text:
package com.iheart.playSwagger

import org.specs2.mutable.Specification
import play.api.libs.json.JsString
import com.iheart.playSwagger.Domain.SwaggerParameter
import play.routes.compiler.Parameter

class SwaggerParameterMapperSpec extends Specification {
  "mapParam" >> {
    import SwaggerParameterMapper.mapParam
    implicit val cl = this.getClass.getClassLoader

    "map org.joda.time.DateTime to integer with format epoch" >> {
      mapParam(Parameter("fieldWithDateTime", "org.joda.time.DateTime", None, None)) === SwaggerParameter(
        name = "fieldWithDateTime",
        `type` = Option("integer"),
        format = Option("epoch")
      )
    }

    "override mapping to map DateTime to string with format date-time" >> {
      "single DateTime" >> {
        val mapOverride: Seq[SwaggerMapping] = Seq(SwaggerMapping("org.joda.time.DateTime", "string", Some("date-time")))
        val parameter = mapParam(Parameter("fieldWithDateTimeOverRide", "org.joda.time.DateTime", None, None), mappingOverrides = mapOverride)
        parameter.name mustEqual "fieldWithDateTimeOverRide"
        parameter.`type` must beSome("string")
        parameter.format must beSome("date-time")
      }

      "sequence of DateTimes" >> {
        val mapOverride: Seq[SwaggerMapping] = Seq(SwaggerMapping("org.joda.time.DateTime", "string", Some("date-time")))
        val parameter = mapParam(Parameter("seqWithDateTimeOverRide", "Option[Seq[org.joda.time.DateTime]]", None, None), mappingOverrides = mapOverride)

        parameter.name mustEqual "seqWithDateTimeOverRide"
        parameter.required must beFalse
        parameter.`type` must beSome("array")
        parameter.items.isDefined must beTrue
        parameter.items.get.name mustEqual "seqWithDateTimeOverRide"
        parameter.items.get.required must beTrue
        parameter.items.get.`type` must beSome("string")
        parameter.items.get.format must beSome("date-time")
      }
    }

    "map java.util.Date to string with format date-time" >> {
      val mapOverride: Seq[SwaggerMapping] = Seq(SwaggerMapping("java.util.Date", "string", Some("date-time")))
      val parameter = mapParam(Parameter("fieldWithDate", "java.util.Date", None, None), mappingOverrides = mapOverride)
      parameter.name mustEqual "fieldWithDate"
      parameter.`type` must beSome("string")
      parameter.format must beSome("date-time")
    }

    "map java.time.LocalDate to string with no format" >> {
      val mapOverride: Seq[SwaggerMapping] = Seq(SwaggerMapping("java.time.LocalDate", "string"))
      val parameter = mapParam(Parameter("fieldWithLocalDate", "java.time.LocalDate", None, None), mappingOverrides = mapOverride)
      parameter.name mustEqual "fieldWithLocalDate"
      parameter.`type` must beSome("string")
      parameter.format must beNone
    }

    "map Any to any with example value" >> {
      mapParam(Parameter("fieldWithAny", "Any", None, None)) === SwaggerParameter(
        name = "fieldWithAny",
        `type` = Option("any"),
        example = Option(JsString("any JSON value"))
      )
    }

    //TODO: for sequences, should the nested required be ignored?
    "map Option[Seq[T]] to item type" >> {
      mapParam(Parameter("aField", "Option[Seq[String]]", None, None)) === SwaggerParameter(
        name = "aField",
        required = false,
        `type` = Some("array"),
        items = Some(SwaggerParameter(
          name = "aField",
          required = true,
          `type` = Some("string")
        ))
      )
    }

    "map String to string without override interference" >> {
      val mapOverride: Seq[SwaggerMapping] = Seq(
        SwaggerMapping("java.time.LocalDate", "string", Some("date")),
        SwaggerMapping("java.time.Duration", "integer")
      )
      val parameter = mapParam(Parameter("strField", "String", None, None), mappingOverrides = mapOverride)
      parameter.name mustEqual "strField"
      parameter.`type` must beSome("string")
      parameter.format must beNone
    }
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Out of the maxi dresses I ordered, this Splendid one ended up being my favorite. In fact, I started with the putty gray (pictured) and have since gone back for the black and blue (called denim), too.
I usually pair my maxi dresses with a scarf, but then I saw these photos on People.com and knew I needed to add some denim for a change.
I already have no. 2, the Levi's Denim Trucker Vest from Urban Outfitters, actually I am wearing it today (see a little peek here - not the greatest picture) with the blue Splendid maxi dress. I love this vest and for $68, it didn't break the bank.


Marrying a classic layout with fresh western themes and Sun Valley-style, this whole-house remodel included everything from custom upholstery, window treatments, all hard-surface selection, right down to every new knob and fixture. Lush textures, a keen eye for line, and an artful mix of Asian, Euro, Western flavors created a lively and comfortable second home for this couple.
An extensive network of Portland artisans, workshops, builders, metal-smiths, painters, craftsmen, seamstresses, and upholsterers work with Maison, Inc.'s designers.


text:
How Long Do I Have to Contest a Will in Texas?
Reviewed by: Michelle Seidel, B.Sc., LL.B., MBA
By: Beverly Bird, Paralegal
Time Limits When Contesting a Will
••• Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
Texas has six deadlines for contesting a will depending on the circumstances of the case, but things can be complicated by the fact that next of kin or the executor have four years from the testator's date of death to submit his will for probate. Texas law requires that only named beneficiaries be given notice that a will is in probate. Heirs who are not mentioned in the will do not have to be notified and may not even know that the process has begun.
Before Probate
The best time to challenge a will is before it enters probate. At this point, the executor and beneficiaries have the legal burden to prove the will is valid under Texas law. This includes proving that the testator was of sound mind when she made the will. Contesting a will before it enters probate can stop the entire process. There is a two-week waiting period when a Texas probate court receives a will and an application to probate it. During this time, a notice is posted at the courthouse advising when the waiting period expires. If you don't challenge the will during this time, the court opens probate and the burden to legally prove that something is wrong with the will shifts to you.
Read More: Can You Contest a Will After Probate?
After Probate
Probate officially opens in Texas with a hearing during which the court declares the will to be valid and appoints the executor. After this point, Section 93 of the Texas Probate Code gives you two years to contest it, but there are some exceptions.
Frauds and Forgery
One exception to the two-year statute of limitations is if you have reason to believe that the will is a fake or forgery. You then have two years to prove it after the evidence of fraud comes to light.
Discovery of a Second Will
Sometimes, after a will is admitted to probate, another will left by the testator is discovered. If the new will is dated after the one admitted to probate, you have four years after finding it to submit it for probate. This automatically challenges the first will. However, if the will is dated before the original will, then the two-year statute of limitations from the date the first one entered probate still applies.
Unaware Heirs
In 2010, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that a testator's children have up to four years after probate of an estate closes to make a claim for an inheritance if they did not know during the probate period that they were entitled to a share of the estate. This law generally applies to offspring who were put up for adoption or born outside of marriage and did not know who their biological parent was until after probate closed.
Incapacitated Heirs
If an heir is incapacitated during the two-year probate period and is unable to contest the will because of the incapacity, she has two additional years to make a challenge after she regains capacity. Minors are considered incapacitated because they cannot legally file a lawsuit. Therefore, they have two years after reaching the age of majority to contest a will.
Target Law: Time Limit for Contesting a Will in Texas
The Probate: Learn How Much Time You Have to Claim Your Inheritance
Texas Estate and Probate Disputes: FAQs
Beverly Bird is a practicing paralegal who has been writing professionally on legal subjects for over 30 years. She specializes in family law and estate law and has mediated family custody issues.
Can Wills Be Contested?
What's the Statute of Limitations for Contesting a Will in Georgia?
Statute of Limitations for Contesting a Will in Pennsylvania

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini has reserved ruling on a point of order raised by Southern Province Minister Edify Hamukale on the continued walking out of parliament by opposition UPND MPs every time Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Development Ronald Chitotela takes to the floor.
Dr Matibini notes that he has reserved ruling to give a comprehensive judgement on the walkout by the UPND MPs who claim they are doing so owing to the corruption allegation charges that Mr Chitotela is facing in court.
Dr Hamukale questioned the morality of the walk out when two UPND MPs are equally facing corruption allegations, but the ruling party does not walk out of the house when they take to the floor.
This is the second time that UPND MPs have walked out after Mr Chitotela took to the floor.


text:
weaving connections of science, technology, and life
Webb of Science
About Sarah Webb
Tag Archives: Nobel Prize
MotW: Nobel Prizes all about the carbon
Carbon is the big star among the science Nobel Prizes this week. Sure, IVF is a big deal, too. But, today, I'm all about the element that ruled my life as an organic chemist. Carbon more than math is the universal common denominator of 'O-chem. "As my undergraduate professor once quipped , "You just have to be able to count to four: four bonds to carbon."
, from Wikimedia Commons"] But otherwise the two prizes aren't all that similar. The physics prize for the discovery of graphene— sheets of carbon the thickness of a single atom– recognizes a discovery just a handful of years old. It's superstrong, transparent, incredibly dense– fascinating properties that have scientists excited about what we might be able to do with it. But what has it done for the world lately? Not much, at least not yet. Some scientists think the award is premature.
The chemistry prize was awarded for classic organic synthesis: using palladium, a matchmaker metal with the remarkable ability to help chemists link together complicated patterns of carbon atoms. Although the enzymes between living cells are gifted at making these types of connections, stringing carbon atoms together in precise ways within a flask in a traditional chemistry lab is both art and science (and often an exercise in frustration).
But this is one elegant solution. The scientists discovered the reactions in the 1970s, but the chemistry that had come into its own by the time I started graduate school in the late 1990s. As a result, my chemist mind thought, "oh, really, they haven't awarded a Nobel for this yet?" But there's no question that this science has touched people all over the world. The pain reliever I took yesterday (Naproxen, the active compound in Aleve), cancer drugs, plastics, compounds in TVs and other displays and flexible screens all result from chemists using these techniques on an industrial scale.
Naproxen structure via Wikimedia Commons
Tags: carbon, chemistry, graphene, Nobel Prize, organic chemistry, palladium-catalyzed cross coupling, physics
Categories Material of the Week, Molecule of the Week, science
Chemistry Nobel, women, and the "choice"
A chocolate Nobel Prize
On Monday, I mentioned that it was a good week for women in science. Well, it got even better today with the announcement of the chemistry prize. Ada Yonath of the Weizmann Institute of Science becomes the fourth woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize in Chemistry (sharing the prize with Venkatraman Ramakrishnan of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Thomas Steitz of Yale University).
The science is essential for life, understanding the structure and workings of ribosomes. These packets within living cells that take the master plans encoded within geness and manufacture the working parts, proteins.
For an upcoming story, I've been thinking a lot about research careers, work-life balance, and the "choice" that's often drawn in the sand, particularly for women, between work and family. Some of that comes out in Yonath's interview on the Nobel website:
[AS] Yes. And perhaps particularly special to be a woman who receives it?
[AY] I'm sorry that I can't, I can't think this is because of my gender. And, I don't think that I did something that is specially for women, or the opposite. During my time I had some very difficult years and I had very pronounced competition, all by men. But I don't think that this is because I was a woman. I'm pretty sure that if I was a man too they would compete, if the men would get to where I was at that time. I think that it doesn't help to be a woman in science. Maybe now, but not when I was progressing. But I don't think that it disturbs, in my opinion. I may be wrong. I may be wrong: women try to explain me all types of things. And I think that women can make … women need, actually, they're fortunate because if they don't want to do science they can say, "I want to be with my kids." And this is understandable, whereas a man cannot do this. So if we look at it from the other point, but this means also stopping science.
The Nobel recognition is about Yonath's science, not her gender. But I find this quote fascinating, and it skirts around the main issue. She's of a different generation (born in 1939), and I see one point: motherhood was considered a socially acceptable– maybe even socially sanctioned– reason for a female scientist to leave the laboratory. A man would probably get more backlash for making a choice to leave the laboratory to raise his children.
But that choice, by a scientist of either gender, comes with consequences. I doubt that many of today's women use motherhood as a smokescreen for a waning interest in research. They leave for many reasons: because they decide to apply their knowledge in new ways, because they don't see enough opportunities, and maybe even because they want to make more money. Some of them discover that the research lifestyle isn't compatible with the family life that they'd like to have, particularly in the early years of their children's lives.
Working on this upcoming story already had me thinking about my own decision to leave the laboratory. My choice didn't come down to a line in the sand between career and family. I was single throughout graduate school and defended my dissertation shortly before my 30th birthday. But those issues colored my decision. By the time I finished my Ph.D., I sensed a culture of inflexibility. I realized that I didn't want to feel locked into lab work, and I wanted to be able to pursue other creative interests, and, yes, eventually have a family. Did those desires make me a less capable scientist? Absolutely not, but conventional wisdom would say that I didn't want it "bad enough." If I had sensed more flexibility– an environment more compatible with my personal goals– would I have considered staying in research? I don't know.
Tags: Ada Yonath, chemistry, Nobel Prize, ribosome, women in science
Categories career, nucleic acid, science
Nobel Prize for telomeres: focusing on the ends of DNA
It's Nobel Prize season again, and the science behind this particular award for Medicine feels like a familiar friend. I got my crash course in telomeres and telomerase from a group meeting talk that one of my lab colleagues gave almost exactly a decade ago.
The science recognized was done a quarter century ago. DNA sequences have protective caps called telomeres that are maintained by a riboenzyme, telomerase, but the implications for the scientific understanding of aging, cancer and stem cells remain active research areas. Telomeres get shorter as we age, and maintenance of telomeres in cancer cells may help them continue to survive and divide. Part of the understanding of stem cells and their capacity for regeneration (or to cause cancer) will come from a better understanding of their telomeres.
This Nobel Prize story has many of the plot points associated with great discoveries, particularly the discovery of the telomerase enzyme, by Carol Greider in Elizabeth Blackburn's laboratory on Christmas Day 1984. But notably, this award goes to two women: Blackburn of UCSF and Greider of Johns Hopkins University (They share the award with Jack Szostak of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School).
Though I wish that there were enough female Nobelists to make a double double-X chromosome Prize in Medicine less notable, it's definitely a good day for women in science.
Tags: aging, cancer, Medicine, Nobel Prize, stem cells, telomerase, telomere, women in science
Categories nucleic acid, science
Spider web photo © Luc Viatour GFDL/CC
About webb of science
Science is a web of connected ideas: growing, changing, meshing, untangling. Sarah Webb is sharing that mix of where science intersects with life and ideas.
Subscribe or Share
Random tweets
Lots of great reasons to support @Open_Notebook on #GivingTuesday twitter.com/Open_Notebook/… 1 month ago
@MoLI_Museum @EoinColfer FYI: I think you meant to tag @sarahwebbishere instead? 1 month ago
I had a lot of fun reporting this @SNstudents story about the many forms of the periodic table @IYPT2019 #IYPT2019 sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/chemis… 2 months ago
Great for us, too! Thanks again for speaking, to everyone who came out and @StoneCupCoffee #chattaboutscience twitter.com/FishnandoAlda/… 2 months ago
@FishnandoAlda @StoneCupCoffee facebook.com/events/9630973… 2 months ago
Traveling the (AMNH's) Silk Road
Archives Select Month December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 May 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009
animals Announcement art career environment food genes health how it's served up just plain fun Mars Material of the Week media Molecule of the Week New York City nucleic acid policy science Space exploration technology Uncategorized writing
academia AMNH Blogging 'Bout Boys blue whale cancer carbon dioxide Cassini cat cell chemistry chimpanzee Christopher Clark climate change clinical trials dance diabetes DNA education experiment Experimental Cuisine Collective Extreme Mammals fashion FDA film fish flexibility fossil freelance writing global health gorilla guest blogger H1N1 health care ice influenza Jennifer Fink journalism Kate Reilly laughter Mars May blog-a-thon May blogathon Mother's day music NASA National Zoo Nature network New York City Nobel Prize NY harbor Opportunity origami parenting periodic table Ph.D. physics plastic Polka Dot Suitcase problem solving protein rat research RNA rovers science writing Scientific American Spirit swine flu tickle tomato unusual instrument virus whales women in science
Annals of Spacetime
Complexity Simplified
Feynman's Flower
Midgaard
Pillow Astronaut
The Blowout Experiment
The Last Word on Nothing
The Lay Scientist
May 2009 Blog-A-Thon
BIKE with Jackie
Blogging 'Bout Boys
Polka Dot Suitcase
WordCount: Freelancing in the Digital Age
Sarah on the web
Sarah Webb's professional website
Unless otherwise noted, all content © Sarah Webb and webbofscience, 2009. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Sarah Webb and webbofscience with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.


text:
Cleveland Indians Tickets
Your one stop shop for the best Cleveland Indians tickets
Tag: 2016 MLB Playoffs
Cleveland Strikes first Blood
Kluber reigned supreme for six innings.
As Corey Kluber walked off Progressive Field to a standing ovation, chants of Corey filed the air. You see, Kluber had just performed at an extremely and highly effective level and for six innings, he breezed through six innings he faced 22 batters, striking out nine to only four hits. His coaches could not be prouder.
"There's a fire though that burns in there that maybe people don't see," said Cleveland manager Terry Francona, who is 9-0 in the World Series. "I think he shows more of his personality in the clubhouse than maybe he ever will to the media, which is his choice. But his work ethic is probably second to none. I mean, his routines are impeccable during the year, and there's a reason that he holds his stuff all year. Like his gas tank needle doesn't start going down because he just gets after it every day.
"He's kind of grown up into this pitcher right in front of us, and it's been fun to watch.
"It's almost like you have that extra level of intensity," said Kluber, who became the first Series pitcher to strike out eight batters in the first three innings.
The Cubs, who broke into the playoffs for the first time since 1996, are more concerned with how the team responds after getting blanked in Game One.
"I have no concerns," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "It's the first game. I'm fine. We're fine."
Kluber believes this is the squad to take the Cubs out of the World Series Picture.
"I don't know if it's just the group of guys that we have that we're able to handle adversity well,'' Kluber said, "or over the last couple years realized that's the kind of baseball we need to play to be successful. Everybody kind of realizes that we each have our own job.
"It's not one superstar going out there and carrying the team.''
Game two is tonight at 6:05. Plenty of great seats and tickets are still available so be sure to grab yours today and help cheer on your Cleveland Indians in The World Series!!
Author katadminPosted on October 26, 2016 October 26, 2016 Tags 2016 MLB, 2016 MLB Playoffs, Affordable Tickets, American League Champions, Cleveland Indians, Corey Kluber, great seats, Joe Maddon, Prime Tickets, Progressive Field, Terry FranconaLeave a comment on Cleveland Strikes first Blood
Tribe dump Blue Jays
Rookie Merritt delivers
The Cleveland Indians took matters into their own hands and delivered the knockout punch to the punch drunk Toronto Blue Jays and they did it with Rookie Ryan Merritt was the one delivering the blows.
The 24-year old lefty shut down the once high flying Blue Jays in game five before taking a bow in the fifth inning. The rookie fanned 10 batters, allowed two hits in 4 1/3rd innings and looked like a veteran out there.
"I know they were counting on me," Merritt said. "Before the game, they came and told me they had my back, everybody had my back, good or bad. So that takes some pressure off, and I just went out there and pitched and trusted my team."
The Tribe now await the winner of the NLCS between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. They could use the time recuperate for a few days, especially the pitching staff which have been hampered with injuries, especially Trevor Bauer who is still nursing an injured pinkie finger.
Get your tickets for the World Series today which kicks off Oct. 25th and help cheer on your Cleveland Indians in the Fall Classic!
Author katadminPosted on October 21, 2016 Tags 2016 MLB Playoffs, 2016 World Series, Affordable Tickets, ALCS, Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, great seats, Los Angeles Dodgers, NLDS, Ryan Merritt, Toronto Blue Jays, TribeLeave a comment on Tribe dump Blue Jays
Tribe gives one up to Jays
Series now at 3-1
The Cleveland Indians had their playoff winning streak come to an end last night when the Toronto Blue Jays finally showed some life as Josh Donaldson homered in the third inning off of Corey Kluber.
"It's an uphill battle," Donaldson said. "We're still down three games to one. It's a must-win each and every game. But the fact of the matter is we've got to go out there and continue to control what we can control. I felt like we did that for the better half of today, and we've got to go out there and do it again tomorrow."
The Blue Jays will be sending Marco Estrada (9-9, 3.48 ERA) for game 5 of the ALDS while the Indians will be sending out rookie phenom Ryan Merritt (1-0, 1.64 ERA) who got his first ever start on September 30th where he allowed one run on three hits spread over five innings for a 7-2 win.
Plenty of great seats and affordable tickets are still available so be sure to grab yours today and help cheer on your Cleveland Indians in the ALDS!
Author katadminPosted on October 19, 2016 Tags 2016 MLB Playoffs, 2016 MLB Season, Affordable Tickets, ALDS, Cleveland Indians, Corey Kluber, great seats, Marco Estrada, Prime Tickets, Rogers Centre, Ryan Merritt, Toronto Blue JaysLeave a comment on Tribe gives one up to Jays
Red Sox Visit Progressive Field to kick off ALDS
Porcello & Bauer Start series
First he led the Red Sox to their first World Series win in over 85 years and now, Cleveland Indians Manager Terry Francona will attempt to do the same with his newest charges. Although Francona has been with the squad three years this marks the first time since he led the Sox in 2007 against Cleveland that the two teams have met in the ALDS.
"The one thing I think I need to be cognizant of is the players have worked so hard — both sides — to get to this," Francona said. "So, whatever my feelings are need to remain my feelings, and let the players {get the spotlight}."
Taking the mound for the Indians will be Trevor Bauer (12-8, 4.26 ERA) who had the best season of his sort career thus far. Rick Porcello (22-4, 3.15 ERA) will take the mound for the Sox to start the series. Porcello is now a front runner for the AL's Cy Young Award. He pitched 5 2/3rd innings for a win in his only start against the Indians this season.
Plenty of great seats and affordable tickets are still available so be sure to grab yours and get out to the ballpark and cheer on your Cleveland Indians.
Author katadminPosted on October 6, 2016 Tags 2016 ALDS, 2016 MLB Playoffs, Affordable Tickets, AL Central Trevor Bauer, Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, great seats, Playoff Tickets, Prime Tickets, Rick Porcello, Terry FranconaLeave a comment on Red Sox Visit Progressive Field to kick off ALDS
Tribe ready to resserrect the Goat!
Cleveland ready to answer history
Yardbarker: Cleveland Guardians
Guardians name Joe Torres assistant pitching coach
Guardians announce several organizational promotions
Free-agent faceoff: Catcher pile
Trying to find hidden gems with BB/K
Terry Francona plans to manage Guardians in 2022 despite health issues
Cleveland Indians Tickets Proudly powered by WordPress


I've been a bit rubbish at blogging this week I am afraid. I've just not got round to it in the evenings.
This was the first week that I cycled more than 100 miles. I lost over 5 lb and the bike has now done 723 miles.
On Tuesday and Wednesday I cycled home a different way, along the Norhtern Line. There definitely less steep hills and in that respect it was probably a bit easier. There were however more traffic lights and a few narrow bits that got really snarled up with traffic that made it difficult to get past.
The rest of the week I went my usual way back cutting across Clapham Common and I think that I will continue to use this route.
On Tuesday Morning I got held up a little on Tower Bridge. For the second time I saw the bridge raise in front of me but this time it wasn't a tiny little sailing boat but a very big cruise liner. More pictures here. She was still moored between Tower Bridge and London Bridge when I went past in the evening but had left the next morning. I should think she left on the early morning high tide.
On Wednesday morning I had a fantastic ride in and did the whole journey in less that 50 minutes averaging over 15 MPH over the 12.5 miles. There is much less traffic in the morning so the Northern Line route works well.
Thursday and Friday were VERY windy on the way home which makes life a lot harder.
My journey home on Friday was particularly annoying as I had a slow puncture. I filled the tyre up at Evans Canary Wharf and again at Evans Clapham. At Clapham I could actually hear the air escaping so I had to stop again on my way home to top it up from my hand pump.


This publication provides feeding recommendations for the use of wheat in beef cattle.
Wheat remains one of the leading crops produced in North Dakota. Most wheat in North Dakota is hard red spring wheat (HRSW) or durum. Small acreages of hard red winter wheat and, more recently, hard white wheat also are planted in the state.
Wheat is not used traditionally as a feed grain because its milling properties make it desirable for use in breads, pastas and noodles. At certain times, however, wheat is priced competitively with other feed grains due to damage from disease, drought or sprouting. Feed-grade wheat is a palatable, digestible source of nutrients that can be used in beef cattle diets if fed with caution to avoid digestive upsets.
The nutrient content of wheat, wheat byproducts and selected feed grains is shown in Table 1 . Wheat is low in fiber and high in starch content, and has an energy value (total digestible nutrients [TDN], net energy of maintenance [NEm], net energy for gain [NEg]) similar to corn.
Wheat is higher in protein than other common feed grains such as corn, barley or oats. Within wheat classes, HRSW has the highest protein content, with hard red winter wheat and durum being slightly lower. All cereal grains generally are low in calcium and adequate in phosphorus for all classes of beef cattle.
Low fiber levels and a rapid rate of starch digestion make wheat more difficult to feed than most other cereal grains. The starch in wheat is fermented more rapidly than the starch in corn, resulting in greater potential for digestive upset, acidosis, bloat and founder, and reduced and/or erratic intake patterns. Figure 1 shows relative rates of fermentation for major feed grains.
Processing wheat substantially improves digestibility due to the hard seed coat associated with the kernel. According to research published in Australia, whole wheat has a digestibility of 60 percent, compared with 86 percent for wheat that is rolled.
However, attention to processing is crucial for best results when feeding wheat. Wheat should be rolled coarsely (breaking the kernel into a few pieces), but not ground, for best results. Creating excessive fines or floury material should be avoided. Small particle size increases the rate of digestion. When excess fines are present, an increase in digestive problems such as bloat, founder and acidosis can be expected.
Because of its feeding characteristics, levels of wheat in the ration should be limited. In moderate to high-grain rations (50 percent or more concentrate), wheat should be fed in combination with more slowly fermented feed grains and limited to 40 percent of the total diet to prevent or reduce the risk of digestive upsets.
What is important is to adapt cattle to wheat gradually so that you avoid overconsumption. Adapt cattle by introducing wheat into the ration at low levels (10 to 15 percent of the diet) and increasing the level in steps or increments (10, 20, 30, up to 40 percent) after a period of several days of constant intake and appetite.
Figure 2 (below) details research conducted at the University of Nebraska that shows the erratic intakes that cattle sometimes experience as they adapt to wheat-based finishing diets. To avoid problems with wheat-based diets, cattle should not be moved to higher-concentrate levels until intakes are consistent.
Problems with overconsumption (such as bloat, founder and acidosis) can be minimized by limit feeding, feeding two times or more per day, providing plenty of roughage and feeding a total mixed ration. Self-feeding wheat should be avoided.
In addition to limiting the level of wheat fed, feeding with other grains such as corn, coarse processing, adapting cattle slowly and good bunk management have been shown to be helpful when utilizing wheat in the ration. For growing and finishing cattle, including an ionophore will help reduce overconsumption and acidosis. Kansas research indicates that the addition of an ionophore/antibiotic combination to wheat-based finishing diets improves feed efficiency.
Using buffers (such as limestone) in the ration, particularly as cattle are being started on concentrate diets, is beneficial. Rations should be formulated to contain a minimum of .7 percent calcium (with the majority of the calcium coming from limestone). The addition of sodium bicarbonate to wheat-based rations has, at times, improved daily gain and feed conversions, according to research conducted in Kansas.
Research conducted at NDSU that compared durum with HRSW indicated cattle fed durum consumed less feed and had poorer feed conversions, compared with cattle fed barley, corn or HRSW. Table 2 details the results of this feeding trial, which compared feeding corn, barley, durum, soft wheat and HRSW to finishing steers. The diets averaged 73 percent grain for the wheat- and corn-based diets and 81 percent grain for the barley-based diet. Grains were coarsely rolled prior to feeding.
Average daily gains, feed conversions and intakes were poorer for the durum diet, compared with corn or HRSW. This indicates that durum should be included at lower levels in the diet (30 percent or less), compared with HRSW. Rolled or cracked durum can become pasty and sticky. This is related to its gluten strength and may be part of the reason that durum is more difficult to feed than HRSW.
Wheat that is economical to feed often has been discounted for a variety of reasons. Generally, cattle fed wheat with test weights greater than 56 pounds per bushel will have similar conversion rates. Very low test weight wheat (less than 56 pounds) will be useful as feed, but energy values will be lower and feed conversion rates poorer.
Low test weight wheat may be more difficult to process properly, compared with higher test weight wheats. Kernel size is more variable with low test weight grains, making processing more difficult. When the roller is set properly for larger kernels, many small kernels will pass through the rollers unprocessed. When set properly for smaller kernels, many larger kernels will be processed too finely. In the case of wheat, err on the side of underprocessing rather than overprocessing.
vomitoxin-infested barley indicates no apparent problems when fed to growing and finishing cattle or gestating or lactating beef cows. Research conducted at the University of Minnesota indicates that cattle can tolerate high levels of vomitoxin (21 parts per million of DON) without noted impacts on performance or health of the cattle.
However, exercise caution with wheat or any grain that has gone out of condition or has mold damage. The possibility exists that molds and toxins will impact feeding value through reduced feed acceptance, intake and performance, as well as higher incidence of morbidity, the possibility of abortion in pregnant cattle and, in some cases, even death. Young calves, gestating cows and animals under nutritional stress are most vulnerable.
High levels of ergot in wheat are also a concern. Ergot concentrations in grain greater than .1 percent have been shown to affect animal performance.
Sprouted grains are similar in feeding value to undamaged grain when fed to cattle. Nutrient levels in sprouted grains tend to be slightly higher than in nonsprouted grain due to the concentration effect that occurs as certain nutrients are utilized during germination. However, no significant differences in cattle performance were detected when sprouted wheat replaced nonsprouted wheat in the diet. Table 3 gives data on the effect of sprouting on nutrient content of wheat. See NDSU Extension Service publication AS647, "Feeding Value of Sprouted Grains," for more information.
Little data is available regarding the feeding value of frosted wheat. However, research conducted in Alberta with frosted barley indicates no difference in feeding value of frosted grain, compared with sound grain when fed in feedlot diets.
Drought-damaged wheat generally has smaller kernels and is lower in starch content than wheat grown without drought stress. Nitrate toxicity should not be a concern with wheat grain. Wheat does not transfer nitrate into the seed during drought stress.
Significant discounts on wheat not meeting grade standards in traditional markets will at times price wheat very favorably as a feedstuff. Such situations create opportunities to utilize wheat in achieving low-cost gains and reduced feeding costs. However, feeding wheat requires careful attention to feed processing, ration formulation and feeding management for optimum results.
• Limit wheat to 40 percent or less of the ration in backgrounding and finishing diets.
• Limit durum to 30 percent or less of the ration in backgrounding and finishing diets.
• Ionophores should be used with wheat-based finishing diets to improve feed efficiency and reduce the risk of acidosis.
• Buffers such as limestone and sodium bicarbonate may be useful in alleviating or preventing digestive upsets.
• Adapt cattle to wheat-based diets incrementally, starting with low levels (10 to 15 percent) and then gradually increasing the wheat level up to 30 percent (durum) to 40 percent (hard wheats) over the course of two to three weeks.
• Wheat should be rolled coarsely or cracked, but not finely ground, for optimum performance.
• When used as a supplement for beef cows, hard wheat levels should be kept under 5 to 6 pounds per head per day (3.5 to 4.5 pounds for durum).
• When used as a supplement, wheat should be fed every day (as opposed to every other day or every third day).
• Do not use wheat in creep rations. The rapid rate of starch fermentation increases the risk of digestive problems such as acidosis, founder and/or bloat.
• Wheat should not be fed in self-feeders.
• Damaged wheat (sprouted, frosted, drought-stressed, vomitoxin-infested) can be fed after careful inspection and laboratory analysis of the condition and quality of the grain.


Contributions: (I) Conception and design: JW Mu, Z Wang; (II) Administrative support: JW Mu; (III) Provision of study materials or patients: SG Gao, Q Xue; (IV) Collection and assembly of data: X Yu, YK Yang; (V) Data analysis and interpretation: Z Wang, XT Guo, LX Wang; (VI) Manuscript writing: All authors; (VII) Final approval of manuscript: All authors.
Correspondence to: Ju-Wei Mu. Department of Thoracic Surgery, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital & Shenzhen Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Shenzhen 518116, China. Email: mujuwei@cicams.ac.cn.
Background: Previous studies have demonstrated that survival of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with oligometastasis may benefit from local treatment. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of local surgical treatment with systematic chemoradiotherapy in NSCLC with oligometastasis.
Methods: Data from a total of 172 patients with NSCLC with oligometastasis were collected at our Cancer Hospital from January 2006 to December 2016. The patients were divided into two groups: group A (82 cases) underwent primary surgical treatment and adjuvant chemotherapy was performed after operation, while group B (90 cases) received systematic chemotherapy and local radiotherapy. The median survival time (MST) and the 5-year survival rate of the two groups were compared and analyzed. The effects of various pathological types, surgical methods of the primary tumors and the site of oligometastasis were also analyzed.
Results: The MSTs in groups A and group B were 48 months and 18 months, respectively, and the 5-year survival rates were 21.1% and 7.6%, respectively (P<0.05). In group A, the survival rates were higher in patients with adrenal metastasis than patients with metastasis in the brain, bone, the liver or in other oligometastatic patients (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the survival rate among the various pathological types or surgical methods of primary tumors (P>0.05).
Conclusions: Local surgical treatment of primary lesions in NSCLC significantly prolonged overall survival and 5-year survival rates of patients with NSCLC with oligometastasis.
Submitted Apr 23, 2018. Accepted for publication Nov 16, 2018.
Primary non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with oligometastasis has become a serious public health problem affecting the public's physical and mental health (1-4). In 2017, Siegel et al., Master of Public Health (MPH), and the American Cancer Society of Atlanta reported an estimated 222,500 cases of lung cancer and bronchogenic carcinoma, and the death toll was estimated at 155,870 (5). The mortality rate of lung cancer was the highest among all cancers, accounting for 16% (6) of all cancer patients. NSCLC accounts for 85% to 90% of lung cancer, and most of these patients have advanced metastasis. The treatment of metastatic NSCLC only relied on palliative chemoradiotherapy (7) in the past. Surgical resection remains the most effective treatment for patients with early NSCLC. However, approximately 40% of patients have metastasis at diagnosis, with poor prognosis, and the median survival is only 8–11 months (6). The most common metastatic sites are the brain, bone, liver and adrenal gland (8). Distant metastasis is often associated with a poor prognosis, but only approximately 7% of advanced NSCLC have a single metastasis (9). However, for partial metastatic stage IV NSCLC (oligometastatic lung cancer), a number of studies have shown that long-term survival can be achieved with active treatments including surgery or stereotactic radiotherapy. Therefore, in the middle of the 1990s, Hellman and Weichselbaum (10) proposed the concept of "oligometastasis". Oligometastasis is an intermediate state in the process of tumor metastasis, existing in the transition period between localized primary and extensive metastasis (11); the number of metastatic tumors is less than 5, and the metastatic organ is specific. Hellman proposed the spectral theory and suggested that the state of oligometastasis reflects the inactive biological behavior of tumor cells in vivo; furthermore, ablation of all known metastases can prolong disease-free survival and even cure patients. This theory has been supported by many clinical experiences. For example, liver resection for patients with colorectal liver metastases and pneumonectomy for lung metastasis of sarcomas improved long-term survival (12). "Oligometastasis" emphasizes the localized tumor burden, which is similar to that of isolated distant metastasis, yet different. The number of metastases or distant metastasis organs can be several, not limited to isolated distant metastasis (13). The published studies are based on the number of metastatic foci in clinical data. The number of metastases is less than 5, defined as oligometastasis. NSCLC patients require metastatic foci of 1–5 (with oligometastases). For NSCLC with distant metastasis, surgery, systemic chemotherapy, local radiotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy are usually required. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of local surgical treatment with systematic chemoradiotherapy in treatment of NSCLC with oligometastasis.
In this study, a total of 172 patients with NSCLC with oligometastasis in our hospital from January 2006 to December 2016 were analyzed retrospectively. We compared the effects of local surgical treatment and systematic chemoradiotherapy on survival.
In our Hospital Information System (HIS) system, we searched for cases of primary NSCLC with oligometastasis from 2006 to 2016. The study was approved by the ethics committee of our hospital. Inclusion criteria included primary NSCLC diagnosed pathologically; radical resection or partial resection of primary lung cancer; 1–3 metastatic nodules outside the primary focus, and not more than 1 metastatic organ (including simultaneity and heterochrony). Both groups had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (ECOG PS) scores of ≤2. Simultaneous oligometastasis was defined as oligometastasis detected within 6 months of the diagnosis of primary lung cancer. All patients enrolled in this study had primary lung cancer with distant metastasis and 1–3 nodules.
The protocol of this study was approved by the Ethics Review Committee of the National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, and the number/ID of the Ethics Approval was NCC2016 JP-01. From January 2006 to December 2016, 172 patients with primary NSCLC with oligometastasis was diagnosed in our hospital. Among them, 82 locals' procedures were performed in the operation group (group A). There were 42 males and 40 females, with an average age of 56.4±11.6 years old. Pathological diagnosis included adenocarcinoma in 29 cases, squamous cell carcinoma in 47 cases and large cell carcinoma in 6 cases. There were 37 cases of head metastasis, 29 cases of bone metastasis, 9 cases of adrenal metastasis, 2 cases of liver metastasis and 5 cases of other metastasis (four of which had skin metastases and one had ovarian metastases; Table 1). The other 90 cases were treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy (group B). There were 36 males and 54 females, with an average age of 56.2±10.6 years old. Pathological diagnosis included adenocarcinoma in 47 cases, squamous cell carcinoma in 39 cases and large cell carcinoma in 4 cases. There were 37 cases of head metastasis, 22 cases of bone metastasis, 7 cases of adrenal metastasis, 18 cases of liver metastasis, and 6 cases of other metastasis (six patients with oligometastasis in other parts of the radiotherapy and chemotherapy group were treated with local excision of oligometastases; Table 2). For the surgical group, radical resection or partial resection of primary lung cancer was performed. Adjuvant chemotherapy was recommended after operation. Thirty-seven patients had oligometastasis to the head; 24 of these underwent primary resection of the lung after the partial resection of the oligometastasis, and 13 underwent primary lung resection after head radiotherapy. Of 29 cases of oligometastasis of bone, 24 were transferred in 2–3 cases. After the resection of the primary lung, local radiotherapy was given to the oligometastases, of which 5 cases were rib metastases (all single metastasis cases) that were excised with the primary lung and the resection of the ribs. For 9 patients with adrenal metastases, the primary lung lesions were removed after adrenalectomy. For 2 patients with hepatic metastases, local interventional therapy was performed after resection of primary lung tumor. Five patients (4 cases of skin metastases and 1 case of ovarian metastasis) were treated with partial resection of the metastatic lesion and primary resection of the lung. There were 6 cases of oligometastases to other parts of the lung and chemotherapy group.
For patients with more than 1 lesion, bone metastasis occurred in multiple sites, and there were fewer than 3 bone metastases . Metastasis removal was performed for a single resectable bone metastasis, and the rest were given local radiotherapy.
The enrolled cases were divided into groups A and B. In group A, depending on the patient's lung function and body condition, the surgical method was wedge resection or lobectomy, and adjuvant chemotherapy was recommended after surgery. The patients in group B met the inclusion criteria, but they had poor physical performance and were unable to tolerate surgery, or the patients themselves and/or their family members refused the surgery. Therefore, they were treated with systemic chemotherapy combined with local radiotherapy. The patients were followed up for 12 months, including by telephone follow-up, medical records and outpatient imaging data.
For patients with peripheral tumors less than 2 cm in diameter, or with poor or poor lung function or good cancer differentiation, patients with lower malignancy were treated with a wedge resection of the primary lung. Pulmonary resection was reserved for primary tumors, and partial excision was performed at the oligometastatic site.
SPSS 18 (SPSS, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) statistical software was used for data processing. Paired t-tests were used for the comparison of measurement data. Rank data were compared by rank sum test. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the survival rate. Differences were statistically significant at P<0.05.
In group A of 82 patients, 54 underwent wedge resection of pulmonary primary tumor, and no severe complications occurred in any patient. Adjuvant chemotherapy was given after the operation. Pulmonary lobectomy and mediastinal lymph node dissection were performed in 28 patients, and no severe complications occurred in any patient. Adjuvant chemotherapy was given after the operation. In group B, 90 patients were treated with systematic radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
The two groups were followed up for 12–72 months. There were no statistically significant differences in terms of gender, age, type of pathology or surgery methods of primary tumors (P>0.05). The median survival time (MST) was 48 months and the 5-year survival rate were 21.1% in group A of 82 patients; in group B, the MST was 18 months, and the 5-year survival rate was 7.6%. The MST and 5-year survival rates in group A were significantly higher than those of group B (P=0.0002) (Figure 1). Survival rates were higher in patients with adrenal metastasis than in those with brain, bone, liver, or other metastases (P<0.001) (Figure 2). There was no significant difference in the survival rate between the pathological type of primary tumor and the surgical methods (P=0.36, P=0.77) (Figures 3,4). Our study found that after follow-up of the patient's metastases, approximately 20% were slightly advanced, and approximately 80% were controlled. In this study, there were 12 cases with tumor size ≤2 cm, 42 cases with tumor size between 2 and 4 cm and 28 cases with tumor size above 4 cm. We further developed a Cox survival curve for tumor size. The results were not statistically significant (P >0.05).
Figure 1 The Kaplan-Meier curve of overall survival time for groups A and B.
Figure 2 The Kaplan-Meier curve of overall survival time for oligometastatic sites.
Figure 3 The Kaplan-Meier curve of overall survival time for pathological types. Ad, adenocarcinoma; Sq, squamous cell carcinoma; Lc, large cell carcinoma.
Figure 4 The Kaplan-Meier curve of overall survival time for surgical approach. PWR, pulmonary wedge resection; LO, lobectomy.
There remains controversy as to whether local treatment of NSCLC with oligometastasis is appropriate. However, most studies reported that treatment of oligometastasis was different from traditional palliative treatment for advanced lung cancer; the relatively limited metastasis therapy highlighted the clinical value of local therapy. In 2015, in order to better guide management, the International Association for the study of lung cancer (IASLC) proposed the eighth edition of NSCLC staging system. The staging guidelines pointed out that oligometastasis was classified as M1b, with prognosis similar to that of M1a, is clearly superior to that of patients with extensive metastatic M1c. Moreover, the new staging guidelines emphasized the advantages of local therapies (such as surgical resection and stereotactic radiotherapy) in the treatment of metastatic lung cancer (14).
NSCLC patients with localized lymph node metastasis were also recommended for different treatment by the eighth edition of the TNM (tumor-node-metastasis) staging system. N1 was subdivided into N1a (single station metastasis) and N1b (multistation metastasis); N2 was subdivided into N2a1 (no N1 metastasis, direct skip to N2 lymph node), N2a2 (N1 lymph node metastasis, simultaneous single station N2 lymph node metastasis) and N2b (multistation N2 lymph node metastasis) (15). Lymph node metastasis was the most important prognostic risk factor. De Leyn et al. (16) studied 66 patients with bilateral synchronous lung cancer who underwent radical resection. The overall MST was 25.4 months, and the 5-year survival rate was 38%. Although the histopathological types of the subjects were different, there was no significant difference in survival rates among the various tissue types or the same type of multiple primary cancers. Therefore, if there is no evidence of lymph node involvement or distant metastasis, surgical resection is recommended, even if the lung is oligometastatic to the side of the lung. The effect was better than that of stage IV systemic palliative chemotherapy. Endo et al. (17) reported a NSCLC patient with stage I or stage II of thoracic clinical staging who had an oligometastasis. The overall 5-year survival rate was 40% after resection. Luketich and Burt (18) compared chemotherapy alone with surgical resection after chemotherapy in NSCLC patients with isolated adrenal metastasis. The MST was 8.5 months in the 6 patients treated with chemotherapy alone, and the MST was 31 months in 8 patients treated with surgical resection after chemotherapy. There was a significant difference, and all patients treated with chemotherapy alone died within 21 months.
NSCLC with oligometastasis is clinically evaluated as the advanced stage of lung cancer, but it is different from advanced lung cancer in general. Whether in terms of biological behavior or treatment strategy, it is very different from traditional advanced lung cancer. Because the number of NSCLC patients with oligometastasis is limited, there remain many controversies regarding the treatment mode of NSCLC oligometastasis. Most of the reports have been retrospective studies, and the results should be validated with prospective studies. For patients with oligometastasis, more active treatment may lead to longer survival in this group of patients.
In this study, the choice of patients was considered in the selection of cases. The choice of bias was mainly gender, age, pathological stage and loss to follow-up rate. There was no significant difference in terms of gender or age between the groups. The loss to follow-up rate was controlled within 5%. For the operation group, primary lung cancer radical resection or partial resection was performed, and adjuvant chemotherapy was recommended after surgery. For the 37 patients with head oligometastasis, 24 underwent partial resection of oligometastasis and underwent surgical resection of the primary lung. Thirteen patients underwent head radiotherapy and underwent surgical resection of the primary lung. Twenty-nine patients with bone oligometastasis, including 24 patients with 2–3 metastases, underwent surgical resection of the primary lung, local radiotherapy, and 5 cases of rib metastasis (all single metastasis cases) were given to the lungs. Surgical resection included primary tumor and resection of rib oligometastases. In 9 patients with adrenal oligometastasis, the primary lung was surgically removed in the adrenalectomy. For the 2 patients with hepatic oligometastasis, partial interventional treatment of the liver after removal of the primary lung was performed. For 5 patients with other sites of oligometastasis (4 skin metastases, 1 ovarian metastasis), all patients underwent local excision of the metastatic lesions and then underwent surgical resection of the primary lung. In the radiotherapy and chemotherapy group, intrapulmonary lesions and oligometastases were treated with local radiotherapy plus systemic chemotherapy, and 6 oligometastasis were in other sites (both skin metastasis and partial excision of oligometastases).
There remain many problems to be solved. This study found that local surgery could benefit patients with NSCLC oligometastasis and determined prognostic factors, with certain directive significance for the choice of operative indications. In 82 cases, after the local primary resection was performed, the MST was 48 months, and the survival rate at 5 years was 21.1%. The prognosis was substantially better than that of chemoradiotherapy group, and it was related to the sites of oligometastasis. Patients with adrenal metastasis had better prognoses. However, there were few cases in this study. Metastatic sites did affect overall survival, and patients with adrenal oligometastases had higher survival rates than did patients with brain, bone, liver or other oligometastases. In addition, patients had a recurrence of the lung cancer as well. Because the collected cases are medical records from over nearly 10 years, multimodal treatment, such as targeted therapy and immunotherapy, was not popular enough in the early years, therefore we did not decide on multimodal therapy for these patients. In this study, the choice of patients was considered in the selection of cases. The choice of bias was primarily gender, age, pathological stage and loss to follow-up rate. There was no significant difference in terms of gender and age between the two groups. The loss of follow-up rate was controlled within 5%. Metastatic sites id affects overall survival, and patients with adrenal oligometastases had a higher survival rate than did those with brain, bone, liver or other oligometastases. Due to the small sample size in this study, no further stratified analysis of the metastatic site was performed. In future studies, it is expected that the sample size can be further expanded, and the analysis of the metastatic sites may be done to investigate the long-term outcomes of lung cancer surgery associated with oligometastasis through comparison of metastatic sites.
Ethical Statement: The protocol of this study was approved by the Ethics Review Committee of the National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, and the number/ID of the Ethics Approval was NCC2016 JP-01.
Eberhardt WE, Mitchell A, Crowley J, et al. The IASLC Lung Cancer Staging Project: Proposals for the Revision of the M Descriptors in the Forthcoming Eighth Edition of the TNM Classification of Lung Cancer. J Thorac Oncol 2015;10:1515-22.
Ye B, Zhao H. Revision of the TNM Stage Grouping in the Forthcoming Eighth Edition of the TNM Classification for Lung Cancer. Zhongguo Fei Ai Za Zhi 2016;19:337-42.


A program for Research Experience for Teachers from schools in the Delaware Valley was started in 1999. Teachers spend 6 weeks working on an individual research project under the supervision of a graduate student or post-doctoral fellow in the laboratory of an LRSM -associated faculty member. At the end of the program the teacher must make an oral presentation of his/her findings and also submit a research paper before leaving the program.
With support from the National Science Foundation, this program seeks up to five high school science teachers from the greater Philadelphia region (within a daily commuting distance). The teachers will undertake a summer research program for six weeks from June 17 – July 26, 2019. Each teacher will be assigned to a senior investigator within the PENN MRSEC and paired with a mentor (typically a graduate student or post-doc). Each teacher will become embedded in this research group and conduct a short research project pertinent to the goals of the group Teachers will also participate in seminars on materials science, academic research skills, and tools and techniques for incorporating materials science and engineering into their classroom. This will include pre-summer assignments to prepare teachers to begin their research project as soon as possible. During the last week of the program, each teacher will be expected to present on his/her research and submit a short, written report. Teachers will be expected to return to the LRSM at the start of the following summer to informally discuss their experience with the incoming class of teachers.
Teachers will be selected mainly from public, charter, and private schools in the greater Philadelphia region that are within commuting distance of the PENN MRSEC. Application to the program is available through the link below. We will provide a stipend of $5,000, of which $4,500 will be paid this summer. The remaining $500 will be disbursed when you return next year to meet our incoming class of RET teachers to give us a report on how you used the experience in your class/school during the year.
We are accepting applications through April 1st and will try to make all decisions by May 1st.


The scope and scale of the Russian government's operations to influence the United States of America political process and the United States of America government's response, during and since the 2016 election.
This jurisdiction of any links and adjustment between the Russian government or concerned oversea actors, and individuals associated with Donald Trump's campaign, transition, administration, or business interests, in the advancement of the Russian government's as well as public interests.
Whether any alien actor has sought to compromise or holds leverage, financial or otherwise, over Donald Trump, his family, his business, or his associates.
Whether any actors or performer – foreign or civil – sought or are seeking to impede, obstruct, and/or mislead authorized taking care of into these matters, including those in the Congress.


text:
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/strict.dtd">

        <meta content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv="content-type">
        <title>Intersect</title>
        <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="Help.css">

Intersect

This tool can be used to isolate all of the features, or parts of features,
            in two input vectors that
            overlap. Intersect is the vector equivalent to the Boolean
            operator
                AND used for raster overlay.

See Also:

AND

Difference

Union

Symmetric Difference

Fuse

Scripting:

The following is an example of a Python script using this tool:

                wd = pluginHost.getWorkingDirectory()

                # You may have multiple input shapefiles but they must

                # be separated by semicolons in the string.

                inputFiles = wd + "input1.shp" + ";" + wd + "input2.shp" + ";" + wd + "input3.shp"

                outputFile = wd + "tmp1.shp"

                args = [inputFiles, outputFile]

                pluginHost.runPlugin("Intersect", args, False)

This is a Groovy script also using this tool:

                def wd = pluginHost.getWorkingDirectory()

                // You may have multiple input shapefiles but they must

                // be separated by semicolons in the string.

                def inputFiles = wd + "input1.shp" + ";" + wd + "input2.shp" + ";" + wd + "input3.shp"

                def outputFile = wd + "tmp1.shp"

                String[] args = [inputFiles, outputFile]

                pluginHost.runPlugin("Intersect", args, false)

Credits:

John Lindsay (2012)


Head of the Australian delegation, diplomat John McCarthy, signing the Madrid Protocol 4 October 1991.
A quarter of a century after the landmark decision to ban mining in Antarctica indefinitely, Australia has joined the international Antarctic community to reaffirm an unwavering commitment to protect the icy continent from exploitation.
Today Australia celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Madrid Protocol – the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty, which designates Antarctica and surrounding waters as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science.
The Protocol is a historic international agreement which provides high level protection to the world's last great wilderness. It is a legally binding framework for protecting the Antarctic environment.
It requires that all proposed activities, including scientific research, operations and tourism, be assessed for their environmental impact.
Antarctica is invaluable as a place for conducting globally significant scientific research and protecting the continent's fragile environment is in the interest of all humankind.
Australia was one of the original proponents of the Madrid Protocol, and support for the Antarctic Treaty system remains a key priority for Australia.
Earlier this year, at the annual Antarctic Treaty meeting in Chile, Australia and the other Antarctic Treaty nations issued the 'Santiago Declaration', reaffirming their strong and unwavering commitment to the Antarctic Treaty and the Madrid Protocol. In addition, they adopted a Resolution reflecting their unanimous support for the Antarctic mining ban, and highlighting that the Protocol and the mining ban have no expiry date.


text:
Posts Tagged 'Bruno Bettelheim'
The fairy tale theater
It must have all started with The Princess Switch, although that's so long ago now that I can barely remember. Netflix was pushing me hard to watch an original movie with Vanessa Hudgens in a dual role as a European royal and a baker from Chicago who trade places and end up romantically entangled with each other's love interests at Christmas, and I finally gave in. In the weeks since, my wife and I have watched Pride, Prejudice, and Mistletoe; The Nine Lives of Christmas; Crown for Christmas; The Holiday Calendar; Christmas at the Palace; and possibly one or two others that I've forgotten. A few were on Netflix, but most were on Hallmark, which has staked out this space so aggressively that it can seem frighteningly singleminded in its pursuit of Yuletide cheer. By now, it airs close to forty original holiday romances between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, and like its paperback predecessors, it knows better than to tinker with a proven formula. As two of its writers anonymously reveal in an interview with Entertainment Weekly:
We have an idea and it maybe takes us a week or so just to break it down into a treatment, a synopsis of the story; it's like a beat sheet where you pretty much write what's going to happen in every scene you just don't write the scene. If we have a solid beat sheet done and it's approved, then it's only going to take us about a week and a half to finish a draft. Basically, an act or two a day and there's nine. They're kind of simple because there are so many rules so you know what you can and can't do, and if you have everything worked out it comes together.
And the rules are revealing in themselves. As one writer notes: "The first rule is snow. We really wanted to do one where the basic conflict was a fear that there will not be snow on Christmas. We were told you cannot do that, there must be snow. They can't be waiting for the snow, there has to be snow. You cannot threaten them with no snow." And the conventions that make these movies so watchable are built directly into the structure:
There cannot be a single scene that does not acknowledge the theme. Well, maybe a scene, but you can't have a single act that doesn't acknowledge it and there are nine of them, so there's lots of opportunities for Christmas. They have a really rigid nine-act structure that makes writing them a lot of fun because it's almost like an exercise. You know where you have to get to: People have to be kissing for the first time, probably in some sort of a Christmas setting, probably with snow falling from the sky, probably with a small crowd watching. You have to start with two people who, for whatever reason, don't like each other and you're just maneuvering through those nine acts to get them to that kiss in the snow.
The result, as I've learned firsthand, is a movie that seems familiar before you've even seen it. You can watch with one eye as you're wrapping presents, or tune in halfway through with no fear of becoming confused. It allows its viewers to give it exactly as much attention as they're willing to spare, and at a time when the mere act of watching prestige television can be physically exhausting, there's something to be said for an option that asks nothing of us at all.
After you've seen two or three of these movies, of course, the details start to blur, particularly when it comes to the male leads. The writers speak hopefully of making the characters "as unique and interesting as they can be within the confines of Hallmark land," but while the women are allowed an occasional flash of individuality, the men are unfailingly generic. This is particularly true of the subgenre in which the love interest is a king or prince, who doesn't get any more personality than his counterpart in fairy tales. Yet this may not be a flaw. In On Directing Film, which is the best work on storytelling that I've ever read, David Mamet provides a relevant word of advice:
In The Uses of Enchantment, Bruno Bettelheim says of fairy tales the same thing Alfred Hitchcock said about thrillers: that the less the hero of the play is inflected, identified, and characterized, the more we will endow him with our own internal meaning—the more we will identify with him—which is to say the more we will be assured that we are that hero. "The hero rode up on a white horse." You don't say "a short hero rode up on a white horse," because if the listener isn't short he isn't going to identify with that hero. You don't say "a tall hero rode up on a white horse," because if the listener isn't tall, he won't identify with the hero. You say "a hero," and the audience subconsciously realize they are that hero.
Yet Mamet also overlooks the fact that the women in fairy tales, like Snow White, are often described with great specificity—it's the prince who is glimpsed only faintly. Hallmark follows much the same rule, which implies that it's less important for the audience to identify with the protagonist than to fantasize without constraint about the object of desire.
This also leads to some unfortunate decisions about diversity, which is more or less what you might expect. As one writer says candidly to Entertainment Weekly:
On our end, we just write everybody as white, we don't even bother to fight that war. If they want to put someone of color in there, that would be wonderful, but we don't have control of that…I found out Meghan Markle had been in some and she's biracial, but it almost seems like they've tightened those restrictions more recently. Everything's just such a white, white, white, white world. It's a white Christmas after all—with the snow and the people.
With more than thirty original movies coming out every year, you might think that Hallmark could make a few exceptions, especially since the demand clearly exists, but this isn't about marketing at all. It's a reflection of the fact that nonwhiteness is still seen as a token of difference, or a deviation from an assumed norm, and it's the logical extension of the rules that I've listed above. White characters have the privilege—which is invisible but very real—of seeming culturally uninflected, which is the baseline that allows the formula to unfold. This seems very close to John W. Campbell's implicit notion that all characters in science fiction should be white males by default, and while other genres have gradually moved past this point, it's still very much the case with Hallmark. (There can be nonwhite characters, but they have to follow the rules: "Normally there'll be a black character that's like a friend or a boss, usually someone benevolent because you don't want your one person of color to not be positive.") With diversity, as with everything else, Hallmark is very mindful of how much variation its audience will accept. It thinks that it knows the formula. And it might not even be wrong.
Posted in Movies, Television
Tagged with Bruno Bettelheim, David Mamet, Entertainment Weekly, Hallmark Channel, John W. Campbell, On Directing Film, The Princess Switch, The Uses of Enchantment
The essential strangeness of fairy tales
Note: I'm taking a break for the next few days, so I'll be republishing some of my favorite posts from earlier in this blog's run. This post originally appeared, in a slightly different form, on March 30, 2015.
Over the last few months, I've been telling my daughter a lot of fairy tales. My approach has been largely shaped, for better or worse, by Bruno Bettelheim's book The Uses of Enchantment: I happened to read it a few years ago as part of an unrelated writing project, but it also contained insights that I felt compelled to put to use almost at once in my own life. Bettelheim is a controversial figure for good reason, and he's not a writer whose ideas we need to accept at face value, but he makes several points that feel intuitively correct. When it comes to fairy tales, it seems best to tell the oldest versions of each story that we have, as refined through countless retellings, rather than a more modern interpretation that hasn't been as thoroughly tested; and, when possible, it's preferable to tell them without a book or pictures, which gets closer to the way in which they were originally transmitted. And the results have been really striking. Stories like "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Jack and the Beanstalk" have seized my daughter's imagination, to the point where we'll discuss them as if they happened to her personally, and she isn't fazed by some of their darker aspects. (In "Hansel and Gretel," when I tell her that the parents wanted to take their children into the woods and leave them there, she'll cheerfully add: "And kill dem dere!")
There's no denying that the traditional versions of these fairy tales contain elements that most contemporary parents find disturbing or inexplicable, like the red-hot shoes that the evil queen in "Snow White" is forced to wear to dance herself to death, or the willingness of the father in "Hansel and Gretel" to abandon his children in the forest. (When my wife told me that she thought that the real villain in that story is the father, I replied: "Actually, I think the real villain is the witch who cooks and eats little kids.") It's tempting to tone down the originals a bit, sometimes to the point of insipidity: I recently came across a retelling of "Little Red Riding Hood" in which the wolf doesn't eat the grandmother at all—she just gets scared and runs off to hide behind the house. But based solely on my own observations, I think it's a mistake to shy away from the darkness: not, as Bettelheim would have it, for its psychological benefits, which can be hard to pin down anyway, but simply from the perspective of good storytelling. A version of "Little Red Riding Hood" in which the wolf doesn't eat the grandmother doesn't just trivialize the wolf, but everybody else involved, and it's liable to strike both child and parent as equally pointless. And kids who sense that their time is being wasted won't ask to repeat the experience.
And there's a particularly important point here, which is that the more bizarre or irrational the detail—and the harder it is to extract any clear lesson from it—the more likely it has survived for a reason. Plot points that are simply functional or logical, or which serve an obvious didactic purpose, as in "The Boy Who Cried Wolf," will be retained out of practical considerations; when something arbitrary, grotesque, or even borderline immoral lingers on through countless retellings, it can only be because it gets at something fundamental. It reminds me a little of the criterion of embarrassment in literary analysis, which states that a historical detail that would have seemed embarrassing or strange to its original authors or readers—like the crucifixion—is likely to be authentic, since they wouldn't be inclined to invent such an inconvenient fact if they had any choice. (Similarly, in classical philology, when you need to choose between two variants of the same text, the stranger or more unusual form is usually the older one: it's more probable that a scribal error would smooth out a perceived anomaly to make it more conventional, rather than the other way around.) We may not be able to articulate why these details are there, but the fact that they were selected to survive speaks to their importance and resilience, which would be foolish to underestimate.
And it can be disorienting to move from the older versions of these stories to their more recent, Disneyfied incarnations. In the version of "Rapunzel" recorded by the Brothers Grimm, for instance, the story is set in motion by the mother's obsessive desire to eat some of the lettuce from the garden of the sorceress next door. We aren't told why she wants it so badly; she simply tells her husband that if she can't have it, she fears that she will die. In Tangled, this detail is rationalized and clearly motivated: the lettuce becomes a flower with magical healing properties, and it's literally used to save the queen's life. This version has the benefit of explaining away the weirdness in the original tale, and it's far more acceptable from a narrative point of view, but it also diminishes its mystery and resonance. I like Tangled a lot, and I'm not going to reject the Disney versions of these stories—which have considerable artistic merits of their own—just because they soften or minimize the darker elements of their sources. (Although I do avoid the Disney storybooks, which follow the plot points by rote while losing most of the appeal of both the movie and the original story.) But it's worth remembering that each version exists to fulfill a different need, and a child's inner life ought to have room for both.
Tagged with Bruno Bettelheim, Tangled, The Uses of Enchantment
The magic feather syndrome
Note: I'm on vacation until next Tuesday, so I'll be republishing a few of my favorite posts from earlier in this blog's run, starting with a series on writing and parenting. This post originally appeared, in a slightly different form, on January 6, 2014.
Recently, my baby daughter learned how to clap. It's her latest trick, and she's very pleased by it, so the two of us have taken to applauding together on the slightest of pretexts: if she finishes her breakfast, if she stands by herself for a few seconds, if she knows the correct answer to "Where's your nose?" And for a girl who just passed her first birthday, these are achievements to be celebrated. All the same, at the back of my mind, there's also the lurking fear that I'm raising yet another narcissistic kid. You know the type. It's the middle-class child whose psychological health has been a topic of increasing concern in recent years: she's endlessly coddled by her parents, told how special she is, and assured that she's exceptionally talented. At school, she racks up gold stars; at her athletic events, everyone gets a trophy; and by age thirty, she's in therapy, having never been informed of the uncomfortable truth that not every human being is equally gifted and hard work alone is no guarantee of success. As Jean Twenge, one of the authors of The Narcissism Epidemic, has said: "[Being raised this way] gives them an inflated view of their specialness compared to other human beings. Instead of feeling good about themselves, they feel better than everyone else."
If there's one place where this message is repeatedly, even cloyingly underlined, it's in contemporary children's entertainment. A while back, Luke Epplin of The Atlantic decried the easy inspirational morals of movies like Turbo and Planes, which both suffer from what he calls the "magic feather syndrome." He writes:
As with the titular character in Walt Disney's 1943 animated feature Dumbo, these movies revolve around anthropomorphized outcasts who must overcome the restrictions of their societies or even species to realize their impossible dreams. Almost uniformly, the protagonists' primary liability, such as Dumbo's giant ears, eventually turns into their greatest strength.
But first the characters must relinquish the crutch of the magic feather—or, more generally, surmount their biggest fears—and believe that their greatness comes from within.
Epplin goes on to note that these movies equate following one's dreams with pursuing unusual, exceptional destinies at the expense of everyday work, including the kind that goes hand in hand with any meaningful accomplishment. These characters are enabled solely by believing in themselves, which, as adults know, is all very well and good, but not nearly enough in itself. (It's the preschool equivalent of the convention of The Chosen One, often encountered in movies made ostensibly for adults, in which the lead character is fated for greatness from birth.)
But there's another point that needs to be made about the movies that Epplin discusses: both Turbo and Planes are, by consensus, fairly mediocre films, and this would be the case regardless of the messages they were trying to convey. And there's a strong and surprisingly sophisticated argument that children do, in fact, need to be given idealized images of their own strengths and potential, at least at a certain age. Bruno Bettelheim's classic The Uses of Enchantment forcefully advocates for the role that fairy tales play in a child's early psychological development, and while some of his Freudian terminology has dated, the central thesis remains sound. We often forget how vulnerable young children really are: they're relatively weak and helpless, without agency in their own lives, surrounded by adults who can transform in an instant from benevolent giants to fearsome ogres. Fairy tales, with their preternaturally resourceful protagonists and happy endings, don't paint a realistic picture of life, but if they did, they wouldn't be nearly as effective. In order for a child to trust his own mind and body, leave the comfort zone of his own family, and venture into the larger world, he needs stories that dramatize these rites of passage in an unambiguously positive way, with good rewarded, evil punished, and the hero living happily ever after.
True, the world doesn't always work this way, but that's something that children naturally come to understand on their own, not through a premature introduction to hard truths that adults think they need to hear. And it doesn't mean that every story that takes such an approach is equally worthwhile. Bettelheim wasn't especially impressed by The Little Engine That Could, which he felt gave children a superficially positive message without addressing their deeper anxieties, and I suspect that he'd feel the same way about Turbo or Planes. But I'd also like to think that he'd look favorably on a movie like Spirited Away, the best children's film made in my lifetime, in which the heroine quietly and believably transforms the fantastic world around her for the better. In the best films of a director like Miyazaki, the message isn't stated baldly in the dialogue, as we see even in Pixar's weaker movies, but baked directly into the story itself. That's also true of the best fairy tales: Jack climbs the beanstalk, steals the enchanted harp, and slays the ogre, and he never stops to remember the importance of believing in himself—he's too busy getting things done. As with most things in art, the message only works if it's properly delivered. And while I think it's fine, even necessary, to tell children that they can be anything they want, it's equally important to remind them not to settle for anything less than good storytelling.
Posted in Books, Movies
Tagged with Bruno Bettelheim, Jean Twenge, Luke Epplin, Planes, Spirited Away, The Atlantic, The Narcissism Epidemic, The Uses of Enchantment, Turbo
Over the last few months, I've been telling my daughter a lot of fairy tales. My approach has been largely shaped, for better or worse, by Bruno Bettelheim's book The Uses of Enchantment: I happened to read it last year as part of an unrelated writing project, but it also contained insights that I felt compelled to put to use almost at once in my own life. Bettelheim is a controversial figure for good reason, and he's not a writer whose ideas we need to accept at face value, but he makes several points that feel intuitively correct. When it comes to fairy tales, it seems best to tell the oldest versions of each story we have, as refined through countless retellings, rather than a more modern interpretation that hasn't been as thoroughly tested; and, when possible, it's preferable to tell them without a book or pictures, which gets closer to the way in which they were originally transmitted. And the results have been really striking. Stories like "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Jack and the Beanstalk" have seized my daughter's imagination, to the point where we'll discuss them as if they happened to her personally, and she isn't fazed by some of their darker aspects. (In "Hansel and Gretel," when I tell her that the parents wanted to take their children into the woods and leave them there, she'll cheerfully add: "And kill dem dere!")
Teens like us
Note: Every Friday, The A.V. Club, my favorite pop cultural site on the Internet, throws out a question to its staff members for discussion, and I've decided that I want to join in on the fun. This week's question: "What pop culture prom would you want to attend?"
Babies do not want to hear about babies; they like to be told of giants and castles.
I know what he means. Growing up, I rarely, if ever, read books or watched movies with protagonists my own age. Even in grade school, after graduating past picture books, I was quickly devouring novels by the likes of Madeleine L'Engle and Zilpha Keatley Snyder, the characters of which tended to be five or so years older than I was. By middle school, I was reading books about the adult world that I desperately—and prematurely—longed to enter. I'm not saying that these were works of great literature; I consumed my share of bad thrillers, horror novels, and miscellaneous junk. But it was all junk about grownups, and even the most mundane novel of adulthood offered a promise of life that I didn't see in stories about people my own age. (The big exception here is Stephen King's It, which I did read when I was just about the same age as the protagonists for half the story, and I still think it's the ultimate young adult novel, although the glimpses it gave of its characters at a later stage were equally revelatory. It isn't exactly a book I'd give to a twelve-year-old to read, but I wouldn't discourage it for a second.)
In some ways, my diet of adult novels was partially fueled by the historical moment in which I grew up, in which teenage readers were relatively underserved by publishers. These days, teens have entire sections of books devoted to escapist entertainment with protagonists their age, and if I were growing up now, I don't doubt that I'd be reading the likes of Divergent. As disposable as many of them are, these books serve the same purpose for teenagers that Bruno Bettelheim identifies in fairy tales for younger kids: they're fantasies of empowerment, stories that deliberately exaggerate the agency you have at a young age to encourage you to take ordinary risks. If there's a common theme in these books—or at least the ones that have reached my radar thanks to their adaptations in other media—it's that the fate of the world hangs in the balance due to the actions of one adolescent, whether named Harry or Katniss. In real life, a teenager has changed history maybe once, and it didn't turn out so well for the girl involved. But there's still a place for that kind of daydream: anyone under eighteen gets used to feelings of powerlessness, and sometimes it takes the fiction of a singular destiny that will shake entire civilizations to ignite that first cautious attempt at independence.
There's another, more modest vein of fiction for teens, of course, and that's the high school story. Some are overt fantasies as well: you could write a book or three on how Buffy, Twilight, or The Vampire Diaries use vampirism as a metaphor for a coming of age, and even a more "realistic" show like Beverly Hills 90210 presented an absurdly heightened vision of high school as a cauldron of glossy melodrama. That's part of their appeal; like fairy stories, they gain much of their power from their displacement, which may be why we're so willing to accept high school seniors being played by actors in their twenties. When I was in high school myself, I don't remember latching onto any depictions of it for solace or escape, perhaps as another accident of timing: I was born too late for The Breakfast Club, too early for Freaks and Geeks, and in any case, I was already far down a strange cultural path of my own. Yet part of me wonders if I could have used it. Just as I sometimes feel that I discovered The Smiths ten years too late, I occasionally regret that I didn't watch My So-Called Life on its first run, or make a point of catching up on John Hughes. I wanted to be told of giants and castles, but while I still feel that it's important for young people to read slightly above their heads, I've also begun to appreciate the importance of a familiar face.
If young adult fiction has taken the place that traditional stories and tales once occupied in the minds of children, it's no accident that so many center on the big dance: a prom may seem absurdly trivial in retrospect, but at the time, it feels like the royal ball in Cinderella. I had a pretty good time at my own senior prom, so my feelings about it aren't as charged or ambivalent as they might be. And although I'd be tempted to attend Back to the Future's Enchantment Under the Sea, the first fictional prom that comes to mind is the one in Pretty in Pink, which is one of the few John Hughes movies I saw at around the right time. Not so much for the prom itself, but for the montage sequence that comes right before it, scored to the gorgeous instrumental version of New Order's "Thieves Like Us," as Molly Ringwald prepares her dress and we cut between the solitary faces of the rest of the cast. It captures something of how high school felt to me: tentative, full of hopes and plans, looking for fragments in beauty in an experience I was otherwise glad to move beyond. It's about making the best of things when you're on your own, and I almost didn't wish it end so happily. Perhaps, as in a fairy tale, that happy ending is necessary to sweeten the rest of the experience, but the real message lies here, twenty minutes earlier, as we get ready for the big dance even if we're afraid of a broken heart.
Tagged with AVQ&A, Bruno Bettelheim, John Hughes, New Order, Pretty in Pink, The A.V. Club
The child identifies with the good hero not because of his goodness, but because the hero's condition makes a deep positive appeal to him. The question for the child is not "Do I want to be good?" but "Who do I want to be like?"
—Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment
Posted in Books, Quote of the Day
Tagged with Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment
"And they lived happily ever after…"
In old age, I accept unhappy endings in Shakespearean tragedy, Flaubert, and Tolstoy, but back away from them in lesser works. Desdemona, Cordelia, Emma Bovary, and Anna Karenina are slain by their creators, and we are compelled to absorb the greatness of the loss. Perhaps it trains us to withstand better the terrible deaths of friends, family, and lovers, and to contemplate more stoically our own dissolution. But I increasingly avoid most movies with unhappy endings, since few among them aesthetically earn the suffering they attempt to inflict upon us.
—Harold Bloom, Genius
I'm starting to feel the same way. For most of my life, I've never shied away from works of art with unhappy endings: in movies, the list begins and ends with Vertigo, the greatest of all sucker punches ever inflicted on an audience, and includes films as different as The Red Shoes, The Third Man, and Dancer in the Dark. When I'm given a choice between ambiguous interpretations, as in Inception, I'm often inclined to go with the darker reading. But as time goes on, I've found that I prefer happy endings, both from a purely technical standpoint and as a matter of personal taste.
Which isn't to say that unhappy endings can't work. Yesterday, I cited Bruno Bettelheim on the subject of fairy tales, which invariably end on an unambiguously happy note to encourage children to absorb their implicit lessons about life. As adults, our artistic needs are more complicated, if not entirely dissimilar. An unhappy ending of the sort that we find in the myth of Oedipus or Madame Bovary is psychological training of a different sort, preparing us, as Bloom notes, for the tragic losses that we all eventually experience. Just as scary movies acquaint us with feelings of terror that we'd rarely feel under ordinary circumstances, great works of art serve as a kind of exercise room for the emotions, expanding our capacity to feel in ways that would never happen if we only drew on the material of our everyday lives. If the happy endings in fairy tales prepare and encourage children to venture outside the safe confines of family into the wider world, unhappy endings in adult fiction do the opposite: they turn our attention inward, forcing us to scrutinize aspects of ourselves that we've been trained to avoid as we focus on our respectable adult responsibilities.
In order for this to work, though, that unhappiness has to be authentically earned, and the number of works that pull it off is vanishingly small. Endings, whether happy or unhappy, are very hard, and a lot of writers, including myself, are often unsure if they've found the right way to end a story. But given that uncertainty, it's wisest, when you don't know the answer, to err on positive side, and to ignore the voice that insists that an unhappy ending is somehow more realistic and uncompromising. In fact, a bleak, unearned ending is just as false to the way the world works as an undeserved happy one, and at greater cost to the reader. A sentimental happy ending may leave us unsatisfied with the author's work, but that's nothing compared to our sense of being cheated by a dark conclusion that arises from cynicism or creative exhaustion. Simply as a matter of craft, stories work best when they're about the restoration of order, and one that ends with the characters dead or destroyed by failure technically meets that requirement. But for most writers, I'd argue that being able to restore a positive order to the tangle of complications they've created is a sign of greater artistic maturity.
And while it's nice to believe that a happy or unhappy ending should flow naturally from the events that came before, a casual look at the history of literature indicates that this isn't the case. Anna Karenina survived in Tolstoy's first draft. Until its final act, Romeo and Juliet isn't so different in tone from many of Shakespeare's comedies, and if the ending had been changed to happily reunite the two lovers, it's likely that we'd have trouble imagining it in any other way—although it's equally likely that we'd file it permanently among his minor plays. On the opposite end of the spectrum, The Winter's Tale is saved from becoming a tragedy only by the most arbitrary, unconvincing, and deeply moving of authorial contrivances. In practice, the nature of an ending is determined less by the inexorable logic of the plot than by the author's intuition when the time comes to bring the story to a close, and as we've seen, it can often go either way. A writer has no choice but to check his gut to see what feels right, and I don't think it's too much to say that the burden lies with the unhappy ending to prove that it belongs there. Any halfway competent writer can herd his characters into the nearest available chasm. But when in doubt, get them out.
Posted in Books, Movies, Writing
Tagged with Anna Karenina, Bruno Bettelheim, Harold Bloom, Leo Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Vertigo
Recently, my baby daughter learned how to clap. It's her latest trick, and she's very pleased by it, so the two of us have taken to applauding together on the slightest of pretexts: if she finishes her breakfast, if she stands by herself for a few seconds, if she knows the correct answer to "Where's your nose?" And for a girl who just passed her first birthday, these are achievements to be celebrated. All the same, at the back of my mind, there's also the lurking fear that I'm raising yet another narcissistic kid. You know the type: it's the middle-class child, whose psychological health has been an increasing topic of concern in recent years, who is endlessly coddled by her parents, told how special she is, and assured that she's exceptionally talented. At school, she racks up gold stars; at her athletic events, everyone gets a trophy; and by age thirty, she's in therapy, having never been informed of the uncomfortable truth that not every human being is equally gifted and hard work alone is no guarantee of success. As Jean Twenge, one of the authors of The Narcissism Epidemic, has said: "[Being raised this way] gives them an inflated view of their specialness compared to other human beings. Instead of feeling good about themselves, they feel better than everyone else."
If there's one place where this message is repeatedly, even cloyingly underlined, it's in contemporary children's entertainment. Last summer, Luke Epplin of The Atlantic decried the easy inspirational morals of movies like Turbo and Planes, which both suffer from what he calls the "magic feather syndrome." He writes:
But there's another point that needs to be made about the movies that Epplin discusses: both Turbo and Planes are, by consensus, fairly mediocre films, and this would be the case regardless of the messages they were trying to convey. And there's a strong and surprisingly sophisticated argument that children do, in fact, need to be given idealized images of their own strengths and potential, at least at a certain age. I'm currently reading Bruno Bettelheim's classic The Uses of Enchantment, which forcefully advocates for the role that fairy tales play in a child's early psychological development, and while some of his Freudian terminology has dated, the central thesis remains sound. We often forget how vulnerable young children really are: they're relatively weak and helpless, without agency in their own lives, surrounded by adults who can transform in an instant from benevolent giants to fearsome ogres. Fairy tales, with their preternaturally resourceful protagonists and happy endings, don't paint a realistic picture of life, but if they did, they wouldn't be nearly as effective. In order for a child to trust his own mind and body, leave the comfort zone of his own family, and venture into the larger world, he needs stories that dramatize these rites of passage in an unambiguously positive way, with good rewarded, evil punished, and the hero living happily ever after.
Tagged with Bruno Bettelheim, Jean Twenge, Luke Epplin, Planes, Spirited Away, The Atlantic, The Uses of Enchantment, Turbo