text:
Das Brandbergmassiv (oft auch einfach nur Brandberg; khoekhoegowab Dâures, otjiherero Omukuruvaro) ist ein Bergmassiv im Damaraland in Namibia. Es liegt in der Region Erongo im Westen des Landes, rund 90 km vom Atlantik entfernt, ist im Mittel  hoch und überragt das umgebende Land um fast . Sein und gleichzeitig Namibias höchster Berg ist der Königstein mit einer Höhe von . Eine exponierte Lage besitzt auch die Zisabspitze () am Ostrand des Brandbergmassivs. Die gesamte Erhebung ist oval und nimmt eine Fläche von 420 km² ein.

Name

Frühe Erwähnungen des Brandberges und seiner Bewohner stammen aus dem 19. Jahrhundert, so z. B. von Charles John Andersson und Georg Gürich. Dabei dürfte der von Charles John Andersson zitierte Bericht eines "Capitain Messum" eine der ersten Erwähnungen des heutigen Brandberges überhaupt sein. Captain Messum zufolge wurde der Berg, den die Einheimischen als "Dourissa" bezeichneten, von seinem Entdecker "Messum-Berg" bzw. "Mount Messum" genannt. Der Berg ist – mit einer geschätzte Höhe von 3200 Fuß über dem Meeresspiegel – auch auf einer 1856 erschienenen Karte eingezeichnet. Die Benennung hat sich zwar nicht durchsetzen können, jedoch lebt der Name von Capitain Messum in der Bezeichnung für den 45 km südwestlich gelegenen "Messum Crater" fort.

Auf einer  Karte von Deutsch-Südwestafrika im 1894 erschienenen Kolonialatlas von Langhans taucht das Brandbergmassiv gleich mit drei verschiedenen Namen auf: "Brandberg", "Daureb" und "Omukuruwaro".

Der noch heute genutzte offizielle Name Brandberg stammt von der glühenden Farbe, in der der Berg erscheint, wenn die Sonne von Westen auf das rötliche Granitgestein scheint.  Die Khoisan (Khoekhoegowab) sprechenden Damara, zu deren Siedlungsgebiet seit jeher der Brandberg zählt, nennen ihn Daureb, Daunas oder Daures, was mit "verbrannter Berg" übersetzt wird, "weil dort das Land so kahl und ohne Gras und Baum ist, als ob es abgebrannt (daú) wäre". Die Bantu (Otjiherero) sprechenden Herero, die seit Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts, vom Kaokoveld kommend, in das Damaraland eindrangen, bezeichnen den Brandberg als Omukuruwaro (Berg der Götter) oder Das Land/Gebiet der Alten/Ahnen.

In neuerer Fachliteratur wird er als Dâures Mountain bezeichnet.

Erstbesteigung
Februar 1914: Die Vermessungssoldaten Claus Burfeindt und Hans Carstensen, beide Angehörige der kolonialen Schutztruppe, stiegen mit großer Mühe und nur durch die Unterstützung einzelner Menschen vor Ort in das Brandbergmassiv.

Die beiden irrten sich hinsichtlich des höchsten Gipfels: es stellte sich erst sehr viel später heraus (1955), dass sie auf dem Horn waren, dem zweithöchsten Gipfel des Brandbergs, denn man fand auf dem Horn (2519 m) die von Burfeindt einzementierte Eisenstange (vgl. die nebenstehende Abbildung).

Die eigentliche Erstbesteigung des Königstein im Brandbergmassiv gelang Ernst August Gries, Reinhard Maack und Georg Schulze am 2. Januar 1918. Beim Abstieg entdeckte Maack am 4. Januar die berühmte "White Lady". Anlässlich des einhundertjährigen Jubiläums der Erstbesteigung wurde der Königstein am 1. Januar 2018 von einer kleinen Gruppe aus Deutschland mit dem Politologen Helge Kleifeld, der Archäologin Martina Trognitz sowie dem Piloten Lukas Gehring unter Führung der Namibier John Dungle, Cohlen Gawanab und Michael Taniseb über die Gaseb-Schlucht auf der Südseite des Brandberges bestiegen.

Eine Karte des Brandberges, die nach den 1917/18 durchgeführten photogrammetrischen Aufnahmen von Reinhard Maack und Albert Hofmann im Maßstab 1:200.000 angefertigt wurde, ist u. a. im Anlagenband der Dissertation von Jana Moser zu finden.

Geographie

Der Brandberg liegt zwischen 21° bis 21°15′ südlicher Breite und 14°25′ und 14°40′ östlicher Länge und befindet sich in 80–90 km Entfernung von Cape Cross und der Atlantikküste. Er bildet auf einer Fläche von etwa 420 km² (nach anderen Angaben 750 km²) ein leicht ovales Massiv von 26 × 21 km Ausdehnung und einem mittleren Durchmesser von 23 km, das seine Umgebung im Durchschnitt um fast 2.000 m überragt und welches die markanteste Geländeerhebung in der zentralen Namib darstellt. Das Massiv ist bei klarer Sicht noch aus über 100 km Entfernung sichtbar. Der nächste Ort ist die in circa 30 km Entfernung vom Brandberg liegende ehemalige Bergbausiedlung Uis.

Die vier höchsten Gipfel Namibias befinden sich allesamt im Brandbergmassiv: "Königstein" (), "Horn" (oder "Claus-Burfeindt-Horn") (), "Numasfels" (), "Aigub" () sowie der "Orabes-Kopf" () und die "Zisabspitze" (auch "Tsisabspitze") (). Auf der offiziellen Karte Namibia 1:250.000 Blatt 2114 Omaruru weichen die Höhen geringfügig von den hier angegebenen Zahlen ab. Aufgrund der geringen Schartenhöhe sowie der Dominanz handelt es sich jedoch nicht um selbständige Gipfel, sondern um Nebengipfel des Königstein in ein und demselben Massiv.

Das Brandbergmassiv wird radial von etwa 20 Hauptentwässerungssystemen durchzogen, wobei sich rings um den Brandberg tief eingeschnittene Schluchten in das Massiv erstrecken (vergleiche dazu die nebenstehende Karte). Von Osten beginnend, sind diese im Uhrzeigersinn die Schluchten "Tsisab", "Basswald", "Orabes", "Ga-Aseb" (oder "Gaseb"), "Hungorob", "Amis", "Kleine Dom", "Große Dom", "Numas", "Weilersbronn", "Naib", "Karoab", "Umoab", "Nuwoarib", "Sonusib" und "Schaf". Die größten dieser Schluchten sind Numas und Naib im Westen und Tsisab im Osten. Kontinuierlich wasserführende Flüsse existieren im Brandbergmassiv und dessen näherer Umgebung nicht. Eine allenfalls temporäre Wasserführung ist nur bei gelegentlich fallenden Niederschlägen zu verzeichnen, wenn die Flüsse, in dieser Region Riviere genannt, "abkommen". Nördlich des Brandberges fließt der Ugab, dem alle den Osten, Norden und Westen des Brandbergmassivs entwässernden Riviere einschließlich des Amis zuliefern. Die den südlichen Bereich des Brandbergs entwässernden Riviere fließen in den Messum und den Orawab.

Geologie
Der Pluton des Brandbergmassivs bzw. der Brandberg-Komplex ist eine Granitintrusion und stellt einen anorogenen Ringkomplex des Intraplattentyps dar, dessen Platznahme in der Erdkruste vor ca. 130 Millionen Jahren in der geologischen Epoche im Jura und in der Kreide in einem hohen Krustenniveau stattfand. 40Ar/39Ar-Altersbestimmungen ergaben Alter von 132–130 Millionen Jahren, welche zeigen, dass die verschiedenen granitischen Einheiten des Brandbergs altersmäßig nicht voneinander unterscheidbar sind und dass sie sich gleichzeitig mit den Flutbasalten und dem vergesellschafteten felsischen Vulkanismus der Etendeka-Paraná-Provinz gebildet haben. Die Heraushebung und Abtragung von ca. 5 km überliegendem Gestein geschah vor ca. 60–80 Millionen Jahren.

Der Brandberg rief schon in der ersten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts das Interesse vieler Geologen, Mineralogen und Petrographen, später auch von Geophysikern, Chemikern, Geochemikern und Physikochemikern, hervor. Mit Bau, Bildung und Gestalt des Brandbergmassivs haben sich Hans Cloos und Karl F. Chudoba, mit seinem Intrusionsmechanismus Hermann Korn und Henno Martin befasst. Später beschäftigte sich Frank D. I. Hodgson mit Petrographie und Evolution der Brandberg-Intrusion. Das ökonomische Potential der Mineralisationen im Brandbergmassiv thematisierten Oleg von Knorring, J. Potgieter, C. Schlag und Alexander Willgallis, Axel Schmitt und Mitarbeiter sowie Franco Pirajno.

Zu den wichtigsten Veröffentlichungen über die Gesteine des Brandberg-Komplexes gehören Michael Diehls Dissertation zur Geologie, Mineralogie, Geochemie und hydrothermalen Alteration des Brandbergs und die Arbeit von Peter Bowden und Mitarbeitern zur Evolution der anorogenen Granite in Namibia. Altersdatierungen an den Gesteinen des Brandbergs nahmen u. a. Ronald T. Watkins und Mitarbeiter und Axel K. Schmitt und Mitarbeiter vor. Unter den jüngeren Arbeiten müssen ferner die von Matthias J. Raab und Mitarbeitern und Tim Vietor und Mitarbeitern erwähnt werden.

Aufbau

Im gegenwärtigen Erosionsniveau zeigt der Komplex eine Reihe von subvulkanischen magmatischen Zentren, die sämtlich eine granitische Zusammensetzung aufweisen. Metalumische Granite und quarzmonzonitische Gesteine nahmen als Ringgänge bzw. Kegelspalten (Cone Sheets) außerhalb der späteren Caldera oder als mächtige, ringförmige Lagen Platz. Peralumische Granite nehmen den Zentralteil des Komplexes ein; zeitlich folgen ihnen peralkalische Granite an der Peripherie des Massivs. Alle Gesteinstypen des Brandberg-Komplexes weisen signifikante mineralogische und geochemische Merkmale von Graniten mit hoher Wärmeerzeugung (High-heat-producing Granites) bzw. A-Typ-Graniten mit anomal hohen Gehalten an inkompatiblen Elementen auf. Dazu zählen Elemente mit hoher Feldstärke (High Field Strength Elements, z. B. Zr, U, Th, Nb oder Ta) sowie LILE (Large-ion lithophile Elements, das sind Elemente mit großem Ionenradius wie K, Rb, Cs, Sr oder Ba).

Es wurden verschiedene Typen postmagmatischer hydrothermaler Alterationsprozesse beobachtet, die solchen, welche mit anorogenen Ringkomplexen in Nigeria vergesellschaftet sind, ähneln. In Abhängigkeit von der ursprünglichen chemischen Zusammensetzung des kristallisierenden Granits  und seiner metasomatische Vorgänge auslösenden hydrothermalen Fluide können Prozesse der Kaliummetasomatose, Natriummetasomatose, Vergreisenung, Turmalinisierung und Chloritisierung beobachtet werden. Kationenaustauschprozesse führten zum Zusammenbruch der primären Mineralvergesellschaftung in den Graniten und zur Generierung von hydrothermalen Mineralparagenesen, die lokal mit der Kristallisation von Zink-, Zinn-, Niob-, Yttrium- sowie REE-haltigen Erzmineralen einhergingen. Das Spektrum von Subsolidus-Mineralen in diesen Vergesellschaftungen ist charakterisiert durch das Vorkommen von Albit (Ab99,4–96,8An0,6–3,2), gerötetem Mikroklin, die Destabilisierung von frühkristallisiertem Biotit zugunsten von Glimmern der Siderophyllit-Zinnwaldit-Reihe sowie lokale Konzentrationen von Turmalin.

Fenitisierte Granite, die hydrothermal gebildeten zinkhaltigen Fluor-Arfvedsonit und zinnhaltigen Aegirin als neugebildete Minerale enthalten, kommen in geschichteten, agpaitischen Gesteinsserien des Amis-Komplexes, einer Satellitenintrusion am Südwestrand des Brandbergs, vor. In diesem Zusammenhang treten verschiedene Typen und Stile von Mineralisationen auf: disperse Nb-, Ta-, REE-Mineralisationen, fein verteilte Sn-Mineralisationen sowie spalten- und gangkontrollierte Sulfid-/Oxid-Mineralisationen (Zn/Sn). Mineralisationen im Brandberg-Komplex sind generell auf Zonen beschränkt, wo postmagmatische Fluid-Gesteins-Wechselwirkungsprozesse stattfanden, deren Zeitdauer und Intensität hinreichend lang bzw. groß genug war, um Erzminerale zu generieren. Alterationszonen wurden in den Dachbereichen des Komplexes, entlang der Kontakte und der Randbereiche der einzelnen Intrusionen sowie im umgebenden Nebengestein beobachtet.

Entstehung

Der Brandberg weist eine ähnliche magmatische Evolution wie auch andere granitische Alkaligesteins-Ringkomplexe auf. Die Bildung des "Brandberg Alkaline Complex" begann klassischerweise mit einer Aufdomung der Erdkruste, was zur Bildung von Kegelspalten führte und der die Platznahme von Cone Sheets (Ringgängen) folgte. Die früheste vulkanische Aktivität begann wahrscheinlich mit pyroklastischen Produkten und pyroklastischen Strömen rhyodazitischer Zusammensetzung. Dem Prä-Caldera-Stadium des Komplexes folgte ein vulkanisches Stadium mit heftigen Eruptionen von pyroklastischem Material und Ignimbriten. Infolge der Leerförderung der Magmakammer entstand ein Einbruchskessel, ferner kam es zur Extrusion von ignimbritischen Intra-Caldera-Strömen (Caldera-Stadium). Mit Beginn des plutonischen Stadiums wurde granitisches Magma aufwärts gelenkt, welches dort in mächtigen Massen in höheren Niveaus erstarrte. Diesem Stadium folgten nacheinander Subsidenz und die Intrusion des nächsten granitischen Magmenimpulses aus derselben Magmakammer. Die Erneuerung der Aufdomung führte zur Bildung  eines neuen Zentrums, welches sich anfänglich in der Bildung von Cone Sheets von monzonitischer oder monzogranitischer Zusammensetzung äußerte und mit der Platznahme eines zentralen Doms bzw. einer pfropfenartigen Intrusion endete. Der Platznahme von Alkaligraniten folgte die periphere Intrusion eines lakkolithischen, perfekt geschichteten, peralkalischen Granits und vergesellschafteten Gesteinsgängen. Abschließend wurden radiale Bruchspalten mit Olivin- und Quarz-Doleriten gefüllt.

Die verschiedenen Granite intrudierten in der nachstehend genannten Reihenfolge, angeordnet von der ältesten zur jüngsten Einheit:
porphyrische Quarzmonzonit-Ringgänge (ungefähre Flächenausdehnung 0,6 km²)
Fayalit-Hedenbergit-Granit (15 km²)
Edenit-Hedenbergit-Granit (220 km²), auch als "Kerngranit" bzw. "Main Granite" bezeichnet
zentraler Hornblende-Biotit-Granit, zum Teil mikroklinisiert (210 km²)
Biotit-Granit (24 km²)
Quarzmonzonit (7 km²)
peralkalischer, agpaitischer Arfvedsonit-Aegirin-Granit (5,5 km²), auch Brandbergit genannt.

Mehrere mächtige Schollen aus etendekazeitlichen Quarzlatiten und Basalten sowie karoozeitlichen Sedimenten, welche auf 800–900 m Seehöhe einen Saum um die Basis des Massivs bilden, finden sich im Ostteil des Brandbergs auch in größerer Höhe (2200 m). Sie wurden durch das intrudierende granitische, hochviskose post-Etendeka-Magma mit nach oben gerissen.

Geschichte
Bei der Untersuchung der besiedlungstechnischen Etappen des Brandbergs wurden in der Amis-Schlucht in zwei Felsdächern Kulturschichten aus dem Middle Stone Age gefunden, die belegen, dass der  Brandberg bereits zu dieser frühen Zeit zumindest aufgesucht wurde, was auch mit der Vorstellung übereinstimmt, dass im Middle Stone Age im Gegensatz zum Early Stone Age verstärkt neue Lebensräume und Ressourcen erschlossen wurden. Die Häufigkeit und Regelmäßigkeit von Spuren aus dem jüngeren Later Stone Age (ab dem 6. Jahrhundert v. Chr.) bis zur Zeitenwende zeigen ein Blütezeit bei der Besiedlung des Brandbergmassivs an. Ab der Zeitenwende gehen die Besiedlungsspuren im Brandberg stark zurück, ohne dass genaue Gründe dafür festzustellen sind. Erst ab etwa 1500, also in den letzten 500 Jahren, nehmen die Besiedlungsspuren, die als "Brandberg-Kultur" zusammengefasst werden, wieder stark zu. Wahrscheinlich führten die in der Kolonialzeit erfolgten Veränderungen im frühen 20. Jahrhundert  zur Aufgabe des Brandbergs als Siedlungsraum. Die Gründe, den Brandberg längerfristig oder vorübergehend als Lebensraum zu wählen, können für die belegten Besiedlungsphasen unterschiedlich gewesen sein. Die in auffälligem Kontrast zur wüstenartigen Umgebung stehenden vielfältigen natürlichen Ressourcen des Brandbergmassivs, die angesichts der relativ konstanten Klima- und Umweltverhältnisse im Jungpleistozän und im Holozän über die gesamte Dauer seiner menschlichen Besiedlung vorhanden waren, stellten aber immer einen konstanter Faktor dar. Sie waren sicher einer der Hauptgründe für die temporäre oder längerfristige Besiedlung des Gebirgsmassivs.

Felsbilder
Der Brandberg gilt als der "Louvre der Felsmalerei". Am Brandberg wurden bis heute rund 50.000 Felsmalereien an 1.000 Fundorten nachgewiesen – zumeist an Überhängen und in unzugänglichem Gelände. Diese große Anzahl deutet auf einen großen Tierreichtum in vergangener Zeit hin. Die bekannteste dieser Kunstwerke ist die ca. 45 cm große Weiße Dame (White Lady), die am 4. Januar 1918 von Reinhard Maack in der Tsisab-Schlucht entdeckt wurde und eine der schönsten vorgeschichtlichen Felsmalereien darstellt.

Neben diesem vermutlichen Krieger, der auch als Schamane gedeutet werden kann, sind zahlreiche weitere Jäger mit Speeren oder Bögen zu sehen. Diese sind umgeben vom typischen Jagdwild wie z. B. Oryxantilopen und Zebras. Das Alter der Zeichnungen wird auf zwei- bis viertausend Jahre geschätzt. Ob es sich dabei nur um Jagdszenen zum Beschwören des Jagdglücks handelt oder um Trancetänze von Schamanen, die mit Hilfe von Geistern in Tiergestalt heilen, ist nicht geklärt.

Durch den Massentourismus wurden viele der Malereien überschmiert und zerstört, die berühmte Dame wurde zwischenzeitlich durch Gitter geschützt. Um weiteren Vandalismus zu verhindern, muss für die eineinhalb- bis zweistündige Wanderung (komplett, Hin- und Rückweg) ein Führer genommen werden.

Die an Felsbildern reichste Fundstelle im gesamten Brandbergmassiv ist das in der oberen Amis-Schlucht gelegene Felsdach "Amis 10" (Riesenhöhle), wo über 1.000 Felsmalereien gezählt worden sind. Dieser Platz ist durch seine geschützte Lage, die große überdachte Fläche und das angenehme Mikroklima als ungewöhnlich günstiger Aufenthaltsort gekennzeichnet.

Die Zeichnungen wurden maßgeblich von Harald Pager von der Universität Köln dokumentiert ("The Rock Paintings of the Upper Brandberg I–V"). Bis zu seinem Tod 1985 erfasste er in acht Jahren rund 43.000 Zeichnungen von 879 Felsbildstellen auf 6 km Plastikfolie.

Weitere Felsmalereien und Petroglyphen gibt es u. a. an der Spitzkoppe und in Twyfelfontein.

Klima
Nach Paul van den Elzen herrscht am Brandberg tropisches, episodisch-periodisch sommerfeuchtes Halbwüsten- bis Trockensavannenklima. Hauptsächlich zwischen Januar und März fällt bei Ostwind Regen, zumeist in Form von Gewittern. Der durchschnittliche Jahresniederschlag beträgt in Gipfelnähe 50–100 mm, an den Randzonen des Massivs 15–30 mm. Die Hauptwindrichtung ist Südwest, wodurch Feuchtigkeit vom Atlantik in das Brandberggebiet gelangt. Charakteristisch ist das unregelmäßige Auftreten von Nebel. Im Sommer schwanken die Temperaturen zwischen 31 °C und 35 °C mit einem nächtlichen Minimum um 15 °C Durch die Wärmeabstrahlung des aufgeheizten Gesteins können örtlich Mikroklimata mit deutlich höheren Temperaturen entstehen. Dies ist auch die Ursache dafür, dass die umliegende Ebene nachts bedeutend mehr auskühlt als das Granitmassiv.

Der Klimaklassifikation nach Köppen und Geiger zufolge ist das Klima im Brandberggebiet vom Typ BWh – es herrscht also Wüstenklima mit ganzjährig kaum Niederschlägen. Die im Folgenden erwähnten Wetterdaten beruhen auf Werten, die Harald Pager an 1354 Tagen zwischen Oktober 1977 und Mai 1985 gesammelt hat.

Die wärmsten Monate im Brandbergmassiv sind Dezember, Januar und Februar. In dem erwähnten achtjährigen Beobachtungszeitraum lagen die Mittelwerte für diese Monate bei über 30 °C, die Minimalwerte zwischen 17 °C und 20 °C. Die höchste Temperatur überhaupt wurde in der Karoab-Schlucht mit 43 °C gemessen. Ab März fallen die Temperaturen und liegen im Juni bei minimal 12,5 °C und maximal 22,5 °C. Ab Juli erfolgt eine allmähliche Temperaturerhöhung. Auch in den Wintermonaten fallen die Temperaturen nur selten unter 10 °C. Allerdings sind an Wasserstellen bis zu 1 cm dicke Eisschichten beobachtet worden, so dass auch Temperaturen unterhalb des Gefrierpunktes auftreten.

Niederschläge fallen hauptsächlich in den Sommermonaten Januar bis März. In den acht Jahren der detaillierten Niederschlagsmessung fielen im Monatsmittel 15–20 mm Niederschlag. Von April bis Oktober nehmen die Niederschläge mit Ausnahme von Juni und Juli stark ab und erhöhen sich erst in der "kleinen Regenzeit" im November und Dezember wieder auf Werte unter 10 mm. Die Regenmengen, die im Beobachtungszeitraum im Juni und Juli fielen, sind für Wintermonate außergewöhnlich hoch und wahrscheinlich auf weit nach Norden reichende Sturmausläufer der kapländischen Winterregenzone zurückzuführen.

Die Höhe der Jahresniederschläge erweist sich als extrem variabel. Von 1978 bis 1980 fiel die Höhe der Niederschläge von 60 mm auf 35 mm und 1981 auf fast 0 mm. In den folgenden vier Jahren erreichten die jährlichen Niederschlagsmengen Werte zwischen 90 und 110 mm. Das Jahresmittel über die Jahre 1978–1985 beträgt 67 mm. Landesweit wurde dieser Zeitraum als regenarm bezeichnet, so dass unter normalen Bedingungen langfristig von jährlich etwa 100 mm Niederschlag auszugehen sein dürfte. Dies würde auch der Lage des Brandberges im westlichen Teil der Zone mit Jahresniederschlägen von 100–200 mm entsprechen. Die höchsten Niederschlagsmengen wurden in den Schluchten im Westen und Norden des Massivs gemessen, was aber eher darauf zurückzuführen ist, dass sich H. Pager im südlichen und östlichen Teil des Brandbergmassivs eher selten und dann nur in der trockenen Jahreszeit aufgehalten hat.

Ökologie

Flora

Johan Wilhelm Heinrich Giess zufolge liegt der Brandberg auf der Grenze zwischen der Zone der zentralen Namib und der östlich anschließenden Halbwüste und Savannenübergangszone, in der steigende Niederschlagsmengen einen üppigeren Pflanzenwuchs ermöglichen. Das Bild wird hier vor allem von Arten, die im Verhältnis zur Namibflora großwüchsig sind, geprägt. Hierzu gehören Gürichs Wolfsmilch (Euphorbia guerichiana), verschiedene Arten der Gattung Commiphora, die stammsukkulenten Cyphostemma-Arten, Adenolobus garipensis sowie die zu den Akazien gehörende Brandbergakazie (Acacia montis-ustii) und Senegalia robynsiana. Innerhalb der Halbwüste/Savannenübergangszone nimmt die Vegetation nach Osten hin zu. Der Brandberg liegt im vegetationsarmen Westen, der hier nur vereinzelt Busch- und Baumwuchs aufweist und wo Gras nur nach ausreichenden Niederschlägen gedeiht. "Das auf diese Weise von Landschaften mit geringem Pflanzenwuchs umschlossene Gebirge hat mit seinem Vegetationsreichtum den Charakter einer Insel, die sich in eine botanisch viel ärmere Welt vorwagt."

Insgesamt ist die Flora des Brandberges durch die Arbeiten von Willy Giess, Bertil Nordenstam, L. Moisel und Patricia Craven relativ gründlich erforscht. Seine Artenvielfalt ist mit ca. 500 verschiedenen Spezies beträchtlich. Hierzu gehören zahlreiche kleinwüchsige Pflanzen, doch auch Sträucher, z. B. die bereits erwähnten, häufig anzutreffenden Commiphora-Arten wie Blaublättrige Commiphora oder Papierrindiger Balsambaum (C. glaucescens), Federblättrige Commiphora (C. kraeuseliana), Felsenmyrrhe oder Felsenbalsambaum (C. saxicola), Ruten-Commiphora (C. virgata) und Eichenblättrige Commiphora (C. wildii), und Bäume wie Maulbeer-Feige (Ficus sycomorus), Hirtenbaum oder Witgatbaum (Boscia albitrunca), Sprokiesboom (Moringa ovalifolia), Akazienarten wie Anabaum (Faidherbia albida), Kameldorn (Vachellia erioloba), Bergdorn (Vachellia hereroensis), Brandbergakazie, Schwarzborkenbaum oder Harpuisboom (Ozoroa crassinervia), Butterbaum (Cyphostemma currorii), Dombeya rotundifolia, Stinkbäume wie Sterculia africana und S. quinqueloba sowie der Köcherbaum (Aloe dichotoma). Häufig kommt die Namibische Giftwolfsmilch (Euphorbia virosa) vor, deren milchiger Saft karzinogene Stoffe enthält. Riesige Ausmaße von gelegentlich mehr als 1 m Höhe erreicht im Brandberg der Wüstenkohlrabi (Adenia pechuelii). Die Pflanze ist am Namibrand verbreitet und wird ansonsten zusammen mit Lithops ruschiorum und anderen kleinwüchsigen Sukkulenten zu den Kleinsukkulenten gerechnet. Die Herkunft der seltenen Tabakart Nicotiana africana, die nicht von den neuweltlichen Tabakpflanzen abstammt, gilt als pflanzengeographisches und phylogenetisches Rätsel.

Am Brandberg weist die Vegetation einen starken Höhengradienten auf, wobei die für Regionen mit stärkerem Regen charakteristischen Arten in Gipfelnähe prominenter werden. Im unteren Bereich der Hänge des Brandbergmassivs treten für die Halbwüste und Savannenübergangszone charakteristische Pflanzen auf. Zu ihnen gehören Moringa ovalifolia sowie die bereits oben erwähnten Adenolobus gariepensis und verschiedene Spezies der Genus Commiphora. Sowohl im unteren als auch im mittleren Bereich der Hänge finden sich Brandbergakazie und Gürichs Wolfsmilch, wohingegen der Butterbaum nur im oberen Brandbergmassiv vorkommt. Der Gummiarabikumbaum (Senegalia senegal var. rostata) ist an die Anwesenheit von Basalt gebunden. Für die Hochlandsavanne (Bergdorn-Savanne) charakteristische Spezies finden sich im oberen Brandbergmassiv. Zu ihnen zählen Bergdorn, Euclea undulata, Dombeya rotundifolia, Rhus marlothii, Schwarzborkenbaum und Olivenbaum (Olea europaea subsp. africana). Am Eingang zu den Schluchten, angrenzend an die Namib-Ebene, oder in Wasserläufen an der Basis des Massivs, kommen Spezies vor, die für die westliche Fluss-Baumsavannen-Zone charakteristisch sind, wozu z. B. Kameldorn, Anabaum, Ahnenbaum bzw. Bleibaum (Combretum imberbe), die zu den Tamarisken gehörende Tamarix usneoides, der Falsche Ebenholzbaum (Euclea pseudebenus) und der Zahnbürstenbaum bzw. Löwenbusch (Salvadora persica) zu rechnen sind.

Im Brandbergmassiv kommen sieben endemische Pflanzenarten vor: Felicia gunillae (Asteraceae), Hermannia merxmuelleri (Sterculiaceae), Lithops gracilidelineata subsp. brandbergensis (Mesembryanthemaceae), Nidorella nordenstamii (Asteraceae), Pentzia tomentosa (Asteraceae), Plumbago wissii (Plumbaginaceae) und Ruellia brandbergensis (Acanthaceae). Von diesen sieben für den Brandberg endemischen Pflanzen sind drei nur einmal in einem Jahr (1963) mit ungewöhnlich guten Regenfällen gesammelt worden. Zwei davon, Felicia gunillae und Pentzia tomentosa, wurden nahe dem Gipfel des Königssteins gefunden, während die krautartige Nidorella nordenstamii auf der Westseite der Orabeswand in einem trockenen Wasserlauf angetroffen wurde. Plumbago wissii wurde auf dem Königstein und auf dem Aigub geborgen. Die Sukkulente Lithops gracilidelineata subsp. brandbergensis tritt zwischen 2300 m und 2400 m auf und stellt damit das höchste jemals angetroffene Habitat für die Genus Lithops dar. Die beiden häufigsten Endemiten sind diejenigen, die auch in niedrigeren Bereichen des Massivs gefunden warden: Ruellia brandbergensis und Hermannia merxmuelleri. Hermannia merxmuelleri war allerdings ursprünglich nur aus der Tsisabschlucht bekannt.

Einige der von Bertil Nordenstam im Jahre 1974 als für den Brandberg endemisch bezeichneten Pflanzen wurden seitdem auch in anderen Gebieten Namibias angetroffen. Dazu zählen Euphorbia monteiroi subsp. brandbergensis, eine im oberen Brandbergmassiv häufige Pflanze, die auch an der Spitzkoppe gefunden wird, Hoodia montana (synonym mit Hoodia currorii), Mentha wissii (synonym mit der auch in der Naukluft sowie südlich des Orange River angetroffenen Mentha longifolia subsp. Wissii), Scirpus aciformis (synonym mit Isolepis hemiuncialis) sowie Scirpus hystricoides (synonym mit Lipocarpha rehmannii). Othonna brandbergensis findet sich auch am Gamsberg. Die nach dem Brandberg benannte Acacia montis-usti kommt zwar nur in Namibia vor, ist aber nicht endemisch für den Brandberg.

Fauna

Das größte Tier im Hohen Brandberg ist der Leopard (Panthera pardus), dessen Nahrung auch im Brandbergmassiv überwiegend aus Klippspringern, Klippschliefern und anderen kleinen Tieren bestehen dürfte.

Die den Meerschweinchen ähnelnden Klippschliefer (Procavia capensis) leben in felsigen Unterschlüpfen, in deren Umgebung die Felswände von einer als Hyraceum bezeichneten, verfestigten und ausgebleichten Masse aus dem Kot und Harn der Tiere mit weißen Streifen bedeckt sind, welche die Behausung einer Klippschliefer-Kolonie weithin sichtbar machen. Möglicherweise ist dieses weiße "Hyraceum" auch als Bestandteil der weißen Farbe für die Felsmalereien verwendet worden, wie es ähnlich für Fäkalien von Greifvögeln oder Hyänen-Kot bekannt ist.
Andererseits wird der Einfluss von "Hyraceum" auf den Zerfallsprozess der Felsmalereien diskutiert.

Die einzige im Brandbergmassiv vorkommende Antilope ist der Klippspringer (Oreotragus oreotragus), der standorttreu ist und meist paarweise auftritt.
Obwohl im Brandberggebiet nicht heimisch, streifen doch – zu erkennen am hinterlassenen Dung – gelegentlich Spitzmaulnashorn (Diceros bicornis) und Afrikanischer Elefant (Loxodonta africana) im unteren Bereich der Schluchten, um dort zu weiden, wobei dort u. a. Akazien zu ihrer Nahrung gehören.

Wasserstellen ziehen Vögel an, die von den in ihrer Vielfalt überhaupt nicht erfassten Insekten profitieren. Erwähnt werden verschiedene Taubenarten, Rosenpapageien, Tukane, Eulen, Felsenadler und zahlreiche Kleinvögel. In den Schluchten und ihren Ausläufern sind Perl- und Sandhühner beobachtet worden. Eine neuere Arbeit listet für den Brandberg 120 verschiedene Vogelarten auf, von denen sechs Arten als verbreitet bezeichnet werden. Zu ihnen zählen Palmtaube (Spilopelia senegalensis, ), Rosenköpfchen (Agapornis roseicollis, ), Pycnonotus nigricans (), Bergsteinschmätzer (Oenanthe monticola, ), Onychognathus nabouroup () und Cinnyris fuscus  ().

Weitere 16 werden als häufig genannt. Zu ihnen zählen der zu den Falken gehörende Falco rupicolus (), der zu den Trappen zählende Eupodotis rueppellii (), Felsentaube (Columba livia, ), Kaptäubchen (Oena capensis, ), Perl-Sperlingskauz (Glaucidium perlatum, ), Südlicher Gelbschnabeltoko (Tockus leucomelas, ), Rotstirn-Bartvogel (Tricholaema leucomelas, ), der zu den Schwalben gehörende Ptyonoprogne fuligula (), Oenanthe familiaris (), Prinia flavicans (), Batis pririt (), Südlicher Fiskalwürger (Lanius collaris, ), Bokmakiri (Telophorus zeylonus, ), der Finkenvogel (Crithagra albogularis, ) sowie Kapammer (Emberiza capensis, ) und Emberiza impetuani (), die beiden zu den Ammern gehören.

Nach einer Studie von Paul van den Elzen über die Herpetofauna des Brandbergmassivs gibt es hier 26 Eidechsenarten, von denen einige sehr häufig sind. Endemisch ist der Pachydactylus gaiasensis (). Von den fünf belegten Froschlurchen werden im offenen Wasser oft Kaulquappen beobachtet. Unter den zehn Schlangenarten finden sich der Angolapython (Python anchietae), die Braune Hausschlange (Boaedon fuliginosus), die Mopane-Schlange (Hemirhagerrhis nototaenia viperina), die Karoo-Sandschlange (Psammophis notostictus), die Psammophis sibilans leopardinus (), Pythonodipsas carinata (), die lange als Unterart der Afrikanischen Speikobra (Naja nigricolis nigricincta) geführte, aber nun eigenständige Art Naja nigricincta (Zebraschlange oder Zebra-Speikobra), die Puffotter (Bitis arietans) und die Gehörnte Puffotter (Bitis caudalis). Insgesamt sind am Brandberg 41 Formen von Amphibien und Reptilien bekannt.
Besonders vielfältig sind die Skorpione mit 20 verschiedenen Arten in sieben Gattungen (Brandbergia, Lisposoma, Hottentotta, Parabuthus, Uroplectes, Hadogenes und Opistophthalmus) in vier Familien (Bothriuridae, Buthidae, Hemiscorpiidae, Scorpionidae) vertreten. Das Vorkommen am Brandberg wird als die reichste Skorpion-Fauna in Namibia, wenn nicht sogar im gesamten südlichen Afrika, angesehen und zählt zu den reichsten Skorpion-Faunen der Welt.
Reich vertreten sind auch die Springspinnen, von denen im Bereich des Brandbergs neunzehn verschiedene Arten, darunter die nach der Lokalität benannte Mashonarus brandbergensis, vorkommen.

Die in den zahlreichen Felsmalereien des Gebirges wiedergegebene Tierwelt findet sich im Brandbergmassiv nicht wieder. Auch wenn das Klima zu Lebzeiten der Felsbildkünstler ein wenig anders als heute gewesen sein mag, wird der obere Teil des Berges für die hauptsächlich dargestellten Großsäuger unzugänglich geblieben sein. Bemerkenswerterweise sind die Tiere, die als Nahrung in Frage kommen und wie Klippschliefer nachweislich auch gejagt wurden, unter den Felsbildern fast überhaupt nicht dargestellt.

Das Brandbergmassiv geriet jüngst durch die sensationelle Entdeckung einer neuen Insektenordnung, der sogenannten Gladiatoren, die nur in dieser indigenen Region vorkommen, in das Rampenlicht der Forschung. An der Entdeckung sowie Artenbestimmung war ein deutsch-namibischer Student der Universität Bremen wesentlich beteiligt, während ein anderer Deutscher weitere Forschungsarbeit dazu beitrug. Die Gladiatoren verbleiben gegenwärtig (2005) noch in der vertiefenden Erforschung durch Entomologen.

Weitere lebende Fossilien stellen zwei Vertreter der Gattung Alavesia aus der Familie der Buckeltanzfliegen (Hybotidae) dar. Bis 2007 kannte man diese Tiere nur aus 112–89 Millionen Jahre alten Bernsteininklusen aus Nordspanien und Burma. Sinclair und Kirk-Spriggs berichten 2009, dass bereits 1998 die ersten lebenden Fliegen dieser Gattung auf dem Brandbergmassiv nachgewiesen werden konnten. Unter den Insekten sind für das Brandberggebiet die Langbeinfliege Schistostoma brandbergensis, der Wurmlöwe Leptyoma monticola, die zu den Mythicomyiidae gehörende Gattung Hesychastes und  die Art Psiloderoides dauresensis endemisch.

Wirtschaft

Nationaldenkmal und Welterbekandidat

Seit dem 15. Juni 1951 gehört das Brandbergmassiv zum Nationalen Erbes Namibias. Seit 2002 ist das Brandbergmassiv auch ein Kandidat für das Welterbe in Namibia und ist in eine Tentativliste mit Stätten eingetragen, die für eine Nominierung zur Aufnahme in die Welterbeliste vorgesehen sind.

Landwirtschaft und Tourismus
Eine landwirtschaftliche Nutzung des Brandbergmassivs oder Teilen davon hat in den letzten einhundert Jahren nicht stattgefunden und wird auch in absehbarere Zeit keine Rolle spielen. Heute ist das Brandbergmassiv vor allem für die Felsmalereien und Felsgravuren bekannt, die einen beträchtlichen Anteil an der touristischen Bedeutung und Erschließung des Gebirgsmassivs haben, die an der Grenze zum Massentourismus steht. Angesichts der Notwendigkeit, für die Wanderung zum Beispiel zur Weißen Dame einen lizenzierten Führer des Brandberg Community Tourist Project zu mieten, ist einerseits der Schutz der Kunstwerke durch die Anwesenheit der Führer gewährleistet und wird andererseits auch ein Beitrag zur Beschäftigung der Bevölkerung geleistet.
Die grandiose Natur, die bei der Verwitterung der verschiedenen Granitvarietäten entsteht und vor allem der Nimbus des höchsten Berges Namibias führen zu einer weiteren touristischen Komponente mit Möglichkeiten zum Bergwandern und Felsklettern. Auch der Königsstein als die höchste Erhebung im Brandbergmassiv kann bestiegen werden. Das ist aber nur mit einem Führer in den Monaten mit gemäßigten Temperaturen (April bis August/September) im Rahmen einer mehrtägigen Tour möglich. Die günstigste Route geht von der Südseite aus.

Bergbau

Obwohl die "Brandberg West Mine" den Namenszusatz "Brandberg" trägt, liegt sie in einer Entfernung von ca. 45 km vom Brandbergmassiv. Hier sind von 1946 bis 1980 im Tagebau Zinn- und Wolframerze gewonnen worden. Das Brandbergmassiv selbst enthält in den Aegirin-Arfvedsonit-haltigen Gesteinen des "Amis Layered Complex" Gesamtgesteinsgehalte von bis zu 1600 ppm Zinn und bis zu 1800 ppm Zink. Ein möglicher Abbau der Vererzungen kommt jedoch aufgrund der Einstufung des Massivs als National Monument nicht in Frage.

Ein hauptsächlich aus Pyrophyllit bestehendes Gestein ist sporadisch in der Amis-Schlucht an den Westhängen des Brandbergs abgebaut worden, steht aber z. B. auch in der Hungorob-Schlucht an. Der Pyrophyllit ist mit tief rötlichbraunen Peliten der Karoo-Sequenz vergesellschaftet, die einer niedriggraden Metamorphose und einer sauren Metasomatose unterworfen waren. Die Pelite befinden sich im Kontakt mit den peralkalischen Graniten des "Amis Layered Complex". Der Pyrophyllit hat sich wahrscheinlich metasomatisch während der Interaktion zwischen Fluiden und dem anstehenden Gestein bei niedrigen Temperaturen gebildet. Das alterierte Sediment besteht aus faserigen Pyrophyllit-Kristallen  in Verbindung mit Quarz, Hämatit sowie akzessorischem Turmalin und Zirkon. Der Abbau erfolgte in der Vergangenheit nur sehr unregelmäßig. Das relativ weiche Material wird "Brandberg Pyrophyllite" genannt und für Steinschnitzarbeiten (Aschenbecher, Dekorationsgegenstände) verwendet, die in Souvenirgeschäften (in Windhoek, aber auch in Uis) angeboten worden sind.

Obwohl das Massiv ein ausgewiesenes National Monument und deshalb das Sammeln von Mineralen hier ausdrücklich verboten ist, fand in den vergangenen Jahren in den südöstlichen Schluchten des Massivs (z. B. Orabes) ein illegaler Abbau von Mineralen wie auf Feldspat sitzenden Amethyst-Zepterkristallen, Epidot, Prehnit, Magnetit und Zeolithen statt. Im Jahre 2007 erreichten von hier stammende Topas-Kristalle mit attraktiven Flüssigkeitseinschlüssen den Mineralmarkt. Die bis 16 cm großen Topas-Kristalle gehören zu den größten je in Namibia gefundenen Vertretern dieser Mineralart.
Amethyst-Zepterkristalle mit einer sehr kräftigen violetten, jedoch ungleichmäßigen Färbung sind im Übrigen im Gebiet des Brandbergmassivs bereits in den 1930er Jahren gefunden worden. Sie zeigen häufig Zonarschichtung und eine sanduhrförmige Verteilung der Farbe sowie zahlreiche Einschlüsse, auch Flüssigkeitseinschlüsse mit Libelle.

"Brandberg" wird fälschlicherweise auch als Fundort für die in den Gobobosebbergen (Tafelkop) oder im Messum-Krater gefundenen Minerale wie Amethyst, Prehnit oder Zeolithe verwendet.

Literatur

 Goodman Gwasira: Rethinking the archaeology of the Dâures Mountain in a post-colonial context, In: Namibia Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft Journal, Ausgabe 66, 2018, ISBN 978-99945-76-60-9, S. 113ff.

Siehe auch
 Liste der Berge in Namibia
 Kondjor-Massiv

Weblinks

 Offizielle Webseite zum Nationaldenkmal Brandberg (englisch)
 Felsmalereien am Brandberg
 Mineralienatlas
 Mineralien vom Brandberg, Namibia

Einzelnachweise

Berg in der Region Erongo
Geologie (Namibia)
National Monument of Namibia
Naturdenkmal in Namibia
Welterbekandidat in Afrika
Welterbekandidat in Namibia
Kulturlandschaft in Namibia


Intel® Compilers for C/C++ and Fortran empower developers to derive the greatest performance from applications and hardware. In this webinar Igor Vorobtsov, senior technical consulting engineer at Intel, discusses nuances of Intel compiler features which enable high-level optimization, auto-parallelization, auto-vectorization, dynamic profile guided optimization, detailed optimization reports, inter-procedural optimization (IPO), and much more.
Intel Compilers and their built-in features ultimately focus on three main goals: boosting application performance, maximizing developer productivity, and increasing application scalability. By simply recompiling code using Intel Compilers, an application optimizes for greater performance with maximization of available cores and vector registers.
-O2: Includes auto-vectorization for substantial performance gains, loop transformation, loop interchange, and in lining within a source file.
-O3: Performs loop transformations to optimize memory access, combined with loop fusion, cache blocking, pre-fetching, and more. -O3 requires more compilation time than the other top-level settings. However, the more detailed optimization process enables the best possible application performance.
Optimization reporting: This powerful feature provides developers deeper insight into the compiler's code optimization process. It details what optimizations are applied – or not applied — and the compiler's reasons for doing so.
Interprocedural optimization (IPO): This two-step process – as used in O2 — allows the compiler to analyze code and then evaluate benefits resulting from a specific optimization process.
Ultimately, these Intel compiler capabilities help developers maximize their own coding time and expertise while letting the compiler focus on detailed optimizations.
The Intel C++ Compiler is available in two products based on your application development needs, Intel® Parallel Studio XE and Intel® System Studio which offer free trials.


text:
<?php

namespace OpenstoreSchema\Core\Entity;

use Doctrine\ORM\Mapping as ORM;
use Gedmo\Mapping\Annotation as Gedmo;

/**
 * @ORM\Entity
 * @ORM\Table(
 *   name="product_search",
 *   uniqueConstraints={
 *     @ORM\UniqueConstraint(name="unique_translation_idx",columns={"product_id", "lang"})
 *   },
 *   indexes={
 *     @ORM\Index(name="keywords_ft_idx", columns={"keywords"}, flags={"fulltext"})
 *   },
 *   options={
 *     "comment" = "Product search indexes",
 *     "engine":"InnoDB",
 *     "charset"="utf8mb4",
 *     "collate"="utf8mb4_unicode_ci",
 *     "row_format" = "DYNAMIC"
 *   }
 * )
 */
class ProductSearch
{
    /**
     * @ORM\Id
     * @ORM\Column(name="id", type="bigint", nullable=false, options={"unsigned"=true, "comment" = "Primary key"})
     * @ORM\GeneratedValue(strategy="AUTO")
     */
    private $id;

    /**
     * @ORM\ManyToOne(targetEntity="Product", inversedBy="translations", cascade={"persist", "remove"})
     * @ORM\JoinColumn(name="product_id", referencedColumnName="product_id", onDelete="CASCADE", nullable=false)
     */
    private $product_id;

    /**
     * @ORM\ManyToOne(targetEntity="Language", inversedBy="product_translations", cascade={"persist", "remove"})
     * @ORM\JoinColumn(name="lang", referencedColumnName="lang", onDelete="RESTRICT", nullable=false)
     */
    private $lang;

    /**
     * @ORM\Column(type="string", length=1500, nullable=true)
     */
    private $keywords;

    /**
     * @ORM\Column(type="string", length=700, nullable=true)
     */
    private $tags;

    /**
     * @Gedmo\Timestampable(on="update")
     * @ORM\Column(type="datetime", nullable=true, options={"comment" = "Record last update timestamp"})
     */
    private $updated_at;

    /**
     * @param int $id
     */
    public function setId($id)
    {
        $this->id = $id;
    }

    /**
     * @return int
     */
    public function getId()
    {
        return $this->id;
    }

    /**
     * @param string $keywords
     */
    public function setKeywords($keywords)
    {
        $this->keywords = $keywords;
    }

    /**
     * @return string
     */
    public function getKeywords()
    {
        return $this->keywords;
    }

    /**
     * @param int $product_id
     */
    public function setProductId($product_id)
    {
        $this->product_id = $product_id;
    }

    /**
     * @return int
     */
    public function getProductId()
    {
        return $this->product_id;
    }

    public function setLang(string $lang): void
    {
        $this->lang = $lang;
    }

    public function getLang(): string
    {
        return $this->lang;
    }

    /**
     * @return string
     */
    public function getUpdatedAt()
    {
        return $this->updated_at;
    }

    /**
     * @param string $updated_at
     */
    public function setUpdatedAt($updated_at)
    {
        $this->updated_at = $updated_at;
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This 30+ item, fully-licensed equipment pack contains all the additional equipment you need to land the biggest trophy fish available in Fishing Sim World. The pack contains a new boat and engine, rods, reels, boat wraps, lures, floats and baits and introduces products from Jenko Fishing.
This 30+ item, licensed equipment pack contains all the additional equipment you need to land the biggest trophy fish available in Fishing Sim World. Featuring a brand-new Puma boat from Bass Cat Boats equipped with an Evinrude engine, you can travel quicker across the lake than ever before! Also included in this equipment pack are: • Haichou bass fishing rods and reels as well as the new Stunner reels from Fitzgerald Fishing • Four stylish boat wraps from Duckett Fishing, Missile Baits, Bill Lewis and RidgeMonkey • Now featuring equipment from Jenko Fishing, including a range of lures and clothing • Three new floats and five new baits to use on our European venues including the Link & Essential Cell boilies from Mainline Baits, Sea Monster from Baitworks and imitation snails and luncheon meat from Enterprise Tackle.


text:
Beto: We only have ten years on earth left if we don't address climate change.
Fanatical Meat
SlowSpyder said:
But I didn't say the temperature has dropped since the 70's. I said it has been cooling in recent years.
Just to lock this down, so you agree the climate is changing correct?
Your chart stopped in 2010 or 2011, you moron. If you look at Paratus' chart of the same temperature anomaly global temperatures increased significantly in the years following that.
This has been yet another episode of 'SlowSpyder is too stupid to read his own charts'. lol.
Reactions: nickqt
Hayabusa Rider
Admin Emeritus & Elite Member
Hitler didn't say these words: "Let's have a Holocaust" and you get off as much as he did. Still no joy in being able to properly rebut? Thought so.
Let me introduce you to something to help you lie better, but be warned I've read this book and so I can point out the tactics.
How to Lie with Statistics.
For the majority here than can read and comprehend but are unfamiliar, this book goes back to the last mid-century, and explains common tricks with humor. I had an original copy but I've lost it over the many years, but Slow's approach is almost certainly in there.
Guys look the earth has been cooling in recent years just look at this chart from 2005.
SlowSpyder
compuwiz1 said:
Master Beto is a moron, spreading fear. Do any of you think the world will end in 10 years?
Yup, he's no different than Al "Goodbye Icecaps" Gore of 2006. FUD for power.
fskimospy said:
We expected no better from him.
Fanatical Meat said:
Yes. I believe man can and does influence the climate. I don't believe the doomsday predictions of fear mongering types.
And yet you cannot do anything to back your position except fatuous attempts at "statistics" and unable to do anything but talk about Gore and FUD in terms of rebuttal. You are fundamentally unable to deal with reality, but instead, promote fiction as truth. That's not working out so well.
Summary, the Climate is changing and you believe mankind is influencing this change correctly?
I think man is influencing it, just hard to say to what extent. Right now the globe is cooling and has been in recent years, though. And again, I don't believe the FUD from the alarmists looking for power and/or money.
I don't believe
This is a Slow tendency. Reality is not about truth, science or any other quality that exists in reality. For him, it's a matter of belief. To paraphrase "I have not seen such great faith, no, not in all Israel".
zinfamous
It's funny that you don't understand which group is the one that is actually motivated by power and money. I mean, it is specifically written into the Industry lobbying for exactly that. Yet, you are so fucking gullible that you believe it to be otherwise.
So the poster who started a thread yesterday expressing concern that something Trump said may have been "misinterpreted" has started a thread today so that he can intentionally "misinterpret" what Democratic politicians have said.
Fascinating. So what's the ATPN consensus on this? Trolling? or just obliviousness?
zinfamous said:
No doubt Slow used to say that the doctors were just being greedy when they were trying to do something about secondhand smoke.
Vic said:
My perspective is that Slow is attacking politicians to also go after the facts of science at the same time. He's going for a twofer.
Edit- Dammit, proofread before posting.
Hayabusa Rider said:
So just intense partisanship to the point of blindness? I think I would lump that under the oblivious category.
Cmon ATPN we need to start taking bets on this.
Founder of the Weather Channel:
So we agree and have around a 2/3rds consensus. Why do you continually post about Al Gore predictions who is relatively irrelevant today and that a couple of breeds of Polar Bears are thriving. Why not work together for a solution or even a partial solutions?
I challenged him to a battle of personal scientific knowledge and he ran away. He's the guy who ran around to those who listened to a Hitler speech saying: "He's right you know".
Reactions: Victorian Gray
Oh, so a guy with no relevant scientific credentials that has conducted no research on the issue didn't accept global warming. Well that's it guys, I'm convinced.
I love how stupid people with agendas think their local weather man has relevant expertise to discuss global climate.
Reactions: pmv
I'm sure he's completely aware of what he's doing. I'm not sure if it's trolling but he's certainly being purposefully dishonest. SlowSpyder does appear to be pretty stupid but that mostly shows itself in his inability to form good arguments or to think through the logical consequences of what he's saying. (ie: if it will undercut a future argument he wants to make)
In this case it's obvious the headlines were misleading to even the dumbest person here and so if he were just oblivious he would have realized that and apologized. The fact that he hasn't shows his hand.
Reactions: Vic
Congratulations. The dead guy who founded the Weather Channels didn't get it either.
Did a Weather Channel Co-Founder Disprove Climate Change? The answer is "NO"
Someone sitting at a football game without using any scientific reasoning whatsoever makes a claim which does not hold water, a dozen years ago.
Because "great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, and small minds discuss people."
Slow's thought process is that the idea of climate change must be wrong if the person of Al Gore was wrong when he said something about climate change.
https://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/appeal-to-authority
At this point, my sense of dark humor is kicking in. He's funny in his Little Big Horn, Agincourt, and Changping kind of approaches.
Okay I found something else pretty hilarious about Coleman - he apparently used to credit the 'Oregon Petition' as scientific backup for his insane views. About those 31,000 -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_Petition#Credentials_and_authenticity
Spurious names on the list included fictional characters from the television show M*A*S*H,[25] the movie Star Wars,[24] Spice Girls group member Geri Halliwell, English naturalist Charles Darwin (d. 1882) and prank names such as "I. C. Ewe".[26]

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


for details of that issue.
once we obtain the new code signing certificate.
appropriately documented for NIST's NVD, etc.
oracle attack. (Note that if you are using one of the "combined"
code cleanup, or related to the removal of those interface methods.
to me and I will attempt to answer them as I find time.


Whatever professional or DIY project you're working on, if you're cutting, sanding, drilling, or surfacing, you're likely to generate a significant amount of dust and debris.
This can not only be frustrating and slow work down, but, in some cases, it can also be detrimental to your health.
A dust extractor offers the perfect solution, reducing the impact of dust and keeping your site safe and comfortable.
Here at Powertools2U, we supply a wide range of dust extractors, all of which have been manufactured by the leading names in the industry, including Dewalt and Bosch.
For further information about our dust extractors or any of our power tools, hand tools, and accessories, please don't hesitate to get in touch with our team of experts.


The past couple of years have brought many changes to the doll business; the way collectors purchase, how and where collectibles are made and talented doll artists entering the market from all over the world are just a few of those changes. As an artist and businessman, I love progress and the development of the new—but at the same time, I love combing thru the history of the business of dolls. I find it fascinating to study company cultures as well as their life spans. Which brings me to the Nancy Ann Storybook Doll Company.
Copyright Phyn & Aero, LLC. All Rights Reserved. eCommerce Solution by 3DCart.


text:
Q: how to sort values in a horizontal bar graph that already has a variable How do I sort the values based on top10[ActiveCases]? I don't seem to get the syntax right.
top10=df[0:21]
top10
plt.barh(top10['Country,Other'],width=top10['ActiveCases'])
plt.title("Top 10 countries with highest active cases")

A: before creating the graph use
    top10 = top20
    top10.sort_values(by='ActiveCases')
    top10.head(10).plot(kind='barh')

this will plot the 10 highest countries

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Today is the last day of school, and the first day of Summer Break.
The Angels above are singing…do you hear them?
When I underwent my Preventive Mastectomy two years ago I had to make a really hard decision…aside from the obvious.
My surgery was the end of April and I had no idea how our Summer would look.
So, instead of committing to a bunch of science camps, VBS, and Swim Lessons like usual, I committed to absolutely nothing.
I knew that having to deal with all the back and forth and schedule keeping would end up with more misery and stress than it was worth.
It was one of the best Summers ever. EVER!
When someone invited us to do something we could say yes. When a friend had an open three hours between golf and swim lessons we could meet up with them. We slept in, went to the lake/pond whenever we wanted and ate our own body weight in popsicles and BBQ.
So, even though I had no medical excuse to leave our Summer open last year, I did it again.
I know you worry the kids will get bored and whiney, that you will be spending a solid 3 hours a day being a hostage negotiator or breaking up fights, that you will all be sick of the sight of each other by noon.
Truthfully, there will be some days like that.
But I'll take one of those days over the screaming to load up into the car, rushing around and feeling disconnected and stressed, exhausted every morning, counting down to the last day of swim lessons Summer days of old.
Tricks like homeschooling a few days a week and planning one fun weekday activity and one family weekend activity keeps us sane and just the right amount of busy.
As I said above, people are still going to be calling and texting to do stuff, the difference is, it won't take a Herculean amount of schedule balancing for you to meet up…you can just text back "when are you free?" and then say "perfect I'll meet you in town" instead of 30 back and forth messages about what day and time will work.
Don't think that this rule only works for stay at home moms, working moms this mantra works for you too!
These longer nights are just perfect for a spontaneous picnic at the park or a walk to get ice cream. Doesn't that sound more relaxing than a rushed drive through dinner on the way to practice?
You're still going to need to say no sometimes, and you have to remember that it's OK to say no to good things.
Sometimes, even though a day at the lake would be great, I know we need to stay home and clean, take naps, and just chill.
Sometimes another person will have already booked the only time that a friend can meet up.
And that's fine, they'll understand, that's life.
Don't think that a Summer with no scheduled activities will mean you won't be busy, I won't lead you to believe that lie!
But, doesn't it sound like fun to have a Summer filled with play dates with friends, visits to the ball park to cheer on your besties, impromptu nights sleeping in a tent in the yard with the neighbor kids, and random family walks at the park?
Give your schedule some wiggle room this Summer.
Plan less, and play more!
2 thoughts on "Mama Mantra: Plan Less, Play More"
Good for you,smart gal. We don't have to over schedule our kids or ourselves. What do people do who don't have money to put their kids in classes or a car/gas to haul them around?
When kids grew up we went to CO river north of Yuma,Az with ours and some of same kids. I sure do miss those times, beach and river. We got our own boat, nothing fancy believe me, but it got us out to sandbars with the kids. If we got tired of their craziness we'd go for ride on the river. So many wonderful times.


Comerica Theatre's unique design mixes classic, theatre-style design with the pulsating excitement of modern technology. State-of-the art music and sound systems mean that every production is one to remember.
Gear up for the big event in an enticing suite with amenities fit for royalty. The Presidential Suite features panoramic views plus 1,325 square feet complete with living room, dining room and a private-entrance butler's pantry.


text:
Dating conman who swindled string of vulnerable women branded 'a man without shame, gutless and a serial fraudster'
Raymond McDonald, 43, stole one bride's wedding dress just before her marriage as he fleeced a string of women he met online
Gareth Lightfoot
Raymond McDonald
A serial conman swindled a string of vulnerable women he met via a dating website - costing one of his victims everything she owned.
Disgraced ex-serviceman Raymond McDonald, 43, wrecked the lives of his five victims as he targeted them and fleeced them out of tens of thousands of pounds to live the high life.
He professed love and proposed marriage to one woman, then pocketed money meant for the wedding.
He relieved the mother of a disabled child of all her money and drove another woman to suffer a nervous breakdown.
And in one "breathtaking" case, his actions led to a woman having all of her belongings taken from her home and incinerated, while he also sold her daughter's wedding dress, Teesside Crown Court heard.
The BMW driver, who claimed to be a "loaded" property developer and boasted of owning a villa in Cyprus, took their money and spent it on travel and gambling.
Judge Stephen Ashurst said today: "He is a man without shame, a gutless man and a serial fraudster.
"He is a man who lives, I believe, in a different world when it comes to honesty and the impact of his behaviour on others.
"In Raymond McDonald's world he is a vulnerable man who has a heart of gold. Quite the reverse, in my judgment.
"He has left in his wake five very distressed women.
"The behaviour of Raymond McDonald is premeditated and predatory.
"He has masqueraded under different names. He managed to worm his way into the lives of five women."
Flash fraudster and blackmailer ordered to repay cash after luxury car scam
He said McDonald made promises and told elaborate lies, gained sympathy with a series of sob stories, and gave bogus excuses to hide the truth.
"The truth was that he used all of these women for his own purposes," added the judge.
"He persuaded them to lend him money for projects which were completely fanciful.
"The impact of what he did on all of the women has been quite enormous. The behaviour of Raymond McDonald has genuinely ruined lives."
The judge said the financial loss totalled between £70,000 and £120,000, but the emotional harm was "at the heart of the criminality".
He added: "The vast majority of the funds have thus far been frittered away by the defendant.
"The defendant has enjoyed a high standard of living. He's travelled abroad. He's spent his money gambling. He is an utterly selfish man."
McDonald admitted five counts of fraud - but he refused to come out of his cell to face his victims in court.
Three of the women stood in the witness box and gave heart-rending accounts of the devastating impact of McDonald's deceit on their lives.
He had a record of "relentless offending" with identical crimes earning him more than a decade's worth of prison sentences before.
The judge jailed him for seven-and-a-half years and gave him an indefinite restraining order banning him from contacting the five women or going with 500m of their homes.
CoronavirusNo masks, no rules: Are we giving up trying to control covid?Key figures across Teesside offer their views as we start the process of 'living with the virus'
Steve's micro-bar plans for Darlington bottle shop after success in Stockton
DarlingtonSteve Claxton used to restore classic cars, now he runs Top of the Hops in Darlington and Stockton
'Perhaps if it was a Waitrose': Outrage remains at Lidl plans but some just want a different supermarket
LidlThere are mixed views on whether residents would boycott the Lidl


text:
** Kristian Phillip Valentino ** Live on 103.3 Asheville FM – Positive Vibes' Early Morning Music Sessions – Tuesday, June 14th from 9-10a * / www.ashevillefm.org
June 13, 2022 by DJ Smittymon
Related Show: Positive Vibes
Tune in by 9am this Tuesday – June 14th and join DJSmittymon as he welcomes special guest – local Asheville singer / songwriter Kristian Phillip Valentino to the AshevilleFM studio for a mix of live performance and talk on this weeks segment of Positive Vibes' Early Morning Music Sessions
Kristian has just released a new album titled – "For Everything There is a Season"
Kristian Phillip Valentino is a solo acoustic, singer-songwriter born and raised in the Chicago suburbs and now residing in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. His musical palette falls between the lines of indie folk, singer-songwriter and Americana. Fans of Gregory Alan Isakov, Iron and Wine and Jason Isbell, will feel comfortable here. His lyrics are a healing balm from the daily struggle as they wash over you with a deep reverence.
Kristian's newest album is a concept record based on the 4 seasons; Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. The plot is a love story that starts in Spring and weaves through the seasons leading to a breakup in the Winter. There are 12 songs on the full length album, 3 for each season and each season's sound is different than the last.
Kristian wrote this album in 7 days, to process a relationship that had ended. Although it ends as a sad story, it's a story that will resonate with many others and hopefully can be a healing balm of hope
more info at: @kpvsongs.com
Tuesday 8-1o am / AshevilleFM 103.3


text:
Pantheon movie of the month - A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS
What is a Pantheon movie? A movie whose every component is perfection; the combination of which is greater than the sum of its parts; and whose perfection is untouched by the intervening years. A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS is not just a Pantheon movie; it's a deeply relevant, deeply personal film for me.
The subject matter is the bedrock to its greatness. A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS is one of those films that perfectly articulates a rupture in a nation's intellectual and political life. More particularly, it has that rarest of things as its protagnists - a hero who is also a warm, loving, witty man. We are in Tudor England and Henry VIII is desperate for a male heir. His desperation leads him to betray the Church of which he was a staunch Defender. The nobles, Bishops and Universities all assent to a parliamentary decree making Henry supreme governor of the Church in England. That Church gives him a divorce and then marries him to Anne Boleyn. This is not simply a sacrifice of principle to statescraft. After all, one might rightly have criticised the Catholic Church for its corruption. However, Henry's Cardinal Wolsey makes it clear that English political expediency trumps all.
Against such turbulent times, step forward Thomas More, an honest lawyer. ("When was there last a Chancellor whose possessions after three years in office totaled one hundred pounds and a gold chain?") While friend to the king, his integrity prevents him from publicly assenting to the Act of Succession or approving of Henry's marriage to Anne. But as a loyal subject he will not publicly denounce Henry. Instead, he aims to tread a tightrope of silence and absence from public life. More is clever and witty but he is also naive. His wife, Lady Alice, points this out. The establishment will not allow More to sit quietly. "His silence bellows" because he is known to be honest. Thus we see a slow grinding of the wheels of state - More is thrown in the Tower of London and, when Richard Rich perjures himself, More is executed.
Screen-writer Robert Bolt (LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, DOCTOR ZHIVAGO) crafts a brilliant drama out of this superb material. He captures More's bizarre mix of intellect and naivety. He is careful to show Henry's close relationship with More early in the film, but equally careful to keep Henry absent in the latter half. Henry is too careful - too squeamish - to prosecute More directly. I also like what he does with the minor characters - essaying their character quirks very quickly. There's a great scene where Henry meets More's daughter Meg for the first time. More is known for having eccentrically educated his daughter. Henry tests her on her latin and she responds in fluent, eloquent latin. As she rattles on, Henry loses interest and actually turns away. His ego has been piqued. He turns back, showing off his fine calf! Pure machismo!
But for me, the best innovation is Robert Bolt's handling of the relationship between More and Richard Rich. Rich is a poor boy of ignoble birth but he knows that his intellect can propel him to greatness, Wolsey-style. He begs More for employment, because he knows that he is of weak character, and will be tempted by worse men. More seems fatally dismissive, and casually suggests that Rich becomes a teacher, so putting himself out of temptation's path. But Rich wants power, and eventually will sell himself for a rich position, Attorney-General of Wales. This prompts two of the more profound but also most witty of More's exchanges:
Sir Thomas More: Why not be a teacher? You'd be a fine teacher; perhaps a great one.
Richard Rich: If I was, who would know it?
Sir Thomas More: You; your pupils; your friends; God. Not a bad public, that.
Sir Thomas More: Why Richard, it profits a man nothing to give his soul for the whole world... but for Wales?
The subject matter of this film is, then, of the highest importance: moral conscience versus state expediency. But there is also an exchange in this film that speaks more loudly to contemporary audiences, especially those who do not watch the film as hagiography. Even for me, as a Catholic, the following exchange is the most resonant and personally affecting in the film. Richard Rich has just left More and More's family are desperate for Rich to be arrested. They are right. Rich s a dangerous, traiterous man and will eventually do for More. But More refuses to arrest him. So follows an exchange that defines for me the battle between "security" and "liberty" and comes down firmly in favour of the latter. It is the exchange that defines my views on this issue to this day, especially in the context of the War on Terror.
William Roper: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law!
Sir Thomas More: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?
William Roper: Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that!
Sir Thomas More: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!
The story and script make A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS a Pantheon film but it takes great direction and acting to breathe life into an intellectual, abstract film. Fred Zinnemann (OKLAHOMA!, FROM HERE TO ETERNITY) knows better than to distract from the script with flashy camera angles or over-wrought emotional displays. He also assembles a perfect cast. Zinnemann had the balls to eschew higher-wattage actors (Charlton Heston, Laurence Olivier, Alec Guinness) in favour of class British thesp Paul Schofield in the role of Thomas More. He surrounds him with exeptional character actors - notably Wendy Hiller as Lady Alice More and Leo McKern as Thomas Cromwell. In the minor parts, he casts actors who would go on to be great, showing his eye for talent. So we have John Hurt as Rich, Susannah York as Margaret More, Corin Redgrave as William Roper and Vanessa Redgrave as Anne Boleyn. Robert Shaw is also fantastic as Henry VIII. Where Zinnemann does go for a big name, there is no sense of compromise. A bloated, domineering, insidious Orson Welles embodies the realpolitik of Cardinal Wolsey. Apart from the casting, the technical aspects of the film are well-handled, with nicely photographed colour shots of the river and costume design all winning Oscars.
All in all, A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS is one of those films that engages you on an emotional and intellectual level and has the capability to change the way in which you think about the bed-rock issues of life. It's a shame that it sometimes gets cast as a movie for Catholics or history buffs. After all, the battles between Church and State; private and public morality; state security and individual liberty; remain painfully relevant today.
A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS was originally released in 1966. It won the Oscar for Best Film (Fred Zinneman), Best Director (Fred Zinneman), Best Actor (Paul Scofield), Best Cinematography (Ted Moore), Best Costume Design (Elizabeth Haffenden, Joan Bridge), Best Screenplay (Robert Bolt.) In addition, Robert Shaw and Wendy Hiller were nominated for their supporting roles. The film is widely available on DVD.
Labels: corin redgrave, fred zinnemann, john hurt, orson welles, pantheon, paul scofield, politics, religion, robert bolt, susannah york, vanessa redgrave
If Bina007 ruled the world...or at the very least,...
Crimes Against Cinema: The Ten Most Piss-Poor Movi...
The Twelve Most Spine-Tinglingly Awesome Moments o...
Best of 2007 and worst of 2008?
ST TRINIAN'S - clearly leery, but still rather fun
BALLS OF FURY - quite depressingly piss-poor
9th COMPANY/9 ROTA - Full Metal Jacket in Afghanistan
WE ARE MARSHALL - self-consciously manipulative TV...
GRIDIRON GANG - perfectly respectable sports flick
AUTUMN SONATA/HOSTSONATEN - Bergman meets Bergman
GOODBYE BAFANA - earnest but superficial and dull
BRATZ - THE MOVIE - better than you might think; s...
Random TV review - HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 1 & 2
A COMEDY OF POWER/L'IVRESSE DU POUVOIR - thin
Early review from Al - I AM LEGEND
WE OWN THE NIGHT - exceptional cop thriller cum fa...
YOUTH WITHOUT YOUTH reminds us how good Tim Roth r...
PARANOID PARK - accessible, derivative
London Film Fest Day 12 (late review) - SILENT LIG...
THE KILLING OF JOHN LENNON - cruel chance
I WANT CANDY - bizarrely panned Brit comedy
FRED CLAUS - great cast undone by lazy script
THE MAGIC FLUTE is shoe-horned into a clumsy conceit
THE GOLDEN COMPASS aka The Gutless Cop-Out
Kids flick preview 2: MR MAGORIUM'S WONDER EMPORIUM
Kids flick preview 1: ENCHANTED
THE NINES - tricksy, smart, but not quite convincing


Interim Report Third Quarter and First Nine Months of 2014 Allianz Group8 Income taxes Income taxes decreased by € 114 mn to € 632 mn, despite higher income before income taxes. The effective tax rate decreased to 27.2 % (3Q 2013: 32.8 %). The lower tax rate is especially due to one-off tax benefitsforcurrentandpreviousyearsamountingintotalto€ 158 mn as previously described, that are fully allocated to policyholders. Overall, there is no impact on operating profit or on shareholders' net income. These one-off tax benefits result from a favorable court deci- sion received in the third quarter of 2014 for a trial initiated by Allianz Leben in Germany. Absent this effect, the effective tax rate would have been approximately 32 %. In the first nine months of 2014, income taxes decreased by € 74 mn to € 2,373 mn and the effective tax rate decreased to 31.0 % (9M 2013: 32.8 %), mainly due to one-off tax benefits. Net income 2014 to 2013 third quarter comparison Net income increased by € 157 mn to € 1,687 mn, driven primarily by our higher operating result and lower non-operating impairments. Net income attributable to shareholders and non-controlling interests amounted to € 1,606 mn (3Q 2013: € 1,445 mn) and € 81 mn (3Q 2013: € 85 mn), respectively. The largest non-controlling interests in net income related to Euler Hermes and PIMCO. Basic earnings per share increased from € 3.19 to € 3.54 and diluted earnings per share increased from € 3.14 to € 3.52. For further infor- mation on earnings per share, please refer to note 39 to the con- densed consolidated interim financial statements. 2014 to 2013 first Nine Months comparison Net income increased by € 279 mn to € 5,285 mn, driven primarily by our higher operating result. Net income attributable to shareholders and non-controlling interests amounted to € 5,002 mn (9M 2013: € 4,740 mn) and € 283 mn (9M 2013: € 267 mn), respectively.


British consultants hoping to project-manage the construction of London's Olympic masterplan have expressed disquiet that several foreign firms are bidding for the contract.
The London Development Agency has recently published an Official Journal notice to recruit a consultant to look after the whole of the Olympic site should the capital's bid be successful. The LDA is also looking for a designer for the Olympic stadium, which is to be located in the lower Lea Valley in east London.
Mace is currently working for the LDA overseeing construction programming arrangements for the 2012 bid. However, foreign-owned project management firms such as Bechtel and Fluor Daniel are expected to bid to oversee the entire construction programme, if London wins the 2012 Games. It is also understood that Bovis Lend Lease will bid for the contract.
UK-based firms looking to win the bid are unhappy that such an iconic contract for London could go to a foreign company. It is understood that behind-the-scenes negotiations are going on to promote the case for British firms, however under European Union competition rules, a public sector contract must be open to all bidders.
The LDA has posted a document on its website inviting firms to complete a pre-qualifying questionnaire. It says that the contract would come under the remit of a new body called the Olympic Delivery Authority.
He added that the 1 million people who have formally registered their support for the bid "recognise the wider benefits the Games would bring to the UK – improved infrastructure and the regeneration of a large area of east London".
"They can also see the wonderful legacy that would be left after the games – fantastic sports facilities in London and across the rest of the UK, thousands of affordable homes, business facilities, excellent training centres … the list goes on and on".
The role would include: the pre-Olympic construction phase, from when the schemes receive planning permission to their completion; the Olympics Games phase, running up to 2012; and the legacy phase, when temporary facilities are transformed.
Bidders are required to respond to the questionnaire by 20 May. A winner is expected to be appointed in August and the contract will last from then until 31 December 2013.


text:
<resources>

    <!-- Base application theme. -->
    <style name="AppTheme" parent="@style/Theme.AppCompat.NoActionBar">
        <item name="windowNoTitle">true</item>
        <item name="fontPath">fonts/Roboto-Regular.ttf</item>
        <item name="android:textViewStyle">@style/AppTheme.Widget.TextView</item>
        <item name="android:windowContentTransitions">true</item>
        <item name="android:windowAllowEnterTransitionOverlap">true</item>
        <item name="android:windowAllowReturnTransitionOverlap">true</item>
        <item name="android:windowSharedElementEnterTransition">@android:transition/move</item>
        <item name="android:windowSharedElementExitTransition">@android:transition/move</item>

        <!-- Customize your theme here. -->
        <!-- Set AppCompat's color theming attrs -->

        <item name="colorPrimary">@color/blue_grey_500</item>
        <item name="colorPrimaryDark">@color/blue_grey_700</item>
        <item name="android:textColorSecondary">#fff</item>
    </style>

    <style name="ActionBarPopupThemeOverlay" parent="ThemeOverlay.AppCompat.Light" >
        <item name="android:background">#fff</item>
        <item name="android:textColor">#000</item>
    </style>

    <style name="AppTheme.Widget.TextView" parent="android:Widget.Holo.Light.TextView">
        <item name="fontPath">fonts/Roboto-Regular.ttf</item>
    </style>

    <style name="Font">
        <item name="fontPath">fonts/Roboto-Regular.ttf</item>
    </style>

</resources>


text:
Q: Copy Data From Dynamic Column To Another Dynamic Column in the Same Workbook I have a workbook with dynamic log sheet that performs calculations on data entered by the user. I would like specific dynamic columns copied from this log sheet to another sheet in the workbook for graphing purposes. This copy would only be for values and mainly is done to make it easier to run a final macro for producing a XY scatter plot. However, I am getting an object error and am not sure why this is happening. Thank you in advance for any and all help. Could you please help me figure out the best way to accomplish this task? Here is my current VBA:
Sub UpdateCharts()
Dim sourceSheet As Worksheet
Dim targetSheet As Worksheet
Dim sourcelRow As Long
Dim targetlRow As Long

Set sourceSheet = ThisWorkbook.Worksheets("Inventory Log")
Set targetSheet = ThisWorkbook.Worksheets("Tables")
sourcelRow = sourceSheet.Cells(Rows.Count, 1).End(xlUp).Offset(-1, 0).Row
targetlRow = targetSheet.Cells(Row.Count, 6).End(xlDown).Offset(1, 0).Row

sourceSheet.Cells(sourcelRow, 1).Copy
targetSheet.Cells(targetSheet, 6).PasteSpecial xlPasteValues

End Sub

A: There are several errors/typos in your code:

*

*you should always use explicit referencing

*Row and Rows are two different commands

*to retrieve the last row you should always use the same function

*you don't need to copy/paste values - you can write them directly to

You could e.g. use this function to retrieve the last row of a sheet and columnIndex:
Public Function getLastRow(ws As Worksheet, columnIndex As Long) As Long
With ws
    getLastRow = .Cells(.Rows.Count, columnIndex).End(xlUp).Row
End With
End Function

Then your code would look like this
Sub UpdateCharts()
Dim sourceSheet As Worksheet
Dim targetSheet As Worksheet
Dim sourcelRow As Long
Dim targetlRow As Long

Set sourceSheet = ThisWorkbook.Worksheets("Inventory Log")
Set targetSheet = ThisWorkbook.Worksheets("Tables")

sourcelRow = getLastRow(sourceSheet, 1)
targetlRow = getLastRow(targetSheet, 6) + 1 'adding 1 row to have the next empty row

targetSheet.Cells(targetlRow, 6).Value = sourceSheet.Cells(sourcelRow, 1).Value

End Sub


Everyone in Austin is in love with Tinder.
South by Southwest is an annual technology, film, and music conference in Austin, Texas. It's in full swing right now; tens of thousands of investors, entrepreneurs, writers, and early adopters have flown south to catch a glimpse of the Next Big Thing.
In previous years, Foursquare, Twitter, and Skype-owned GroupMe broke out during the conference. Each gave conference goers a better way to communicate and find friends during their time in Austin.
This year, the break out app seems to be Tinder, and it was already up-and-coming before the conference.
No one is using it in Austin, but everyone is talking about the Hot-or-Not dating app, from Ashton Kutcher to Path's Dave Morin.
We've even heard extremely bullish investors describe it as "the next Facebook."
Others think Tinder is a fleeting fad, like Chat Roulette was, but they're still fascinated by it. A group of investors we ate with Saturday talked about it over dinner. All admitted to using it and loving it.
What's amazing is that Tinder hasn't had a physical presence at South by Southwest at all. Its co-founder is speaking Tuesday at one of the smaller conference venues, but the startup hasn't thrown any outrageous parties or done anything to attract attention.
Tinder is a simple dating app that anonymously finds out who thinks you're attractive nearby. If you happen to think the other person is good looking too, it offers an intro. If not, the person never knows you weren't a fan. Before we left for South by Southwest a venture capital warned us: "Tinder is one of the most sought after deals right now."
It seems like that person was right. Profiles have been rated more than 1.5 billion times on the app.
We polled a few other people to see what startups were getting a lot of use at South by Southwest. Investor David Tisch told us about one of his portfolio companies, Splash. Splash has been used by companies instead of Eventbrite to throw parties and track RSVPs in Austin. Instead of just collecting ticket sales, Splash allows you to make an entire event website quickly.
Others are using old South by Southwest favorites GroupMe, Foursquare, and Highlight.


text:
Home » Website » International » 7 Policemen Killed In Afghanistan In 2 Separate Attacks, Including Suicide Bombing
7 Policemen Killed In Afghanistan In 2 Separate Attacks, Including Suicide Bombing
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but both the Taliban and the Islamic State group are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar.
Associated Press (AP)	07 July 2020
A damaged bicycle is seen at the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghan police say a suicide bomber blew himself up in front of a bus carrying Ministry of Mines employees.
Associated Press (AP)	2020-07-07T18:45:03+05:30 7 Policemen Killed In Afghanistan In 2 Separate Attacks, Including Suicide Bombing
A suicide car bomber targeted an Afghan police convoy in eastern Nangarhar province on Tuesday morning, killing four officers, including a police commander, a local official said.
Three other officers were killed in an attack in the country's south.
The suicide bombing, which struck at a market in the district of Khewa, also wounded 11 people — nine civilians and two members of the security forces, according to Attahullah Khogyani, the spokesman for the provincial governor.
He identified the slain commander as Mir Zaman; the other three officers were Zaman's bodyguards.
Afghanistan has seen a recent spike in violence, with most attacks claimed by the local IS affiliate.
Earlier in May in the same district, an IS suicide bomber targeted the funeral of a pro-government militia commander and former warlord, killing 32 people and wounding 133. The dead in that attack included Abdullah Lala Jan, a provincial council member.
His father, Noor Agha, a lawmaker, was wounded in the attack.
Also Tuesday, at least three policemen were killed and three were wounded in southern Zabul province when insurgents attacked their convoy in Shinkia district, authorities said, blaming the Taliban for the attack.
The Afghan military has also been launching attacks against the Taliban the Defense Ministry has so far refused to give details. The Taliban did not immediately comment on the attacks in Zabul.
After India, US Looking At Banning TikTok, Other Chinese Apps
Associated Press (AP)	Afghanistan	Suicide Bomber	International
Kamala Harris Sworn In As First Woman Vice President Of The United States
Madrid Blast Kills 2; Apparently Linked To Gas Leak: Mayor
Donald Trump Leaves White House For The Last Time As US President


Last time out we looked at market design, as a solution to who gets what.
We'll also touch on the similarities between the looming technological revolution and the consequences of globalisation which are now being resisted by those most affected.
We'll start with globalisation. My jumping-off point here is a recent paper by the World Economic Forum, which I came across on Medium.
The end of the Cold War, China's embrace of (a form of) capitalism, and the internet3 means that people are also more connected than ever.
But within previously rich countries, the middle class and poor haven't done so well.
Sure, increasing trade with developing countries and cheap labour means that lots of goods and services are cheaper than ever.
But globalisation has put pressure on first-world jobs, which have been increasingly automated, shipped abroad or taken by immigrants.
Real wages have been stagnant for 25 years and social mobility has been reduced.
The "trickle down" never happened.
And so now we have the rise of populist, nativist movements – on both the political left and right – throughout the rich world, hoping to put some of those old barriers back in place.
Our second perspective for looking at who gets what and why is a paper with that same subtitle by Michael Norton.
The paper's actual title is Unequality, which is Norton's name for the type of inequality that most people in the West4 are prepared to tolerate – that is, inequality of outcomes.
All kinds of people – left- and right-wing, poor and rich – support inequality.
The question is how much unequality?
Economic inequality is one of the major incentives towards work and productivity in capitalism.
Everyone receiving the same outcome would likely impact people's willingness to work hard to improve their situation.
Yet it's also likely that too much inequality – being "locked out" from sharing in the success of wider society – would have the same effect.
As well as work behaviour, levels of inequality can be expected to impact voter acceptance of the policies around inequality – taxation, welfare, and spending on things like education and healthcare.
There is also evidence that ethical behaviour will deteriorate as unequality increases.
As we've already noted, inequality in the west – as measured by incomes and net worth – has been rising for several decades.
Despite this there's been little work on what the optimum level of inequality should be.
Norton's research uses a game where volunteers get to play dictator on a desert island.
He asks people to describe by quintile how US wealth is distributed.
Then he asks them to say how they would allocate wealth on their island.
On average people think that the richest 20% own 60%, but should own 30%.
People think that the poorest 20% own 4%, but should own 10%.
The real answers show a much more skewed distribution: the top 20% own 85% of wealth and the bottom 20% own only 0.1% of wealth.
Of course, using wealth rather than income means that you are almost certain to get a result like this.
Even if incomes were flattened completely, some people would spend every penny they received, and end up with no wealth at the end of the year.
Others would save and accumulate.
There's no unfairness in this unequality.
It's also worth pointing out that the public's ideal wealth distribution is flawed and has serious consequences.
The distribution itself shows real anchoring problems to the 20% bands used to allocate the wealth.
The top 20% are given 30% of the wealth (1.5 times the average).
The bottom 20% are given 10% of the wealth (0.5 times the average).
And in the UK at least, a further complication is the economic dominance of London – not just of the UK, but of Europe – and the consequent wide variation in land values across the country.
A house in the London street I live in costs twenty times the price of the house I grew up in (in Manchester), despite being only slightly larger.
Official statistics in the UK usually divide wealth by households, but I found some figures from 2014 showing wealth per head of £147K.
The public's ideal distribution would mean that those in the poorest 20% would each have £73K, while those in the top 20% would be worth £220K.
A world like this is hard to imagine, and to say that the social upheaval required to achieve it would be counter-productive is a massive understatement.
Trying to equalise wealth is a fool's errand, but we can certainly do more about incomes.
Executive pay is one of the major public symbols of unequality.
The second game that Norton and his fellow researchers use involves people guessing the pay of CEOs and unskilled workers, then saying what they would like them to be.
Americans guessed the ratio to be 30:1, and would like it to be 7:1.
In fact, the ratio of CEO pay to unskilled labour pay has now reached 354:1 in the US.
One factor not reported by Norton is whether these figures are post-tax or pre-tax (more on this below).
The problem with using executive pay as a proxy for inequality is that there are so few executives.
In practice, a person's experience of inequality relates more to the Jones' down the street than to a billionaire living on a private island.
The recent focus on the "1%" versus the "99%" is not only inaccurate (it's more like the 0.1% vs the 99.9%) but also runs the risk of ignoring the practical aspects of income redistribution.
The income ratio between the 20th percentile and the 80th percentile is a much more realistic way to look at unequality.
That said, getting from 354:1 down to 7:1 on pay is at least conceivable (though it is not the case in any developed economy), whereas the idealised net worth targets are impossible to imagine.
For the UK, with the minimum wage set to be £15K pa by 2020, this would set a pay ceiling of £105K pa.
If we make the further assumption that the 7:1 ratio is post-tax, then the pre-tax pay ceiling might rise towards £200K, which is almost realistic.
It's well-known from behavioural psychology that losses hurt more than gains (loss aversion).
The same appears to be true for wages and productivity.
There's also research to show that poor people make worse financial decisions partly because of the scarcity they face, rather than them just being "bad with money".
Poor people take too many risks (they borrow more, save less and actually gamble) in order to get out from the bottom.
Norton calls this "last-place aversion".
It's also the case that the very rich take too many risks (the "house money" effect).
So a more unequal distribution leads to more risky behaviour in society.
Poor people give more to charity than the middle classes (the very rich give more as well).
On the other hand, those paid less to complete experiments are more likely to cheat in order to earn the same as others.
Those paid more often cheat in reverse, to restore equity.
Research also shows that richer people have less empathy for others.
This is partly because people who have done well want to take the credit for it, and that means "blaming" those who have not done well.
It's also down to last-place aversion – the middle classes need to have someone beneath them to feel good.
Real world evidence for this includes people paid just above minimum wage not wanting the rate to increase such that it engulfs them with the "last-place" wage.
Negative effects of too much inequality include lower productivity, poor decision-making and more unethical behaviour.
The public supports unequality, but not too much.
Their aspirations for net worth levelling are unimplementable, and those for income levelling barely practical.
We could move relatively easily in the direction of income levelling via the tax system.
But what of the root cause we discussed at the top of the page?
What can be done to make globalisation's effects acceptable?
higher welfare and state pensions.
But what if "the losers" reject this offer (assuming it can be paid for in the first place)?
What if they don't want to be better compensated losers?
Left-wingers also point to the greater support for trade and globalisation amongst younger and non-white voters.
But what if this youthful idealism disappears in the face of a growing realisation that globalisation won't supply the good life they feel that they were promised?
The service jobs they are likely to aspire to can soon be transferred just as easily to other countries – or to machines – as were the manufacturing jobs of their parents.
The lesson from Brexit is that controls on immigration are the least that the disaffected demand.
But how will these help when automation, robots and AI reproduce the effects of globalisation from within?


When you go camping for the first time, you may not know what to expect. You'll have lots of questions and worries running through your head.
There are lots of learning experiences to be had, for sure, especially if you are learning everything by trial and error.
Take a friend along who has been camping before, to help things go a little more smoothly. Or you could do a practice camp out in your backyard to make sure you are ready for the real thing!
There are sure to be lots of funny moments and frustrating ones, too. But by the time your camping trip is over, its exhilarating to realize that you've actually done it!
And when it's time to pack up and go home, you suddenly realize that home is a very wonderful place to be. It's great to get back and rediscover all the modern conveniences!
Your first camp out could be your worst camping trip… It seems like everything that can go wrong, does. So don't be discouraged. It WILL be better next time!
Or it could turn out to be the best camping trip you'll ever have. Everything turns out great. You wonder, "Can it get any better?"
First time campers may be a little unsure about everything, but by the time they're done camping, they've joined the confident campers club!
Go camping whether you know everything or not. Just do your best to have fun through it all.
And I'll bet that your first time camping won't be your last!
Next Step: Want to tell us What happened on YOUR first camping trip?
Build your very own camping webpage with a story that you have written yourself!


When it comes to classic spots in Paris, Printemps department store is definitely worth a visit. Having opened its doors to the public in 1865 and located at the oh-so chic intersection of Boulevard Haussmann and Le Havre, the age and address alone are impressive.
But throw in the fact that they have recently unveiled a new gourmet food hall known as Printemps du Goût and, well, it may just be our favorite food address in Paris right now.
Directly translated, Printemps means "spring," which reflects the founders' desire for the store to rejuvenate, vigorate, and blossom like the season itself. Situated in the heart of Paris, the store is admired for its Art Nouveau style of architecture (you've probably spotted its beautiful domes on your Instagram feed,) and its façade has been recognized as a Historic Monument by the French State.
In January of this year, the store unveiled its gourmet food store Printemps du Goût once again showing its spirit for renewal. Taking up nearly 900 square meters across two floors within the Printemps Homme building, this new gourment food shop is a force. Some would argue that this new gourmet shop in Paris is long overdue: competitor high-end department stores Le Bon Marché and Galeries Lafayette have long had impressive food halls. But one look at Printemps du Goût and it's clear that Printemps has been keeping a pretty big ace up its sleeve.
This gourmet food store is a welcome addition to the Paris food scene and the fruit of two years' hard work. And Printemps du Goût is on a mission and that mission is to share a love for French terroir. That means everything available across the store is 100% made in France. The team tireleslly travelled the country to discover lesser-known French producers, making its final selection of products based on the best results from blind taste tests. Pretty impressive when you consider that there are over two thousand gourmet food products available in store, right?
It doesn't hurt that Printemps du Goût has teamed up with four titans of the French food scene: Baker Gontran Chérier; cheesemonger Laurent Dubois; pastry chef Christophe Michalak; and chef Akrame Benallal. They dominate the 8th floor of the gourmet shop in Paris, a dining space for fish, meat, and vegetable dishes, as well as pastries and sweet treats.
The space combines traditional seating with countertops, giving you a window into the hustle and bustle of the kitchen. The setting is chic and understated so everyone is welcome and no one is overdressed. Dining bonus: enjoy a panoramic view of Paris that shows off some of the city's most well-known and beautiful landmarks.
Head to the deli on the 7th floor and discover some of the best contemporary French brands that would look great in your kitchen cabinet (or in a friend's gift basket.) There are several stands in this gourmet shop in Paris that you may already be familiar with: Lomi (coffee); Juicerie (fresh salads and juices); Le Palais des Thés (tea); and La Maison du Chocolat to name but a few. But the fun is in finding new artisan producers among the aisles and there's some great packaging design to enjoy.
For French wine aficionados, we advise you to drop by the wine cellar - impressive enough to rival Lafayette Gourmand - and celebrate your Parisian holiday with some bubbles in the teeny-tiny Champagne bar. And finally there's the library, which is Heaven for those of you with some space on your shelf at home for a recipe book or two.
Bravo to Printemps du Goût for taking an active part in the improvement of the French food scene. We look forward to seeing how the space settles after another month or so and our taste buds are already tingling at the idea of attending upcoming tasting sessions, as well as meeting with French food and wine makers. To discover more, visit the Printemps website. À bientôt!
Louise is a British expat based in Paris since 2009. Working in marketing by day and moonlighting as a freelance writer, Louise has a weakness for cocktails and independent bookstores, seeking them out whenever she travels to a new city. Read more about her Paris life on Lou in Paris, or visit her Instagram, which mostly features French pâtisserie and Parisian façades!


Day Surgery Australia is the official journal of the Australian Day Surgery Nurses Association. This fully refereed journal is published three times per year and 1500 copies of each edition are distributed to day surgery nurses and clinicians throughout Australia, as well as to universities and nursing colleges.
The journal reflects current practice and reports on new Australian and international trends and developments in the day surgery field. In addition to clinically oriented material, DSA provides a forum for research reports, discussion papers and networking.


Camping Cala Llevado is a beautifully situated cliff-side site, enjoying fine views of the sea and coast below, it is shaped something like half a bowl with steep slopes. High up on the site, with a superb aspect, is the attractive restaurant/bar with a large terrace overlooking the pleasant swimming pool directly below. There are terraced, flat areas for caravans and tents (with 10/16A electricity) on the upper levels of the two slopes, with a great many individual pitches for tents scattered around the site. Some of these pitches have fantastic settings and views. The site is unsuitable for campers with disabilities. In some areas cars may be required to park separately.
Four very well equipped toilet blocks are immaculately maintained and well spaced around the site. Baby baths. Laundry facilities. Motorcaravan services. Gas supplies. Fridge hire. Large supermarket. Restaurant/bar (5/5-28/9). Swimming and paddling pools. Three play areas. Botanic garden. New amphitheatre (2011) with entertainment for children and adults. Sailing, water skiing and windsurfing school. Fishing. Bicycle hire. Excursions. Internet access and WiFi (charged). Torches definitely needed in some areas.
Located 3km from the medieval and fishermen village of Tossa de Mar, just in the south of the Costa Brava. In the region of La Selva, at 45' of Girona, 70' of Figueres and 80' of Barcelona.
Emporda and Garrotxa are among other areas of great tourist and cultural: Olot Volcanic Area, Lake of Banyoles, the Ruines d'Empúries, Emporda wetlands, centers Bisbal Ceramic and Quart, Montseny, and the mountain of Montserrat. And of course, the Vila Vella and Musueum of Tossa de Mar, the Cathedral of Girona, the Dali Museum in Figueres and the Museum Picasso, Miro, Tapies, Romanesque and Gothic Art in Barcelona.
If you are travelling by the AP-7 motorway take the exit n.9, follow the direction to Sant Feliu de Guixols. At about 5 km off the exit of the motorway you will see the way to the right to Tossa de Mar, road GI-681. When you arrive to Tossa take the road GI-682 to Lloret de Mar. 3 km after Tossa you will see km. 18,9 with access to Camping Cala Llevado. Then you have to go all the way down to get the gate and Reception.