to appear on catch up rather than watching an episode the moment it's aired, don't bother buying a TV license. If you do, then remember that you can get a refund on the quarter of the year that you're not at university.
Lancaster also offer students free access to Vision, which has 30 live TV channels and over 15000 on demand programmes.
The campus is huge and great for a jog or run, meaning that you don't necessarily have to fork out for a gym membership. It is also great exercise to grab a ball and go down to the fields around campus with a group of friends. It's free and you can do it whenever you like, rather than having to book a pitch.
For everything else, the Purple Card provided by the Student Union can give great deals and discounts around Lancaster, though many students claim that they don't use them for anything other than joining societies around the year, so it may be worth holding off and figuring out whether it is personally worth it for you before buying one. You can do this by checking the Purple website or the Pocket Lancaster app for all the offers. New deals get added regularly, particularly savings at the LUSU shop.
In general, keep an eye out for sales, bulk buy things that you can, such as pasta, and make sure that you keep a note on how much you have spent and how much you have left over. Money is a stressful topic for all students, but it doesn't have to be painful if you stay sensible. You don't have to give up little treats and having fun outside of university, but make sure you keep on top of your spending. An overdraft doesn't stay interest-free forever.


text:
package vg.civcraft.mc.civmodcore.utilities;

import java.util.Objects;
import java.util.logging.Logger;
import javax.annotation.Nonnull;
import javax.annotation.Nullable;
import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
import org.bukkit.Bukkit;
import org.bukkit.event.EventHandler;
import org.bukkit.event.HandlerList;
import org.bukkit.event.Listener;
import org.bukkit.event.server.PluginDisableEvent;
import org.bukkit.event.server.PluginEnableEvent;
import org.bukkit.event.server.ServerLoadEvent;
import org.bukkit.plugin.Plugin;
import org.bukkit.plugin.PluginManager;

/**
 * Class designed to make creating glue classes easier, particularly with soft dependencies where your plugins may use
 * code from those plugins if they're present.
 *
 * You'll need to register the glues you create with {@link #registerGlue()}.
 */
public abstract class DependencyGlue implements Listener {

	private final PluginManager pluginManager;
	protected final Plugin plugin;
	protected final Logger logger;
	protected final String dependencyName;
	private Plugin dependencyInstance;

	/**
	 * You must provide the name of the plugin you wish to glue.
	 *
	 * @param plugin The host plugin that requires the glued dependency. Must be enabled.
	 * @param dependencyName The name of the plugin you wish to glue.
	 */
	protected DependencyGlue(@Nonnull final Plugin plugin, @Nonnull final String dependencyName) {
		this.pluginManager = Bukkit.getPluginManager();
		this.plugin = Objects.requireNonNull(plugin);
		this.logger = CivLogger.getLogger(plugin.getClass(), getClass());
		this.dependencyName = Objects.requireNonNull(dependencyName);
	}

	/**
	 * Gets the dependency's name that this glue will check against.
	 *
	 * @return Returns the glue's plugin name.
	 */
	@Nonnull
	public String getDependencyName() {
		return this.dependencyName;
	}

	/**
	 * @return Returns the current dependency instance.
	 */
	@Nullable
	public Plugin getDependencyInstance() {
		return this.dependencyInstance;
	}

	/**
	 * @return Returns true if the dependency is currently enabled.
	 */
	public boolean isDependencyEnabled() {
		return this.pluginManager.isPluginEnabled(this.dependencyInstance);
	}

	/**
	 * Will register this glue with Bukkit.
	 */
	public void registerGlue() {
		this.pluginManager.registerEvents(this, this.plugin);
	}

	/**
	 * Will unregister this glue with Bukkit.
	 */
	public void resetGlue() {
		HandlerList.unregisterAll(this);
	}

	/**
	 * This is called when the dependency is enabled. Use this as a setup.
	 */
	protected abstract void onDependencyEnabled();

	/**
	 * This is called when the dependency is disabled. Use this as a destructor.
	 */
	protected abstract void onDependencyDisabled();

	@EventHandler
	public final void INTERNAL_onServerLoad(final ServerLoadEvent event) {
		for (final Plugin plugin : Bukkit.getPluginManager().getPlugins()) {
			if (plugin.isEnabled() && StringUtils.equalsIgnoreCase(plugin.getName(), this.dependencyName)) {
				this.dependencyInstance = plugin;
				INTERNAL_logDependencyEnabled();
				onDependencyEnabled();
				break;
			}
		}
	}

	@EventHandler
	public final void INTERNAL_onPluginEnable(final PluginEnableEvent event) {
		if (StringUtils.equalsIgnoreCase(event.getPlugin().getName(), this.dependencyName)) {
			this.dependencyInstance = event.getPlugin();
			INTERNAL_logDependencyEnabled();
			onDependencyEnabled();
		}
	}

	@EventHandler
	public final void INTERNAL_onPluginDisable(final PluginDisableEvent event) {
		if (StringUtils.equalsIgnoreCase(event.getPlugin().getName(), this.dependencyName)) {
			INTERNAL_logDependencyDisabled();
			onDependencyDisabled();
			this.dependencyInstance = null;
		}
	}

	private void INTERNAL_logDependencyEnabled() {
		this.logger.info("Gluing " + this.dependencyName);
	}

	private void INTERNAL_logDependencyDisabled() {
		this.logger.info("Releasing " + this.dependencyName);
	}

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


But putting body cameras on police officers is one hell of a start. It is one of the few areas where a new technology offers a clear, unambiguous social benefit.
Usually there are tradeoffs and unintended consequences to any new tech: We get smartphones, but they hurt our spines. We embrace social networks, but they contribute to the disintegration of real-world relationships. We love Amazon, but it makes it hard for local businesses to compete.
In this case, though, I don't see any real downsides. If we put video cameras on police officers' uniforms, we'll get greater accountability, more data, and hopefully better policing. That's why U.S. President Barack Obama's plan, announced this week, to help equip police departments with body cameras is a great start. Every state and local government should embrace this initiative with all speed.
Will body cameras change police behavior? Probably not immediately, especially if grand juries continue to refuse to indict police officers, even in the face of overwhelming video evidence. But I believe the longterm effects will be profound.
Body cameras will help provide documentation and accountability. When things do go terribly wrong — as they did with Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Levar Jones, or John Crawford (WARNING: These links go to videos that contain disturbing images of actual people being shot and killed) — there will be additional video that can help grand juries (and regular juries) figure out what happened.
Body cameras will encourage more responsible law enforcement. Police already must know that any passerby with a cellphone could start recording their actions at any minute. But for some reason, this still often comes as a surprise to them, provoking some cops to anger. Putting a chest-mounted camera on an officer's uniform will be a constant reminder that their actions are in the public eye. Maybe that will help remind them of their training, encouraging them to act like responsible law enforcement officers.
Body cameras will provide a rich source of video data for analysis. Advocates of open government data might use declassified police camera data to understand how police actually do their work. Anti-racism activists might be able to conduct statistical analysis of who, exactly, gets stopped and frisked in cities that still do that. Law and order types could use video evidence to show how police really are protecting us and stopping crimes. Police departments will be able to use video in their own evaluations and in training, helping improve the skills of their officers.
And body cameras will give the public some reassurance. Police officers are public employees, after all. A camera should be a reminder that the police work for us, and that we have a right to know what they are doing, particularly when things have gone wrong.
There is one potential downside, and that's the specter of even-more-ubiquitous surveillance. But I think that's a pretty mild drawback, given how widespread fixed surveillance cameras already are. In many ways a camera strapped to a uniformed officer's chest is less of a privacy threat than a camera hidden on a high wall or next to a street light.
Given all these advantages, I think there's no serious argument against body cameras.
For me, this is a particularly personal concern. I'm a white man, as you can tell by my author photo, but my children are black. My son, now eight years old, is just four years younger than Tamir Rice was when he was shot and killed by police officers in Cleveland — for playing with an Airsoft pistol, the kind of toy that is freely sold in Walmart and which generations of American boys have played with. In 10 years he will be the same age as Michael Brown was. In 14, he'll be John Crawford's age.
All of these individuals were shot by police who believed they were facing a terrifying threat, and who responded far too quickly to assess the situation accurately. Rice's killer shot him about two seconds after getting out of the police car, sooner than he could have reasonably issued a warning or established the reality of the threat. We know this because it was caught on a surveillance video.
The heartbreaking fact is that for most police, as for most people in America, young black men are frightening figures, regardless of how they dress or act. Holding an Airsoft gun in a Walmart isn't terrifying. Holding an Airsoft gun while being black is. We can't change that through any technology. Sadly, my son will need to learn to live with that reality.
But we can provide greater accountability, and that will help keep people — especially those we equip with lethal weapons — from acting hastily out of fear, anger, and racism.
While videos may not lead to convictions — or even indictments — they're a start. Maybe by the time my son is old enough for police to perceive him as a threat, there will be cameras helping to keep them honest, and him safe.


text:
Home World North America Rihanna causes outrage after using hadith as soundtrack to raunchy lingerie show
Rihanna causes outrage after using hadith as soundtrack to raunchy lingerie show
The singer Rihanna has been urged to apologise to Muslims after using a song featuring hadith as a soundtrack for her latest lingerie show.
A video of the show, which saw models dancing around on stage in the singer's provocative Savage x Fenty lingerie, was shared on Amazon Prime last week.
Muslims were outraged after discovering Rihanna, 32, chose to use the song Doom, by London producer Coucou Chloe, which features a hadith narration.
The hadith in question appears to have remixed a recitation by Kuwaiti preacher Mishary bin Rashid Alafasy.
Coucou Chloe's most recent Instagram post has hundreds of users criticising her track on it. On Monday, she posted an apology on Twitter.
"I want to deeply apologise for the offence caused by the vocal samples used in my song 'Doom'. The song was created using samples from Baile Funk tracks I found online. At the time, I was not aware that these samples used text from an Islamic Hadith," Chloe wrote.
"I take full responsibility for the fact I did not research these words properly and want to thank those of you who have taken the time to explain this to me. We have been in the process of having the song urgently removed from all streaming platforms."
Thousands of Rihanna fans from varying religious backgrounds took to Twitter to urge her to remove the song from Amazon Prime recording and to apologise for offending Muslims.
One person wrote: "As a Muslim I'm deeply offended this is beyond words… it's shameful and pathetic. And all the non-Muslims defending the situation please learn to respect ALL RELIGIONS and perhaps find yourself some guts to speak on what's wrong. @Rihanna"
Venting frustration, another said: "If you guys don't know much about Islam (that is completely fine) A Hadith is the words/advice that our Prophet Mohammad (SAV) spoke and gave to people to educate them. It is very disrespectful to use it in a video of people dancing and even more in a lingerie show."
A third added: 'Um? What? So because it's Rihanna we're gonna ignore how she's done it repeatedly? So because it's Rihanna, we're going to ignore that she CLEARLY knew how disrespectful this was?
Rihanna and her company have not responded to the backlash yet.
The Barbadian singer included hijab-wearing model Halima Aden in the launch of her cosmetic brand Fenty Beauty in 2017. She also promoted Fenty sunglasses last year with a hijabi model.
However, she has also been accused of appropriating Islamic dress. Last year's Savage X Fenty lingerie launch featured women, including Palestinian-American model Bella Hadid, with their hair covered in a way that some interpreted as similar to hijab.
In 2013, Rihanna was asked to leave the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi after posing for photos in a way that was deemed inappropriate.
"She was asked to leave before entering the actual mosque (she was in the courtyard taking pictures), after taking some photos that did not fit within the rules and regulations set out to preserve the sacredness of the centre," the mosque said in a statement at the time.
The singer later posted pictures on Instagram covered head to toe in black, including one post with Muslim women in the background, captioned "Bitch stole my look".
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text:
Frische:
 Jacques Du Frische (1640, Sées  1693, Saint-Germain-des-Prés), en fransk teolog
 (Anders) "Axel" (Christian) Frische (1877, Tjele  1956, Köpenhamn), ett danskt skuspiller, regissör och manusförfattare
 (Anne) Grete Frische (1911, Köpenhamn  1962, Gentofte), en dansk skådespelerska, filmregissör och manusförfattare

Se även
 Frische Nehrung
 Frisch
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Danska efternamn

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text:
Q: Linear map and affine map definition coincides? I'm reading through a geometry proof that claims that every affine map $f:\mathbb{R}^n\to\mathbb{R}^n$ is the composition of a linear map and a translation. More precisely, $f$ is affine if and only if $f_0 =T_{-f(O)} \circ f$ is linear, where $T_{-f(O)}$ is the translation by the vector $-\overrightarrow{Of(O)}$.
One direction of the proof relies on showing that $f_0(\alpha A + \beta B)=\alpha f_0(A)+\beta f_0(B)$. However, how does this show that $f_0$ is linear? This is exactly what the definition of affine map is, so we've only shown that $f_0$ is affine, which isn't enough. I feel like we still need to show that $f_0$ transforms the origin into itself.
If anyone can recommend a good book on these topics I'd appreciate it, thanks in advance!

A: That's the definition of a linear map, not an affine map. For example, consider the 1-D function
$$f(x)=mx+b$$
for some $m,b\in\mathbb{R}$ with $b\neq0$. This function is affine, but for $x,y\in\mathbb{R}$ and $\alpha,\beta\in\mathbb{R}$ such that $\alpha+\beta\neq1$, we have
$$f(\alpha x+\beta y)=m(\alpha x+\beta y)+b\neq \alpha f(x)+\beta f(y).$$


text:
Mountains è l'ottavo album in studio del gruppo di musica country statunitense Lonestar, pubblicato nel 2006.

Tracce
Mountains (Richie McDonald, Larry Boone, Paul Nelson) – 3:56
Nothing to Prove (Jim Collins, Wendell Mobley) – 3:56
Long Lost Smile (Marc Beeson, Neil Thrasher) – 3:55
Thought It Was You (Collins, Craig Wiseman) – 3:42
Hey God (McDonald, Tommy Lee James) – 3:46
I Wanna Do It for You (Dean Sams, Regie Hamm, Glen Mitchell) – 4:20
Cowboy Girl (Brett James, Bill Luther) – 3:32
What She Had To (John Edwards, Garrett Parris) – 3:49
One of those Nights (Jason Sellers, Tom Shapiro) – 4:13
Careful Where You Kiss Me (Jeff Bates, Mobley, Thrasher) – 3:20
Always in the Band (McDonald, Ron Harbin, Jerry Vandiver) – 4:02

Collegamenti esterni


text:
Imho, there are a number of premium exhaust manufacturers who have established a reputation for themselves over the years. They make the investment into not only their products to ensure they produce claimed power and performance reliably, but also the homologation process required in countries like Germany where aftermarket parts need to be TUV approved. With that comes quality and assurance that their products have passed stringent tests. Akrapovic, Remus, SC Project are 3 of the top available for BMW and all have the requisite homologation. Their prices reflect this. Others are available, but ze Polizei have the right to impound your vehicle if you are found with non-TUV approved equipment on your bike. Buy cheap, buy twice.
Cheap is dear, as my mum used to say.
AlanJones
MikeHSG said:
Looking at a slip on, mostly for looks and growl. Coming up with a ton of ads for GR Moto, but I've never heard of them. Other than Akro, what's out there - and most importantly, what's not crazy expensive?
I just fitted a Delkevic 450mm kit to my 1st gen 1200R & very pleased with it. Nice burbly exhaust note. Not excessively loud (they quote around 100db @ 60%). Good value compared to Akra & Arrow.
I'm awaiting an estimate from Jet-Hot to paint my stock muffler black. However, I'm not convinced that an all black monstrosity would be a big improvement over an all chrome monstrosity. In other muffler news, I looked at the Dr. Jekill & Mr. Hyde skip on. This has electronically adjustable noise level. It looks exactly like the BOS Desert Fox, down to the heat shield, which used to have a mechanical valve to adjust the noise. The only difference is the decal. I'm interested in the relationship since the two companies are based in different towns in Holland.
New Years ride today with the black/carbon Akra I put on three years ago. Euro 3, with the two baffles still in. Spendy, but buy once cry once. Remus, SC Project and others are good, but IMO Akra is the best (OEM on some Beemers).
I still have the Akra in the wings but it has that blappy, geese farts on a muggy day sound I'm not that keen on.
Reactions: Dirtmerchant
dbyker said:
but IMO, Akra is the best (OEM on some Beemers)
There's no doubt about that . What I was surprised, that at least in the US, it's not the most expensive can. The SC Project beats it by a few bucks, and it's obviously a less expensive can to make than the Akra.
but it has that blappy, geese farts on a muggy day sound I'm not that keen on
Not sure what you're talking about, but the Akra has the best sound of all, after hearing tens of videos. And after hearing it in person, I can honestly tell you it makes the engine sound a lot better than it should. Ha ha. The bottom line is you'll never make our engine sound like an Aprilia V4. Ha ha. But I'm happy this 1250 sounds noticeably better than my ex-1200RT sounded with an Akra as well. It simply will not sound any better than with an Akra, no matter what you put on . But it's not that bad.
It's not the level. It's the timbre. Most all aftermarket cans for this bike are blappy. I don't see why since it's a twin with big cylinders. Maybe it's the boxer configuration. I prefer the roar to the blap. As in the muffled roar of a classic 650 Triumph twin, not obnoxious HD's. I like the stock R muffler sound. Different strokes.
Panzermann
Mark – Moderator 2015 R1200R-LC Exclusive
" Most all aftermarket cans for this bike are blappy"
I suspect a lot of that comes from exhaust path length (shorter) and the lack of chambers to fold the exhaust path. This tends to accentuate the higher frequencies.
Also the engine configuration results in shorter header pipes than a parallel or V twin so doesn't lend itself to a deep timbre without a folded exhaust path.
Die Straße gehört mir!
Stay safe out there during these difficult times of the COVID-19 pandemic. Practice social distancing, and wash your hands!
Panzermann said:
But the stock sound is not blappy.
The stock muffler has a folded exhaust path - if you shine light into one end, you will not see any light looking into the other end.
I expect the 1250 can would be similar but on the 1200, the inlet heads downwards (can't see where it actually goes from there because of a perforated plate). The exit traces along the top of the muffler then the path folds downwards to meet the inlet path, likely in a chamber, the result being a much longer path than a straight-through design and providing the opportunity to design the chamber to dampen unwanted frequencies.
Like quality aftermarket exhausts, a lot of effort (in this case by LaFranconi in conjunction with BMW Motorrad) goes into designing the stock exhaust to meet performance requirements, emissions regulations, aesthetics and the sound character acceptable to the bike manufacturer. The result is usually bigger than what a lot of customers would prefer, but you can't beat physics.
Reactions: r0ckrat and Dougl
My Akra is not 'blappy' at all IMO. It has a very pleasant tone; just moderately louder and deeper than stock (and better looking), which is exactly what I wanted. And that's why it's so heavy (only slightly lighter than stock), so I'm perfectly okay with that. The reality is our engine configuration will never sound 'exotic', so I settle with pleasant . A final point is the exhaust tone changes a little with dynamic mode, especially at higher rpm, so maybe that has something to do with that. I use road more most of the time (except in the twisties), but might switch to dynamic pro with road ABS in the future. Need to do more testing with that.
I haven't been able to find an Akra to listen to in person. There's a side by side comparison of the stock and Akra mufflers on the akrapovic.com web site for the R1250R. Is this accurate or not? Thanks.
It actually sounds better in person, so you cannot rely solely on sound clips. It's not only the recordings, but also your speakers, and mine are not nothing to write home about. Without being able to hear one in person either, I had to go by what was logical to me: BMW wasn't going to approve an inferior system, and it was reported Akra had to make extensive testing on actual bikes before being approved, to avoid losing TQ down low, so I knew I couldn't go wrong with that. And when I found out the Akra was actually cheaper (here in the US... by a few bucks) than my only other option (the SC Project), the decision was immediately made for me. The Akra is a better value for the same money, period. However, I wanted the black one, but was able to find it at Revzilla. And there's no more proof needed it was a specially designed exhaust that engine, that not finding it on any other application. And it looks awesome too. Good luck.
Akra have great licensing with manufacturers - it's their business model. From making exhausts on Fiat Abarths through to work for motorsport teams and various motorbikes. It's a business licensing game, and not an issue that their product is necessarily 'better' than another. I think Akra are slowly going the way of Termignoni… so they need to be careful. Akra benefit from mass industrialisation to produce exhausts at scale with a certain quality level built in and have business agreements to supply 'designed' systems for BMW, but they are heavy and not optimised for performance - unlike other 3rd party designs where weight is also considered a performance factor. Akra need to compromise inline with BMW's oem constraints.
SC Project make exceptional quality exhausts - as used by a number of top end race teams in WSBK/MotoGP - including HRC themselves (I think it is fair to say that there is NO motorbike race team bigger than HRC to endorse SCP!). If you handle an SCP, they provide a quality that is superlative to Akra - and with significantly less weight. For their design/applications, their performance is also optimised through weight.
SC-Project - MotoGP - Repsol Honda Team Official Technical Supplier
SC-Project has been present for over ten years in the top motorcycle competition, the MotoGP World Championship.
www.sc-project.com
Akra is not everything, and it certainly is not the 'best' exhaust you can get for a motorbike. They look nice, sound nice, and they are designed in a way that enables BMW to back it with a warranty which BMW have to support, not Akra. If you want true performance, there are other options. And FWIW, I don't have an SCP so my thoughts here are not biased in favour!
Reactions: dbyker and Panzermann
I'll throw in a competing perspective. My limited experience (only changed it out on two of my many lifetime bikes) is that the clamor over enhanced performance from an aftermarket exhaust (which can require a remap to function properly) is often overstated and overhyped, and, as was seen from the recent Rikky Tang (YouTube) slip-on fiasco, can sometimes lead to precisely the opposite. It may very well be that in an optimal scenario SCP or others could provide a few extra HP, but for those of us who don't want to gamble and don't care about squeezing out a few extra HP gain for that gamble, and instead just want a plug-and-play, if-it-ain't-broke-don't-fix-it kind of experience that sounds decent and looks a heckuva lot better than the stock chrome cannon, then it seems to me that the Akrapovic is the way to go. It may not be the best, no, but it is the best choice for a buyer that prioritizes a seamless, hassle-free, plug-and-play result.
RC65 said:
it seems to me that the Akrapovic is the way to go. It may not be the best, no, but it is the best choice for a buyer that prioritizes a seamless, hassle-free, plug-and-play result.
I don't think it is the 'best choice' for a variety of reasons (subjective looks amongst one of them) as the point I made earlier about other top quality/premium exhaust manufacturers: SCP and Remus also offer seamless, hassle-free, and plug-and-play options. I would never advocate for certain exhausts sold almost exclusively via eBay, but Remus and SCP are supported by large bike manufacturers and, in the case of Remus, also supported by BMW Motorrad dealers in Europe and the UK. (I have no personal experience of the US market for exhaust systems).
Akra had to make extensive testing on actual bikes before being approved,
Umm, yup, that's the Euro4/5 homologation process. I can post the certificate if you want.
including HRC themselves
Yeah, Aye, good enough for HRC and Marco Marquez, its probably good enough for muggins here.
the clamor over enhanced performance from an aftermarket exhaust (which can require a remap to function properly) is often overstated and overhyped
There is in these Euro 3/4/5 days a world of difference between an end can and a aftermarket exhaust system. I've zero interest in aftermarket exhausts. My bike has enough power, almost zero throttle response issues (that small on/off effect irritates a little at times (you know close, then open a little at low speed) but has nothing to do with the exhaust))
But at the end of the day, the CAT is what produces most of the back pressure, so in all probability you can stick anything, or nothing on there, in terms of an end can that you want (Leo Vince expected – which yeah a bit of a surprise - what the heck is that about?). But for me, SC Project looks the best. Take your pick - and if you wanna play it safe go for a product that is homologated.
Rikky Tang (YouTube) slip-on fiasco
Umm, err, umm, mmm. How embarrassing. I mean seriously. When your 130BHP at the rear wheel bike, is stuggling to pull past 115mph........ The usual issue is if you keep the throttle pinned is hanging on to the darn thing - that is not a big problem at 115mph.
Oh, R1250R engine. It sounds cool at low rpm on a wide thottle, but after that. It ain't no six pot Porsche or even a Tuono twin.
Sc Project, here it is looking neat and tidy. Each to their own.
I mean seriously - how neat, tidy and cool is that.
Reactions: Panzermann and Hndymn
Most of us don't want a 'performance' exhaust, which requires remapping. So any such option used/endorsed by racing teams is absolutely useless to me (where power is maximized at the top of the powerband), just like a racing air filter, like K&N. Racing engines have completely different requirements than a street one. A racing can is straight-thru, and as light as possible.
At any rate, my guess is most exhaust brands actually never tried their cans on a R1250 engine; they just make a link pipe to fit their universal cans, and call it a day. And maybe make a universal insert as well, which might be too restrictive for a large 1250 engine. I'm not one who thinks everything done by OEMs is perfect, or that all aftermarket accessories are bad. But it's a lot harder to make a slip-on exhaust that will not lose any power over stock, than a light one to maximize power at the top (with a tune). By the same token, you don't want a restrictive insert that will actually reduce power either, which is what can happen when it's the same for a 600 engine than a 1250. It's a balance that has to be met with at least some testing for each particular engine. And if BMW says it was done with the Akra, I believe it. And the fact the can is unique, it only makes that assumption more believable. But of course, to each his own.
And yes, if you want maximum performance out of your engine, and you're willing to risk your warranty with a tune, then definitely are more options to be considered. But with OEM fit and finish (meaning no bands or springs, and no tune needed), not many. Finally, I hate how some of the 'top' exhausts incorporated their inserts; they look like an afterthought. The Akra looks OEM all around. Not a single indication (like exposed nuts) that it has inserts. But I understand I'm in the minority with my 'anal' expectations. Ha ha. Just glad there's an option for owners like me... and that it's not the most expensive one .
The homologation process for aftermarket mufflers on road bikes in the EU requires approval for a specific year and model. So, a BOS muffler I've looked at is approved for the 2020 R1250GS but not the 2020 R1250R. This must require testing on specific models for which it needs to meet noise and emissions standards. You can buy a Remus Blackhawk with non removable insert which is EU approved and one with a removable insert which isn't. I suppose there is a hefty penalty if you get caught with an unapproved exhaust, depending on where you live.
Good to know for others, but with those ugly springs, and not even a shield to partially cover them up, it looks horribly out of place on an sporty yet elegant bike like the R1250R IMO. So I didn't even consider it . To each his own, of course, but for those who don't care about OEM aesthetics, the EU-approved one is a solid choice, of course. To me function is always before form, but if I can have both, that's always my preference. And the Akra is tops on both, so I did what somebody else said: Ordered it, and cried over my smoking credit card later. Ha ha.


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text:
Q: Alternating series: Does $\sum\limits_{n=2}^{\infty} (-1)^n \frac{1}{e^{\ln(n)}}$ converge? To be specific I need to determine whether the series absolutely converges or conditionally converges.
I have already determined if the series converges and diverges (it converges) through the Alternating Series Test. However, I cannot determine whether it absolutely or conditionally converges. I've tried the Ratio Test and Root Test, both of which results to 1.
Ratio Test

$\lim_{n \to \infty} |\frac{a_{n+1}}{a_n}| = \lim_{n \to \infty} | (\frac{(-1)^{n+1}}{e^{\ln(n+1)}}) \cdot {\frac{e^{\ln(n)}}{(-1)^n}} |$
$= \lim_{n \to \infty} |-1| e^{ \ln(\frac{n}{n+1}) } = e^{ \lim_{n \to \infty} \ln(\frac{1}{1+\frac{1}{n}}) } $
$= e^{ \ln(1) } = 1$

Root Test

$\lim_{n \to \infty} |a_n|^{\frac{1}{n}} = \lim_{n \to \infty} |(-1)^n| (\frac{1}{e^{\ln(n)}})^{\frac{1}{n}}$
$= \lim_{n \to \infty} (e^{ \frac{-\ln(n)}{n} }) = e^{ -\lim_{n \to \infty} \frac{\ln(n)}{n} }  $
$= e^{ -\lim_{n \to \infty} \frac{1}{n} }  = 1$

And as far as I know, $\lim_{x \to \infty} a_n = 1$, does not necessarily mean anything.
Are there any more test aside from ratio and root test to determine whether a series absolutely converges or not? Or did I do something wrong when solving for the limit on the Ratio and/or Root Test?

A: We have $e^{\ln(n)}=n$ for all $n$. Thus
$$\sum\limits_{n=2}^{\infty} (-1)^n \frac{1}{e^{\ln(n)}}=\sum\limits_{n=2}^{\infty} (-1)^n \frac{1}{n}.$$
Alternating harmonic series !

A: $$\sum_{n=2}^\infty\frac{(-1)^n}{e^{\ln(n)}}=\sum_{n=2}^\infty\frac{(-1)^n}{n}=-\left(\sum_{n=1}^\infty\frac{(-1)^{n+1}}{n}-1\right)=1-\ln(2)$$


text:
Our Broken CIA and the Death of Innocents
Biden Rejoins Paris Climate Accord in First Environmental Action
'We Didn't Start the Fire': The Trump Years
Biden Signs Executive Order Disbanding 1776 Commission
By Peter Hoekstra
About Peter Hoekstra
Some within our intelligence community seem to think that they are above the law.
On April 20, 2001, one of the worst tragedies in the CIA's history occurred when an infant baby girl — seven-month old Charity Bowers — and her mother, Roni, were killed when a bullet passed through Roni's body and lodged in Charity's skull. The projectile was fired by the Peruvian air force, which shot down the Bowers' single-engine Cessna with the assistance of the CIA as part of a counternarcotics program. Charity's father, brother, and the pilot survived a crash landing on the Amazon River.
A CIA Inspector General report concluded that baby Charity and her mother died due to the apparently deliberate failure of CIA officers to follow proper procedures to protect the lives of innocent civilians — not only in the 2001 shoot-down of the Bowers aircraft, but in all previous shoot-downs that occurred in Peruvian airspace between 1995 and 2001.
The CIA Inspector General also found that persons within the CIA mounted an extensive cover-up of the facts of this tragedy from the White House, the Justice Department, and Congress. The CIA lied to Congress and the executive branch about the downing of the Bowers plane to shield its personnel from being held accountable and from possible prosecution.
Shocked? You should not be. Such behavior has become all too commonplace at America's premier intelligence agency. The CIA is supposed to closely coordinate all intelligence matters with the executive branch and Congress because their very nature precludes transparency and normal accountability mechanisms. It has repeatedly failed to do so.
Instead, the CIA briefs Congress as little as it believes it can get away with, and frequently plays what I call the "20-questions game" — where CIA officers tell Congress about important information only if members of Congress stumble upon the exact right questions. In addition, I have been long concerned that some within the agency have intentionally undermined the Bush administration and its policies over the last few years. This argument is supported by the Valerie Plame case, and the long string of unauthorized disclosures to the news media from an organization that prides itself on being able to keep secrets.
The shoot-down of the Bowers' plane is an example not only of CIA incompetence and mismanagement, but of an intelligence subculture that thinks it is above the law. Some CIA managers apparently think they can evade their legal requirement to fully and honestly cooperate with the Justice Department and Congress. How can we trust our nation's security to intelligence officers who have been so reckless and irresponsible?
In response to the publicity over the CIA Inspector General report, CIA Director Michael Hayden promised to turn over the matter to an accountability board to determine whether any disciplinary action is warranted in the Bowers case. When a board is convened, I plan to testify before it. However, given the CIA's abysmal record in handling the Bowers case to date, Congress and the Justice Department must also carefully review the relevant facts. The CIA cannot be trusted to investigate this case alone.
Also from Peter Hoekstra
The CIA's repeated failure to keep Congress fully and currently informed requires a shake-up in the Agency's senior leadership. I am encouraged, therefore, that President-elect Obama has tapped Leon Panetta, a man with significant managerial and Washington experience — outside of the intelligence community — to be the next head of the CIA. I support Panetta's nomination as part of what I hope will be the first step to clean up the agency and make it more accountable to Congress and therefore the American people. True, he is not part of the intelligence club. That is a positive. A fresh perspective is needed.
Baby Charity and her mother Roni were killed not because of a one-time human error. They died because of an intelligence bureaucracy where parts are broken and which thinks it can operate above the law. Without accountability, U.S. intelligence agencies cannot be trusted to protect our nation from harm or to operate in an ethical manner that will not embarrass our nation abroad or endanger American civil rights at home. Without accountability, U.S. intelligence agencies cannot be trusted with the significant authority they have been given to keep America safe and secure.
– Peter Hoekstra (R., Mich.) is the top Republican on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
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text:
Q: Parse a dictionary that contains set Follow up of one of my previous question.
I have a defaultdict that uses set:
defaultdict(set, {'a': {'1', '3', '5', '7'}, 'b': {'8', '3', '4', '7'}})

Now I would like to access the data, but I cannot use the key by name, since I do not know what will be in the key.
I am able to retrieve the key, using
d.key[n]

Since I do not know the key itself but I know that there will always be 3 keys in my dictionary (-1>n<3)
Now, how do I access each value in each set? I tried with
d.value[0]

But this will return me the whole set, not just the first value in the set. I also tried
d.key[n].value[0]

But I get an error because a string does not have attribute 'value'
How do you actually access data with set as value in a dictionary?
This is my code:
d=defaultdict(set)
for line in results:
    templist=line.split(' ')
    thekey=templist[0]
    thevalue=templist[1]

    d[thekey].add(thevalue)

print d.keys()[0]
print d.values()[0]

This will return my key, but the second print will not return the first value of the set, but the whole set.

A: In your current example, you will need to store the key and access values using it:
key = d.keys()[0]
print d[key][0]

Assuming your dict looks like
d = {'a':[1,3,5,7], 'b':[4,7,3,8]} #or
d = {'a':{1,3,5,7}, 'b':{4,7,3,8}}

You can iterate over all the keys and its values using
for key, value in d.items():
     for item in value:
         print key, item

This will give the output
a 1
a 3
a 5
a 7
b 4
b 7
b 3
b 8

A: A set is unordered, a list is ordered. In a set there are no first or last elements, just elements. Say you have marbles in a bag, now, which one of them is first and which is last? There is no order. But you can take them out 1 at a time and that has an order. Put them back to bag and you get another order.
You can take the elements out of the set with list(), as if they were marbles in bag:
>>> x = set(['banana', 'apple', 'orange'])
>>> list(x)
['apple', 'orange', 'banana']  # or possibly some other ordering

or you can iterate over them in a for loop
>>> for fruit in x:
...     print(fruit)

But every single run time you could possibly get a different order of elements, usually though Python will give the same ordering for the same object if no changes happen.
Thus to your original problem. You do not access a dictionary by values(). In a dictionary there is no order of values either, it is again like a bag of marbles. Instead you access them by indexing by key:
>>> d
defaultdict(<class 'set'>, {'a': {1, 3, 5, 7}, 'b': {8, 3, 4, 7}})
>>> d['a']
{1, 3, 5, 7}
>>> as_list = list(d['a'])
>>> print(as_list[0])
1

But this is not what a set is usually used for, the "first" value could be anything, even though now it just happens to be the smallest number.

To print name, value pairs you can do:
>>> for key, value_set in d.items():
...     for value in value_set:
...         print("Key %s has value %s" % (key, value))
...
Key a has value 1
Key a has value 3
Key a has value 5
Key a has value 7
Key b has value 8
Key b has value 3
Key b has value 4
Key b has value 7