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Headline: The Need for Dispatchable RES: A Closer Look at the Future Role of CSP in Europe
Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) offers flexible and decarbonised power generation and is one of the few switchable renewable technologies that can generate renewable power on demand. Today (2018), CSP only contributes 5 TWh to European electricity generation but has the potential to become an important generation asset for decarbonising the electricity sector within Europe as well as globally. This chapter examines how factors and key political decisions lead to different futures and the associated CSP use in Europe in the years up to 2050. In a second step, we characterise the scenarios with the associated system costs and the costs of the support policy. We show that the role of CSP in Europe depends crucially on political decisions and the success or failure of policies outside of renewable energies. In particular, the introduction of CSP depends on the general ambitions for decarbonisation, the level of cross-border trade in electricity from renewable sources and is made possible by the existence of a strong grid connection between the southern and northern European Member States and by future growth in electricity demand. The presence of other baseload technologies, particularly nuclear energy in France, diminishes the role and need for CSP. Assuming a favourable technological development, we find a strong role for CSP in Europe in all modelled scenarios: Contribution of 100 TWh to 300 TWh of electricity to a future European electricity system. The current European CSP fleet would have to be increased by a factor of 20 to 60 over the next 30 years. To achieve this, stable financial support for CSP would be required. Depending on framework conditions and assumptions, the amount of support ranges at the EU level from € 0.4 to 2 billion per year, which represents only a small proportion of the total support requirement for the energy system transformation. Cooperation between the Member States could further help reduce these costs.
Monographien und Sammelwerke
Schöniger, F., Resch, G., Kleinschmitt, C., Franke, K., Thonig, R., & Lilliestam, J. (2022). The Need for Dispatchable RES: A Closer Look at the Future Role of CSP in Europe. In T. S. Uyar, & N. Javani (Eds.), Renewable Energy Based Solutions: Lecture Notes in Energy (pp. 219-239). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
10.1007/978-3-031-05125-8_8
Beteiligte Mitarbeiter
Prof. Dr. Johan Lilliestam
Richard Thonig
Beteiligte Projekte
Marktaufnahme von Strom aus konzentrierter Solarthermie durch Kooperation (MUSTEC)


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An HIV vaccine could be available in 2021 as experts are "optimistic" about trials
Three HIV vaccines are being studied in clinical trials and, if successful, could be available soon.
By Gwendolyn Smith Tuesday, December 3, 2019
Three different trials are bringing new hope that an HIV vaccine could be available as early as 2021.
Dr. Susan Buchbinder, speaking to NBC News, signaled her confidence, saying that this is "perhaps one of the most optimistic moments we have been in." Buchbinder is the chair of two of the three trials in question, Imbokodo and Mosaico. A third trial, HVTN 702, is also showing incredible promise.
Related: HIV diagnoses drop drastically across New York City, undetectable designations increase
"We have three vaccines currently being tested in efficacy trials, and it takes quite a bit to actually be promising enough in the earlier stages of trials to move you forward into an efficacy study," said Buchbinder.
Imbokodo and Mosaico uses "mosaic" immunogens to target a wide number of global HIV strains. The presumption, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), is that this approach could give a broader coverage than HVTN 702, which focuses on an HIV strain typically found in southern Africa.
Both Imbokodo and Mosaico are nearly identical, with only slight differences in their formulations.
While the trial for Imbokodo has focused on 2,600 South African women, the Mosaico trial will also include some 3,800 gay and transgender people in Europe, Latin America, and the U.S. The goal is to prove the vaccine's efficiency in a number of different at-risk populations.
Results from the trials for Imbokodo are expected in 2021, and the trial results for Mosaico are expected two years later.
The HVTN 702 trial is older than Imbokodo and Mosaico and is based on an even older vaccine candidate, RV144. In 2006, RV144 lowered the rate of HIV infections by about 30% – a good result, but not effective enough to be considered a success.
Building on the work done with RV144, HVTN 702 launched in 2016 in South Africa. Results are expected as early as the end of 2020.
Like Buchbinder, Fauci is optimistic, saying that even a vaccine with partial effectiveness would be a success, given the prevalence of other treatment options, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
"If one or more of these vaccines look good – have a 50 to 60 percent efficacy – I think that's going to be the game changer for turning the epidemic around," said Fauci.
Anthony Fauci, HIV/AIDS, HVTN 702, Imbokodo, Mosaico, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), RV144, Susan Buchbinder
Pioneering gay cartoonist Howard Cruse dies at 75
Teaching assistant accused of sexually abusing student to turn him straight
Trump & Supreme Court are continuing their 'war' by trying to recapture the schools

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Alton Castle can be hired for youth groups, family celebrations, church groups and weddings. We can accommodate groups of up to 100 people on a catered or a non-catered basis.
For further information, price lists or to book your stay please click here to email or telephone 01538 703224.
Soli is our newly refurbished centre for youth ministry opened September 2014. The building was formally known as The Lord Shrewsbury and was built in the 1840's for the Earl of Shrewsbury. The renovations have been carried out to a very high standard and all bedrooms are en-suite, with bunk beds sleeping 4 - 6 in a room. There are 9 bedrooms which are available for hire during weekends and school holidays. The rooms are ideal for families and groups up to 40 and have been accredited by Visit England under the banner of luxury hostel type accommodation. Soli is less than 5 minute drive from Alton Towers.
For further information or to make a booking, please click here to email or telephone 01538 703224.


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FAQs on Telephone Tapping
Chakshu Roy - April 27, 2010
1. Is the government empowered to intercept communication between two individuals? Answer: Yes. The Central and the State government can intercept communication. Letters, telephone (mobiles and landlines) and internet communication (e mails, chats etc.) can be intercepted by the government. Interception of:
postal articles is governed by the Indian Post Office Act, 1898 [Section 26];
telephones is governed by the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 [Section 5(2)];
e mails/chats etc. is governed by the Information Technology Act, 2000 [Section 69].
2. Under what circumstances can the government intercept communication? Answer: The circumstances under which communication can be intercepted by the government are:
for postal articles: the occurrence of any public emergency, or in the interest of the public safety or tranquility;
for telephones: in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States or public order or for preventing incitement to the commission of an offence;
for e mails / chats etc.: in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, or public order or for preventing incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence relating to above;
3. Are there any safeguards that have been built into the interception process? Answer: The Supreme Court in the case of PUCL Vs Union of India observed that the right to have telephone conservation in the privacy of one's home or office is part of the Right to Life and Personal Liberty enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution, which cannot be curtailed except according to the procedure established by law. Elaborating the scope of Section 5 (2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1882 the Court clarified that this section does not confer unguided and unbridled power on investigating agencies to invade a person's privacy. The court laid down the following safeguards: a. Tapping of telephones is prohibited without an authorizing order from the Home Secretary, Government of India or the Home Secretary of the concerned State Government b. The order, unless it is renewed shall cease to have authority at the end of two months from the date of issue. Though the order may be renewed, it cannot remain in operation beyond six months. c. Telephone tapping or interception of communications must be limited to the address (es) specified in the order or to address (es) likely to be used by a person specified in the order. d. All copies of the intercepted material must be destroyed as soon as their retention is not necessary under the terms of Section 5 (2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1882. e. In an urgent case, this power may be delegated to an officer of the Home Department, Government of India or the Home Department of the State government, who is not below the rank of Joint Secretary. Copy of this order should be sent to the concerned Review Committee within one week of passing of the order. f. This Review Committee shall consist of the Cabinet Secretary, Law Secretary and the Secretary Telecommunications at the Central Government. At the state level, the Committee shall comprise of Chief Secretary, Law Secretary and another member (other than the Home Secretary) appointed by the State Government. The Committee shall on its own, within two months of the passing of an order under Section 5 (2) investigate whether its passing is relevant. If an order is in existence, the Committee should find out whether there has been a contravention of the provisions of Section 5 (2). If the Review Committee on investigation concludes that provisions of Section 5 (2) have been contravened, it shall direct destruction of the copies of the intercepted material. In pursuance of the Supreme Court judgement the Indian Telegraph (First Amendment) Rules, 1999 were framed and notified on 16.02.1999. A similar notification titled, the Information Technology (Procedures and Safeguards for Interception, Monitoring and Decryption of Information Rules, 2009 were notified on October 27, 2009. [see page 18] 4. Are there any other known cases of telephone tapping of politicians? Answer: In 2005, Shri Amar Singh alleged that his telephones were tapped by private individuals. The case against them is currently pending in the Tis Hazari court in Delhi. 5. Are there any statistics about the number of telephones being tapped by the government? Answer: Currently no such statistics are publicly available. In a similar context, in the UK (where the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 governs this particular subject) a Report of the Interception of Communications Commissioner states that a total of 5344 warrants were issued for interception of communication in 2008.
How long can the central government take to frame Rules?
Saket Surya - Oct 21, 2022
On October 18, it was reported in the news that the central government has been given more time for framing rules under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. The President had given assent to this Act in December 2019 and the Act came into force in January 2020. Similarly, about two years have passed since the new labour codes were passed by Parliament, and the final Rules are yet to be published. This raises the question how long the government can take to frame Rules and what is the procedure guiding this. In this blog, we discuss the same.
Under the Constitution, the Legislature has the power to make laws and the Executive is responsible for implementing them. Often, the Legislature enacts a law covering the general principles and policies, and delegates the power to the Executive for specifying certain details for the implementation of a law. For example, the Citizenship Amendment Act provides who will be eligible for citizenship. The certificate of registration or naturalization to a person will be issued, subject to conditions, restrictions, and manner as may be prescribed by the central government through Rules. Delay in framing Rules results in delay in implementing the law, since the necessary details are not available. For example, new labour codes provide a social security scheme for gig economy workers such as Swiggy and Zomato delivery persons and Uber and Ola drivers. These benefits as per these Codes are yet to be rolled out as the Rules are yet to be notified.
Timelines and checks and balances for adherence
Each House of Parliament has a Committee of Members to examine Rules, Regulations, and government orders in detail called the Committee on Subordinate Legislation. Over the years, the recommendations of these Committees have shaped the evolution of the procedure and timelines for framing subordinate legislation. These are reflected in the Manual of Parliamentary Procedures issued by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, which provides detailed guidelines.
Ordinarily, Rules, Regulations, and bye-laws are to be framed within six months from the date on which the concerned Act came into force. Post that, the concerned Ministry is required to seek an extension from the Parliamentary Committees on Subordinate Legislation. The reason for the extension needs to be stated. Such extensions may be granted for a maximum period of three months at a time. For example, in case of Rules under the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019, at an earlier instance, an extension was granted on account of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Publication of Rules, Regulations, and Bye-Laws, where public consultation is required under the Act
A minimum of 30 days for public feedback
Consequently, for publication,
Three months, if the number of suggestions is small
Six months, if the number of suggestions is large
Publication of Rules, Regulations, and Bye-Laws, not requiring public consultation
Six months from the date on which the concerned Act came into force
Any extension for publication
A maximum of three months at a time
To ensure monitoring, every Ministry is required to prepare a quarterly report on the status of subordinate legislation not framed and share it with the Ministry of Law and Justice. These reports are not available in the public domain.
Recommendations to address delays
Over the years, the Subordinate Legislation Committees in both Houses have observed multiple instances of non-adherence to the above timelines by various Ministries. To address this, they have made the following key recommendations:
Statement on reasons for the delay: In 2011, Rajya Sabha Committee recommended that while laying Rules/Regulations before Parliament, the Ministry should also lay a statement explaining the reasons for the delay, if any.
Scrutiny of delays by the Cabinet Secretary: In 2016, the Rajya Sabha Committee recommended that the Cabinet Secretary should continue the practice of calling the Secretaries of concerned Ministries/Departments, to explain the reasons for the delay in framing the subordinate legislation. Each Ministry should send a quarterly status report to the Cabinet Secretariat.
Revisiting guidelines: In 2011, Lok Sabha Committee recommended that the 1986 guidelines should be revisited and all major recommendations of the Committee should be incorporated. However, as per the Action Taken Report, the government observed that the ministries consider the extant guidelines adequate and these guidelines were re-iterated in 2012.
Are all Rules under an Act required to be framed?
Usually, the expressions used in an Act are "The Central Government may, by notification, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.", or "as may be prescribed". Hence, it may appear that the laws aim to enable rule-making instead of mandate rule-making. However, certain provisions of an Act cannot be brought into force if the required details have not been prescribed under the Rules. This makes the implementation of the Act consequent to the publication of respective Rules. For example, the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Act, 2022 enables the police and certain other persons to collect identity-related information about certain persons. It provides that the manner of collection of such information may be specified by the central government. Unless the manner is prescribed, such collection cannot take place.
That said, some other rule-making powers may be enabling in nature and subject to discretion by the concerned Ministry. In 2016, Rajya Sabha Committee on Subordinate Legislation examined the status of Rules and Regulations to be framed under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001. It observed that the Ministry of Power had held that two Rules and three Regulations under this Act were not necessary. The Ministry of Law and Justice had opined that those deemed not necessary were enabling provisions meant for unforeseen circumstances. The Rajya Sabha Committee (2016) had recommended that where the Ministry does not feel the need for framing subordinate legislation, the Minister should table a statement in Parliament, stating reasons for such a conclusion.
Some key issues related to subordinate legislation
The Legislature delegates the power to specify details for the implementation of a law to the Executive through powers for framing subordinate legislation. Hence, it is important to ensure these are well-scrutinised so that they are within the limits envisaged in the law.
Capacity of Committees on Subordinate Legislation: Parliamentary Committees on Subordinate Legislation have the responsibility to examine Rules in detail. In past, they have examined some key rules, regulations, and notifications regarding e-commerce, liability of internet-based services, and demonetisation. However, usually, they are able to examine only a fraction of subordinate legislation in detail. For more details, please see the PRS discussion paper here.
Uniformity of standards: Countries such as UK, USA, Australia, and Canada have overarching legislation for regulating the framing of subordinate legislation. These laws provide for the manner of public consultation, timelines, drafting standards, and a common register. India does not have any similar law. In India, the detail whether public consultation for subordinate legislation is required or not, is specified in respective Acts. The General Clauses Act, 1897 also governs certain aspects of the framing of subordinate legislation. In addition, the Pre-Legislative Consultation Policy, 2014 guides the pre-legislative consultation on subordinate legislation.
See here for our recently published analysis of the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Rules, 2022, notified in September 2022. Also, check out PRS analysis of:
The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019
Draft Rules under Code on Social Security, 2020
Draft Rules under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020
2021 IT Rules for Intermediaries and Digital Media
2021 Draft amendments to Consumer Protection Rules in E-Commerce


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Home/Sports/'It's not about just making it to the final': Raptors look to take NBA Championship
'It's not about just making it to the final': Raptors look to take NBA Championship
team1 Follow on Twitter Send an email May 30, 2019
TORONTO — Guard Fred VanVleet and the Toronto Raptors aren't happy with just being in the NBA Finals.
Toronto squares off against the Golden State Warriors in the league final, which opens Thursday night at Scotiabank Arena. The Raptors are making their first NBA championship appearance versus a Warriors squad in its fifth straight final and chasing a fourth title over that span.
"We're happy to be taking that next step but you want to win a championship and you want to win the whole thing." VanVleet told reporters Monday. "It's not about just making it to the final.
"We're not satisfied, we're not happy to be here. We're really hungry and we want to go out here and have a chance to win it. We've earned it, we deserve it and now it's just a matter of going out there and having to perform at a high level on the biggest stage."
The Warriors, led by smooth-shooting guard Stephen Curry, have been the toast of the NBA since winning their first title in 40 years 2015. The only blemish on their previous four championship appearances was losing in seven games to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016 despite holding a 3-1 series lead.
Golden State finished atop the Western Conference standings with a 57-25 record while Toronto (58-24) was second in the Eastern Conference behind Milwaukee (60-22).
Toronto dispatched the Bucks dispatched in six games in the East final, clinching the series with a 100-94 home victory Saturday night.
Toronto also swept the regular-season series with Golden State 2-0, but the Warriors reached the final with a 4-0 sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference final. Golden State will be minus forward Kevin Durant (calf) for Thursday's contest.
And that's a big loss for Golden State as Durant is averaging a playoff-leading 34.2 points per game through 11 post-season contests.
Curry has appeared in all 16 of Golden State's playoff games, averaging 27.3 points per game. What makes Curry tough to defend is his range — he's a threat to score from well beyond the three-point arc.
VanVleet said there's no player in the NBA who puts more pressure on opposing defences from the perimeter than Curry.
"I don't even know if there's a close second," he said. "Obviously from a guard being able to shoot that far out just opens the floor up so much.
"He's just a different kind of player, he changes the entire dynamic of a team . . . of whatever defence you hope to put out there. As a guy who's going to have to chase him around and make it hard on him, obviously there's not going to be any time to relax or take plays off. At the end of the day just go out there and try to make it tough on him and challenge him as best I can."
And one way to do that, VanVleet said, is trying to get into Curry's grill.
"Any player in the NBA likes space, freedom, movement," VanVleet said. "Nobody really wants to banged on, touched, held and grabbed.
"You just got to try to be as physical as you can, slow him down and keep the contest. A guy like that, who is a really good shooter against contest, you can't really give him free looks and let him feel free and easy.
"But it's a five-man job, we've got to understand that . . . it's a five-on-five game and our team defence is going to have to be really good. We're going to make mistakes; we've got to be able to clean each other's mistakes up. We just have to be able to keep playing through runs and mistakes and be able to help each other."
Toronto hasn't been exactly chopped liver in the playoffs, going 8-2 at Scotiabank Arena. And forward Kawhi Leonard leads the NBA post-season in total minutes played (696), points scored (561), free throws made (133), and steals (28).
But Leonard is also a defensive presence, averaging 6.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game.
"An offensive scorer who's been scoring at that clip but can still be a dominant defensive player is pretty special," VanVleet said. "That's how you get yourself into some of those conversations as one of the best players to ever lace them up.
"We understand what Kawhi brings to the table and obviously we appreciate him and are glad he's on our side. We're going to need him at a high level this series."
Raptors advance to NBA Finals for first time in franchise history
Raptors smash TV audience record as team books spot in NBA Finals
23-year-old Dutch attacker Cody Gakpo signs for Liverpool
Sepp Blatter Says Qatar World Cup Decision was a 'Mistake'
Kurt Okraku's Administration of GFA Gets Thumbs up from Accra Hearts of Oak's Harry Zakour
Kurt Okraku Hails Predecessor GFA Boss Nyantakyi for Previous World Cup Successes


The UCAM Program is an optional, fee-for-service program that is designed to support students with executive function challenges and learning differences. It is in addition to a student's disability accommodations if those are appropriate for the student.
1: Our standard program with one hour of coaching each week.
The UCAM program fee for 2019/20 is $1,595/term or $4,785/year (a full academic year: Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters) contractual commitment. Students are billed quarterly through SOU's Business Services.
2: An additional hour of coaching each week. The fee for 2019/20 is $3,100/term or $9,300/year.
3: The Returning UCAM Student fee for 2019/20 - for one hour every other week - is $800/term or $2,400/year (upon approval).
The program fee will be factored into cost-of-attendance for financial aid purposes. We encourage all students who may qualify for financial aid to apply.
A limited number of scholarships based on financial need are available each year. All UCAM applicants are automatically considered for those scholarships and will be notified if they qualify.


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Nick is a high performance coach with the GB Paralympic squad, and part of a highly successful coaching team that oversaw all four Paralympic boats winning medals at the Rio games.
Nick Baker joined the GB Rowing Team in the Autumn of 2013. In 2014 he guided Tom Aggar to an excellent silver medal in the ASM1x at the World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam, and coached Rachel Morris to a fine 5th place finish in the ASW1x; this marked an excellent start to her rowing career – she switched from Paralympic cycling to rowing in February 2014.
Nick's coaching success continued in 2015: both Tom Aggar and the newly formed TAMix2x of Lauren Rowles and Laurence Whiteley took home silver medals from the World Championships in Aiguebelette.
The Rio Olympiad culminated in great success for Nick's crews. Having started the TAMix2x project only two years previously, with Lauren Rowles aged just 16, she and Laurence Whiteley produced a textbook performance in Rio to win the A final by just over a length. Tom Aggar also finished in style, regaining his place on the Olympic podium with a fine bronze medal.
Nick started sculling as a youngster at the Windsor Boys School Boat Club and was a successful junior international rower, competing for GB between 2004 and 2006.
A born explorer, prior to joining the GB Rowing Team coaching team, Nick worked as a personal trainer, and would love to combine these skills with his love of the outdoors to lead mountaineering expeditions one day.
Nick is a big fan of David Attenborough, and owns the full collection of his wildlife documentaries; his three ideal dinner guests would include Mahatma Gandhi, Walt Disney and Lee Evans, "the best comedian of our time".
Nick lives with his wife in Oxford.


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Inadequate financial savings tied to increased childhood health risks
Amy Albin
Dr. Adam Schickedanz discusses why the connection between a family's savings is a better predictor of childhood health than income.
The connection between a family's income and childhood health has been well-established, with lower income linked to poorer health and a greater likelihood of more chronic conditions. Now a new study by UCLA researchers shows that the size of the paycheck is not all that matters when it comes to children's health risks. So does the amount that a family has tucked away in savings.
The study is the first to look at child health in the context of what economists call "asset poverty," or economic strain caused by a lack of ready financial resources such as savings, rather than income relative to the Federal Poverty Level. The study abstract will be presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting on May 3.
UCLA researchers found that children in households with less than three months of savings had a substantially higher risk of obesity and chronic illnesses — and worse overall health — than children in households with more money set aside, even if the families were earning an adequate income. Having enough savings to cover basic expenses for three months is considered by many economists and financial planners to be the minimum target amount needed to avoid slipping into debt in the event of a financial shock, such as a car repair or short-term job loss.
Lead author Dr. Adam Schickedanz, a clinical instructor in pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a Robert Wood Johnson clinical scholar, said that savings is an aspect of socioeconomic status that is increasingly relevant. The proportion of American households living in asset poverty now exceeds 40 percent, he said, and the proportion of families with children living in asset poverty is more than 50 percent, or more than double the proportion living in income poverty.
"The findings showed that the longer families lived paycheck-to-paycheck, the worse their children's health risk. The strong associations between wealth and child health were independent of other key factors known to influence child health, such as parental income, education, race and age," Schickedanz said. "In fact, the study showed the differences in children's health tied to household wealth level were most often equal to or larger than differences associated with income or education level — the factors typically used to measure economic-related health risks facing children and families."
To conduct the study, researchers examined a nationally representative group of 2,907 children and their families using data collected between 1997 and 2007 from the Panel Study on Income Dynamics. The "Panel Study on Income Dynamics" is the longest-running economic survey of families in the world, beginning in 1969 as part of the Johnson administration's War on Poverty, and it has tracked the economic prosperity and health of four generations of American ever since.
Compared to children in wealthier families, those living in asset poverty had a 25 percent higher risk of worse overall health, and each additional year in asset poverty increased the risk by 20 percent, according to the study. In addition, children in families living in asset poverty were 70 percent more likely to be obese and 25 percent more likely to have a chronic illness.
"Wealth is a key dimension of socioeconomic status in children that can no longer be overlooked when it comes to child health," Schickedanz said. "Policymakers should be aware that efforts to help families save more money and reduce asset poverty and wealth inequality are likely to benefit health across generations."
The next phase of research will evaluate the health impact of financial coaching programs that have been proven to help families in poor communities stretch their incomes further and increase their net worth. If these interventions can improve families' health and well-being, they might offer a new way for health care systems to help low-income patients improve both their financial and physical health at the same time.
Additional authors include Dr. José Escarce and Dr. Paul Chung, both of UCLA. The authors have no conflicts to disclose relevant to the study.
The research was supported by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National Institutes of Health (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) and the UCLA Children's Discovery and Innovation Institute.


* Design, develop and implement a digital preservation strategy to ensure the preservation and accessibility of the Research Center's and the MHS's permanently valuable born digital and digitized content.
* Research and be up to date on best practices in digital asset management systems and practices. Implement changes to ensure best practices are being followed.
* Grow, enhance and manage a suite of tools and services that promote sustainable and scalable digital collections.
* Manage hardware and software necessary for digital projects, ensure hardware and software are kept up to date and working efficiently. Make recommendations for updates to hardware and software.
* Create and implement policies, procedures, and guidelines for digitization of the Research Center's physical collections. Work closely with Research Center Manager and staff to determine priorities for new digital projects.
* Plan and implement workflows for digital projects, ensuring that best practices and standards are being met for ingesting, storing, and delivering digital assets and their associate metadata.
* Oversight of the Montana Digital Newspaper Project. Ensure the MDNP meets grant objectives and goals. Oversee work of MDNP staff to develop and implement a Montana newspaper portal. Design standards, guidelines, and workflow for the project. Establish digitization and metadata requirements. Design or oversee delivery mechanism for newspaper content.
* Provide technical expertise and support for digital projects and data initiatives throughout the MHS.
* Act as the primary contact to the Montana Memory Project, ensuring MHS needs are met.
* Establish and maintain policies, workflows and procedures that support and build accessibility to all MHS digital materials.
* Provide training to the wider library, museum and archives communities on digital projects.
* Assist MHS staff in teaching the public to use all MHS online resources.
* Collaborate with related staff in the Research Center and the MHS to ensure consistent access to born digital and digitized resources for staff and patrons.
* Participate in the MHS Social Media committee, providing in-depth knowledge on use of new technology in social media and website projects. Suggest and assist in implementing strategies for the preservation of social media and website digital assets.
* Manage one of four sections of the Research Center program, providing leadership on budget development and management. Set long and short-term goals for the Digital Projects Section. Develop, implement, and monitor progress towards the completion of those goals.
* Supervise the daily work and schedules of Digital Projects Section staff, including overseeing and approving staff work projects, setting priorities for long and short term projects; reviewing work for accuracy, efficiency, and timeliness; ; and conducting annual performance appraisals.
* Gather and analyze statistics on social media, website use, and digital content use for the MHS. Provide recommendations for updates and changes to the MHS Social Media and Website committee and the Research Center Manager based upon statistics.
* Respond to a wide variety of inquiries from individuals, state agencies, professionals, educational groups, local organizations, film companies, journalists, publishers, and institutions by conducting research and providing the information in person, by phone, mail and email on a broad range of topics.
* Knowledge of digital repository systems, preservation of digital assets, and digitization standards. Direct experience with CONTENTdm is preferred.
* Knowledge of and experience with best practices for converting analog materials to digital format.
* Knowledge of digital preservation best practices and a familiarity with current technologies commonly used in data management projects.
* Knowledge of metadata principles and an understanding of controlled vocabularies and taxonomies.
* Knowledge and experience with a variety of computer operating systems, storage system and file formats.
* Knowledge of U.S. and/or Montana history is preferred.
* Ability to successfully manage projects, prioritize work, and identify and solve problems.


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Curious of how the first-ever image of a black hole was acquired?
Read on to find the challenge of photographing a black hole and the solution which made it possible.
Mankind has been looking at the stars since it acquired consciousness.
The Greeks, the Babylonians, Indians, Chinese, Maya and other early civilizations performed methodical observations of the night sky with passion, enthusiasm and wonder. Astronomy is one of the oldest of the natural sciences.
Man is our planet's explorer. No other species is lead by curiosity and thirst for knowledge as mankind. As a species, mankind's evolution has been driven by looking to explain the world's natural phenomena. We want to know how the world around us works and why it works the way it does. We rely on observations, measurement systems and other practical methods.
But the search for knowledge begins in the mind, in the form of theories. Albert Einstein is our planet's well-known theoretical physicist.
A genius by all definitions, Albert Einstein developed his theory of general relativity in 1915. His theory provides a unified description of gravity as a geometric property of space and time or spacetime. Einstein's theory has important astrophysical implications.
The theory of general relativity implies the existence of black holes; black holes – the term black hole was coined in the 1960s – are regions of space in which space and time are distorted in such a way that nothing, not even light, can escape; it's how massive stars die.
Astrophysicist observed stars, planets, comets, meteors, galaxies and other natural phenomena taking place in outer space. But no one has ever seen a black hole. Due to their special nature and our technological limitations, black holes were categorised as unseeable.
What we cannot see, we imagine. So scientists turned to illustrations, computer-generated images and so on. The mysterious existence of black holes has sparked the imagination of film directors. There is a plethora of sci-fi movies and novels where a black hole is a silent character of epic proportions influencing mankind's destiny.
We use our imagination to explain what we cannot see. But we are always looking for ways to confirm or disprove it. We want to learn the truth and we will go to great lengths to see it with our own eyes.
When we don't have the appropriate tools to solve the problems at hand, we innovate.
When we realise we cannot do it on our own, we seek the help and support of our peers.
On April 10, 2019, the National Science Foundation in collaboration with the Event Horizon Telescope organized a press conference in which they revealed the first-ever photo of a black hole.
As Sheperd Doeleman, director of the Event Horizon Telescope told the press conference attendees, it is the culmination of a two-year work involving an international team comprised of 200 scientists over 20 countries. It is a historic event which transforms and enhance our understanding of black holes.
The whole process began in 2017 when the team at the Event Horizon Telescope collaborated with eight telescopes around the globe: Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile; SubMillimeter Array (SMA) in Hawaii; South Pole Telescope (SPT) in Antarctica; Submillimeter Telescope (SMT) in Arizona; Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) in Chile; Large Millimeter Telescope (LMT) in Mexico; James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) in Hawaii; and Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique (IRAM 30m) in Spain.
This was a Herculean task, one that involved overcoming numerous technical difficulties. The Event Horizon Project shows the power of collaboration, convergence and shared resources allowing us to tackle the universe's biggest mysteries.
The purpose was to turn the Event Horizon Telescope into one giant telescope the size of the Earth. Combining the telescopes was the solution to acquiring the necessary image resolution to observe the black hole. For comparison, it was like looking to see an apple on the surface of the moon.
The scientists had ten days in April 2017 when the weather allowed all eight telescopes to take pictures of the same place in space at the same time. The coordinated effort of scientists was an extraordinary feat and it paid off.
We have seen what we thought was unseeable. We saw something so true. It was astonishment and wonder, it's an extraordinary feeling.
It was a year later, in April 2018 that the huge amount of data collected by the telescopes would bring results. The data was so massive in size that it could not be transmitted over the internet; the scientists had to fly the data by jet.
After the data was received, four teams of scientists designed the algorithm which transformed the data into images.
What the scientists saw on their monitors was the black hole at the centre of Messier 87, a large galaxy in the Virgo cluster. This black hole resides 55 million light-years from Earth and has a mass 6.5 billion times that of the sun.
I was a little stunned that it matched so closely the predictions that we have made. This is the beginning. It was a cathartic release of finding things are working but also the anticipation of all the amazing science that we are going to do by studying this image closely and by repeating the experiment.
"This extraordinary event has multiple implications for researchers and not only.
about the mass and the spin of the black hole in a more direct way. This has implications on galaxy evolution models too.
It also helps researchers who perform simulations of black hole formation or black hole collisions to better understand these processes and improve their models. They can build more realistic simulations and movies for the general audience too.
From a non-researcher perspective, this can help people better comprehend what is a black hole, and not just from a theoretical point of view. Now they can actually visualise it.
In 1915 Albert Einstein predicted black holes. A hundred years later an international team proved that Einstein was correct by taking the first-ever picture of a black hole.
It is an amazing achievement which shows that our world will only develop and grow through collaboration and innovation.


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Nic France (Standon (Hertfordshire), 30 maart 1956) is een Britse jazzmuzikant (drums, percussie, steeldrums, piano).

Biografie
France begon piano te spelen op 7-jarige leeftijd en kort daarna viool. Hij kreeg tussen 1964 en 1969 een uitgebreide muzikale opleiding als koorknaap in Ely. Op 14-jarige leeftijd wendde hij zich als autodidact tot de drums. In 1976 begon hij muziek te studeren aan het Cambridge College of Arts and Technology. Tijdens zijn studie maakte hij kennis met Chucho Merchan, met wie hij later ook samenwerkte. Hij kreeg ook de kans om musici als Gordon Beck, Martin Taylor en Tony Coe te begeleiden.

In 1980 verhuisde hij naar Londen, waar hij in 1982 lid was van Ian Carrs Nucleus (Awakening, 1980). Hij werkte ook samen met Ronnie Scott, John Taylor, Allan Holdsworth, Jim Mullen en Bobby Wellins, maar ook met Mose Allison, L. Shankar, Hank Crawford, David 'Fathead' Newman en Billy Cobham. In 1984 was hij een van de oprichters van Loose Tubes met Django Bates, John Parricelli, Chris Batchelor, Mark Lockheart en Iain Ballamy. Hij speelde ook van 1984 tot 1986 met Working Week, waarmee hij op verschillende Europese tournees speelde en drie albums opnam, en met Tim Whitehead. Hij bleef samenwerken met Bill Withers en enkele jaren met Tanita Tikaram. Sinds het midden van de jaren 1990 speelde hij met Annie Lennox, Antonio Forcione, Ian Shaw, Christie Hennessey, Pete Jacobsen en met Tim Garlands Lammas. In 2001/2 ging hij op tournee met David Gilmour en gasten Kate Bush, Bob Geldof en Robert Wyatt. Hij speelde ook met Andy Sheppard, Nigel Kennedy, Barb Jungr, Terry Callier, Julian Lloyd Webber en in 2009 met Charlie Hadens Liberation Music Orchestra. Hij was ook gastmuzikant in de NDR-bigband. Hij is instrumentaal docent aan de Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge en heeft vele workshops en zomercursussen geleid.

Literatuur
 Ian Carr, Digby Fairweather, Brian Priestley: Rough Guide Jazz. Der ultimative Führer zum Jazz. 1800 Bands und Künstler von den Anfängen bis heute. 2., erweiterte und aktualisierte Auflage. Metzler, Stuttgart/Weimar 2004, ISBN 3-476-01892-X.

Brits jazzdrummer
Brits slagwerker
Brits jazzpianist

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


A brain injury is defined as any injury sustained to the brain, resulting in internal damage. Brain injury may be caused by a blow to the head (traumatic brain injury) or through infection or virus. Brain injuries can also occur when brain cells are deprived of oxygen, such as during a near-drowning incident, medication misuse or inhalation of toxic substances.
Brain injuries can also include other conditions such as brain damage, brain trauma or traumatic brain injury, but generally does not include Alzheimer's disease, alcohol-related effects or the effects of normal aging.
A brain injury can result from a number of different causes. The cause of a brain injury usually determines what type of legal claim may be filed. If a person received a brain injury due to the negligence of another, he or she may be able to file suit and recover damages caused by the injury.
Medical malpractice: A health care professional can be held liable if their breach of medical care standards causes a brain injury, which can include defective surgical procedures or errors in prescribing medication.
Slip and fall accidents: A slip and fall can cause serious injury to the brain, head, neck and spinal cord. Owners of premises may be held liable if they do not fix dangerous conditions on their premises.
Dangerous activities: Some sports and recreational activities are dangerous in nature and involve a risk of harm.
Car accidents: Motor vehicle collisions are a leading cause of brain injury. This is especially true for motorcycles.
Products liability: Defective products can cause brain injury, especially those that are ingested or involve hazardous substances.
How Can I Prove Negligence in My Brain Injury Claim?
One of the main difficulties in proving a brain injury claim is that the effects of the injury may not appear until a long time after the incident, sometime several years. This is especially true of traumatic brain injury, because they are injuries that are caused by a blow to the head.
In the state of Illinois, you have two years from the discovery of your brain injury in order to file a medical malpractice claim. You also only have four years from the date of the negligent act that caused your brain injury to file a medical malpractice claim. It is very important to properly document any injuries soon after they occur. It helps to make a written account of what happened and to keep all medical receipts and reports. Be sure to list important dates, witnesses and contact information.
If you are injured, a Chicago brain injury attorney from Nemeroff Law Offices can help you document your injuries and keep track of your medical records and expenses. We are here to help you file your claim within the statutes of limitations set forth by the state of Illinois.
What Damages Can I Be Eligible For After a Brain Injury?
Because a brain injury can leave a person with ongoing medical problems that can affect the ability to work or carry out other daily activities, compensation from the negligent party allows the victim of a brain injury to recover for losses that result from the injury.
For example, the defendant may be required to compensate the victim for medical expenses, hospital bills, and attorney fees. In addition, if the injury resulted in a loss of work wages or earning capacity, this may also be figured into the damages award.
The effects as a result of brain injury can be severe and life changing. At Nemeroff Law Offices, we help individuals and families overcome these challenges and recover the necessary compensation for medical expenses and future needs. Our firm has an extensive rolodex of qualified experts in many fields necessary to help prove your case, including medical doctors, economists to discuss your past and future wage loss, life care planners to discuss your future medical care costs and many other experts that will help to increase the value of your brain injury case.
We offer a free consultation to evaluate your brain injury claim. It will cost you nothing to consult with a lawyer to see if you have a case. Nemeroff Law Offices will act promptly to preserve evidence and investigate the accident as well as the conduct of the responsible party.
Contact Nemeroff Law Offices immediately at 312–629–8800 or complete our online contact form.


For the people of Meghalaya, it is sometimes easy to think that we have come a long way since 1979 and have left the past behind but the wounds of those years don't heal easily, especially for those who bore the brunt of the ethnic conflict. Meghalaya went into a tailspin in 1979 when, during Durga Puja, someone allegedly threw a stone at the goddess in one of the pandals in Shillong – now and even then, a cosmopolitan hub, which prided itself on its pluralistic culture.
The communal conflict carried on right through 1987 and it was only after 1992 that things calmed down somewhat. But the angst remained hidden and took the form of a virulent form of militancy when the Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council and its Garo version, the ANVC, began to raise their ugly heads. People were shot in broad daylight for not complying with extortion notes. That was a dark era in Meghalaya's history and it continues to rankle.
In 1979, the Hindu Bengalis, who had settled in Shillong during the British era and after their persecution post the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, were the targets. They were accused of encroaching on the rights of tribals and of taking away their jobs. In 1982, the Nepalese became the next targets and also the Biharis. Meghalaya had gone off the tourism circuit then.
It was only after 2001 when militancy in the Khasi Hills was curtailed that tourism began to take shape and now it is a booming business. But ethnocentrism is not an easy thing to heal. It only exacerbates with the growth of a constituency of young people, who with their half-baked understanding of issues, which are neither black nor white, turn things into a binary and get into arguments or provoke their peers to do battle at the drop of a hat.
That is what happened in Shillong on the morning of May 31 when an altercation between 2 groups – one tribal, the other non-tribal, escalated into a major law and order problem requiring parts of the city be brought under curfew.
So the genesis of the trouble was that 2 Sikh girls were reportedly going to fetch water but had problems entering the water dispensing place because a bus was parked there. The girls asked the young teenaged sons of the driver (who was having tea at a shop) to remove the bus. The boys said they could not drive but the girls accused them of eve-teasing (it's now the girls' words against the boys).
After that, the girls reported the matter to their elders who appeared on the scene and beat up the 2 boys. One of them was taken to Civil Hospital and received stitches on his head. This happened in the morning and police arrived at the place but did not arrest anyone then. Perhaps they felt that the case was not serious enough to require an arrest.
Meanwhile, in the evening, a huge crowd marched towards Punjabi lane (a ghetto in the marketplace) and wanted to attack the Mazhabi Sikhs. Some television news channel did a live-streaming of the incident where people pelted stones at police and hate messages kept pouring in on social media.
It took a lot of restraint on the part of the police to handle the situation the way they did. Tear gas was fired and the crowd dispersed. Thankfully no one was injured.
But the situation is now tense and considering that the main marketplace is under curfew, it is going to harm the economic interests of the poorest. Of course, any such incident that results in a curfew will also deter tourists from coming in. Guess who will suffer the most in that case? The answer is all those in the rural outback who are now well-versed in monetising the sights and sounds of Meghalaya and earning an honest livelihood.
The problem with tribal-majority states is that if two tribals slug it out, things are taken as par for the course but the moment the clash/quarrel is between a tribal and non-tribal, then all hell breaks loose. Even newspapers are expected to take sides. Social media has only allowed the unthinking to spew venom and aggravate the situation. Indeed the Internet is a double-edged sword.
But let's understand the genesis of the situation. A particular ghetto called Punjabi Lane is peopled by the Mazhabi Sikhs whose parents and grandparents were brought to Shillong during the days of dry latrines. They had to literally carry the faeces-filled tins from tribal homes and dump them in rivers, streams and drains. This went on until the 1970s when people were compelled to construct sanitary toilets.
But the Mazhabi Sikhs had already settled in Shillong and begun to consider the place their home. Their children and grandchildren have become hawkers or picked up small jobs. An erstwhile residential area where they were allowed to live in is now a full-fledged commercial hub and in order to survive, the Sikhs have converted whatever space they can get hold of into tiny shops perhaps by paying off officials in the municipality.
Attempts to shift the Mazhabi Sikhs from that congested ghetto to another more spacious part of the city, where homes have been constructed for them, have met with repeated resistance. They have now got a stay order from the Supreme Court and the Government has not appealed against it. Also the Mazhabi Sikhs from a formidable vote bank and politicians normally don't want to ruffle their feathers.
Another group of them in another part of the city to have been resisting relocation even though the place they reside in has become terribly congested. These are populations that live in perpetual insecurity and who derive their bravado out of being together as a group and communalising their cause. They fight back when in a corner because they have nothing else to lose.
The tribes, on the other hand, feel they are being cornered by "outsiders" who have no business being there in the first place. The idea of an ethnic homeland to be inhabited by indigenous people only, where all outsiders are seen as interlopers, is a stark reality and no amount of social engineerings – such as explaining that in India, a citizen is free to settle anywhere in the country – works. People take hardened positions but politicians are the last ones to take a pragmatic stand and speak out from a non-partisan position.
We live our lives in this quagmire never knowing when the communal cauldron will be set ablaze and claim its victims all over again. Lives were lost in 1979, 1982 and 1987 but those were non-tribal lives and hence considered dispensable. No arrests are ever made and no one convicted for heinous crimes.
Just a few years ago when some groups started a movement demanding the Inner Line Permit, ostensibly to safeguard tribals from the non-tribals, at least 2 shop owners were burnt alive but no one was arrested. You wonder what the purpose of the police and the law is and whether they will ever be held accountable for non-performance of duties.
The police force is largely compromised too since a tribal policeman will find it difficult to arrest his kith and kin. This is where the central reserve police force or a rapid action force would have saved the situation. Alas! Our plight is to simply write and carry on. After all, the Citizens' Charter that we should be having is not even on our radar. We are not aware of our rights as citizens.
As journalists, it is even more difficult to fulfill our duties and express our views freely and fearlessly. We are under constant attack by one or the other group and our lives are on the line. But then who really cares about the Fourth Estate?


The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) represents the last big step in particle accelerators for high energy physics. This machine follows three previous generations at increasing energies of complementary particle accelerators: exploratory proton-proton machines and more precise electron-positron machines. The next big step for particle physics is to build the companion electron-positron collider to the CERN Large Hadron Collider, in order to carry out precision studies of the Higgs Boson and other new physics. The leading candidate machine is the proposed International Linear Collider, which will be based on superconducting RF technologies. In this presentation, the technical features of the ILC and the physics potential are discussed.


An internationally registered and patented design of Robert Welch and Ginkgo International Ltd. The flowing curves and carefully designed thickness and thinness of the 18/8 steel accomplishes the exceptional weight and balance of Sea Drift.
Sea Drift is an award winning international design.


The Network Situational Awareness (NetSA) group at CERT has developed and maintains a suite of open source tools for monitoring large-scale networks using flow data. These tools have grown out of the work of the AirCERT project, the SiLK project and the effort to integrate this work into a unified, standards-compliant flow collection and analysis platform.
If you are new to the NetSA Security Suite, start with this overview of the components that comprise the NetSA Security Suite and their inter-operation.
CERT is a part of the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) operated by Carnegie Mellon University.
The System for Internet Level Knowledge (SiLK) is an efficient network flow collection and storage infrastructure that will accept flow data from a variety of sensors. SiLK also provides a suite of efficient command-line tools for analysis.
Yet Another Flow Sensor (YAF) processes packet data into bidirectional flow records that can be used as input to an IPFIX Collecting Process. YAF's output can be used with super_mediator, Pipeline 5, and the SiLK tools.
The Analysis Pipeline 5.10 is a streaming analysis tool than can process more than just SiLK flows as done in version 4.x. It can now process YAF records and raw IPFIX records. It can do all of the analyses available in version 4.x. A notable enhancement is expansive DNS record processing. This includes fast flux detection and domain name watchlisting.
super_mediator is an IPFIX mediator for use with the YAF and SiLK tools. It collects and filters YAF output data to various IPFIX collecting processes and/or csv files. super_mediator can be configured to perform de-duplication of DNS resource records as exported by YAF.


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Hyperbarická oxygenoterapie (: hyperbaric oxygen therapy, HBOT), jinak též hyperbarická kyslíková terapie či hyperbaroxie (HBO) je léčebná metoda vedoucí ke zvýšenému okysličení krve, která se rozvíjí někdy od poloviny 60. let 20. století.

Historie hyperbaroxie
V 19. století byly v Evropě konstruovány pneumatické instituty na způsob tehdy oblíbených minerálních lázní. Byla zkonstruována první komora umožňující operační zákroky. V roce 1878 demonstroval Paul Bert toxické účinky kyslíku na CNS, v roce 1899 Lorrain-Smith toxické účinky na plicní parenchym.

V roce 1917 zkonstruoval Dräger komoru pro léčbu dekompresní nemoci.

V roce 1918 Cunningham zprovoznil první velkou klinickou komoru téměř 30 metrů dlouhou, posléze v roce 1928 vůbec největší komoru v historii tzv. "Steel Ball Hospital" vysokou jako 6patrový dům.

Jednalo se však o léčbu bez vědeckého podkladu. Za skutečné zakladatele oboru jsou považováni Brit Churchill-Davidson a holandský chirurg prof. Boerema, kteří publikovali práce koncem 50. a počátkem 60. let minulého století.

Dr. Churchill-Davidson prověřoval účinnost léčebné kombinace radioterapie a HBO u zhoubných nádorů.

Boerema jako první prováděl náročné kardiochirurgické operace v hyperbarické komoře (transpozice velkých cév, korekce Fallotovy tetralogie), ve svých studiích prokázal, že transport fyzikálně rozpuštěného O2 v plazmě v hyperbarickém prostředí stačí k přežití experimentálně vykrvácených zvířat s téměř nulovou hodnotou hemoglobinu. V hyperbarickém prostředí 0,3 MPa při dýchání čistého kyslíku byla zvířata ponechána s nulovými hodnotami hemoglobinu 15 minut a během této doby nebyly zjištěny patologické změny na EKG a EEG, ani změny v parametrech vnitřního prostředí, konkrétně v acidobazické rovnováze. Po retransfúzi krve zvířata žila dále a nedošlo u nich k symptomům z anoxie. Své zkušenosti profesor Boerema shrnul v publikaci z roku 1960 "Life without Blood". Tato studie, seznamující s možností udržení života bez hemoglobinu pomocí inhalace hyperbarického kyslíku, se stala základním kamenem moderní historie hyperbarické medicíny.

Popis metody
Hyperbarická oxygenoterapie (hyperbaroxie, dále HBO) je léčebná metoda, spočívající v inhalačním podávání kyslíku za podmínek zvýšeného atmosférického tlaku.

Vzduch obsahuje téměř 21 % kyslíku a 78 % dusíku. Při hyperbaroxii se vdechovaná koncentrace kyslíku blíží 100 %, je tedy 5× vyšší než ve vzduchu. Pracovní tlak v hyperbarické komoře je přitom 2,5–3násobně vyšší než atmosférický tlak. Nabídka kyslíku tedy může být při HBO až 15× vyšší než při dýchání vzduchu za normálních podmínek.

Dochází k plnému dosycení hemoglobinu kyslíkem, mnohonásobnému zvýšení parciálního tlaku kyslíku a jeho fyzikálnímu rozpuštění v krevní plazmě, až 4násobně se prodlužuje difuzní dráha kyslíku ve tkáni.

Všechny tyto děje vedou ke zvýšené dodávce kyslíku tkáním, což může být prospěšné u řady chorob. Kromě toho má hyperbarický kyslík řadu dalších specifických efektů (zmenšení velikosti bublin plynu, snížení otoku ve tkáních, modulace imunitních funkcí v boji proti infekci, snížení průběhu ischemicko-reperfuzního syndromu, stimulace neovaskularizace, fibroblastové proliferace a podobně).

Hyperbarická medicína je obor multidisciplinární – má vztah k mnoha medicínským (ARO, chirurgie, traumatologie, interna, dermatologie, otorinolaryngologie, oftalmologie, ortopedie, pediatrie, neurologie, onkologie, mikrobiologie, urologie, pracovní lékařství, pracovní hygiena, sportovní medicína) i nemedicínským oborům (teorie potápění, dekompresologie, matematické modely jednotlivých typů bublin, teoretická, aplikovaná fyzika apod.).

Při léčbě některých kriticky nemocných pacientů je nutná dokonalá týmová spolupráce. Zejména u těžce traumatizovaných či septických pacientů s plynatou snětí či nekrotizující infekcí měkkých tkání je po adekvátním primárním chirurgickém ošetření a nasazení empirické širokospektré antibioterapie ve spolupráci se Zdravotním ústavem či Národní referenční laboratoří pro anaerobní infekce (rychlá mikroskopická a kultivační diagnostika) vhodná včasná hyperbaroxie. Je často nutná dlouhodobá intenzívní péče včetně řízené či podpůrné umělé plicní ventilace v režii ARO nebo traumatologické či septické JIP, kvalitní ošetřovatelská péče s aplikací moderních trendů ošetřování ran (tzv. systém vlhkého hojení ran- preparáty s hydrokoloidy, polyuretany, algináty, aktivní uhlím, silikonem), aplikace léčebného podtlaku V.A.C. (Vacuum Assist Closure) apod.

Hyperbaroxie je jako každá jiná léčba. Má své indikace, kontraindikace, dávkování, potenciální vedlejší nepříznivé účinky. Takto by se na ni mělo pohlížet – jako na racionální léčbu v jistých klinických situacích, nikoli jako na zázračný lék. Výsledky a účinky by se neměly ani přeceňovat, ani podceňovat. V minulosti bylo odvedeno mnoho práce k získání vědeckých důkazů prospěšnosti terapie u některých indikací. Na druhou stranu u mnoha z nich dnešní důraz na medicínu založenou na důkazech bude v krátké budoucnosti vyžadovat provedení kvalitních prospektivních studií k obhájení rutinního užívání této metody v praxi.

Teoretické základy – fyzikální zákony, patofyziologické principy hyperbaroxie
Nejdůležitější veličinou, se kterou se v hyperbaroxii setkáváme, je tlak. Lze jej definovat jako účinek síly, působící na jednotku plochy. Hlavní jednotkou tlaku je 1 Pa (Pascal).
Člověk je ve svém životním prostředí vystaven tlaku okolního prostředí. Normální atmosférický tlak při hladině moře činí 101 kPa.

HBO využívá prakticky fyzikálních zákonů, které platí pro plyny a tekutiny

Pascalův zákon
Tlak v plynech a tekutinách se šíří rovnoměrně všemi směry.

Boyleův–Mariottův zákon
Součin tlaku a objemu daného váhového množství plynu je za dané teploty konstantní.

Daltonův zákon
Výsledný tlak směsi plynů je roven součtu parciálních tlaků jednotlivých plynů.

Henryho zákon
Množství plynu rozpuštěného v kapalině závisí přímo úměrně na tlaku plynu nad hladinou a faktoru rozpustnosti.

Polytropický děj
Stlačování či rozpínání plynu je spojeno s výměnou tepla s okolím.

Vlhkost vzduchu
Při kompresi roste absolutní vlhkost rychleji než maximální.

V praxi se dva posledně jmenované děje projeví vzestupem teploty a relativní vlhkosti během komprese na počátku terapie.
Při dekompresi klesá teplota a maximální vlhkost rychleji než absolutní, je dosaženo rosného bodu a v praxi se to projeví zamlžením prostředí a kondenzací vody v prostoru komory. Tyto fyzikální děje lze částečně zmírnit instalací kvalitní klimatizační jednotky.

Fyzikální a patofyziologické principy léčby v hyperbarickém prostředí
Samotné účinky vyšších tlaků při hyperbaroxii se projevují v oblasti stlačitelnosti plynů, jejich rozpustnosti a difúzi v tělesných tekutinách a změně jejich fyzikálně-chemického chování při vyšších parciálních tlacích.

Vysvětlení metody, efekty hyperoxie a hyperoxygenace a účinky v organismu:

Existují dva základní patofyziologické principy hyperbaroxie.

První je mechanický efekt, spočívající v redukci velikosti bublin (embolie) u pacientů s různými formami dekompresní nemoci či vzduchové embolie.

Druhý efekt je způsoben mnohonásobným zvýšením parciálního tlaku kyslíku ve tkáních s prodloužením jeho difúzní vzdálenosti, zvýšením množství fyzikálně rozpuštěného kyslíku v plazmě (viz výše) a transportem do tkání postižených ischémií a hypoxií.

Hyperbarická oxygenoterapie (HBO) je léčebná metoda, která se jeví kauzálním způsobem léčby u některých patologických stavů, kde významnou měrou ovlivňuje léčebný výsledek, mortalitu a kvalitu života. U dalších stavů má spíše adjuvantní roli v doplnění konzervativního nebo chirurgického léčebného postupu a zmírnění průběhu onemocnění a redukci následných komplikací. Podání kyslíku za podmínek vyššího atmosférického tlaku neznamená pouze aplikaci "většího množství substrátu" ve srovnání s podáním za normálního atmosférického tlaku, jak je často nesprávně chápáno, ale HBO má mnoho jedinečných a jinou medikací či lékařskou metodou nenahraditelných efektů včetně signálního efektu vůči DNA (transkripce) s ovlivněním mnoha buněčných procesů (exprese hormonů, enzymů, faktorů, upregulace receptorů).

Bylo zjištěno, že během 24 hodin po aplikaci HBO dochází k významnému ovlivnění více než 8 100 genů, přičemž upregulovány jsou antioxidační, protektivní (hemoxygenáza 1, proteiny tepelného šoku-HSP), protizánětlivé geny a geny pro růstové a reparační faktory a hormony, zatímco geny prozánětlivé a apoptotické geny jsou downregulovány. Hyperbarická hyperoxie přináší několik desítek efektů a změn nejen v oblasti transportu a metabolismu kyslíku, ale také na kardiovaskulární, respirační, neurologické, metabolicko-biochemické, imunitní a enzymatické úrovni. Byly popsány četné efekty hyperoxie a hyperoxygenace ve vztahu k infekci a systémové zánětlivé odpovědi. HBO má vliv na metabolismus mikrobů především díky produkci reaktivních kyslíkových substancí. Je zesílen "respirační burst" leukocytů, tedy prudké zvýšení spotřeby kyslíku s produkcí reaktivních kyslíkových substancí a následným usmrcením fagocytovaných baktérií, čímž se zlepšuje proces fagocytózy a obranyschopnost organismu.

Adekvátní parciální tlak kyslíku je primární pro efekt některých antimikrobiálních látek. Byl popsán synergický efekt s působením některých antibiotik (např. aminoglykosidy, sulfonamidy), baktericidní efekt vůči striktním anaerobním baktériím, zastavení tvorby alfa toxinu baktérie Clostridium perfringens apod. HBO způsobuje down-regulaci prozánětlivých cytokinů. Byl prokázán pozitivní efekt na průběh ischémicko-reperfúzního (I-R) poranění, systémové zánětlivé odpovědi, multiorgánové dysfunkce, septického šoku a těžké akutní pankreatitidy. Dochází k snížení vzájemné interakce aktivovaných polymorfonukleárů s endotelem kapilár downregulací adhezivních molekul CD11 a CD18 a adhezivních molekul endotelu typu ICAM-1 a P-Selektinu.

Typy, rozdělení a vybavení hyperbarických komor, způsoby aplikace kyslíku
Hyperbarické komory jsou ocelové tlakové nádoby, jejich provoz podléhá přísným bezpečnostním opatřením a speciálním technickým normám

Tlakové komory, které vytvářejí hyperbarické prostředí, lze rozdělit podle

Určení
 komory léčebné,
 potápěčské,
 komory pro experimentální lékařský výzkum.

Velikosti
 komory malé s objemem asi 1 m krychlový,
 střední s objemem 4–8 m krychlových,
 velké s objemem několika desítek metrů krychlových.

Plnění
Malé komory bývají plněny kyslíkem, velké vzduchem. Některé potápěčské a experimentální komory se plní i jinými plyny, např. směsí kyslíku a helia.

Vybavení hyperbarických komor, způsoby aplikace kyslíku
Pro léčebné účely se využívají komory všech velikostí, nejrozšířenější jsou komory malé – jednomístné. U jednomístných komor však není během léčby přítomen zdravotnický pracovník a není ani k pacientovi během léčby přístup. V kyslíkem plněných komorách pacienti dýchají kyslík přímo z prostředí komory, je zde však velké nebezpečí vzniku požáru.U vzduchem plněných komor je kyslík dodáván z tlakových kyslíkových lahví či zásobního tanku, v nemocnicích častěji z centrálního rozvodu.

Pacienti inhalují kyslík skrze těsnící masku z dýchacího přístroje, jenž se nazývá dýchací automatika. Svým nádechovým úsilím otevírají membránu a tím přívod kyslíku. Další možností je podání kyslíku přes vak a masku s výdechovou membránou. Také je možno kyslík aplikovat do "kyslíkové helmy". Dětem lze kyslík podat dětským anesteziologickým systémem nebo užít kyslíkový stan. Pacienti v bezvědomí jsou ventilováni plicním ventilátorem přes orotracheální či tracheostomickou kanylu. Pacienti s tracheostomií se zachovalou spontánní ventilací dýchají kyslík z vaku přes Rubenův ventil nebo jiný systém.

Střední a velké komory bývají vybaveny předkomorou, která umožňuje vstup a výstup z komory během pracovní expozice za účelem vstupu lékaře při indispozici pacienta, ukončení terapie indisponovaného pacienta, vykonání tělesné potřeby apod.

Plášť komory je vybaven několika průzory k lepší možnosti sledování pacientů z vnějšího prostředí. Dále je zde tzv. podávací prostor, umožňující za provozu vkládat předměty do komory, nebo je vyndávat ven z komory.

Seznam indikovaných diagnóz

Akutní
 Otrava oxidem uhelnatým,kouřovými plyny,
 dekompresní choroba,
 plynová embolie,
 akutní traumatická ischémie svalová, drtivé poranění končetin,
 těžká anaerobní nebo smíšená bakteriální infekce měkkých tkání, fasciitida, myonekróza, plynatá sněť,
 reperfúzní syndrom po invazívním cévním výkonu,
 replantace končetiny.

Chronické
 postradiační poškození (osteoradionekróza, nekróza měkkých tkání – cystitida, enteritida, proktitida, hrtan, CNS ap.),
 prevence při chirurgickém zákroku – implantace na ozářených tkáních, extrakce zubu,
 diabetické defekty,
 ischémické vředy a defektypersistující navzdory poskytované optimální léčbě,
 neuroblastom IV. st.,
 náhlá hluchota,
 tinitus,
 problematické kožní štěpy a volné svalové laloky,
 refrakterní chronická osteomyelitida, algoneurodystrofie, vybrané nehojící se infikované defekty navzdory poskytované optimální léčbě,
 akutní uzávěry sítnicové tepny,
 popáleniny nad 20 % TBSA st. 2 a více (s výjimkou hlavy, rukou a hráze),
 postanoxická encephalopatie,
 cystoidní pneumatóza střeva.

Kontraindikace
 neošetřený pneumothorax,
 během expozice (zejména během dekomprese na konci terapie) hrozí vývoj tensního PNO,
 je nutno na něj myslet u stavů spojených s traumatem hrudníku či po kanylaci centrálního žilního řečiště (auskultace, RTG plic),
 dlouhodobá léčba některými léky,
 kardiotoxická cytostatika (doxomycin, cis-platina),
 disulfiram (Antabus) , který blokuje tvorbu superoxiddismuttázy (vysoká toxicita 02 radikálů),
 akutní infekt HCD, akutní sinusitida, neprůchodnost paranasálních dutin či Eustachovy trubice, těžké ušní afekce či operace v anamnéze,
 (bolesti hlavy, uší při nemožnosti vyrovnat tlakový gradient mezi jednotlivými dutinami),
 těžké astma bronchiale, chronická obstrukční choroba s emfyzémem,
 klaustrofobie, křečové onemocnění v anamnéze patří mezi relativní kontraindikace zejména ve vztahu k indikační naléhavosti.

Rizika a omezení
 Léčba hyperbarickým kyslíkem je obecně považována za bezpečnou léčebnou proceduru, přesto je však protrahovaná inhalace hyperbarického kyslíku potenciálně toxická. Toxicitu mohou ovlivnit jisté stavy či medikace (kortikoidy, insulin, adrenalin, noradrenalin, inhalace C02, horečka). Prevencí je dodržení léčebného režimu a stanoveného počtu expozic.
 Mechanismus toxicity vyplývá ze zvýšené tvorby volných reaktivních kyslíkových (superoxid, hydroxylový radikál) a dusíkatých radikálů (oxid dusnatý, nitráty, nitrity a zejména nejtoxičtější molekula peroxodusitan) a z následného poškození buněčných membrán a tkání mechanismem peroxidace (aminokyselin, tuků, DNA). Výsledný stav je dán poměrem vytvořených radikálů a na druhé straně stavem antioxidačních mechanismů. Antioxidační mechanismy tvoří enzymatické i neenzymatické systémy: superoxid dismuttáza, kataláza, glutathion peroxidáza a reduktáza, z neenzymatických pak glutathion, selen, taurin, vitamíny E a C.
 Důležitou roli zde hrají určité adaptační schopnosti organismu. Během expozice HBO sice dojde k určitému poškození výše uvedených struktur, současně však dojde k rychlému nastartování ochranných procesů na buněčné a podbuněčné úrovni – zvýšené aktivitě antioxidačních mechanismů, expresi transkripčních faktorů, tvorbě ochranných bílkovin typu HSP (proteiny tepelného šoku), HO-1 (hem oxygenáza-1) apod. Výsledkem těchto procesů je reparace (rychlá oprava poškozených úseků ve šroubovici DNA), nebo rychlé odstranění ireverzibilně poškozených buněk procesem apoptózy a současné vytvoření ochranných mechanismů proti dalšímu poškození.

Toxicita O2

plicní forma
 Za normobarických podmínek se první projevy objeví při inhalaci čistého O2 po dobu delší než 12–16 hodin.
 Klinické projevy, patologicko-anatomické a RTG známky jsou podobné jako u ARDS.
 Příznaky – podráždění DC, sucho v ústech, hyperémie, bolest na prsou, kašel, dušnost, nevolnost, zvracení, pokles plicní poddajnosti, vitální kapacity, zvýšení kapilární prostupnosti se zvýšením extravaskulární plicní vody s následnou hypoxémií a hyperkapnií.
 Prevence – omezení počtu sezení během jedné léčebné série na 30 expozic, zejména u opakované expozice během jednoho roku u pacientů s plicním onemocněním.

CNS forma
 Příznaky – neklid, zmatenost, sluchové, zrakové a čichové vjemy, svalové záškuby kolem úst a očí, pocení, nevolnost, zvracení, křeče s bezvědomím buď ihned, nebo následují po výše uvedených příznacích (zpočátku tonické, posléze i klonické typu GM) s incidencí kolem 0,1 promile (1 : 10 000 expozic)
 léčba: odstranění O2, antioxidační látky (vit. C, E), zvážit další pokračování HBO, event. snížit léčebný tlak,
 inhalace O2 s přestávkami prokazatelně oddalují projevy jak CNS, tak plicní toxicity,
 neprovádět nebo přerušit již prováděnou dekompresi komory pro riziko barotraumatu.

barotrauma plic, nosních dutin, středouší
Při nemožnosti vyrovnání tlakových změn u pacientů v bezvědomí či nespolupracujících je indikována oboustranná paracentéza.

bradykardie a hypertenze
Nebezpečné zvláště u dekompenzovaných hypertoniků.

reverzibilní myopie
Z měny refrakční síly čočky – (v průměru 0,64 dioptrie) – reverzibilní do 6-8 týdnů

Přehled léčebných center v Česku

České Budějovice
Nemocnice České Budějovice – Oddělení úrazové a plastické chirurgie

Hostinné
RHB ústav Hostinné

Hronov
Prajzko Hronov, a. s. – soukromé sanatorium

Kladno
Nestátní zdravotnické zařízení Kübeck, s. r. o. – Ambulance hyperbarické oxygenoterapie a, poradna pro potápěče

http://www.hyperbarickakomora.cz/

Most
Nestátní zdravotnické zařízení – Ambulance hyperbarické oxygenoterapie

Ostrava
Městská nemocnice Ostrava – Centrum hyperbarické medicíny

Hyperbarická komora v Městské nemocnici Ostrava byla uvedena do provozu v roce 1965 na popud tehdejšího vedení OKD a Městské nemocnice v souvislosti se vzrůstajícím množstvím pracovníků postižených těžkým pracovním úrazem či otravou oxidem uhelnatým v tehdejším těžkém průmyslu. Jednalo se o první a současně největší komoru v tehdejším Československu a v bývalém východním bloku.

Pardubice
Nemocnice Pardubice – Centrum hyperbarické medicíny

Plzeň
 Fakultní nemocnice Plzeň – Oddělení klinické farmakologie (Bory)
 Fakultní nemocnice Plzeň – I. interní klinika (Lochotín) Provoz ukončen k 20. 2. 2015.

Praha
 Všeobecná fakultní nemocnice v Praze – IV. interní klinika
 Nemocnice Na Homolce – ARO
 Ústav leteckého zdravotnictví – budova ústavu v areálu Ústřední vojenské nemocnice

Ústí nad Labem
Almedea, s. r. o. – Hyperbarick33

Externí odkazy

  Česká společnost hyperbarické a letecké medicíny
  Hyperbarická oxygenoterapie v medicínské praxi
  https://www.cshlm.cz/dokumenty/2022_seznam_pracovist.pdf

Léčba


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Hinshaw partner Steve Puiszis—who also serves as the firm's General Counsel Privacy, Security and Compliance—has authored a comprehensive overview of the EU General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR), published by the American Bar Association in the 2018 Journal of the Professional Lawyer.
Described by one privacy expert as both "staggeringly complex" and "intentionally ambiguous," the GDPR is intended to establish a uniform data privacy law across the 28 Member States of the EU and three countries comprising the European Economic Area (EEA). In his article, Puiszis seeks to provide clarity on the issues that the GDPR raises for law firms and their clients in the United States.
Recommended steps for U.S. law firms and companies.
©2019 by the American Bar Association. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any or portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association. The Journal of The Professional Lawyer is published annually by the ABA Center for Professional Responsibility.


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Sexy Super Power with Debra Webb of #RomanticSuspense, Dark Whispers!
Sexy Super Power:
Where the author picks a super power to attract their ideal "Harlequin hunk."
Since I love dark, wounded heroes, it would have to be Wonder Woman and her Lasso of Truth!
Dark Whispers
(Faces of Evil: Private Eyes #1)
by Debra Webb
Kindle Edition, 256 pages
Published September 1st 2016 by Harlequin Intrigue
ASINB01AREZJHC
A chilling new spin-off series from USA TODAY bestselling author Debra Webb sure to keep you up all night…
Former homicide detective Clint Hayes has his first client as a private investigator: a fragile beauty he isn't sure he can trust. An injury has left Natalie Drummond with gaps in her memory, and she sees and hears things that aren't there. But she's sure she shot an intruder in her Birmingham mansion. So where's the body, the gun, the evidence? When it's clear someone is trying to kill his vulnerable client, Clint appoints himself her protector, working overtime not to fall for her. But someone is dead set that Natalie never regains her memories—or makes new ones with Clint.
Start reading the FACES OF EVIL series today!
DEBRA WEBB is the USA Today bestselling author of more than 100 novels, including reader favorites the Faces of Evil and the Colby Agency series. She is the recipient of the prestigious Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense as well as numerous Reviewers Choice Awards. In 2012 Debra was honored as the first recipient of the esteemed L. A. Banks Warrior Woman Award for her courage, strength, and grace in the face of adversity. Recently Debra was awarded the distinguished Centennial Award for having achieved publication of her 100th novel.
With more than four million books in print in numerous languages and countries, Debra's love of storytelling goes back to her childhood when her mother bought her an old typewriter in a tag sale. Born in Alabama, Debra grew up on a farm. She spent every available hour exploring the world around her and creating her stories. She wrote her first story at age nine and her first romance at thirteen. It wasn't until she spent three years working for the Commanding General of the US Army in Berlin behind the Iron Curtain and a five-year stint in NASA's Shuttle Program that she realized her true calling. A collision course between suspense and romance was set. Since then she has expanded her work into some of the darkest places the human psyche dares to go. Visit Debra at www.debrawebb.com


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WATCH: "We Want Our Country Back"
EU launches crackdown on illegal wildlife trade
Posted by Paul Haydon | Updated 2016-02-29
The European Commission has announced an Action Plan to crack down on the illegal wildlife trade and impose minimum sentences on wildlife traffickers, following a successful campaign led by Liberal Democrat MEP Catherine Bearder.
Soaring rates of poaching are seeing 22,000 elephants killed a year and at current rates the species could be wiped out within a decade. The EU Action Plan aims to turn the tide and clamp down on the criminal gangs running the illegal ivory trade.
Key elements of the plan include:
-Tougher penalties to punish wildlife traffickers across all EU countries (at least 4 years imprisonment) Limiting the ivory trade so that only antique ivory items can be traded within the EU
-Increased support for international police operations to crack down on wildlife trafficking gangs through the EU's crime-fighting agency Europol
-Using EU aid money for efforts to crack down on poachers in developing countries and help local communities find alternative livelihoods
-Improving checks to ensure all hunting trophies imported in the EU are legal and sustainable
Liberal Democrat MEP Catherine Bearder, who wrote a letter to the Commission co-signed by 81 MEPs calling for an Action Plan in 2014, commented:
"Today marks a huge step forward in the global fight against wildlife crime.
"We can only tackle this issue by taking a coordinated approach, tackling the root causes of poaching and cracking down on the criminal gangs making billions from this despicable trade.
"Together in Europe we can turn the tide and help save elephants and other treasured species for future generations."
Will Travers OBE, President of the Born Free Foundation, said:
"The EU Action Plan on Wildlife Trafficking is exactly the kind of coordinated measure needed to bring an end to a practice that is robbing the world of some its most iconic species, threatening human lives and causing insecurity and instability in some of the world's poorest nations.
"If fully implemented, it will have a profound and positive impact not only on addressing wildlife crime within the EU but also in source and transit countries. It demonstrates that, in this instance, EU Member States are more effective acting together than alone, and that they can deliver what the great majority of European citizens want – a safer, more secure future for life on earth."
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Fighting Illegal Wildlife Trade


North Dakota state Senator Heidi Heitkamp is running for re-election in 2018. If elected, it will her 6th year in the Senate.
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With North Dakota being heavily Republican and a state that Trump won by a large margin in 2016, the race is expected to be very competitive and tight. Her Republican challenger is Kevin Cramer.


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Home Beyond Broadway The Extraordinary Comes to Life in BoHo Theatre's 'Big Fish'
The Extraordinary Comes to Life in BoHo Theatre's 'Big Fish'
(l to r) Kyrie Anderson and Tommy Thurston in BoHo Theatre's 'Big Fish.' (Photo: Time Stops Photography)
BoHo Theatre closes out its 2019 season with a larger than life, stunning and touching production of Big Fish, now onstage at Chicago's Greenhouse Theater Center. The musical, which debuted on Broadway in 2013, is based on Daniel Wallace's quirky 1998 novel, Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions, as well as the 2003 film directed by auteur of the oddball, Tim Burton.
The plot of Big Fish is small, slow and charming, while also conductive of big, electric messages about the passage of time, the nature of parenthood and the power of magic. The BoHo creative team and a gifted cast turn a small, upstairs stage into an astonishing world of witches, giants, adventure and an aching love so big that the production's opening night audience openly wept. This is storefront theater at its finest and in this critic's opinion, one of the best Chicago offerings of 2019.
In modern-day Alabama, Edward Bloom (an utterly transfixing Tommy Thurston) and his wife Sandra (Kyrie Anderson) are preparing for their son's (Jeff Pierpoint) wedding. Will Bloom has become emotionally estranged from his father, who he views as an odd man in a complicated relationship with the truth. While Sandra and Will's new bride (Nicole Besa) take delight in Edward's Odysseus-like coming-of-age stories, Will is annoyed by his father's opacity as he prepares to start his own family.
Mr. Thurston is a revelation as an admittedly imperfect husband and father who nonetheless regards life as a series of colossal possibilities. No experience is limiting except as beheld by the small thinker. It can't be easy for an actor to play a character who repeatedly vacillates between a teenager and an elderly man without ever losing sight of subtle shifts in energy, appearance and wisdom. Mr. Thurston is so effective at these quick changes that it's easy to forget we're watching the same performer.
The actor is supported by a marvelous cast that includes Ms. Anderson as Sandra, Edward's muse, best friend and wife. As portrayed by an actress gifted in emotional range, song and pulchritude, it's easy to understand the passionate man's love for Sandra at first sight. And Robert Quintanilla is remarkable as Karl, one of the characters from Edward's whimsical tales. A gentle behemoth with a delicate cultural palette and thirst for learning, Mr. Quintanilla's performance is reminiscent of Andre the Giant's turn in The Princess Bride. His work is just as endearing as the former wrestler's in that film, however, accompanied by stronger diction.
(l to r) Tommy Thurston and Robert Quintanilla in 'Big Fish.' (Photo: Time Stops Photography)
As I took my seat for last weekend's press opening, I wondered how Big Fish could be mounted in the relatively small pond that is its current home at the Greenhouse Theater Center, but that concern quickly dissipated. No space could confine the director Stephen Schellhardt and the creative team's work. Every inch of the stage is used to advantage, empowered by rapid changes in locale that highlight Lauren M. Nichols's scenic design. The Bloom family home, a flooded town in rural Alabama, a field full of witches, a cave hiding a giant? The continuous suspension of disbelief is readily overcome by a flawless collaboration of creative and technical skills for which the production team should win awards.
Running roughly two hours and 20 minutes of engaging fancy (with one intermission), Big Fish ends with reconciliation and understanding between father and son that is no less gut-punching for all its inevitability. The music stops and for one long moment of the production, all is still. I was not expecting the comforting community of weeping with strangers, united for that half-second in thoughts of our own complicated relationships with parents and children.
The best art can do this. It takes people outside themselves, connecting us with dreams, places and pieces of our humanity that sit below functional consciousness. BoHo Theatre's production of Big Fish is a must-see that will reinvigorate any tired soul.
Greenhouse Theater Center
2257 N Lincoln, Chicago
Through November 17
Becky Sarwate is an award-winning journalist, theater critic, blogger, and author of Cubsessions: Famous Fans of Chicago's North Side Baseball Team (Eckhartz Press). She is a proud Chicago resident, where Becky lives with her husband Bob, their cats, Wendy and Lisa and their dog, RuPaul. Check out her collected work at BeckySarwate.com, and follow her on Twitter @BeckySarwate.
The Extraordinary Comes to Life in BoHo Theatre's 'Big Fish' was last modified: October 11th, 2019 by Matthew Wexler
Big FishBoHo Theatre
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