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January 9, 2017 Chris Unthank Features 0
Welcome to the annual feature where we at AbsolutelyGospel.com list our favorite recordings of the year. The albums here may not have been rated in our album reviews as the best of the year – but they were definitely among our favorite. Perennial favorites like 11th Hour, The Isaacs, Tribute, and Gaither Vocal Band show up again, as well as new faces like Cana's Voice, Second Half Quartet, and Jody McBrayer.
Deon Unthank
Chris Freeman
The Hinson Side of Me
GoldenVine Records
Chris Freeman spent her early years with the Hinsons, in fact when you say Hinsons, I automatically think of the version with Chris Freeman involved. Just talk to her for a few moments and you sill see that she still has a great respect for her six years spent with the Hinsons. Chris is joined by several guest artists including Weston Hinson, Bo Hinson, Ronny Hinson, Mike Bowling, the Isaacs and others, as she puts her own spin on these Hinson classics. She certainly puts her own touch to these old classics which adds a fresh flavor to all of the songs. My favorites on the CD include "That I Could Still Go Free," "Ain't That What It's All About," and "I Never Shall Forget The Day."
What a Moment
Sonlite Records/Crossroads Music Group
This bright young group is making great strides in their career in Gospel Music. They are vibrant and exciting to watch in person, but that same excitement comes through their recordings. Garnering two #1 songs from this CD is further evidence to where they are headed in this world of Southern Gospel Music. My favorites include "Mountain Moving Faith," "Can You Burn," and "When God Shows Up."
Daywind Records
I truly love good quartet singing, but I really get into it when the quartet gets a little progressive in their sound and that is exactly what Tribute has done with this recording. They have kept a couple of three chords and a cloud of dust songs, but they have really shown that they can master far more sophisticated music than just four men and a piano. Riley Clark just simply does some pretty singing, while Josh Singletary shows he has developed into a singer who sings from his heart. Gary Casto keeps showing us what a Lead singer is supposed to do, and Anthony Davis shows out on some really nice, smooth Bass singing. My Favorites from this CD include "Nothing Stops The Savior's Love," "Never Forsaken," and "That's How I Know."
HIGHROAD
Somwhere I'm Going
Somewhere I'm Going
This young group of ladies is making a big splash on the Southern Gospel/Bluegrass scene. Pairing with some of the heavyweight songwriters in the industry has proven to give them some dynamic songs to work with, and add to that mix Ben Isaacs producing the CD they have one easy to listen to project. With plenty of variety on this CD, it wasn't hard to find several tunes that I really liked. Adding their own touch to some of the arrangements makes this a CD that I want to listen to over and over again. My favs on this one include "Christ My Hope, My Glory" (featuring Jason Crabb), "I'd Rather Have Jesus," and "Don't It Feel Good."
The Isaacs
Nature's Symphony in 432
This family group never ceases to amaze me with their talents. This CD proves to be more than just an experiment in recording tuning, it proves to be an adventure in songs which reach out and touch hurting people in all of life's circumstances. Passing through many of these circumstances themselves, the Isaacs lend a personal touch and feel to each song. My favorite songs include "I Love You More," "Keep Breathing," and "Rocks."
Chris D. Unthank
I've never in my life heard a more gut-wrenching and emotional moving record in all my years of working in this field. The Isaacs' delve deep in the world of hurt and pain and the healing that can only come through belief in Jesus Christ. Each vocalist emotes more than I've ever heard on a previous recording by this dynamic family band. Check out cuts like "I Love You More," "If This Is What It Takes," and "Keep Breathing" for some of this group's best work to date.
Cana's Voice
StowTown Records
What do you get when you add three dynamic performers who all have an impressive musical resume to begin with and put them in the studio together? A fun, engaging, and impressive debut album. Cana's Voice's debut can feel a big disjointed at times due to it's varied musical styles, but when you get as great performers as Jody McBrayer, TaRanda Greene and Doug Anderson in on it, it's nothing short of fantastic.
Jim Brady Trio
The Jim Brady Trio, much like the Booth Brothers, do an amazing job of straddling the fence between traditional and progressive Southern Gospel music. Promises finds itself in the same vein and is the group's stellar follow-up to the AGM Award-winning debut album A New Chapter. There's a lot to like on Promises, particularly Melissa Brady's vocal prowess and highly underrated songwriting skills. There's a reason this group shot to the top so quickly, and Promises helps solidify their stay there.
The Nelons
Family Harmony
The Nelons took a big leap of faith this year by releasing not one, but two new projects on Daywind Records. While both great recordings, Family Harmony managed to barely edge out it's sister project Stronger Together. Jason Clark's impeccable production work really helps this project stand out amidst a slew of new releases this year. It's only a matter of time before he's one of the premier producers in this arena.
Ball Brothers
Song Garden Music Group
While the Jim Brady Trio finds itself walking a fine line between traditional and progressive, the Ball Brothers are a leader when it comes to breaking new ground and making waves in the progressive SG world. Dynamic continues down the path that Breakthrough took them down, utilizing sounds like big band, pop, and standards to create a sound all their own.
Doug Anderson – The Only One (StowTown Records)
11th Hour – What a Moment (Sonlite Records)
HIGHROAD – Somewhere I'm Going (Independent)
Tribute – Here For You (Daywind Records)
The Erwins – Only Faith Can See (StowTown Records)
James Hales
Head Reviewer
Jody McBrayer
Keep Breathing
I was a fan of Jody McBrayer back during his days with Avalon and was thrilled to see him back singing again. This was an excellent piece of work by one of gospel music's most stellar vocalists. Featuring tremendous songs like "Only You (I Speak Your Name)", "That's What it Takes to Be a Savior", "God is in Control", "In the Presence of Jesus", "When We Look Back", "He Gave me More Love", "This is a Son" and the title song, his testimony, "Keep Breathing". I look forward to the next release from Jody.
Family Harmony/Stronger Together
The Nelons have a rich history in gospel music and this set of recordings further illustrates that and shows there is no stopping them. While I am still scratching my head on the thought process behind releasing 2 CDs that are very similar in feel and dynamics…these recordings feature the vibrant and soaring harmonies that have been the hallmark of the Nelons sound for now 3 generations.
Featuring stellar arrangements of such great songs like "I Just Can't Make it By Myself", "Days of Jericho", "In my Father's House", "I Think I'll Read it Again", "You Can't Make Old Friends", "Family Chain" and memorable remakes of the classics, "We Shall Behold Him" and "Then Came the Morning".
The Livingstons
It seems old groups are coming back up, fresh and new…Goodman Revival and the Perry Sisters are 2 recent examples. Now we bring back the Livingstons! This family is a welcomed re-addition to our vast array of talent in the SG family. They have a lot to offer…a unique sound, heartfelt singing, wonderfully written songs that are flawlessly executed and a hunger to tell their story. This recording is filled with wonderfully crafted and flawlessly executed original songs such as "Where I've Been", "Unexpected Journey", "The Prodigal", "He's All I Need" and "I Just Don't Feel Like Giving Up".
I have been a fan of 11th Hour since the first time I heard them (prior to their association with Crossroads). They have a special sound and genuine feel to their music. It's been fun watching their sound evolve and I really do enjoy what I hear. Their sound is a fusion of a progressive Southern Gospel and old time, campmeeting fervor; and this latest release showcases that better than anything. Without a doubt, this is a career recording and will be the measuring stick for all future endeavors by the group. This release is filled with lots of great songs featuring excellent vocals and musicianship and enough variety to satisfy just about every musical palette featuring stellar tunes like "Mountain Moving Faith", "Love Still Holds the Scars", "He Welcomes the Beggar", "When God Shows Up" and "Can You Burn".
Hillary Scott & the Scott Family
Love Remains
EMI Nashville/Capitol Nashville
I will admit that I was unfamiliar with Hillary Scott when this recording came out, but me and my whole family fell in love with the song, "Thy Will" and I had to hear the rest of the recording and I was further impressed. This recording is always playing in the car. Filled with tremendous songs like a wonderful remake of the Dottie Rambo classic, "Sheltered in the Arms of God" as well as "Beautiful Messes", "Still", "The Faithful Love of Jesus" and "We March On".
Cana's Voice – This Changes Everything (StowTown Records)
Legacy Five – In the Hands of the Carpenter (Daywind Records)
Master's Voice – Undivided (Horizon Records)
The McKameys – Something Worth Saving (Horizon Records)
Hoskins Family – Unbreak the World (Chapel Valley Records)
Jennifer Wilkerson
Staff Writer/Reviewer
I don't know how they do it, but they get better and better. They write songs that speak straight from the heart and speak life into their listeners. The Isaacs musicianship is unmatched.
This fresh new trio has a sound all their own and their debut project, although mostly full of covers, did not disappoint.
This project is their best yet! By far! It is so awesome to hear their their singer, Jaquita Lindsey, who is an anointed songwriter and vocalist be featured vocally and with a songwriting cut on the record!
Independent Release
It is so exciting to see this all female band grow and grow with each new project, and this one definitely is a stand out!
Chris is one of the best communicators in Gospel Musicm and it's fun to hear her go back to her roots so to speak and re cut some of those old Hinsons songs!
Monthly Contributor
Second Half Quartet
Good quartet music has been few and far between these days. These pros have removed the bells and whistles and made an album that reminds us of why we fell in love with quartets in the first place. Good songs and good singing.
Both of their new albums were winners, but I seem to give this one the most listens. The Nelons have never sounded better. Just a pure, wholesome, satisfying family recording.
I like all kinds of music, and this album covers a plethora of sounds. I feel like it tends to get a little too "big" for me in places, but I believe that all of us are still very much enjoying the magnitude of these three talents joined together. Nobody can deny their awesome abilities, and each vocalist put them to full use here.
Blackwood Brothers
Classics, Vol. 1
I would never have guessed that an album of ten of the most played/sung gospel songs in history would be such a favorite of mine, but this album is flat gorgeous to listen to. Genius simplicity and beautiful vocals, the Blackwood Brothers do something special to each song. Kudos to Trey Ivey as well for a great production.
Gaither Vocal Band
Gaither Music Group
Sometimes it's nice just to can the big ballads and have some fun. Some music fans may not appreciate that out of the GVB, but I do. Some of the old Jordanaires and Golden Gate spirituals are NOT easy to sing! Great utilization of all five parts on "Workin' on a Building" (smart to have Bill "bum-bum-ing" while Suttles takes the bass harmonies), and "We'll Talk it Over" is SHARP.
Monthly Columnist
Favorite albums this year are In the Hands of a Carpenter by Legacy Five, mostly because I love the title song (so cleverly written), and Matt Fouch does a great job on "Who Knew." I also loved Legacy's table project, Talkin' About Heaven because of the old-time quartet song choices. Ivan Parker's Dancing in the Rain was a nice surprise. I loved "Mama's Rockin' Chair." Aaron Wilburn and Lee Black's collaboration shines on that one, and Sandy Hagee Parker adds a nice touch. I wish she sang more. Ball Brothers' Dynamic CD is one of the best I've bought this year, and The Erwins' project Only Faith Can See is one of my favorites as well as it keeps hope alive that the young love southern Gospel too.
Legacy Five
In the Hands of the Carpenter
Ivan Parker
Difference Media
The Erwins
Only Faith Can See
Chris Unthank
Chris Unthank has been the content manager for AbsolutelyGospel.com since the fall of 2010 and took over Editorial duties after Susan passed in January 2011. Chris is an avid fan of writing and songwriting and resides in Murfreesboro, TN with his wife Noel and their three sons.
Cana's Voice
Doug Anderson
Hoskins Family
Master's Voice
The McKameys
Josh Feemster Departs Legacy Five – Group Seeking Tenor
REVIEW: Second Half Quartet – Refreshing
Chris Interviews Autumn Nelon


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Supernatural: Meet Crowley's Mum
Rowena, formerly of the Grand Coven, until she was dismissed for using being too extreme
The King of Hell received quite a surprise during Episode 7 of Supernatural, "Girls, Girls, Girls." When Crowley discovered that someone was killing his demons, he sent out his minions to capture the offender. Upon close examination, he was shocked to find that the witch causing all the trouble in town was his own mother. Though her appearance was a surprise to Crowley, some Supernatural viewers had guessed the identity of the mysterious red-haired woman when Rowena was first introduced. As we are expecting to see more of Rowena during Season 10, this is a good chance to explore the signs that connected this witch to the demon Crowley.
It's hard to enjoy a scotch and a good book when the imapled busboys keep dripping blood on you
It was at the end of "Soul Survivor" (S10E03) that we first saw Rowena. In a hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Rowena had impaled two bellboys on the ceiling with strange stakes. Rowena was sitting in front of the fire, reading a book, and drinking scotch. Though it's not clear what type of scotch Rowena is drinking in "Soul Survivor," we know from the episode "Weekend at Bobby's" (S06E04) that Crowley has been drinking Glen Craig 30-year-old scotch since grade school.
Dean: "Did you really used to wear a skirt?" Crowley: "A kilt. I had very athletic calves"
The actress playing Rowena, Ruth Cornell, is Scottish. In Supernatural, Scotland has only been featured in relation to Crowley. Crowley was known as Fergus Rodric MacLeod when he was a human, as Bobby Singer found out in "Weekend at Bobby's." In order to negate the contract Crowley had previously made with Bobby for his soul, Bobby summoned the spirit of Gavin MacLeod, Crowley's son, to get information about Crowley. Through Gavin, Bobby was able to find out where Crowley's human remains were buried. Burning the human bones of a demon will kill them. Sam and Dean flew to Scotland to dig up Crowley's bones to exchange them for the contract for Bobby's soul.
Sam and Dean aren't able to save everyone.
It was during the episode "Clip Show" (S08E22) we found out that Crowley's mother was a witch. Crowley starts killing all the people that Sam and Dean had ever saved in order to try to force them to give him the demon tablet and stop their attempts to close the gates of hell. Sam and Dean try to protect Sarah Blake, whom they had saved in the Season 1 episode "Provenance," by placing devil's traps all around her apartment. Crowley is able to kill Sarah through a hex bag, a weapon used by witches, which he had hidden at her apartment earlier.
Dean: "You son of a bitch."
Crowley: "Son of a witch, actually. My mommy taught me a few tricks."
"Well? Get to it. Time for the coup de grace. Wee boy, is something the matter with you? Cat got your tongue, hmm? Meow."
As we see in "Girls, Girls, Girls," hex bags seem to be Rowena's specialty. Like mother, like son.
There's still a lot of mystery around Rowena. Fergus MacLeod was born in 1661, so it's not clear if she is immortal, a long-lived witch, or if she was able to travel through time. The Winchesters have time-traveled to the past in previous episodes, and Abaddon brought the living Gavin MacLeod to the present using a blood spell in the episode "King of the Damned" (S09E21). Rather than sending Gavin back to 1723, when he would have died in a shipwreck, Crowley let his son stay in the present. It's not clear if Abaddon's trip or Gavin staying in the present has any bearing on Rowena's arrival. Rowena seems to be a powerful witch, so perhaps she was able to use magic to either extend her life or travel to the 21st century. Though Crowley recognizes his mother, it's uncertain she knows him. Regardless, her behavior and Crowley's reaction would lead us to believe she may not have been Mother of the Year. If the King of Hell is terrified, Rowena must be pretty scary. Having a new baddie always brings the potential for interesting drama, but a new villain who happens to be the King of Hell's mother—well that is fantastic.
To read more about Crowley's reaction to his mother's arrival, see our recap of the mid-season finale of Season 10 – "The Things We Left Behind" (S10E09) and "The Hunter Games" (S10E10).
"Mother?"
Did thinking about Bobby trick Crowley make you miss the old guy? Us too. Read about Bobby and his other hijinks in "Remember Bobby Singer – Part 1 History" or just read his fantastic quotes in "Remembering Bobby Singer – Part 2 Favorite Quotes." You can also get refreshed on the awesomeness that is Chuck Shurley by reading "Who Appeared at the End of Supernatural Fan Fiction?"
For more recaps, photos, and news about Supernatural and other shows like iZombie, Constantine, Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, and The Walking Dead, subscribe to receive notification of new spooky content by email. Or you can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram and Google+. Check out our Monsters of the Week and other scary and supernatural posts.
Recaps & Reviews Supernatural	Crowleycrowley's momdemonsGirls Girls GirlsGlencraigRowenascotchsupernaturalWeekend at Bobby'switches
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15 thoughts on "Supernatural: Meet Crowley's Mum"
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Could Crowley be mistaken? Maybe Rowena just reminds him of his mother? But I do hope it is his mother. I love her Scottish accent.
The Elder Fox Sister says:
http://ruth-connell.tumblr.com/post/104396901253/supernatural-meet-crowleys-mum
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The Discovery crew
The seven astronauts to fly the return to flight space shuttle mission hold a news conference at the Kennedy Space Center runway Jan. 7 to talk about delivery of the external tank, tile/RCC repair options and other issues. (44min 24sec file)
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Shuttle news conference
Senior space shuttle program officials hold a news conference at Kennedy Space Center on Jan. 6 following delivery of the redesigned external fuel tank to be used on the return-to-flight launch. (51min 47sec file)
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External tank arrives
The external tank for space shuttle Discovery's return-to-flight launch arrives at Kennedy Space Center. The tank is offloaded from the barge and moved into the Vehicle Assembly Building. (3min 15sec file)
Tank leaves New Orleans
The redesigned external fuel tank to be used on the return-to-flight space shuttle launch is rolled out of the Michoud Assembly Facility and place on a barge for shipment from New Orleans to Kennedy Space Center. (1min 29sec file)
Technicians put the final touches on the Lockheed Martin-built space shuttle external fuel tank in advance of its shipment to the Cape. (1min 44sec file)
Mars rover cake
NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe is presented with a commemorative birthday cake marking the one-year anniversary of the Mars rover Spirit's landing. (1min 21sec file)
Rover news briefing
On the one-year anniversary of Spirit's landing on Mars, mission officials hold a status news conference on the twin exploration rovers to discuss the latest findings and future plans for the craft. (31min 20sec file)
NASA chief speech
During celebrations marking the Mars rover milestone on Jan. 3, NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe gave this speech at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. (10min 20sec file)
The Mars rover story
Storyteller Syd Lieberman presents "Twelve Wheels on Mars" that describes the adventure to build, launch and explore with the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity. (54min 57sec file)
Delta 4-Heavy launch
The Boeing Delta 4-Heavy rocket is launched from Cape Canaveral on its demonstration flight. (4min 35sec file)
Onboard the Heavy
An onboard camera records the launch of Boeing's Delta 4-Heavy rocket from liftoff through separation of the outer boosters. (4min 40sec file)
Beyond Einstein: Spacetime wave orbits black hole
HARVARD-SMITHSONIAN CENTER FOR ASTROPHYSICS RELEASE
Astronomers Jon Miller (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics) and Jeroen Homan (MIT) have seen evidence of hot iron gas riding a ripple in spacetime around a black hole. This spacetime wave, if confirmed, would represent a new phenomenon that goes beyond Einstein's general relativity.
Astronomers have discovered evidence for physics beyond Einstein's general relativity. This artist's conception shows a galactic black hole being orbited by a ripple in spacetime--a distortion in the fabric of space itself. Credit: Dana Berry (CfA/NASA)
These observations confirm one important theory about how a black hole's extreme gravity can stretch light. The data also paint an intriguing image of how a spinning black hole can drag the very fabric of space around with it, creating a choppy spacetime sea that distorts everything falling into the black hole.
Miller and Homan observed the phenomenon with NASA's Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer. They present this result today at a press conference at the 205th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in San Diego, Calif.
"Black holes are such extreme objects that they can actually warp and drag the fabric of spacetime around with them as they spin," said Miller, who is the lead author on an article to be published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. "Gas whipping around the black hole has no choice but to ride that wave. Albert Einstein predicted this over 80 years ago, and now we are starting to see evidence for it."
A black hole is a region in space where gravitational forces are so great that not even light can escape. Gas and dust funnel towards a black hole in an accretion disk, swirling around and into the void like water down a drain. This process of accretion generates copious amounts of light - predominantly X-ray radiation, particularly in the innermost (hottest) regions of the accretion disk. Near the black hole, gravity is rather intense, but light still can muster an escape by climbing out of the black hole's gravitational "well," losing energy during the climb. Thus, scientists can study black hole activity with X-ray telescopes like the Rossi Explorer.
Miller and Homan, for the first time, found a connection between two important characteristics of black hole observations: quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) and the broad iron K line. QPOs refer to the way the X-ray light seems to flicker. The broad iron K line refers to the shape of a spike on a spectrogram (a tool scientists use to analyze light characteristics such as energy). Light from iron atoms emitted at a specific frequency creates a bright line in the spectrogram. The line is broadened, or stretched to lower energies, because the light loses energy as it climbs out of a gravitational well.
This artist's conception shows the binary system GRS1915+105, which shows evidence for a wave of spacetime in its accretion disk. A 10 solar mass black hole at the center of the disk pulls gas from a nearby companion star. The gas spiraling into the black hole heats so much that it emits X-ray radiation. Credit: Dana Berry (CfA/NASA)
Using the Rossi Explorer, Miller and Homan studied a black hole named GRS 1915+105, about 40,000 light years away in the constellation Aquila, the Eagle. They noticed that a low-frequency QPO of 1 to 2 hertz was tied to changes in the broad iron K line, as if the two features knew of each other. The fact that the two signals were in synch and were unaffected by other phenomena-such as black hole jet activity-strongly suggests that both are occurring very close to the black hole. And this, the scientists say, rules out a theory stating that broad iron lines are created in black hole winds far from the black hole itself.
This discovery raised the question of what could be causing the connection. "High-frequency QPOs are likely from matter racing around the black hole, glowing like lightbulbs on a merry-go-round," said Homan. "Of course, matter is moving much faster around a black hole than on any amusement park attraction. We see frequencies of hundreds of hertz, or hundreds of revolutions of the disk per second. That's quite a ride."
Lower-frequency QPOs are a deeper mystery. These are typically 1 to 10 hertz, and they're quite common in many binary star systems with black holes. Miller and Homan say that in the GRS 1915+105 system, the slower QPO could be the frequency of a spacetime warp. In that case, the low-frequency QPO flickering is caused by the fabric of space itself churning around the black hole in a wave. This is known as Lense-Thirring precession, which evolves out of Einstein's theory of general relativity.
Imagine the accretion disk as a music CD. (The Beach Boys come to mind.) The wave produced by the spacetime warp would increase the surface area of the flat disk. The broadness of iron K lines depends on surface area. So, this momentary increase in surface area, "flickering" at a frequency of 1 to 2 hertz, could explain the repetitive changes observed in the iron K line. Each time the hot iron gas encounters the spacetime warp, the light gets a jolt and the broad iron K line changes its appearance.
Miller and Homan caution that this is only one explanation of their observation, and that other explanations may be possible. What is clear, the scientists say, is that they are seeing a connection between QPOs and the broad iron K line, and this in turn means that scientists are probing more closely to black holes than ever before.
Headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) is a joint collaboration between the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the Harvard College Observatory. CfA scientists, organized into six research divisions, study the origin, evolution and ultimate fate of the universe.


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MASTODON: New Song 'Divinations' Available For Streaming
Atlanta-based hard rock behemoths MASTODON premiered a brand new song, "Divinations", from their highly anticipated, long-awaited new studio album, "Crack The Skye", on this week's (January 26/27) installment of BBC Radio 1's "Rock Show". The program, which is hosted by Daniel P. Carter, is now available for streaming at this location (go to 21:30 mark to hear the track).
Fans now have the opportunity to buy the "Divinations" bundle which is comprised of a two-track CD-single ("Divinations", along with an instrumental, non-album version of the track) and an exclusive album art T-shirt unavailable anywhere else. The single will also be available digitally as well from iTunes and all other participating digital retailers. This direct-to-consumer bundle is only available through www.mastodonrocks.com. Supplies will be extremely limited, so don't delay.
"Crack the Skye" track listing:
01. Oblivion
02. Divinations
03. Quintessence
04. The Czar
I. Usurper
II. Escape
III. Martyr
IV. Spiral
05. Ghost of Karelia
06. Crack The Skye
07. The Last Baron
Labels: artwork, Crack The Skye, Divinations, Mastodon, streaming


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The six-year-old dog relishes attention once a bond has been built.
Tracey Rae, rehoming centre manager, said: "He'll love to have you right by his side and a multi-person household would be ideal so that there would always be someone close by for a cuddle.
Suggs has lots of energy and enjoys exploring in quiet walking locations.
Tracey added: "He hopes to meet a special someone who will join him on fun adventures, play a game of fetch and continue his positive reward-based training.
To find out more about Suggs, contact Dogs Trust Shoreham on 0300 303 0292, visit www.dogstrust.org.uk or go along to the rehoming centre in Brighton Road, Shoreham. Opening hours are 12pm to 4pm on Monday and Thursday to Sunday, 12pm to 7.30pm Wednesday. The centre is closed on Tuesday.
The centre has 52 kennels and a strong team of staff and volunteers, who care for a large number of dogs every year.


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Maxchernes iporangae är en spindeldjursart som beskrevs av Volker Mahnert och Andrade 1998. Maxchernes iporangae ingår i släktet Maxchernes och familjen blindklokrypare. Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Externa länkar

Blindklokrypare
iporangae

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Inside The World Of Facebook True Crime Sleuths
Story from News
Inside The Confusing, Obsessive World Of Amateur True Crime Facebook Sleuths
Chris Watts confessed to murdering his wife and his two young daughters. So why are there Facebook groups dedicated to finding out the "truth" of the case?
Leah Carroll
On a recent Wednesday evening, Cristina F. was stressed about a murder confession.
Chris Watts, a Colorado man in prison for killing his wife and two young daughters had spoken to investigators in February, and now some five hours of that audio were to be released to the public. As one of the administrators for Facebook discussion group dedicated to the case (Refinery29 is not publishing the name of the group in order to protect the members' privacy), it would be Cristina's job to post everything coming the next morning from the Colorado Open Records Information Act so that the more than 5,000 members of the group could parse it all in as close to real time as possible.
"It's two audio files of five hours total, two images of Chris Watts, one CBR report, and a letter from the Department of Public Safety is being released," she told Refinery29. "So, we're going to stream the audio files live in the group. Once I download it, we are going to all listen to it at the same time. So, that way it cuts out the time of me having to upload it to a server."
But it wasn't just the burden of dealing with the logistics of how to disseminate the information dump that had her on edge. Cristina was also concerned about what Watts might reveal and how it would affect her understanding of a case she'd been following and dissecting for months.
"When the confession comes out tomorrow, some questions will be answered but there will still be a question of this man, the father that we see — because everyone says how great he was and you can't find one person to say anything bad about him ever, " says Cristina, pausing for a moment. "My [current] husband's an amazing father and he reminds me of [Watts]. So, it's like, you want him to be innocent. You kind of need him to be innocent because if he isn't, it's like my husband could just one day snap and kill me and my kids."
DashDividers_1_500x100
The amateur sleuth is a ubiquitous trope in our true crime-obsessed society. Empowered by the unprecedented access to information granted by the internet and our current state of constant connectivity, today's web sleuth has plenty of material to obsess over: surveillance footage from any number of private and public cameras, Facebook posts and Instagram stories, online access to court records, and cell phone pings. Sometimes these groups prove useful to law enforcement, exploring cold cases that overwhelmed police departments don't have time to devote resources. Sometimes they take on an insidious life of their own, one that focuses on the grisly with cruel scrutiny.
And then there are groups that function as a kind of clearing house for information — a place where true-crime obsessives can come together and talk amateur psychology and forensics in an effort to make sense of senseless crimes. The Chris Watts Facebook group that Cristina runs has splintered into different pages as more details of the case have emerged. Her focus has little to do with solving the crime or empathising with the victims, but rather understanding the granular specifics of the motives behind it. They aim for absolute objectivity.
Cristina, a mother and seasonal worker in Maine, had been spending over eight hours a day on the Chris Watts Facebook group for months. Her friends don't really get her fascination with the case, and her husband stopped talking to her about the crime when Watts pled guilty and was sentenced in January. He couldn't understand why she'd devote so much of her time to understanding the motivations of a confessed killer — especially considering her history.
We all want to believe we have some control over our lives, especially when it comes to crimes such as murder, rape, and assault.
Silvia M. Dutchevici, MA, LCSW
Cristina, who says she's been obsessed with true crime her whole life, has firsthand knowledge of a mysterious death in a way most other members of the Facebook group don't: In 2006, her then-husband smothered their infant daughter to death. It was ruled an accident, but Cristina has her doubts about what really happened that night.
Shortly before the little girl's death, Cristina had woken in the middle of the night and realised her husband and baby were not in the room with her. She ran into the darkened living room where she found them both on the couch — the baby was swaddled, face down, and he was using her as a pillow. In a panic, Cristina grabbed the little girl, who was breathing and seemed fine. She told her husband that under no circumstances was he to touch the child again at night.
Two weeks later, she once again woke in the middle of the night, this time to the sounds of her older daughter crying. Once again, she found her husband on the couch with the baby. This time, she wasn't breathing. First responders came, but it was too late.
"He said that he was sleeping with her but I knew he wasn't sleeping. He was awake. His voice was awake. Everything about the house was awake," says Cristina. "But he told the police that he had just fallen asleep with her. He was snuggling with her and then he woke up that way. It was my word against his. So they really just chalked it up to accidental co-sleeping."
Cristina argues that the situation with her daughter has enabled her to discuss crime with true objectivity. In the Facebook group, she's found a group of like-minded people. She's careful to note that her board is not a "fan site" — she's not one of those women sending Chris Watts love letters and nude photos. Rather, her goal is to weigh all the evidence at hand (the Watts family were prolific users of social media and left behind a huge digital footprint) and try to determine why and how a man could snap and kill his pregnant wife and young daughters.
Silvia M. Dutchevici, MA, LCSW, psychotherapist and president and founder of the Critical Therapy Center, explained to Refinery29 that many of the amateur Facebook sleuths are likely trying to find a sense of control in a world where there is none. "We all want to believe we have some control over our lives, especially when it comes to crimes such as murder, rape, and assault," she says via email. "We want to believe that we can protect ourselves from such atrocities and that the world is a safe place. Subconsciously, if we have been attacked at some point in our lives, we might align ourselves with the aggressor because it feels safer. It is a way to disavow or ward off our own vulnerability and fragility."
I'm always aware. I'm aware that this is possible. I'm aware that people are capable of this. If I understood the 'how,' that protects my family.
Is that why, in the case of Chris Watts, the prevailing theories on so many of the Facebook pages implicate a woman — either his mistress, Nichol Kessinger, or his wife Shanann herself? Did Nichol's openness to sexuality awaken something dark in him? Did Shanann's "domineering" personality somehow cause her husband to snap? Could it be true, as Watts had told investigators in his first confession, that he'd killed his wife only after discovering she'd murdered the girls in a jealous rage over his extramarital affair?
If a commenter on the page takes offence at the notion that the victim might be responsible in some way for her own death, they are quickly put in their place by other members who remind them to be "objective." In this space, the notion of the internalized societal misogyny that might lead a man to lash out at his wife for being "domineering" isn't a matter of debate. It's just a fact of life. It's a motive, pure and simple.
"Victim-blaming puts the responsibility of the crime or assault (as this happens a lot in rape cases) on the woman and takes on the perspective of the perpetrator," explains Dutchevici. "For women, victim-blaming is a way to psychologically deny vulnerability in oneself."
Cristina, who has found herself the target of heated criticism for her attempts to remain "neutral" while discussing Watts, is not averse to psychoanalysing her relationship to the Chris Watts case. "I'm always aware. I'm aware that this is possible. I'm aware that people are capable of this. If I understood the 'how,' that protects my family," she says.
When the audio of Chris Watts' second confession was made public, it revealed a largely unrepentant man who detailed for investigators how he had sex with his wife Shanann when she returned from a business trip before strangling her to death just a few hours later in the same bed.
But most troubling to Cristina and many of the other members of the Chris Watts Facebook group was Watts' admission that he — not his wife, as he had previously suggested — had killed his daughters, Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3.
In the audio posted to the Facebook group, Watts described how after strangling Shanann, he'd wrapped her body in a sheet and dragged her down the stairs. His daughter Bella walked in on the scene. "What are you doing with momma?" the 4-year-old asked. Watts then loaded his two daughters and the body into his pickup truck and drove for 45 minutes to the oil field where he worked. He described the girls in the backseat holding each other. When they arrived, he smothered Celeste with her blanket.
When he returned to his truck, Bella asked him, "Is the same thing gonna happen to me as Cece?" Watts then disposed of his daughters' bodies in two separate oil tanks. He buried Shanann in a shallow grave.
The confession was damning enough to test Cristina's theory that there had to be reason for what had happened, some kind of logical explanation. "He had a 40-minute calm-down time, so I don't care where your brain's at," she says, referring to the brutal slaughter of the girls.
Still, the confession hasn't provided a definitive answer for all of the members of the Facebook page. Some still insist that Watts was covering for his girlfriend. Others find it unlikely that a woman as wilful as Shanann hadn't fought for her life.
A few days after the confession was released, things were different for Cristina. Still grappling with the new information, she wrote in the group, "Let's face the facts y'all. I've noticed that as I listen to 'The Confession' I constantly have lightbulb moments because of all the smaller details. Some are truly irrelevant to the case in general, but have had their legitimacy challenged for over half a year, repeatedly. If you're here because of your fascination of criminology, [the] confession serves as an answer sheet for all of those educated guesses we have formed along the way."
The Chris Watts Facebook page was Cristina's first experience as an administrator and highly engaged member of a true-crime group. She's always followed crime closely — she actually got involved with the group after following the Mollie Tibbetts murder online — but it was the Chris Watts group where she found a voice among like-minded people who wanted to examine things clinically, even if it meant pursuing a troubling opinion (like that a victim might have had a role in her own death) and, most importantly, even if it meant reevaluating things like "gut instinct."
Cristina is now a moderator on a different Facebook group she began with some of the people she met while discussing Chris Watts, which focuses on the murder of Kelsey Bereth. It's another case from Colorado — Patrick Frazee has been charged with killing Kelsey Bereth, his fiancee and the mother of his one-year-old daughter, with the help of an ex-girlfriend.
It seems telling, in a way, that Cristina's next mystery isn't really a mystery either. Frazee's ex-girlfriend, Krystal Lee Kenney, gave a detailed confession to law enforcement in which she admitted that her ex had asked her to kill Bereth on more than one occasion and that she herself had cleaned up the crime scene, disposing of grisly evidence like one of Bereth's molars knocked out of the young mother's mouth when Frazee beat her to death with a baseball bat. So what is there to discuss? Some in the group allege that Kenney is the actual killer — motivated by jealousy to get rid of the romantic competition for Frazee's heart. The catch: These assertions must be backed up with forensic or circumstantial evidence available from public records.
The "truth" that Cristina and other Facebook sleuths are searching for is slippery at best, even with so much information available. But the notion that all murder cases can be shaped into a mystery – and the belief that a mystery can always be solved – is not much different from how society consumes true crime as a whole for entertainment purposes (see our renewed fascination with Ted Bundy and Adnan Syed of Serial – cases that have both evolved within the legal system and the court of public opinion over time). The different mediums — from online sleuths to prestige television — all strive for some kind of objective truth or definitive answer behind unspeakable crimes. But sometimes that answer, that "truth," will live forever just out of reach, an unknowable thing locked away in the heart of a bad man.
Chris Watts Confession Shocks True Crime Facebook Group
News • Politics • US News
written by Leah Carroll
Photo: RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post/Getty Images.
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RIP Don Clark
Written By: Guest post - Date published: 9:43 am, June 5th, 2021 - 14 comments
Categories: Deep stuff - Tags:
West Auckland Labour Activist Don Clark's funeral happened this week, and it's not often the only song at a funeral is Solidarity Forever.
When the union's inspiration through the workers' blood shall run
There can be no power greater anywhere beneath the sun
Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one
But the union makes us strong
Solidarity forever
For the union makes us strong
In 2021 we can if we want decry the decline of the union movement, but if you're celebrating a life from 1930 the best thing to do is look back and realise what was built, what was good of that, and what good that work did. It is on that organising principle of solidarity that post-war modern New Zealand was built (in using the term 'post-war', Don was also a strong pacifist).
Don's political engagement started in earnest in 1949 when Labour got creamed after a very long time in power. In Labour Youth he met the person who was to become his wife of 60 years, Noreen. Actually they first met in a school staffroom when he threw her a packet of matches when she asked the staffroom for a light for her cigarette. Right there, better than www.match.com, that's an actual match.
If you've ever engaged hard with an experienced national-level campaign manager, you'll find that they are an exhausting and driven bunch.
They will push volunteers into the earth with door-knocking, phone calling, fundraising, kicking the ass of their candidates who are foolish rubes to start with and believe they own the planet after their first win, and all the rest, and people like Don will do it whether the Party is rising to triumph or tanking into the bottom of the sea. He was 6 foot 4 and his stride counted for double that of all others, or that's how it felt.
Don's Gold Badge was won with utter dedication. Opening their doors to Labour Youth in Wellington and then in the 1980s in Titirangi, they gave it their all. I don't think there was anyone better to run a telephone tree (that thing before Facebook) than Noreen. The Clark's, and the handful of loyal families who had gone through with Labour in the west right through the 1970s, they were the ones who held up the joint when plenty left in the mid 1980s. We would not be where we are now without them.
There are a few you can still see wanting to be that old-school tentpole-fervour campaign leader. They get paid nothing if anything, and devote themselves to the good of the person who they want elected.
After the election when the dealin's done they are usually discarded, they suck it up, and keep going because they simply believe in the cause far more than what's in it for them. Raw altrustic driven belief – a drug better than any elixir of life you could name.
Once in the mid 1950s, Auckland Zoo got its first Orangutan, and it drew quite a big crowd on its first morning. So he marched up to the front of the cage, commanded everyone's attention, tapped the bars and said "Well Mr Holyoake, now that you're where you should be …"
You were either a Labour supporter at that point or you weren't.
He also had a clear idea of what an alternative to untrammelled capitalism would look like, as a fervent supporter of the Fabian Society and by doing a lot of research on the Basque Mondragon collectives.
He was great with his children and grandchildren, could describe one variant of a symphony from another, the students he lectured at AIT adored him, loved good friends around to dinner, and was simply an outstanding guy.
He fought the fight, raised The Standard, mostly won, and he was great to campaign with.
Good work Don. Rest in peace now.
Labour Westie
14 comments on "RIP Don Clark "
Anne 1
5 June 2021 at 10:52 am
Got a photo of him Labour Westie?
In the 1970s and early 1980s I had a close relationship with the West Auckland Labour Party. I must have met him but can't recall his face.
There were quite a few like him. 'Solid as the Rock of Gibraltar' was the old description of such people. They usually didn't abide fools very well. When you dug deeper you often found someone who was not only highly intelligent but were also deeply sensitive and in the privacy of their homes probably spent hours listening to the great classical composers.
mickysavage 1.1
5 June 2021 at 7:24 pm
Hi Anne
I put the post up and scoured my many photos for one of Don but could not find one …
He and Noreen came to West Auckland in the mid 1980s so possibly after your time Anne but he was as you say solid as a rock, did not abide fools well, was very intelligent and had a heart of gold.
Byd0nz 2
I never knew him, but have known others that would fit Annes great description of folk his ilk.
So yes, well done for a life well lived.
Anne 2.1
And when I say they didn't abide fools very well: quite often the fools resided in high places and had lots of power but the Don Clarks saw through them and knew them for what they were – pretenders.
Patricia Bremner 3
What is the song… "You can't get me I'm part of the Union"? A suitable tribute.
Shanreagh 3.1
This one…classic 70s! By the Strawbs.
mickysavage 3.1.1
My favourite …
Patricia Bremner 3.1.1.1
Thanks Micky.
Pierre 3.1.2
Oh no you can't scare me I'm sticking to the union!
RIP Don Clark ✊
Patricia Bremner 3.1.3
Thanks Shanreagh, Yes that is the one I was thinking of.
Barbara Hutchinson 4
Just read the post and am sitting here on a murky day in Blenheim with memories flooding through my mind and tears in my eyes. Don and Noreen were a great part of my years with Labour in West Auckland.
Darien Fenton 5
Oh I missed this and so did John. We so often underestimate the role of rank and file Labour activists and we should never, because they are the ones who do the hard yards. He will be sadly missed. His contribution mattered and his life made a difference.
Rest easy now my friend.
David Cunliffe 6
Don was a great campaign mamager and a dear friend. Titirangi and New Lynn Labour and its various MPs – this grateful ex MP included – owe him a great debt. RIP Matua Don. Thank you.
19 June 2021 at 10:13 am
RiP Don, a dear friend and trusted adviser and campaign manager over many years. Don has been a stalwart of Labour his whole adult life. He was active especially in Miramar and West Auckland. He managed and co-managed my first and second campaigns, where a young team unseated a sitting National Minister and turned Titirangi jnto a red rock (with hints of green!). He has over the years continued to be a rock steady support and gentle custodian of the socialist flame in the West.
Don and his wife Noreen and their lovely wider family were always true to their values and pronciples. There was always a warm welcome, sharp humour and clear eyed analysis of the world.
I last saw Don during his final weeks, and it was clear his race was run and his long, happy and wonderful life nearing its natural rest. He has earned it. He leaves behind a strong and lovely family who will miss him incredibly. We all will. Haere ra big guy. Thanks for everything. You made the world a better place.
felix to Ad on
Anne on
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Tag Archives: Irene Madongo
Battle Over Exempting Trusts From Public Registry Continues Between EU and UK
This article originally appeared at ACAMS moneylaundering.com
On the eve of key behind-the-scenes talks on the Fourth European Union Anti-Money Laundering Directive, the rift over proposals for the public register of trusts has widened between the United Kingdom and Europe.
Officials from the European Parliament, Commission and Council are set to meet Tuesday to discuss the plans in a 'trialogue' meeting, according to a Brussels-based source close to the matter. Trialogues are informal and unpublicized discussions that play a key role in legislative proceedings.
It is expected that a formal EU announcement on the matter will be made by December, however, even that could be pushed back further as sharp divisions over the issue of public registers persist between leading member states.
The UK has embarked on plans to become the first country in the world to have a public register of ultimate beneficial ownership of companies, but it is vehemently opposed to one for trusts as proposed by the European Parliament.
On Friday it maintained its stance, with a Treasury spokesman saying that while British action to improve transparency remains 'unmatched' globally, trusts must not be treated the same as companies.
'Trusts are widely used by many UK citizens, where there is often little or no risk of money laundering,' he said.
Strong opposition against a register of trusts and companies is also brewing from legal professionals in London.
Publicizing ownership would be 'intrusive' into the financial affairs of individuals who wish to keep them private, lawyers argued last week during a debate on privacy and the government's plans for public registers. Executives of companies targeted by activists could also be harassed or kidnapped if their personal information was publicity exposed, a senior practitioner said.
A private register accessible to law enforcement agencies and regulatory authorities is a better option, attendees said at the event, hosted at the London offices of Mishcon de Reya.
Beneficiaries of trusts would also be vulnerable if their identities were made public, including children or handicapped family members, according to George Hodgson, deputy chief executive of the Society of Trusts and Estate Practitioners.
'To expose the names of such beneficiaries on a public register strikes us as having some obvious risks and dangers attached to that process,' said Hodgson, who is also a former staff member of the Treasury Committee of the UK House of Commons.
Trusts are perceived as instruments for money laundering and tax evasion in continental Europe, whereas in England they are actually mainly family-oriented structures, British lawyers say.
Plans to publicize the owners of trusts are 'very alarming' and constitute a 'considerable misunderstanding' of the general use of trusts on the basis that most trusts are basically structures to let assets pass smoothly from one generation to another, Hodgson explains.
Still, a number of well-documented cases show trusts have been misused for illicit proceeds, so trusts are not only used for inheritance or for children but have been an integral part in money laundering and corruption, according to Christian Hallum, senior policy analyst at Eurodad (European Network on Debt and Development), which recently publicized a report outlining the varying positions of several EU states on the issue of public registers.
Some of the concerns the UK has voiced can, moreover, be addressed by the push within the European Parliament for member states to protect personal information, particularly of vulnerable individuals, and allow its disclosure on a risk-based approach, he added.
A UK HMRC study found that 15 percent of trusts have vulnerable beneficiaries, of which a third were minors and an additional 17 percent were elderly, he said.
'As such, the vast majority of trusts are not used for truly vulnerable people,' Hallum explained.
One way forward on the matter perhaps is that 'serious consideration be given to adopting a licensing system of corporate service providers (including registration agents) which has been successfully utilized in a number of international finance centers,' according to Ian Kirk, partner and head of commercial at Collas Crill, who also backs a registry only accessible to competent authorities.
Those corporate service providers would also be responsible for verifying beneficial ownership and source of funds, he said.
But given the appetite in the EU for a public register of trusts, politics rather than issues of privacy or practicality will win the day, Kirk states.
Posted in Policy
Tagged ACAMS, Anti-money laundering, Brussels, George Hodgson, Irene Madongo


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Biology Basics: Genes & Cells
Jessie Watson
U.S. Army Veteran. Student of Psychology at Kaplan University with an AA Degree in Applied Science in Complementary Alternative Medicine
Mastering the Basics
I'm new to HubPages and have really enjoyed the journey of authorship so far. It occurred to me recently that certain in-depth, science based articles might be lost on those who vaguely remember the constituent elements of life and the human body. My goal is not to overestimate or underestimate my audience. I see this as an opportunity to develop a strong working foundation that I can reference further along when things get trickier. Sometimes I get so hell-bound on trying to explain the more complicated aspects of life that I lose sight of small, but highly important details.
I am not only trying to help others understand but the process of writing helps me burn the information into my mind as well. There is a certain level of hubris involved speaking openly about science as I have only begun to scratch the surface. If for any other reason, let this be a lesson in humility for us all.
"Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals"
- Jim Rohn
DNA - Deoxyribonucleic Acid
All living organisms possess DNA molecules. Plants, mammals, insects, fish, reptiles, crustaceans, viruses and bacteria. You can think of it as the microscopic blueprint for all life as we know it. Genes contain billions of years of information from the moment life was possible on this planet. It not only serves as a scaffolding for physical development but is also a large component in how we think and behave.
A molecular basis of inheritance was first conceptualized by Gregor Mendel in the mid-nineteenth century. It wasn't until 1953 that James Watson and Francis Crick discovered the physical structure (double-helix) of DNA with the help of Rosalind Franklin who provided the x-ray imaging as seen in figure 1 1.
In figure 2, you'll notice the familiar ladder-like formation of DNA molecules. The outer-portion of the molecule that holds the rungs together is made up of the combination of sugar (deoxyribose) and phosphate (nucleic acid).
Between the acidic nuclei of the outer structure are the base pairs which make up the rungs. This is how genetic information is stored.
Bases - ATCG
The following bases are always paired together as follows:
Adenine - Thymine
Cytosine - Guanine
The order by which these bases are sequenced in a strand of DNA determines the potential expression of genes and their encoded information. Note that encoded information is never guaranteed to manifest. It might be more helpful to think about this in terms of traits like sex, morphology, eye color, etc.
Fun Fact: The human genome contains 6 Billion base pairs
If we expand the picture a bit wider, packed within the nucleus of cells are woven bundles of genetic material and protein. These bundles are what we call chromosomes. They contain the bulk of our hereditary information. Each cell, with exception of sex cells, contain 23 pairs of chromosomes (totaling 46). In short, chromosomes determine the structure and function of each cell.
RNA - Ribonucleic Acid
By now you may be wondering how genetic information is able to propagate and behave in a particular way. This is accomplished through replication.
Replication occurs when cells divide and multiply whereby base pairs are split leaving only RNA in the newly made cell. Since each base must be matched with a corresponding partner, the cell is able to use half the information to generate a complete sequence.
Base Pair Review
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Human Stem Cell Division
Cells - Smallest Units of Life
Like genes, cells make up the structure of all living things while absorbing nutrients and providing energy. Though cells come in all different shapes, sizes and functions, most share a similar anatomy. Think of it like the similarity between humans and mammals. All mammals have lungs, stomachs, skeletons and nervous systems as a consequence of evolutionary conservation. We will discuss evolution in a later article. First, let's look into the difference between common cells.
Prokaryotic Cells
These are by far the most common and ancient type of cells we know of. They do not contain a nucleus and are most often found in single celled organisms and bacteria. See figure 3.
Eukaryotic Cells
Usually much larger in proportion to prokaryotes, eukaryotic cells contain a nucleus and are found in more complex, multi-cellular organisms. See figure 4.
Fun Fact: In every human body, bacteria outnumber eukaryotic cells 10 to 1. In a 200 pound person, up to 6 pounds of body weight can be accounted for by bacteria alone 2.
Figure 3 - Prokaryotic Cell
Figure 4 - Eukaryotic Cell
Cell Anatomy - Organelles
Cell Membrane/Plasma Membrane
We can think of the plasma membrane as a permeable barrier between the inner contents of the cell and the outside world. Sometimes it can allow things to move in or it can keep hazardous material out. It acts much like our skin does. Embedded within it are numerous receptors that pick up on signals from the environment. This is how the cell is able to perceive, or "see" the world.
Often referred to as the "command center", the nucleus contains hereditary DNA and orchestrates cellular activity such as growth, maturation, division and death. Be sure not to confuse the nucleus with something like a "brain". It's better to think about the nucleus as the cells' reproductive organ.
Surrounding the nucleus is a structure called the nucleolus. This portion of the cell manufactures ribosomes which are molecular mechanisms that produce proteins and amino acids. It plays a vital role in cell division and DNA/RNA transcription.
Found in both plant and animal cells, vacuoles store food, water and nutrients but also act as a repository for waste material to prevent contamination. You can think of it as the cells stomach and liver.
These organelles contain enzymes that break down and digest foreign substances and bacteria that may have breached the membrane. Lysosomes rid the cell of toxic material and recycle damaged cell components.
This is a gelatinous fluid also called cytosol that provides the majority of a cells total mass. It keeps all the organelles suspended in place and protected from one another.
Mitochondria are essential for the manufacturing of cellular energy from food, namely Adenosine Triphosphate or ATP. Anytime we think or act, we can thank mitochondria for doing their job. Furthermore, mitochondria possess their own DNA separate from the nucleus and can reproduce on their own.
Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)
The ER structure is a long network of membranes that connect with the nucleus. Its job is to package and synthesize various molecules that the nucleus and ribosomes may have coughed up like proteins, lipids, steroids and amino acids.
Also described as the Golgi apparatus, the Golgi complex receives lipids and proteins from the ER and condenses them into usable materials.
Cell Review
Congratulations, you just completed a speedy review of genes and cells!
Most of the content discussed is simplified and abbreviated for your convenience. If you feel that I have left out any important details or have questions, feel free to engage with me in the comment section.
Pray, L. (2008) Discovery of DNA Structure and Function: Watson and Crick. Retrieved from https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/discovery-of-dna-structure-and-function-watson-397
NIH (2012) Human Microbiome Project defines normal bacterial makeup of the body. Retrieved from https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-human-microbiome-project-defines-normal-bacterial-makeup-body
GHR (2017) What is a cell? Retrieved from https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/primer/basics/cell
Prokaryotic Cell Structure: A Visual Guide
by Rhys Baker5
Mitochondria Facts and Disease: DNA Outside the Nucleus
Identifying an unknown bacterial strain
by Ophelie Quillier0
Structure of a Plant Cell: A Visual Guide
The Y Chromosome: Ancestry, Genetics, and the Making of a Man
by Leah Lefler30
6 Rare and Unique Eye Colors
by Tatiana453
Blood of the Irish: What DNA Tells Us About the Ancestry of People in Ireland
by Marie McKeown198
Fascinating and Unusual Facts About Green Eye Color
by Edmund Custers174


Reducing your "carbon footprint" may have qualified your company as a leader on climate change 10 years ago. But today you must do more than that. The definition of leadership has changed—and it increasingly includes responsible, proactive lobbying for climate action that reduces emissions.
More than 500 companies have committed to emissions reductions targets based in science, and more than 150 have committed to powering their operations entirely with renewable energy by 2030. Businesses are disclosing their emissions and evaluating their supply chains for climate risks. But checking even these boxes won't be enough to be considered a corporate leader on climate in 2019, and it certainly won't be enough to stop a changing climate's worst impacts.
A new report from EDF highlights how most corporate climate leadership rankings overlook policy advocacy, and argues that this is a huge "blind spot" for any true measure of a company's contribution to climate change solutions.
Corporate government affairs teams need to know and show how climate connects to the company's interest areas. Climate change poses real business risks that affect the economy, jobs and the private sector's ability to provide goods and services. The person who knows the company's climate story best and the person who relays it to policymakers may not be the same.
Do those who interface with policymakers in your company know what your firm is doing on climate? When sustainability and policy don't interact internally, the result is that most businesses are not getting the credit they deserve for their science-based targets and emissions reduction measures within the halls of government or having influence.
When companies can share their "climate story" using data points and anecdotes, it gives policymakers the credibility and confidence to then go and advocate for ambitious policy. When elected officials can be informed by business, it gives them the confidence to speak to climate issues with authority.
Most of us want a safe, stable climate, but engaging policymakers while lobbying isn't a conversation that starts with "I want." Government Affairs staff know this, but sustainability practitioners helping to draft talking points for interaction with policymakers may not. Recognizing that elected officials represent constituents with certain needs is an important baseline for drawing a Venn diagram between what responsible business wants and what policymakers want. Understand the local context in order to make compelling cases about whatever your issue is, whether that's procuring renewable energy or buying fleets of electric vehicles. Tailor your advocacy to issues at the core of a district or state's interests, and you are more likely to generate buy-in from elected officials.
A few market leaders have begun to harness their influence and engage in thoughtful climate advocacy. Danone North America, Nestle USA, Unilever United States and Mars, Incorporated formed the Sustainable Food Policy Alliance to advocate for public policy in the United States in five key areas, one of which is the environment and climate change. The group focuses on communicating to policymakers their support of policies such as putting a price on carbon and recently released a set of principles advocating for ambitious action on climate.


text:
Q: DateTime usage confirmation Android Am using DateTime from Jodatime to know , the current date is greater or lesser than given date. given date is:
12/31/2011 12:00:00 AM

my code is:
   SimpleDateFormat form = new SimpleDateFormat("MM/dd/yyyy HH:mm:ss aa");

              java.util.Date date = null;

              Date date1 = form.parse(mydate);
              int year=date1.getHours();
              int month=date1.getMonth();

              day=date1.getDate();

              int minute=date1.getMinutes();
              int seco=date1.getSeconds();
              int hour=date1.getHours();

              DateTime myBirthDate = new DateTime(year,month, day, hour, minute,seco);
              DateTime now = new DateTime();

myBirthDate.isAfterNow();

its returning false
and when i pass date: 4/13/2011 12:00:00 AM
same false is returning
How to do it?
Thanks

A: This looks wrong:
int year=date1.getHours();

Also you can shorten your code like this:
DateTimeFormatter formatter = new DateTimeFormat.forPattern("MM/dd/yyyy HH:mm:ss aa");
DateTime myBirthDate = formatter.parseDateTime(mydate);
myBirthDate.isAfterNow();

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Free Cleopatra-Biography Book Review Essay Sample
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This paper seeks to have an in-depth look at the biography of an exemplary woman who lived from the time of Hammurabi to the time of Marcus Aurelius. Hammurabi was the sixth king of the first Babylonian dynasty, which dates back to about 4000years. His reign was between the general time of 2342 and 1050 B.C. Marcus Aurelius was the last of the five outstanding leaders of Rome and a great Stoic philosopher. His reign was between the periods of A.D 161- 180. During this period when this people were in existence, there were other monumental people in the world. In this paper, we are going to focus on Cleopatra, who was the last queen of Egypt. This will be by reviewing the book, 'Cleopatra: the Last Queen of Egypt.'
The book 'Cleopatra: the last queen of Egypt' is about a principal character by the name Cleopatra. It starts out in the year 57 B.C when Cleopatra is twelve years old. She is the princess of the Nile and has many plans on her mentality. Her father is the Pharaoh of Egypt and takes into hiding after a venomous adder attacks, and kills his beloved servant. This adder was meant to kill him, but, he escapes and it kills the servant. The pharaoh is in hiding because his enemies are hunting him down. In this situation, the youthful princess has to keep her head as her power hungry older sister Tryphaena tries to take hold of her father's throne. The book has rich information of this tumultuous time. It describes her hairbreadth run away by boat to Rome. In Rome, Cleopatra and her father seek help as they are in a foreign empire.
There is also the detailed explanation of Cleopatra's extraordinary effort to absorb the overpowering smells and sights of the new city and its barbarian ways. The book describes Cleopatra's personality in terms of her speedy self-confidence and fast thinking as she engages with people like General Pompey, the famous speaker Cicero, and Marc Antony. This book on Cleopatra is in the form of a royal diary she keeps from the tender age of twelve years! The author highlights the tribulations of Cleopatra and her father in exile. They free as they are under siege from detractors and sisters who want to seize the throne. The author lays emphasis on Cleopatra's phenomenal personality. Indeed, she was a monumental leader who had great impact on Egyptian History. In addition, Cleopatra was the last queen of Egypt and her reign was full of intrigues that had an effect on different nations and empire. Cleopatra was an influential woman and her history is bound to marvel any person. However, there are several accounts of her life history and it is difficult to know the real Cleopatra.
The book as biography describes Cleopatra's life and personality. The Romans regard Cleopatra as a deadly omen. In their writings, people describe Cleopatra in different ways for instance Shakespeare depicts her as an emblem of disastrous love and Pascal in his words says that the shape of her nose transformed the history of the world! This biography majorly tells us about Cleopatra's strong character as the last queen of Egypt. It portrays her as highly intellectual and the only Ptolemy who was able to speak and read Egyptian. In addition, the book says that Cleopatra was a fluent speaker of many languages. It elaborates her connections with Mark Anthony and Julius Caesar, her love for politics, her way of dealing with her enemies who were mostly family members and her exceptional powers. The biography offers information of the most extraordinary queen of Egypt on her rule, the tragic tale of contrasts and opposition, and tales of seduction. We not only get the picture of a strong woman but also that of a woman who ruled by sentiment rather than by cause.
This paper seeks to find out why the author sorts to write about Cleopatra and not any other subject. There has been a lot of information concerning Cleopatra starting from her childhood to the times of her reign as the queen of Egypt. Many people have written articles, books, etc about this extraordinary woman, but, in this biography, the author seeks to separate fact from fiction. The many life stories about Cleopatra have become deformed through the several lenses of legend, history, fiction, archaeology, and film to the extent that it is difficult separate the truth from the imaginary tale. The author writes about Cleopatra in an effort to separate myth from reality by putting side by side her sovereignty with the decline of the Egyptian Empire rather than the growth of Rome. Through this, the author of this bibliography manages to place Cleopatra solidly into cultural and historical context. The picture the author portrays of the queen is that of a sly political operator who ruthlessly tries to reinstitute Egyptian might in a quickly shrinking world. During her reign, the world was overpowered by the enormous and forceful Roman Empire.
The writer of the biography writes this book from the aspect of an archeologist with more information on Cleopatra. History being the authors foundation of her profession she writes this biography with ease. She brings out Cleopatra in a historical and cultural context that most people are not aware of, and the picture we get is a different one. The author targets an audience of people who have read about Cleopatra to the extent that they are not able to tell the difference between fact and faction about this queen. Her audience is people of the age of sixteen and above, and at this age, the information about Cleopatra is mostly fiction and exaggerated. The author's style is informal as she is apparent about the unreliability of her sources. The writing style the author uses is clear, has originality in her ideas, and there is the full development of the story. She writes about Cleopatra from the time she was young, follows through her escape to the Rome Empire and her eventual reign in Egypt. This development clearly and coherently suits the audience the author targets. The book's goal is to portray Cleopatra in a different picture in which we see her which is the strong woman who ruled the ancient Egypt. The picture the reader gains from this biography is of a woman who reigns by emotion than by motive, a queen who works towards her predictable self-destruction.
After reading the biography of Cleopatra, the ideas one has of this queen are slightly changing as the author gives a picture of this woman with many intrigues, seduction, and suicidal tendencies that are not present in the other earlier tales. The opinion of Cleopatra as a true political genius is slightly abandoned after reading this book; as it has more and clear information on the life of Cleopatra that few writers seem to describe. The biography is an excellent recommendation to anyone who wants to know the queen from another context. The biography gives us a compelling story and more information about the contradictory and rich sources of the knowledge we have about Cleopatra.
The Toyota Motors Corporation
Love and Sex in Literature
"Child of the Americas"


text:
package com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.core.flow2.cluster.datalake.upgrade.preparation.handler;

import static com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.core.flow2.cluster.datalake.upgrade.preparation.ClusterUpgradePreparationHandlerSelectors.DISTRIBUTE_PARCELS_EVENT;
import static com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.core.flow2.cluster.datalake.upgrade.preparation.ClusterUpgradePreparationStateSelectors.FAILED_CLUSTER_UPGRADE_PREPARATION_EVENT;
import static com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.core.flow2.cluster.datalake.upgrade.preparation.ClusterUpgradePreparationStateSelectors.FINISH_CLUSTER_UPGRADE_PREPARATION_EVENT;
import static org.junit.jupiter.api.Assertions.assertEquals;
import static org.mockito.Mockito.doThrow;
import static org.mockito.Mockito.verify;
import static org.mockito.Mockito.when;

import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.Set;

import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test;
import org.junit.jupiter.api.extension.ExtendWith;
import org.mockito.InjectMocks;
import org.mockito.Mock;
import org.mockito.junit.jupiter.MockitoExtension;

import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.cloud.model.ClouderaManagerProduct;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.cluster.api.ClusterApi;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.common.event.Selectable;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.core.flow2.cluster.datalake.upgrade.preparation.event.ClusterUpgradePreparationEvent;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.domain.stack.Stack;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.eventbus.Event;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.service.CloudbreakException;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.service.cluster.ClusterApiConnectors;
import com.sequenceiq.cloudbreak.service.stack.StackService;
import com.sequenceiq.flow.reactor.api.handler.HandlerEvent;

@ExtendWith(MockitoExtension.class)
class ClusterUpgradeParcelDistributionHandlerTest {

    private static final long STACK_ID = 1L;

    @InjectMocks
    private ClusterUpgradeParcelDistributionHandler underTest;

    @Mock
    private StackService stackService;

    @Mock
    private ClusterApiConnectors clusterApiConnectors;

    @Mock
    private ClusterApi clusterApi;

    @Mock
    private Stack stack;

    @Test
    void testDoAcceptShouldCallClusterApiToDistributeParcels() throws CloudbreakException {
        Set<ClouderaManagerProduct> requiredProducts = Collections.singleton(new ClouderaManagerProduct());
        when(stackService.getByIdWithListsInTransaction(STACK_ID)).thenReturn(stack);
        when(clusterApiConnectors.getConnector(stack)).thenReturn(clusterApi);

        Selectable nextFlowStepSelector = underTest.doAccept(createEvent(requiredProducts));

        assertEquals(FINISH_CLUSTER_UPGRADE_PREPARATION_EVENT.name(), nextFlowStepSelector.selector());
        verify(stackService).getByIdWithListsInTransaction(STACK_ID);
        verify(clusterApiConnectors).getConnector(stack);
        verify(clusterApi).distributeParcels(requiredProducts);
    }

    @Test
    void testDoAcceptShouldReturnPreparationFailureEventWhenClusterApiReturnsWithAnException() throws CloudbreakException {
        Set<ClouderaManagerProduct> requiredProducts = Collections.singleton(new ClouderaManagerProduct());
        when(stackService.getByIdWithListsInTransaction(STACK_ID)).thenReturn(stack);
        when(clusterApiConnectors.getConnector(stack)).thenReturn(clusterApi);
        doThrow(new CloudbreakException("Failed to distribute parcels")).when(clusterApi).distributeParcels(requiredProducts);

        Selectable nextFlowStepSelector = underTest.doAccept(createEvent(requiredProducts));

        assertEquals(FAILED_CLUSTER_UPGRADE_PREPARATION_EVENT.name(), nextFlowStepSelector.selector());
        verify(stackService).getByIdWithListsInTransaction(STACK_ID);
        verify(clusterApiConnectors).getConnector(stack);
        verify(clusterApi).distributeParcels(requiredProducts);
    }

    private HandlerEvent<ClusterUpgradePreparationEvent> createEvent(Set<ClouderaManagerProduct> requiredProducts) {
        return new HandlerEvent<>(new Event<>(new ClusterUpgradePreparationEvent(DISTRIBUTE_PARCELS_EVENT.name(), STACK_ID, requiredProducts)));
    }

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This is an updated version of a post that was first published on ConservativeHome in September 2014. It now incorporates the conference speech that David Cameron delivered in Birmingham last year.
What was it that Nietzsche said? When you gaze long into David Cameron's speeches, David Cameron's speeches gaze also into you? That, at any rate, is what it felt like for me, when I foolishly decided to revisit all of the conference speeches he has made as Tory leader. Almost a decade's worth of jabber. Over 50,000 words. Gaze long, and soon phrases such as "let's be clear" and "social responsibility" and "global race" start imprinting themselves on your everyday discourse. Your neural network is flooded with Camspeak. It's no fun at all.
But it is educational. Conference speeches may just be so many words, but in combination they can tell the story of a leadership. That's certainly what they do in Cameron's case. What emerges from his speeches is a leadership in three acts.
The First Act begins with a conference speech that Cameron made before becoming party leader: his original pitch for the job in 2005. It wasn't elaborate in any way. None of his speeches really are. What Cameron believes in, as I once explained in the Sunday Telegraph, is simple language that simply gets to the point. He'll often take a marker pen to the work of his speechwriters, and edit everything back to its irreducible core. Much better, he thinks, for the TV news bulletins.
What made this first speech stand out, rather than its prose, was its audacity. The idea of modernising the Conservative Party was nothing new, but here was a relative newcomer preaching that creed without equivocation. It was optimistic: "I love my country. I love our character. I love our people." But it was also firm: "Some say that we should move to the right. I say that will turn us into a fringe party, never able to challenge for government again." Who the Hell was this guy?
Everything that might once have been called "Cameronism" was in that speech – even the Big Society, long before it became known as such. "We are the only party believing that if you give people freedom and responsibility," he said, "they will grow stronger and society will grow stronger." This idea of freedom tempered by responsibility may just be simple Burkean conservatism, but there's no denying that Cameron was pushing it from the very beginning. That, and noble – if generic – nouns such as "aspiration", "compassion" and "change".
These were the Lego bricks with which Cameron would build his next few conference speeches. He'd add more bits to the tower, but the same bricks would always come back. When you put them side by side, it's almost boring how similar parts of the 2007 speech are to parts of the 2006 one. There's the passage on strengthening society. The passage on the importance of the NHS. The passage on protecting the environment. The passage on family. If he said it last year, he said it this year. It's as though he did actually care about this stuff.
The other thing these early speeches share is a freewheeling and confident tone. This is a leader who sounds sure of himself. "I don't care," is his blunt response, in 2007, to the notion that "it is not popular to talk about green issues." He doesn't mind disturbing the audience's partialities by praising the Labour government. In 2006, it's a straight-up admission that "not everything that Labour have done since 1997 is bad". In 2007, it's something even more gooily magnanimous: praise for Ed Balls.
When did all this change? Our Second Act begins in 2008. This was Cameron's first conference speech since the great unravelling of the financial system – and boy does it show. The introduction to the speech is perfunctory. Only a few lines about how nice it is to be in Birmingham's Symphony Hall, blah, blah. Then it's straight into the rough: "Today the financial crisis means that all eyes are on the economy and the financial markets…" This was a more procedural speech than Cameron had delivered previously. Within the first minute he had already mentioned "our proposal to increase the protection for depositors to £50,000". It was as though he had reached the "science bit" after years of flashing his glossy hair for the cameras.
"Labour still have the arrogance to think that they are the ones who will fight poverty and deprivation.
No, not the wicked Tories. You, Labour: you're the ones that did this to our society.
The air thrummed with applause. A leader had properly found his cause.
Or had he? Well, no – because now the curtains open on Act Three. Reading the four speeches that Cameron delivered in the conferences from 2010 to 2013, it's as though he smashed down his Lego castle. Even the one from 2010, which is closest in proximity and tenor to those that had come before, is constructed differently. The NHS is barely mentioned. The environment is mentioned even less. The word "family" occurs only three times, or just twice in its old context. Some of the grand themes from Cameron's previous speeches were suddenly less than leitmotifs.
Of course, it is different being in Government. Even more so than before, Cameron has to speak to the nation rather than to just his party. Being in coalition with the Lib Dems will have changed his script too. As he put it in his speech of last year, "coalition was not what I wanted to do; it's what I had to do." He may not have wanted to stop talking about certain things, but he had to in order to keep the peace.
Yet, however many caveats you string together, it still felt like a surrender. It's possible to keep on enumerating it – the word "environment" doesn't crop up even once in 2011; "NHS" only got three throwaway appearances in 2013 – but the sense matters more than the numbers. And the sense was that Cameron's attachment to these ideals is now, at best, sporadic. He had been diverted by new bricks marked "fairness" or "global race". He changed them from year to year.
But the poetry was often let down by the politics. There wasn't anything to match the righteous anger of 2009 – unless you count the limp attempt to reheat it, in 2013, with the line "don't you dare lecture anyone on the NHS again". Instead, there was 2012's speech and its "outrage" at "people getting 40, 50, 60 thousand pounds of housing benefit… We must be crazy." The melody line, once so easy to follow, became dissonant.
You may be thinking: so what? Wasn't Cameron right about housing benefit claims? And who cares about all that green crap and BS? But this isn't really a matter of agreement. It's a matter of conviction. Look back at that list that Cameron once totted up: family, community, society, the NHS, the environment – "these are the things that matter most to me." He used to talk about them all the time; then he discarded them. Which raises the question: did they ever really matter to him? If the Prime Minister is not sure of his beliefs, few people will believe in him.
This is why it's still too early to say whether Cameron has already begun a fourth act. His speech last year, in Birmingham, was actually stacked with some of the old themes. The NHS was mentioned a good nine times. Family cropped up five times. There was even a 2009-esque attack against Labour's complacency about the poor ("They sit there pontificating about poverty – yet they're the ones who left a generation to rot on welfare.") Yet still there was no room for the Big Society nor for the environment. Will any of this feature in the speech that's being broadcast from Manchester today? Or in any of the Prime Minister's speeches before he relinquishes the lectern and teleprompter to someone else?
Perhaps the fact of a Conservative majority government will help embolden and re-establish Cameron. He suggested as much last year, when he looked forward to being "back here in October 2015 delivering Conservative policies… based on Conservative values… leading a majority Conservative Government." But the promises he made then for these next five years of Tory rule weren't quite the same as those he used to make. They placed much more emphasis on work. He even referred to "full employment" a couple of times. It was almost as though he was speaking with the voice of White Van George.
In any case, whether it's Cameron speaking for himself or by proxy for Osborne, a bit of dependability wouldn't go amiss. And if he doesn't want to take it from me, how about from himself? It was the Prime Minister who said, in his conference speech of 2006, that "real substance… it's about character, judgment and consistency." Draw a line under that last word. Italicise that last word. Type it in bold. Real substance is about consistency. Here's hoping that today's speech isn't just a bunch of words on the breeze.


Today I should register for the August 20th plantMIDWEST quarterly in Saint Louis, MO. Why? Because Joe Thorn is going to be preaching there. Joe wrote a book called "Note To Self". The book is about how to (really… not just hypothetically) preach myself the gospel everyday. When I learn how to preach the gospel and shepherd my own heart, I'll be better prepared to shepherd the hearts of those under my care. So, what am I waiting for? The first 100 people that register will receive a FREE copy of "Note To Self". I should stop slacking and register today! After all… I did make myself a note.