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Is A Tannaitic Master Referred To By Name In The Simeon Ben Kosiba Papyri?
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By Norman Golb, Ludwig Rosenberger Professor in Jewish History and Civilization
Oriental Institute
n-golb@uchicago.edu
Among the Hebrew and Aramaic papyri of the period of the Second Revolt published by J. Milik in DJD II are several fragments of a documentary scroll that originally contained at least six contracts dealing with sharecropping arrangements (ibid., pp. 122-134, designated by Milik as "Contrats de fermage"). The main purpose of this note is to show that the name of a master of the third generation of Tannaim ( circa 120-140 A.D.) is evidently among those of the several protagonists mentioned in these deeds, all of whom had dealings with a certain Hillel b. Garis. The name in question is found in line 4 of the contract that Milik designated as E (viz., Murabba'at 24E) and which appears in photographic reproduction in DJD II, part 2 ("Planches") as plate XXXVI. Milik translated this line as "Yehudah fils de Rabba a dit à Hillel fils de Garis" ( DJD II, "Texte", p. 131 ). Milik italicized the personal name Rabba, thereby hinting at least to a modicum of doubt about this reading. In his relevant footnote to line 4 (p.132), he indicated that the word could be read as either Rabba or Rakka, implying thereby a concern that the second consonant which he preferred reading as a beth could also possibly be read as a kaf . Yet by way of sustaining his obvious preference for Rabba, he referred the reader to his earlier note in Biblica 38 (1957), p. 261, where he had already pointed out that the name Rabba actually occurred in some Semitic texts. By contrast, a personal name Rakka is otherwise unknown. Y. Yadin later came, perhaps unwittingly, to the support of Milik's preferred reading, translating the line in question as "Yehudah son of Rabbah said to Hillel son of Garis" (Yadin, Bar Kokhba , London 1971, p. 182).
While it is difficult to distinguish between the beth and the kaf in this documentary papyrus scroll, the reading Rabba would, by virtue of the fact that this proper noun is actually found in rabbinic texts, seem at first glance to be the obviously correct interpretation of the relevant cluster of consonants (see Illustration 1). However, in Jewish texts the name Rabba, or more precisely a name spelled RB', is known only as that of several Babylonian masters of the Amoraic (i.e. post-Tannaitic) period. It does not appear at all in second-century A.D. Palestine, a fact which should have been sufficient to induce prolonged concentration on a suitable enlargement of the pertinent consonantal cluster over the past several decades. It may be observed under magnification that the ink has been chipped away from the papyrus at the position of a bottom horizontal stroke of the initial consonant - although the outer edges of ink are discernible at that position. The enlargement makes clear that the first consonant of the cluster is not R ( resh ) but rather B ( beth ); cf. Illustration 1, arrow. The name can only be transcribed not as Rabba or Rakka but as Baba - a bona fide Jewish name used in Palestine precisely during the 1st century B.C. and the 1st and 2nd centuries A.D.
Illustration 1. The proper noun Baba in Mur 24 E, line 4.
The proper noun Baba is initially known in Palestine as the name of a late 1st-century B.C. figure whose sons were held in high esteem during the reign of Herod (Josephus, Antiquities XV, 258 ff.), and secondly as the name of a member of the House of Shammai whose father was named Buta (M. Keritut 6.3; Tos. Hagigah 2.11, ed. Zuckermandel, p. 236; and elsewhere). Later on, a Tanna of the third generation of Tannaim and a member of the Academy of Yabneh (Jamnia) was Judah b. Baba (circa 120-140 A.D.), whose views and activities are not infrequently cited in the Tannaitic texts. As it happens, the floruit of Judah b. Baba falls within the period of the Second Revolt, during the second year of which the legal document being examined here was written.
Returning now to the line of that document which Milik, followed by Yadin, read as "Yehudah fils de Rabba," we may observe that, while the reading Rabba is not borne out by the examination of the first consonant under magnification, the remnants of consonants forming the word BN, i.e. ben (="son of"), can indeed be made out prior to the patronymic, while the consonantal cluster situated just prior to the term ben - i.e., the first word of line 4 of the document - can be seen to be none other than [Y]HWDH - that is, Yehudah (=Judah), as Milik first perceived. No other combination of consonants having the particular strokes of this cluster yields a known Hebrew or Aramaic proper noun ending in the consonants -DH, which appear clearly in the text and all the more so under magnification (see Illustration 2).
Illustration 2. The words [Y]ehuda ben Baba amar , "Judah ben Baba said" in Mur 24 E, line 4.
Thus Judah b. Baba is the only name that reasonably emerges from (a) the palaeographical examination of the three consonantal clusters under magnification together with (b) consideration of the logic of the text and its movement of thought, which here requires, as the first part of line 4, a personal name in normal Semitic form (viz., X b. Y). Milik correctly perceived all of this except for his reading of a resh in place of the beth in the third consonantal cluster.
The question that inevitably arises from the above considerations is whether the Judah b. Baba of the papyrus fragment is or is not identical with the person of that name mentioned in the Tannaitic sources and who, according to the information supplied by those sources (cf. e.g. Tos. Yom Tob 2.6) was living at the very time that the papyrus deed in question was written. The question may be narrowed down somewhat by certain geographical considerations. The Tannaitic master Judah b. Baba was attached to the Academy of Yabneh (cf. e.g. Tos. Sotah 13.14) in southwestern Palestine, near the coast and approximately 20 km. south of Jaffa - not far, that is, from the main regions of the Second Revolt. A number of his decisions imply expert agricultural knowledge. The locality where all the farmlands in the several portions of the papyrus scroll under consideration were leased out was known as 'Ir Nahash. This locality, already referred to in I Chron.4.12, has with good reason been placed by F. M. Abel ( Géographie de la Palestine II, p. 351) in the vicinity of Eleutheropolis/Beth Gubrin, and Milik, in support thereof, observes ( DJD II, Texte, p. 127) that rabbinic sources describe the Eleutheropolis territory as the most fertile part of the Har Hamelekh region. A distance of only circa 35 kms separated Yabneh from Beth Gubrin, and it is not at all unlikely that at least some members of the Academy of Yabneh had agricultural holdings in the general area of that place.
The Tanna Judah b. Baba apparently remained in the Har Hamelekh region during and immediately after the Second Revolt (132-135 A.D.). At least, we are not told that he was among those who fled the country, such as his younger contemporaries Meir, Yohanan ha-Sandlar, and Yosi b. Halafta did when the Hadrianic decrees forbidding certain basic practices of Judaism were imposed upon the Palestinian Jews following the suppression of the revolt. However, according to one source (B. Sanhedrin 13b-14a) , it was Judah b. Baba who in defiance of one of those decrees ordained five students of Rabbi Akiba during the years of suppression - and this action is described as having taken place "between" Shefar-'Am and Usha in the Galilee, as the necessary prelude to the move of the Academy of Yabneh to Usha. This move is generally considered to have occurred soon after the repeal of the Hadrianic decrees during the reign of Antoninus Pius (ruled 137-161 A.D.). There is no reason to believe that the Tanna Judah b. Baba forsook Yabneh or its neighborhood before the period of the decrees. If he had agricultural properties, he was in the company of other rabbinical figures, such as (e.g.) Hiyya b. Abba, Master Tarfon, the father of Rabban Gamaliel II, and the Hillelites.
At all events, the dating of the leasehold deeds under discussion - that is, "the 20th of Shebat, Year Two of the redemption of Israel by Simeon b.Kosiba, Prince of Israel," or February of 134 A.D., indicates that as of that time it was not, or not yet, thought by the parties to the deeds that the war might seriously interfere wih agricultural activities in the Har Hamelekh region. Nevertheless they took the precaution of issuing the deeds - which from the Romans' point of view would have been considered subversive documents - at the Herodium stronghold, some 35 kms further eastward.
These deeds and others of the Bar Kokhba period contain the acknowledgement that the agricultural pieces under consideration were only possessed by the actual lessors in their legal capacity as lessees of land "owned" by the Nasi of Israel. In the case of each of the several deeds preserved in Mur 24, a lessor, acknowledging his possession to be only that of a leaseholder of the Nasi, sublets it , apparently in each case for a five-year period, to another party not for a rental fee paid up front, but on condition of sharing annually with the lessee in the eventual crop of wheat.
Now in dealing with Mur 29E, Milik indicated that he believed Judah b. Rabba (i.e., Judah b. Baba) to be the lessee - that is, the sharecropper who would cultivate the designated field - and a certain Hillel b. Garis, who is apparently mentioned in all of the other Mur 29 deeds as well, the lessor: "Moi, de mon propre gré," Milik has Judah say to Hillel, "j'ai pris en fermage de ta part, aujourd'hui, le terrain qui est mien par droit de fermage (et se trouve) à 'Ir Nahash et que j'ai pris en fermage de la part de Sim'on, Prince d'Israel." This would mean that Judah here admits to sub-letting the land from both Hillel and the Nasi Simeon, an absurdity that would render the transaction meaningless.
Here we must observe that the expression mirsoni , "of my own free will" (Milik's "de mon propre gré") that appears here as well as in fragments of the other deeds in this scroll is used in Hebrew deeds by declarants announcing a willingness to sell or otherwise relinquish something of value in their possession or which they own. (See the summary of occurrences in J. Rivlin, Shetare qehillat alisana , Jerusalem 1994, pp. 96-97 and 107-08.) It is not used, in Hebrew, Aramaic, or Judaeo-Arabic deeds, by purchasers or other recipients of the relinquished objects of value. By this token, in each case recorded in the present scroll a different lessor declares his full willingness to lease a parcel of land to one and the same lessee, who is no other than Hillel b. Garis. At the same time, each lessor had the obligation of declaring that the parcel possessed by him was his not as a perpetual allod, but as a freehold granted by the sovereign on condition of the latter's receipt from the freeholder of an annual rent in kind, i.e. as a tax. The language in the document expressing this concept is miqsat 'afar shehakharti mishim'on nesi yisra'el , i.e. "a portion of land that I have leased on a sharecropping basis from Shim'on Prince of Israel." The seller, lessor, or testator, by stating that the conveyance was being effected "by my own free will," helped to protect the purchaser, lessee or heir from any future action by a claimant who might assert that the conveyor had been forced to perform his act against his will, thus putting the validity of the transaction in doubt. The recipient of the property conveyed, on the other hand, had no obvious reason to state that he had purchased or otherwise accepted it "of my own free will," since his act of purchase or acceptance necessarily implied willingness on his part insofar as he benefitted from the acquisition as a matter of course.
The reason, however, that Milik apparently felt obliged to translate the passage as he did is related to the following considerations:
The Hebrew verb hakhar , to begin with, is ambiguous; it means to lease land on a sharecropping basis, but whether it is the act of leasing it to someone or leasing it from someone can -as e.g. in the English usage - only be determined by its affiliated preposition. When Judah announces in lines 6-7 of Mur 24 E that the parcel in question is one shehakharti mishim'on nesi yisra'el , "which I leased from Simeon Prince of Israel," the verb loses any possible ambiguity. The words can only mean "which I have leased on a sharecropping basis from Simeon the Prince of Israel." This was evidently the common formula by which a Judaean freeholder during the period of the Second Revolt acknowledged that he was not the outright owner of the holding but rather had it, as it were, in fee simple of the ruler, the verb hakhar indicating that the consideration for this tenure was, as stated above, an annual tax in kind payable to the latter in his capacity as sovereign. Hence in this portion of the quoted passage describing Judah's capacity as lessee and Simeon's as lessor there was obviously no need to have Judah include the word meaning "of my own free will."
Milik's translation of this portion is in every respect appropriate, although readers should note that in his edition of the same passage ( DJD II, p. 131, line 7) the final yod of the verb hakharti is missing whereas it appears quite clearly, under magnification, in the black-and-white facsimile appearing as Planche XXXVI of DJD II, Planches. (See Illustration 3.)
Returning now to the first-quoted portion of the passage in question, which Milik translated "Moi, de mon propre gré, j'ai pris en fermage de ta part, aujourd'hui, le terrain qui est mien par droit de fermage...," we may observe that the underlying Hebrew text does not contain precisely the expression hakharti mimkha , "I have leased on a sharecropping basis from you" - but it rather contains the surprising expression hakharti hemakh . [1]
We may observe that nowhere in this deed or in any of the others preserved in Mur 24 does the expression hakharti lekha , " I have leased unto you," occur, although it is indeed found in a document written at En Gedi (Yadin, Bar Kokhba , p. 179, end of the fifth line of the portion of text photographed.) Milik does not remark that the expression hakharti lekha is nowhere found in the document, nor explain why two expressions, different in form from each other, should both mean "taking in sharecropper's lease from."
Illustration 3. (a) [h]akharti hemakh , Mur 24 E, line 5; (b) shehakharti mishim'on , ibid. line 7; (c) hakharti hemakh , ibid. line 8.
In justifying his translation of the clause in Mur 24 E as "J'ai pris en fermage de ta part ," Milik states concerning hemakh that it is equal in meaning to Bib. Heb. mimkha , adding that "la forme est typiquement mishnique" ( DJD II, p. 127), and adducing as support for this view M.H. Segal's treatment of the expression hem with suffixes in his Grammar of Mishnaic Hebrew , p. 144.
Segal, however, following Jastrow, Dict ., p. 347, and followed by Ben-Yehudah, Thesaurus , p. 1081, recognizes at least two separate senses of this hem -: one indeed equal to min ("from") with suffixes, but the other meaning, according to Segal, "in the power of," for which he gives several examples drawn from Tannaitic passages (ibid., p. 144). Similarly, Jastrow translates the Tannaitic phrase lo kol hemenu as "not all depends upon him, i.e. he has no right, it is not in his power." See further M. Gittin 8.8, en kol hemenu min harishon le'abed zekhuto shel hasheni , which Danby, Mishnah , p. 318, is obliged to translate "it is not altogether within the power of the first [husband] to render void the right of the second"; on the other hand, B. Qamma 10.3, lo kol hemenu is rendered by Danby (ibid., p. 346) as "his claim avails him not."
It is thus clear that Milik did not give a full accounting of the semantic spectrum of hem- with suffixes. What this hem - appears to be - taking into consideration not only the Tannaitic occurrences but also those in Mur. 24 - is a prepositional prefix of convenience (not, as Segal suggested, a "demonstrative particle," Grammar , p. 144) that developed in post-Biblical Heb. in response to the need to express various shades of meaning , as a rule of a legal nature. Its earliest attested usage, to be sure, occurs in Mur. 24, written in Year 2 of the Second Revolt. In the relevant passages cited above, the context in each case shows that hakharti hemakh cannot mean "I leased on a sharecropping basis from you." This is shown specifically by (a) the declarant's use of the formulaic " mirsoni ", "of my own free will"; (b) the employment of the phrase hakharti min - and not hem- where the clear and obvious meaning is "I leased on a sharecropping basis from"; and (c) the confusing juxtaposition of mutually contradictory clauses that results if the hem- of hemakh is rendered as "from." [2]
Within the context of the deed, hakharti hemakh can best be translated by means of a circumlocution implying limited empowerment or jurisdiction, as in other occurrences of hem- with suffix in 2nd-century A.D. Hebrew, viz.: "I have subleased over to your jurisdiction on a sharecropping basis..." The full passage may be rendered in English as follows:
On the twentieth of Shebat, Year Two of the redemption of Israel by Simeon b. Kosiba, Prince of Israel, in the encampment situated at Herodium, Judah b. Baba said to Hillel b. Garis, "I of my own free will have subleased over to your jurisdiction on a sharecropping basis, this day, the land that is in my landholding which I leased on a sharecropping basis from Simeon Prince of Israel. This land have I subleased over to your jurisdiction from this day until the end of the eve of the Sabbatical year, namely, full years...."
The remainder of the deed, largely torn away, concerned - as can be inferred from pieces of some remaining words and from other deed-fragments preserved in Mur 24 - the amount of wheat that would have to be measured out annually on the roof of the treasury at Herodium, as the payment in kind of Hillel b. Garis to Judah b. Baba in fulfillment of the sub-lessee's part of the sharecropping agreement. Hillel made the same arrangement with the other lessors whose names and actions are described in Mur 24 (the actual amount of wheat to be handed over being different, of course, in each case in consonance with the size of the field), and it was he who retained a copy of all the contracts in a single scroll, which is the one that has been preserved. Working with hired hands (if not with indentured laborers), Hillel would have derived a considerable annual harvest from the several properties, with the lessors receiving their due as explicated in the respective contracts.
The language of Hebrew deeds, not infrequently discussed and debated in Tannaitic texts, normally emerged as the result of careful deliberations focusing on the subtleties and nuances of legal relationships and situations. A deed of sale or temporary release of property always included, as far back as the phenomenon can be traced, the expression mirsoni as the quoted statement of the declarant; but it was obviously recognized by the juridical figures that a willful sale of property was fundamentally different from a willful lease thereof, as in the latter case the lessee gained only a right of conditional possession, but not ownership. In the case of a sub-lease, the conditionality was all the greater, and it was apparently to emphasize this fact of temporary possession by a sub-lessee of property not actually owned outright by the lessor, but itself only held by the latter as a lessee of the ruler (or in other words of the state itself in its personal capacity) that the expression hakharti hemakh came to be introduced into legal texts, at least in certain jurisdictions and perhaps only during the period of the Second Revolt. It cannot be excluded that the Academy of Jamnia took a role in urging this formulation, but it evidently soon went out of fashion and has never appeared subsequently in Hebrew deeds.*
*The above findings emerge from a close examination of Mur 24 during a course on the Bar Kokhba texts conducted at the Institute in autumn 1999. I wish to thank my students for their assiduous participation in the study of this and the other Murabba'at papyri so brilliantly deciphered and edited by J. Milik in his 1961 work. Although having read these texts numerous times both with and without students, I had never focused with sufficient intensity on the name of the lessor in Mur 24E until November of this past year, when finally, with the correct degree of magnification, I was able to bring to light the reading presented above.
1. In this passage as well Milik omits the final yod of hakharti , although under magnification it also is clearly discernible in the facsimile ( DJD II, Planches, XXXVI). The same form, hakharti , is found in line 8, where the final yod appears full-blown. Historically speaking, the vocalization of this Tannaitic expression with 2nd masc. sing. suffix is uncertain. Segal, Grammar of Mishnaic Hebrew , Oxford, 1927, p. 144,, vocalizes once hemkha and twice hemakh in his list of the Tannaitic forms. Ben Yehudah, Thesaurus , p.1081, gives only the form hemakh . Other theoretical possibilities of pronunciation are himakh and himkha .
2. As mentioned above, Milik twice omitted the final yod in hakharti from his edition of Mur 24E. Yadin appears to have subsequently noticed the first occurrence but not the second, for he translates the relevant passage ( Bar Kokhba , pp. 182-83) in the following way: "I, of my own free will, have leased from you today the land ... which you leased from Shimeon ben Kosiba, Prince of Israel. This land I have leased from you as from today" etc. This translation disregards not only the consonant yod in the second occurrence of the verb hakharti but also the significance of the phrase "of my own free will." It was Judah b. Baba (Milik's Judah b. Rabba) who was the declarant and thus not the lessee but the lessor.


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Quinn Gil
MicroObjects
µObjects: Pizza Shop - Review
Practicing object oriented programming and writing about the ways it can be done better. https://quinngil.com/about/
More posts by Quinn Gil.
14 Jan 2018 • 3 min read
More µObjects
Calzoned
I started the Pizza Shop example to show how to apply µObjects in code; Using a very similar process I do in production code.
From there, working through the changes and applying them. Originally I hoped to show how µObjects handles the challenges presented in the changing requirements - but that's not quite where I ended up with.
I realized that the Pizza Shop practice is around how Objects simplify making changes. µObjects are extremely small objects. The µObjects Pizza Shop shows the simplicity that µObejcts allow easy refactoring.
All In A Week
I didn't start the pizza shop expecting to post it all in a single week - but ... I have so many µObject post ideas and in the works... I didn't want to push them back for this example. I also want this example out. There were no good code examples of µObjects - Now there's one; and it's complete.
Immutabiltiy
One experiment I did with this example was on Immutability. I decided to take an extreme form of immutability that state never changes.
A lesser form that I use at work is the references never change. Which is an acceptable form of Immutability, but not as strict as possible.
With the style of immutability use in the pizza shop has no changes to the data of the class. The prime example of this is adding a topping. A whole new pizza is created. With all new toppings. The previous pizza is unchanged.
Why do we do this? Because we want immutability. We don't want changes to affect what other people might be holding.
I have some tests that show if I return a new pizza with out a new toppings, both pizzas have the new topping. Same with changing the pizza type. If I change the pizza type, the old pizza would still get toppings added.
We could just add to the list, no new pizza. Then we know that the pizza state is changing. The list of toppings is changing inside that pizza. That's not immutability... not strict immutability.
I don't use this style at work; but I'll be starting to use it on all my own projects. I think it's provides stronger safety and guarantees in the code. Less unexplained and hard to reproduce bugs.
I think this style of immutability is harder to jump into. I expect exceptions to arise around book ends; but I don't know yet. This type of immutability is like async/await - It zombies through the code. EVERYTHING must follow strict immutability, or nothing really does.
I didn't do this as strict TDD, by the book, following uncle bob's three rules. I feel µObjects gives a small amount of variance to that. I don't know EXACTLY how to define this variance yet.
One of the things I say about TDD is that the tests are the least important part. The tests help drive the code into a maintainable state. Applying the "rules" of µObjects also force the code into a maintainable state.
TDD doesn't force short methods. You can do A LOT in a method and still follow TDD and the 3 rules. It's not the tests that get the code into objects with a single job; it's a mindset.
If you have the TDD mindset; you write tests for small amounts of code. What if you write small amounts of code then a test for it? If you have the correct mindset; whatever - it results in the same style of production code.
With µObjects - Everything is small. You can't get away from the small bits of code. That IS µObjects.
I have a theory that µObjects gets devs to write code in VERY similar fashions... there's not a lot of ways you can write "A THING". This similarity is huge for maintainability. It's simple to test. It's simple to change.
A lot like microServices - if you need to make a change, just write a new one. It's small enough.
It's a theory I have about using µObejects... that test first isn't as important to drive the code into a SOLID and CLEAN state for high maintainability.
Just µObjects isn't fully enough to get the ease shown in this example. A huge part is the TDD cycle. Red-Green-Refactor. The refactor step is huge. There was a lot of refactoring done through the example posts. In the last one, the refactoring allowed us to delete a lot of classes. These refactors keep the code clean. Clean code is maintainable code - The best kind of code.
The entire second post More µObjects is refactoring the code. That's how important I think refactoring is to good µObjects code. 20% of the posts are DEDICATED to refactoring.
This is an amusing number to me; as we spend about a day a week just refactoring. It simplifies what we do next an amazing amount. We refactor into common patterns and styles. When we need to add something new; we have how to do it; and a solid base to build on top of.
We added image responses; took a couple new classes integrated with the rest of our existing foundational code.
Simple and easy. It's this way because we ruthelessly refactor the code base and ensure everything is doing only one thing.
The Pizza Shop has been a great experience and I feel is a solid example of µObjects.
I hope to have more available in the future; but this will currently serve as my reference example.
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Teach Yourself MicroObjects: Output the Data
5 Aug 2018 – 3 min read
Teach Yourself MicroObjects: Add Two Ints
29 Jul 2018 – 4 min read
microObject
µObjects: Being Cohesive
Cohesion for objects is how well the behaviors in the class belong together. Some very non-cohesive behaviors would be multiplying two numbers and splitting a string. Multiplying and Raising to a power can be very cohesive behaviors. How do µObjects do cohesion? That's what
Quinn Gil 21 Jan 2018 • 5 min read
µObjects: Pizza Shop - Final Changes
These are the final changes for our Pizza Shop. I think a few will be interesting to implement; but nothing stands out as a "how would I...?". µObjects make it very simple and quick to get new functionality in cleanly. One of
Quinn Gil © 2020

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


A full ERP system designed by Anagram Systems Limited for accounting/legal/professional and distribution/wholesale trade companies.
Encore-eBis Premier has been designed with the wholesalers and distributors in mind.
No reviews have been submitted. Do you use Encore for Wholesaler/Distributor? Have you considered it as part of your software evaluation process? Share your perspective by writing a review, and help other organizations like yours make smarter, more informed software selection decisions!


I've hit a fitness plateau, where healthy eating and my typical levels of belligerent self-motivation don't seem to be cutting it any longer. Maybe it's turning the corner out of my twenties. Who knows? All I can say is that for some reason, the bright glowing numbers on an elliptical machine display at the gym motivate me like no other, so I got something to turn my daily activity into numbers.
I got almost exactly a week from my first battery charge. It's more than advertised (I think they say four days), and I've worn my wristband every moment I wasn't in the bathtub. After tinkering around on the website, which has vastly more information than the clean and simple iphone app, I changed my sleep tracker to "sensitive," then immediately changed it back when my sleeping habits went from looking reasonable to insane.
First, I'd like to confess that my most active day was because we walked to (and then from) dinner (then to and from the bar). Does exercise really count if it's instantly negated by a goddamned shake shack hamburger?
I'll be over here, pretending the remainder of my week (not nearly as active) was to give myself a control group, a baseline of activity for those days I just sloth around the house in the world's rattiest pair of sweatpants and watch AMC. Apparently in addition to numbers, I'm motivated by grilled meats and expensive beers. I regret nothing (except my waistline), and I deserve a goddamned reward for the little "Nailed it!" icon above, because that means I didn't reward myself with a coffee malt milkshake.
On the subject of rewards, the people at fitbit ought to give me a prize or a job or some swag, because two friends have already gone out and purchased fitbits as well. I am such a trendsetter.
Gotta go practice my taunting. I think it goes something like this: I have lost 1.7 pounds so far.
Are you lifting weights? That'll definitely shake up your routine.
I lift weights irregularly at best and make very little strength training progress because of it. I'm my own worst enemy!
We all are; don't be too hard on yourself. Maybe find someone to lift weights with?


text:
Q: sessionfactory, beans and multiple xml-config files Spring 3.2.0 release, Hibernate. Exception -

class path resource [hibernate.cfg.xml] cannot be resolved to URL
  because it does not exist

File path - src/main/java/hibernate.cfg.xml
This destination and file template was autogenerated by Intellij IDEA. Google tell me, that one of solution - delete classpath prefix, but i have no file with this propety.

A: put it to src/main/resources instead

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In summer 2014 more than 1 billion people watched World Cup final match between Germany and Argentina, and it had been estimated that and more than 3.4 billion people watched World Cup 2010. Football is ultimately the most popular sport on earth, but these numbers are unprecedented. The advance of digital technologies and the explosion of social media, led to exponential growth in number of football followers and changed the nature of football support itself.
In the past people used to support their local football clubs that are supported by the family and friends, and that was much of it, with little interest in football clubs in other parts of the world. But this has changed with the advances in digital media, following non-local leagues and football clubs became much easier, and people started following foreign football clubs.
Social media platforms (like Facebook and Twitter) has changed how people support football and enabled new kinds of fans. Now people are not limited to their local football clubs and they can support multiple clubs from wherever they like. In 2012 Manchester United announced research results that caused controversy; the results showed that they had something like 650 Million followers worldwide.
Social media not only changed how people support other teams, but it also changed how people consume football news. Football is covered in newspapers, magazines, TV and websites, social media started taking an important portion of this coverage. With the shift from traditional news to user driven "social" news, and from desktop devices to mobile devices, people now are more comfortable in following football news at their favorite social platform.
The rise in football followers around the world, and the rise of social media, leads to a natural question: can traditional social platforms meet the needs of football fans? Or do we need more specialized platforms? That question brings us to the concept of niche social networks which are simply social platforms that are specialized in specific fields of interest, for example food lovers can enjoy a network dedicated to food recipes without the need to get distracted with all other subjects, add to this social flavor and users can talk about these recipes and share their own. In same manner a social network dedicated for football fans, will facilitate a place for them to talk exclusively about football.
Football news will not arrive to your feeds before you first manually follow people and pages that talk about football, which involves an exhausting and long searching process. In addition to that football posts will be buried inside feeds from all other subjects.
You will not find latest matches results in traditional social platforms, you will have to search manually to find the results, and most likely you will need to search outside the platform to find them.
The main advantage of social media is the ease of access to information. But for football this is limited, for example users will not be able to find all the information they are looking for such as score tables or upcoming fixtures.
The number of people following a team page is good indicator for team popularity but is not reliable to measure true team fans base. This number is misleading because of the new type of "social media" fans who can follow multiple teams, which means someone can follow Man United, Arsenal & Chelsea at the same time. The user that follows multiple teams is not necessarily a fan of all of them he could be simply just interested in following their news.
Niche social networks are the way to go and the future of social media, nowadays we have specialized social websites for everything: photography, art, food, hobbies..etc. Football is no exception, with the huge growth of interest in football; football fans deserve their own social platform.
Because the website is dedicated for football and is a social network at the same times, users will only have football related posts in their feeds and they will be able to interact with each other as they do in any social website.
FansRepublic enables the user to get direct access to the community of his favorite football club. The user can pick his favorite team and become a member in his team page where he can directly interact with his team mates.
FansRepulic provides live scores and results for all major football competitions. The user will directly find the results without the effort of searching for them.
Users can get all the information they need such as fixtures, tables, top scorers, team stats, transfers, players stats..etc. In short everything related to football is served in one place which is a big plus for football enthusiasts.
In Fans Republic the user is only allowed to pick one football club, but users can still access news and posts everywhere. The website also introduces an interesting concept which is team loyalty attribute, which is a measure of how loyal a fan is to his football club. The more support a person shows to his club the higher his loyalty will be, on the other hand, if the user changes his team his loyalty will be decreased by big penalty.
These two limitations combined (one team + Loyalty) mean that a user will need to think carefully before he picks his favorite team, now there is no option but to select the one he truly supports, which leads to a more accurate measure of fans base.
Although the website is relatively new and it is still early to talk about fans metrics, but on the long run the more users join the more clear fans map will be.


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Ehe ist… ('Til Death, sinngemäße Übersetzung: "Bis dass der Tod…") ist eine von 2006 bis 2010 gesendete US-amerikanische Sitcom. Im Mittelpunkt stehen Eddie and Joy Stark, ein seit mehr als 20 Jahren verheiratetes Paar, das in einem Vorort von Philadelphia lebt.

Handlung
In einem Vorort von Philadelphia leben die beiden Ehepaare Stark und Woodcock Tür an Tür. Die Starks sind zu Beginn der Serie seit 8.743 Tagen (also seit knapp 24 Jahren), die Woodcocks seit 12 Tagen verheiratet. Die Starks erkennen am Beispiel der Woodcocks, wie sehr ihre eigene Beziehung im Laufe der Jahre an Harmonie und Romantik eingebüßt hat. Umgekehrt wird den Woodcocks durch die Starks klar, dass auch bei ihnen die Flitterwochen nicht ewig dauern werden. Nach Ausscheiden der Woodcocks aus der Serie werden Stephen und Simona das befreundete Ehepaar der Starks.

Eddie – eigentlich Edward Meryl – Stark ist Geschichtslehrer an einer High School und die zentrale Figur der Serie. Er sieht sich als Mentor seines jungverheirateten Nachbarn Jeff Woodcock und wird nie müde, diesem Ratschläge zur Behandlung von Ehefrauen zu erteilen. Da Eddie einen sehr zynischen Charakter hat, mag Jeff diesen Ratschlägen nicht immer folgen – und wenn er es tut, hat dies selten den gewünschten Effekt. Jeff wird zu Beginn der Serie neuer stellvertretender Schulleiter an derselben High School, an der auch Eddie unterrichtet. Die beiden bilden daher eine Fahrgemeinschaft und kommen sich dadurch näher, als Eddie lieb ist.

Joy Stark ist Beraterin in einem Reisebüro. Sie erkennt stärker als ihr Mann, was in ihrer Ehe (im Gegensatz zu der der Woodcocks) verlorengegangen ist, und bemüht sich oft, diese Eigenschaften wiederzubeleben. Da die Beziehung zwischen den Eheleuten stabil ist und auf echter Zuneigung beruht, gelingt ihr das meistens. Die langen Ehejahre an Eddies Seite hat sie überstanden, weil sie imstande ist, auf unvorhergesehene Situationen schnell zu reagieren.

Steph Woodcock schreibt an ihrer Dissertation über die Französische Revolution und ist daher zurzeit nicht berufstätig. Während der Sommerferien findet Jeff heraus, dass Steph nicht wirklich viel an ihrer Dissertation arbeitet, sondern ein entspanntes Leben zuhause führt. Sie ist sehr viel attraktiver als ihr Mann und hat ihn geheiratet, weil sie nach ihrer wilden Studentinnenzeit einen Mann suchte, der fürsorglich und zuverlässig ist. Jeff fragt sich daher gelegentlich, ob er diese Frau auf Dauer halten kann.

Allison Stark, die Tochter der Starks, wohnt mit ihrem Ehemann Doug Von Stuessen, der glaubt, in einer Sitcom zu leben, in einem Wohnmobil im Garten ihrer Eltern. Am Anfang der Serie studieren beide auf der Upton University. Allison macht dort ihren Abschluss in Keramikwissenschaften, wobei Doug auch ihr Kursleiter ist.

Besetzung

Ausstrahlung

Die Sendung wurde erstmals am 7. September 2006 in den Vereinigten Staaten ausgestrahlt. Die zweite Staffel wurde ab September 2007 gesendet. Staffel 3 lief von September bis Oktober 2008 und bestand nur aus 7 Episoden. Zwischen Oktober 2009 und Juni 2010 lief die vierte und letzte Staffel der Serie. Diese war mit 37 Folgen ungewöhnlich lang, da sie viele Episoden enthielt, die laut Produktionscode für die dritte Staffel vorgesehen waren. So liefen u. a. drei ältere Episoden erst nach der letzten produzierten Folge.

Jeff und Steph wurden in der dritten Staffel durch die neue Hauptperson Kenny (J. B. Smoove) ersetzt.

Ab Februar 2008 war die erste Staffel auch im deutschen Fernsehen auf Comedy Central zu sehen. Die zweite Staffel wurde ab März 2009 in Deutschland ausgestrahlt. Staffel 3 lief ab  dem 30. November 2009 im deutschsprachigen Raum auf dem Schweizer Fernsehsender SF zwei. Vom 18. Januar 2010 an lief diese in Deutschland auf Comedy Central. Von April bis Juni 2010 erlebte die 4. Staffel ebenfalls ihre deutsche Erstausstrahlung auf Comedy Central. Die Staffeln 3 und 4 wurden in Deutschland – im Gegensatz zur Originalfassung – annähernd in der Reihenfolge ihrer Produktion gezeigt. Der Episodenliste liegt diese Reihenfolge zu Grunde, weswegen die beiden letzten Staffeln eine andere Folgenanzahl haben als in den USA.

Vom 5. Juli 2010 bis 8. Februar 2011 wurde die Serie unter ihrem Originaltitel Til Death auf dem Sender VOX ausgestrahlt. Im Rahmen dessen wurden die beiden fehlenden Folgen der dritten Staffel (3.15, 3.18) zum ersten Mal in Deutschland gezeigt.

Trivia
 Der Schauspieler Ray Romano hat in Folge 16 der ersten Staffel (Das Italien-Trauma) einen kurzen Gastauftritt. Als Eddie sich im Restaurant bei Joy entschuldigt, dreht sich Ray um und fragt: "Was wollen Sie denn noch hören, Lady?" Als Joy später fragt, wer der Kerl sei, antwortet Eddie, dass er glaubt, mal mit ihm zusammengearbeitet zu haben. Dies ist eine Anspielung auf die Serie Alle lieben Raymond, in der Brad Garrett Rays Bruder Robert Barone spielte. Eine wesentlich deutlichere Anspielung auf dieselbe Serie findet sich in Folge 13 der vierten Staffel, in der es einen Traumdialog zwischen Eddie und Joy gibt, der den Satz enthält: "Alle lieben Raymonds Gewänder."

 Ted McGinley, unter anderem bekannt durch die Sitcom Eine schrecklich nette Familie, hat in Folge 21 der ersten Staffel (Mein Freund Webby) einen Gastauftritt als Eddies Freund Bill Webster.

 Barry Bostwick, unter anderem bekannt aus Chaos City, hat in Folge 62 (vierte Staffel) (Eddies Buch) einen Gastauftritt als Dougs Vater George von Stuessen.

 Richard Kind, auch aus Chaos City, hat in der Folge 54 (dritte Staffel) (Des Bruders Hüter / Mr. T und die Männer) einen Gastauftritt als Eddies schwuler Bruder Charlie.

 Der amerikanische Komiker Gilbert Gottfried spielt in zwei Folgen der vierten Staffel den reichen, etwas merkwürdigen Nachbarn Tommy.

 Noureen DeWulf, bekannt aus der Fernsehserie Anger Management, hat in Folge 20 der dritten Staffel einen Gastauftritt als Kellnerin.

 Kevin Nealon und Susan Yeagley, die im echten Leben miteinander verheiratet sind, spielen in Staffel vier ein mit den Starks befreundetes Ehepaar.

Im März 2010 entschied der Sender FOX, aufgrund mäßiger Quoten keine weiteren Folgen mehr zu bestellen. Dies bedeutet das Ende der Serie nach vier Staffeln.

DVD
In Deutschland und in den USA sind die ersten beiden Staffeln auf DVD erhältlich.

Weblinks

  (englisch), Version vom 22. August 2008 aus archive.org abgerufen am 14. August 2010
 Ehe ist… bei Comedy Central
 Ehe ist… bei TNT Serie
 Ehe ist… bei fernsehserien.de
 Ehe ist… bei Serienjunkies

Einzelnachweise

Fernsehserie (Vereinigte Staaten)
Fernsehserie der 2000er Jahre
Fernsehserie der 2010er Jahre
Sitcom
Comedy-Fernsehserie
Fernsehserie (Fox Broadcasting Company)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Securing funding is a milestone that nearly every founder strives for. But raising money isn't as simple as it might seem, as the company's stage must be taken into consideration when determining who much, or if, money should be raised.
Luckily, if you're a founder that's looking to securing funding for your startup but aren't sure what your options are, we've written post that outlines the various sources of capital to consider, according to advice from David S. Rose, the founder and CEO of Gust, as well as a Mentor for the New York Founder Institute.
At this stage, you're probably just starting out, armed with little more than your laptop and a good idea (or at least what YOU think is a good idea). Once you've put some of your own money into your startup, it's time to start raising money from outside sources. And by "outside sources", what David really means is friends, family, and fools.
Remember, your loved ones, colleagues, and random people you encounter aren't giving you their money because they believe in your idea or because they think they'll get that money back with interest, they're doing it because they care about and want to support you.
Keep in mind that raising money at this early stage isn't required to secure funding from more "professional" sources later on, but it can help establish your credibility by proving that people who've known you for a long time actually trust you with their cash.
Nowadays, angel investors are looking for companies that have already made considerable progress. The average angel investor looks at around 40 different companies before making an investment, if you are at this stage, don't expect an immediate "yes" from the angels you meet.
It's much more difficult now than it was years ago to convince an angel to invest in your company if you only have an idea, business plan, or team. And keep in mind that angels aren't investing in you because they believe in you, like your friends and family do, but are investing in you because they're convinced that your idea will work and that it will make them money later.
Believe it or not, securing grant funding is one of the only ways to get free, large amounts of money for your startup, and have numerous benefits for your startup beside the monetary. Grants aren't loans, in which someone gives you money and expects it back, and they're not investments, in which someone gives you money in exchange for a piece of your company. Also, your chances of receiving grant money are considerably higher than other means of funding; about 1 in 4 small businesses that apply for grants actually receive them.
Many federal organizations are required to give a small portion of their budget to helping small businesses that are building innovative products or services in numerous industries, from robotics to IoT to agriculture and more.
However, one of the biggest downsides of grants is their complexity; they typically take around 3 to 6 months to secure, require copious paperwork, and your startup must be presented to a review panel.
Angel groups are organizations that consist of individual angel investors. Whereas angels invest in the tens of thousands by themselves, angel groups usually invest in the hundreds of thousands. There are several platforms founders can use to find angel groups, including Gust (of which David S. Rose is the founder and CEO), and they are usually organized by sector or industry.
Strategic investors work for larger companies that invest in smaller companies not just for financial reasons, but because they think that your company can offer them something outside of profits. For example, a strategic investor may be interested in your startup because it offers a solution their company doesn't, or they may want to tap into your customer base, or because your company is developing a technology that may make it eligible for acquisition.
Since a strategic investor would only be interested in your company because you offer something they really need, they may give you an offer that's better for your company financially than that of other investors, but keep in mind that that company's values may not be aligned with yours.
The primary difference between venture capitalists and angel investors is that venture capitalists are basically professional money managers, managing other people's money, whereas angel investors invest their own money. In addition, VCs make investments in the million dollar range, while angels usually stay in the thousands.
Because VCs make such large investments, they only invest in companies that are more advanced and have considerable traction. And since they only invest in more "mature" startups, the average startup only has a 1 in 400 chance of receiving VC funding.
Banks is another potentially effective, if overlooked, source of startup funding. However, because banks are low-risk, keep in mind that banks only lend money if a company is profitable and can confirm where their profits are coming from. Since banks don't like to take risks, they are only in the business of "renting" money, so if you go with this option, remember that you'll have to give that money back with interest.
A company should only go public if it has a high valuation and is highly profitable, which means that only a small number of companies actually go public each year. If a founder were to take his or her company public if they are still at an early stage, the company will fail because no one will buy stock in a company that's not established.
If you would like even more entrepreneurial insights from startup experts, the New York Founder Institute is accepting applications.


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NFL: Seattle Seahawks vs Washington Redskins Preview
October 5, 2014 by Marilee Gallagher
Coming off the bye week after defeating the (3-1) Denver Broncos in an overtime thriller, the (2-1) Seattle Seahawks travel to FedEx Field in Landover, MD, for a Monday night showdown against the (1-3) Washington Redskins (8:30pm EST on ESPN).
The Seahawks are favorite on the spread at -7.5pts and will look to get their first road win of the season against a Washington team that is banged up and that has been very inconsistent this year.
Seattle's keys to the game:
Bring the home mentality to the road – Playing on the road can be tough. Teams are forced to contend with rival fans, an unfriendly atmosphere and in some cases, varying weather conditions they aren't used to. It is only normal to see a team have more success at home than on the road.
The Seahawks are the perfect example. When it comes to the Seahawks and Quest Field, the home of the 12th Man, the place where up until last week recorded the loudest decibel ever, it is a match made in heaven. Since 2012, the first year of the Russell Wilson (pictured) era, the Seahawks have lost just once at home in 20 games, including the playoffs. By far, this is the best home mark of any NFL team during that span.
Conversely, Seattle has just an 11-9 record in their last 20 road games, including a loss to the (3-1) San Diego Chargers this year in the team's only road game so far of the season. Despite the immense success associated with the Seahawks, it does have to be admitted that this team is just an average road team.
Now, that isn't to say that the Seahawks can't or don't win on the road. The 2014 Super Bowl is a perfect example of that. But Seattle has definitely been less dominant and far from untouchable away from the friendly confines of Quest.
Russell Wilson needs to keep doing what he's been doing – Make no mistake, Russell Wilson is a good quarterback. Some might even say he is a top five quarterback. He's not a game manager by any means even if he isn't as relied on as heavily as other QBs in his position. But that doesn't make him a bad QB, not by a long shot.
Wilson is having a great season and is on pace to set new career bests for himself. He has been solid since entering the league in 2012 and consistent as well. In fact perhaps the best part about Wilson's game is that he can be counted on almost in any situation to put his team in position to win.
Against the Redskins, Wilson really doesn't have to be special. He'll have his opportunities against a defense that is ranked middle of the pack when it comes to opposing QB passing yards. All he needs to do is continue what he's been doing because since 2012 for Seattle, this has been more than enough.
Washington's keys to the game:
Return to the running game – There have been mixed emotions in Washington and around the league when it comes to the quarterback change that occurred a few weeks ago. Some think current QB Kurt Cousins is the better fit for the offense the Redskins want to run. Others think Robert Griffin's injury was the nail in the coffin for this season's team.
While it really is too early to say who is right in this debate, what can be said is that without Griffin, Washington's running game has taken a step back.
Cousins can be a mobile quarterback and has shown his ability to scramble when needed but his threat to run is nowhere near as high as Griffin. When Griffin was healthy, opposing teams couldn't count out a designed QB run and they had to send a spy to make sure Griffin didn't have field to dart through. He made plays and extended plays with his legs and that is something that Cousins is just not going to do.
But it is not just the QB position that has suffered. Without Griffin's threat to break off a big play with a run, defenses have keyed in on stopping Alfred Morris and effectively limiting his running game as well.
Before Griffin's injury, Morris had 80+ yards on the ground and two touchdowns. Since then however, he has yet to top 80 in a single game and each week that total has gotten lower. Perhaps most alarming is that the rushing attempts have been lower as well. He had just 12 attempts in the Redskins last game, which is the second lowest mark of his three-year career.
And the formula does seem to be simple. Since joining the league, the Redskins are 11-5 when Morris rushes over 20 times. It's been the biggest key to their victories and without Griffin, it's even more vital that Washington gets Morris back to running hard and running a lot. Especially against the Seattle secondary.
Take advantage of being healthy – With the exception of Griffin, the Redskins should enter this Monday matchup the healthiest they have been all year. They'll likely get tight end Jordan Reed back which is huge as Cousins has turned to his tight ends more than other position this season. Niles Paul, who missed most of last week due to a concussion is also due to play and he has caught the most balls of any Redskin receiver this year.
Offensively, this team will have the full complement of its weapons. Whether or not they look to them against the tougher than tough Seattle secondary is another story.
Seattle Seahawks at Washington Redskins Betting Picks
As I mentioned, the Seahawks enter this game as 7.5 road favorites. That's really not a high as it may seem. Seattle is the better team no doubt and after last week's lashing, it is understandable that the Redskins have lost favor, even at home.
Well that may be true but I'm going to advise the unpopular pick here. Take the Redskins to beat the spread. Washington is going to lose if you feel safer with the straight up moneyline bet but if you want something at sensible odds then go for the spread. The Redskins have won each of the last eight meetings against Seattle and they are at home and they are mostly healthy unlike last week. Put all of this together and it should be enough for Washington to keep the game within a touchdown.
Bet on the Washington Redskins +7pts on the spread at betting odds of -105 with BetOnline Sportsbook. The same bet is -110 with 5Dimes while you can get an extra half point advantage with Bovada who go +7.5pts, but at slightly shorter odds of -115.
Marilee Gallagher
Marilee writes on NFL, MLB, NBA & tennis for USA Betting. Another area of her sporting journalistic expertise is pro wrestling. A native of Philadelphia and a big Eagles fan, she has been a sports writer for many major websites including Bleacher Report and Rant Sports. She started her journalistic career early, as sports editor for her college newspaper.
NFL: Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears Preview & Picks
ALCS: Baltimore Orioles vs Kansas City Royals Series Preview


In this feature, film critic Rajeev Masand picks his favorite and least favorite Hindi films of the year – the Hits and Pits of 2015. This feature first aired on CNN-IBN on December 25, 2015.
Check out Aamir Khan's Satyamev Jayate Season 2 Episode 4 on 'Hamara Paisa, Hamara Hisaab'.


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Eye Memory
John von Neumann was a genius like no other. In 1938, in middle life, von Neumann transformed himself into a weapon designer, arguably the best one of his century. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, he was working fast to perfect the digital computer. He was fascinated by it but for him it was a necessary intermediate step – a tool or fixture. He needed the computer to run the monumental Monte Carlo calculations for the hydrogen bomb.
By coincidence, this was an heroic period for neurophysiology. Beginning in 1949 at Woods Hole and Plymouth, the newly invented voltage clamp, applied to the squid nerve's large diameter axon, was revealing for the first time, in splendid detail, the workings of the axon membrane as a system to govern and gate the flow of ions. It seemed the problem of how nerves conduct impulses was tumbling.
Von Neumann hoped to discover any and all useful analogies between the human brain and nervous system and the electronic brain he was trying to perfect. He actively sought the opinions and expertise of neurophysiologists. He evidently believed most of what they told him – though it is interesting to notice what piqued his skepticism.
It was his strange sojourn in the land of neurophysiology – another country – that he later reported in his book, The Computer and the Brain. He wrote it in 1956-57, in the last year of his life. It was conceived as a series of lectures but published posthumously as a long essay.
What he did not say.
Perhaps the most famous and often quoted line in this book appears at the beginning of Part II, where von Neumann declares that "The most immediate observation regarding the nervous system is that its functioning is prima facie digital."
The "prima facie" modifier is commonly taken to mean von Neumann saw the brain as "obviously digital," or "patently digital," and that the brain therefore must resemble a digital computer. You tend to hear this quote from people who believe, or want to believe, exactly that.
But as you read The Computer and Brain you will quickly discover that this is not what John von Neumann intended. Von Neumann used words precisely and to him, "Prima facie" meant "on its face."
In 1956, the brain appeared, on its face, to be a digital machine. But von Neumann thought this impression might be misleading. He thought that deeper biological investigation might well demonstrate that the nervous system is not, in fact, digital, or not completely digital.
He suggests that perhaps some intermediate signaling mechanism, a hybrid between analog and digital, might be at work in the brain. For this and other reasons he actively resisted labeling the brain as a digital computer.
The nerve as a hybrid device
Hybrid computers – part analog, part digital – were transitional between the analog computers of the 1940s and the fully digital computers of the 1960s. When von Neuman wrote his essay on the brain in 1956 and 1957, analog/digital hybrid computers were part of his technical repertoire. They were still available as commercial products in the 1970s.
The analog component was fast and easy to use, but imprecise. The response of an analog electronic circuit is readily described mathematically; hence, analog electronic circuits can be used to describe or depict mathematics.
Analog computation is easy to visualize with an oscilloscope. An analog circuit can be made to draw a curve on the gridded screen, typically depicting voltage versus time. By dialing numeric values into variable components in the circuit under observation (variable resistors, capacitors, inductors) one can draw curves to represent mathematical functions. Straight lines, parabolas, hyperbolas, sine waves, circles, ellipses, Lissajous curves, 3-space objects, whatever you need. You can then pick numerical points off the desired curve — graphic solutions.
To "hybridize" this analog computer, add a digital memory and processor – in today's parlance, an A-to-D converter. Sample the analog voltage or voltages at a point in time, store the result in a digital register. You can then perform digital calculations, or go back to the analog system for another quick read of a point on a curve.
Not surprisingly, the idea of the hybrid analog/digital system was projected onto the nervous system.
The nerve is functionally and anatomically split. The nerve cell appears to be an analog device on its input side, that is, in the dendrites. It is widely assumed that in the dendrites, incoming voltages may be buffered, summed and subtracted – even seen to depict perhaps, a curve.
Beyond the axon hillock, the nerve must be viewed as a digital device. The axon either fires or does not fire. It conveys a purely digital signal.
Not digital in the sense of a binary code — not a one or a zero. Digital in the sense of a finger sticking up — the famous "all-or-none" voltage spike.
The nerve conserves analog input information encoded as the interval between the digital output spikes. Or so it seemed in 1956.
Possibly this is what Von Neumann meant by "a hybrid of analog and digital". The hybrid neuron idea identified the dendrites as an analog signal processor, and the axon as a digital transmission line.
A variable voltage level could be sampled by dendrites, somehow converted into a launching schedule for spikes on the axon, and then finally transmitted along the axon as a traveling time interval between two strong digital output signals. (We no longer believe much of this stuff, and haven't since about 1995 — but in von Neumann's time it was bedrock.)
Incidentally, this idea that the dendrites could be an analog signal processor appealed very strongly, in later decades, to theorists who thought the brain's memory might work like a hologram – mainly because they needed to locate, so very badly, an analog signal processor of some kind, somewhere.
A different kind of hybrid
There exist other types of hybrids of analog and digital signal characteristics. One such hybrid is presented in Chapter two: the multichannel neuron.
A single nerve impulse traveling along a multichannel axon is digital on its face – it is a spike — but it communicates to the brain analog gradations denoted by channel numbers, 1, 2, 3… n.
We don't know what n might be, but we have been using 300 as an anatomically plausible number of channels. It isn't a purely analog system, because the steps between channels are finite – represented by integers in fact. It is an "incremental analog" system perhaps, with the specific increment denoted by the channel number. Because each pulse is all-or-nothing – always a digital "1" in effect — it is a solidly reliable signal, indifferent to noise.
Notice the surprising computational possibilities for this type of hybrid system. It could use numbers almost like we do, to measure, compare, count and tally. It could be set up to add, subtract, multiply, divide — perhaps even to convolve. It could also use sliding scale, rubber scale, and scale-combining operations to produce logarithmic and vernier results.
In the Corduroy Neuron model the dendrites, though superficially analog devices, have become rather mysterious – one must guess there is something very important going on back there.
What is the best "memory organ"?
Von Neumann was eloquent on the problem of selecting a "memory organ," for the brain. For his own electronic brain, he chose to use the eye as a model for a memory organ.
He thought the worst possible choice for a memory organ in the human brain would be a neuron.
As for the synapses, it is my impression that his hope for them, never fully expressed, was that they might turn out to work like AND and OR and NAND and NOR logic gates.
Could it be true in general, as von Neumann concluded in particular, that the eye might provide a superior model for a memory organ? It seems plausible. If we could understand the eye, we could probably understand the rest of the brain. It has been suggested from time to time that one might re-imagine the cerebral hemispheres as huge everted eyes, with each hemisphere a glorified, multiplied, stratified stack of retinas.
The von Neumann machine
When von Neumann began to work with the engineers who developed the digital computer, one of his first contributions was the suggestion that a memory store be allocated for programming.
This seems so astoundingly obvious now: That a computer should be able to remember what we want it to do. But before von Neumann suggested the concept of the stored program, each computer operation was laboriously set up in advance by the machine's attendants.
The first stored programs were committed to punched paper tape, one of the simplest forms of memory. It was at this point that the digital computer became the modern instrument we now call, generically, a von Neumann Machine.
A fast, compact working memory, such as the common desktop computer's reserve of DRAM chips, did not yet exist in 1945. The electrical working memory for ones and zeros consisted of devices that could assume and hold two states: these included manual toggle switches, electromechanical relays, and vacuum tube flip-flop circuits.
The early computerists knew they needed to invent a better memory, a better short-term storage medium, and they tried many different approaches before they arrived at the historically important (though now deeply obsolete) solution of ferrite cores.
Early computer memories resembled eyes. The designers borrowed the basic concept of the TV camera. A binary "bit" representing a 1 or 0 was stored as a charge induced by a glowing phosphor at a certain geometrically defined point on the screen of a cathode ray tube. A bit could be set, scanned out or refreshed with a fast moving electron beam. The glowing bit's "address" was its x,y coordinate position on the face of the tube.
At von Neumann's urging, RCA's labs tried to create a reliable computer memory from this Cartesian visual concept, but while they were still experimenting in Princeton an Englishman named Williams perfected the scheme. The Williams memory was quickly adopted by American computer makers, including IBM. It worked but it was not reliable.
A war story has it that when IBM introduced its first mainframe with a Williams eye-memory, at a formal news conference in New York, an eager photographer with a news camera walked up to the machine and popped a flashbulb. The flash blew the machine's memory to kingdom come.
Core memory, invented in Boston by An Wang, then 26, and independently invented by two other men, quickly replaced the Williams eye-memory. Core memory stored ones and zeros as tiny magnets, and it could be layered in three dimensions, rather than two. It should be noted that these early room-sized computers were each about as powerful as a modern pocket calculator.
It interests me that when the electronic computer was first developed, the designer very quickly visited the concept of an eye memory. When Nature got started on the same problem, brain building, it may well have started at the same place.
A primitive eye was perhaps the vertebrate brain's earliest prototype. Such an eye might freeze an incoming image for a few milliseconds in order to extract useful information from it. A memory, however short-lived, is a memory.
It is easy to see that a photoreceptor might serve wonderfully as a recording machine, because light induces decisive biochemical changes in it's cache of rhodopsin. These changes linger – it takes time for rhodopsin to regenerate, or re-cock. So within a photoreceptor there are indeed persistent biochemical changes in response to a change in the outside world. This is a familiar textbook definition of memory – a biochemical change in response to experience. We are trained to ascribe such changes (in the very next breath) to the synapse. But let's stay clear of the synapse for a bit and posit the idea that the earliest visual memory was written as a chemical and conformational change in a visual pigment such as rhodopsin. The idea will be developed in Chapter 12.
The bizarre anatomy of the human eye:
The eye is the only part of the brain we can look at without surgery. It is the best-examined component of the brain, and it is the last place in the brain where anything can happen at the speed of light.
Von Neumann, who essentially used a television camera as a "memory organ" in the digital computer, took a particular interest in eye anatomy.
In the course of his biological studies von Neumann noticed and remarked to his brother on something curious about the eye. He was puzzled by an anatomical fact that most biologists, then and now, brush aside as a mere happenstance or oddity of evolution.
Like all vertebrate eyes, the human eye looks backward, toward the eyesocket. The photoreceptive cells of the retina are wired from the front, so that it would seem that the business end of each retinal photoreceptor is pointed at the back wall of the eye.
Incoming light from the pupil must pass through a web of blood vessels and a fine network of nerve fibers, including three layers of cell bodies and a host of supporting and glial cells — before it reaches the eye's photoreceptors.
At the tiny fovea, the nerves are layered aside, a peephole, but what about the rest of the retina? What about animals (most vertebrates) who have no fovea? The brain must somehow subtract all the intervening goo out of the clear picture we see of the world. How could the brain accomplish this wonderfully clarifying step? With a calculation? Von Neumann wondered about it. We should too.
Holographic memory
John von Neumann's interest in eye-memories and eye anatomy has a modern reprise in computer technology. After decades of trying and a checkered history, the possibility persists that an optical mass storage system could be commercialized one day. A holographic memory system can store colossal amounts of data in three-dimensional blocks or films of photosensitive material.
The use of holographic memory in computers or game consoles, if it were to become a cost effective option, might help rescue from contempt a physiological concept that peaked around 1973 and then, for various reasons, faded away: the idea that memory in the human brain works like an optical hologram.
It probably doesn't work quite that way – but the holographic brain guys flew very close to the truth once or twice. My opinion of course.
The idea of holographic memory actually gains some evolutionary credence from the curious, backward-looking structure of the human eye, as we shall see.
Had he lived Von Neumann might have been quite interested in holographic memory, for the hologram itself was conceived by a classmate of his, Dennis Gabor: Another Budapester, another genius.
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Home » The Lake of the Sky - Lake Tahoe
CHAPTER I. WHY "THE LAKE OF THE SKY"?
Lake Tahoe is the largest lake at its altitude - twenty-three miles long by thirteen broad, 6225 feet above the level of the sea - with but one exception in the world. Then, too, it closely resembles the sky in its pure and perfect color. One often experiences, on looking down upon it from one of its many surrounding mountains, a feeling of surprise, as if the sky and earth had somehow been reversed and he was looking down upon the sky instead of the earth.
And, further, Lake Tahoe so exquisitely mirrors the purity of the sky; its general atmosphere is so perfect, that one feels it is peculiarly akin to the sky.
Mark Twain walked to Lake Tahoe in the early sixties, from Carson City, carrying a couple of blankets and an ax. He suggests that his readers will find it advantageous to go on horseback. It was a hot summer day, not calculated to make one of his temperament susceptible to fine scenic impressions, yet this is what he says:
We plodded on, two or three hours longer, and at last the Lake burst upon us - a noble sheet of blue water lifted six thousand three hundred feet above the level of the sea, and walled in by a rim of snow-clad mountain peaks that towered aloft full three thousand feet higher still. It was a vast oval, and one would have to use up eighty or a hundred good miles in traveling around it. As it lay there with the shadows of the mountains brilliantly photographed upon its still surface I thought it must surely be the fairest picture the whole earth affords!
And there you have it! Articulate or inarticulate, something like this is what every one thinks when he first sees Tahoe, and the oftener he sees it, and the more he knows it the more grand and glorious it becomes. It is immaterial that there are lakes perched upon higher mountain shelves, and that one or two of them, at equal or superior altitudes, are larger in size. Tahoe ranks in the forefront both for altitude and size, and in beauty and picturesqueness, majesty and sublimity, there is no mountain body of water on this earth that is its equal.
Why such superlatives in which world-travelers generally - in fact, invariably - agree? There must be some reason for it. Nay, there are many. To thousands the chief charm of Lake Tahoe is in the exquisite, rare, and astonishing colors of its waters. They are an endless source of delight to all who see them, no matter how insensible they may be, ordinarily, to the effect of color. There is no shade of blue or green that cannot here be found and the absolutely clear and pellucid quality of the water enhances the beauty and perfection of the tone.
One minister of San Francisco thus speaks of the coloring:
When the day is calm there is a ring around the Lake extending from a hundred yards to a mile from the shore which is the most brilliant green; within this ring there is another zone of the deepest blue, and this gives place to royal purple in the distance; and the color of the Lake changes from day to day and from hour to hour. It is never twice the same - sometimes the blue is lapis lazuli, then it is jade, then it is purple, and when the breeze gently ruffles the surface it is silvery-gray. The Lake has as many moods as an April day or a lovely woman. But its normal appearance is that of a floor of lapis lazuli set with a ring of emerald.
The depth of the water, varying as it does from a few feet to nearly or over 2000 feet, together with the peculiarly variable bottom of the Lake, have much to do with these color effects. The lake bottom on a clear wind-quiet day can be clearly seen except in the lowest depths. Here and there are patches of fairly level area, covered either with rocky bowlders, moss-covered rocks, or vari-colored sands. Then, suddenly, the eye falls upon a ledge, on the yonder side of which the water suddenly becomes deep blue. That ledge may denote a submarine precipice, a hundred, five hundred, a thousand or more feet deep, and the changes caused by such sudden and awful depths are beyond verbal description.
Many of the softer color-effects are produced by the light colored sands that are washed down into the shallower waters by the mountain streams. These vary considerably, from almost white and cream, to deep yellow, brown and red. Then the mosses that grow on the massive bowlders, rounded, square and irregular, of every conceivable size, that are strewn over the lake bottom, together with the equally varied rocks of the shore-line, some of them towering hundreds of feet above the water - these have their share in the general enchantment and revelry of color.
Emerald Bay and Meek's Bay are justly world-famed for their triumphs of color glories, for here there seem to be those peculiar combinations of varied objects, and depths, from the shallowest to the deepest, with the variations of colored sands and rocks on the bottom, as well as queer-shaped and colored bowlders lying on the vari-colored sands, that are not found elsewhere. The waving of the water gives a mottled effect surpassing the most delicate and richly-shaded marbles and onyxes. Watered-silks of the most perfect manufacture are but childish and puerile attempts at reproduction, and finest Turkish shawls, Bokhara rugs or Arab sheiks' dearest-prized Prayer Carpets are but glimmering suggestions of what the Master Artist himself has here produced.
There are not the glowing colors of sunrises and sunsets; but they are equally sublime, awe-inspiring and enchanting. There are Alpine-glows, and peach-blooms and opalescent fires, gleams and subtle suggestions that thrill moment by moment, and disappear as soon as seen, only to be followed by equally beautiful, enchanting and surprising effects, and with it all, is a mobility, a fluidity, a rippling, flowing, waving, tossing series of effects that belong only to enchanted water - water kissed into glory by the sun and moon, lured into softest beauty by the glamour of the stars, and etheralized by the quiet and subtle charms of the Milky Way, and of the Suns, Comets and Meteors that the eye of man has never gazed upon.
There is one especially color-blessed spot. It is in Grecian Bay, between Rubicon Point and Emerald Bay. Here the shore formation is wild and irregular, with deep holes, majestic, grand and rugged rocks and some trees and shrubbery. Near the center of this is a deep hole, into which one of the mountain streams runs over a light-colored sandy bottom where the water is quite shallow. Around are vari-colored trees and shrubs, and these objects and conditions all combine to produce a mystic revelation of color gradations and harmonies, from emerald green and jade to the deepest amethystine or ultra-marine. When the wind slightly stirs the surface and these dancing ripples catch the sunbeams, one by one, in changeful and irregular measure, the eyes are dazzled with iridescences and living color-changes covering hundreds of acres, thousands of them, as exquisite, glorious and dazzling as revealed in the most perfect peacock's tail-feathers, or humming-bird's throat. Over such spots one sits in his boat spell-bound, color-entranced, and the ears of his soul listen to color music as thrilling, as enchanting as melodies by Foster and Balfe, minuets by Mozart and Haydn, arias by Handel, nocturnes and serenades by Chopin and Schumann, overtures by Rossini, massive choruses and chorals by Handel, Haydn and Mendelssohn, fugues by Bach, and concertos by Beethoven.
The blue alone is enough to impress it forever upon the observant mind. Its rich, deep, perfect splendor is a constant surprise. One steps from his hotel, not thinking of the Lake - the blue of it rises through the trees, over the rocks, everywhere, with startling vividness. Surely never before was so large and wonderful a lake of inky blue, sapphire blue, ultra-marine, amethystine richness spread out for man's enjoyment. And while the summer months show this in all its smooth placidity and quietude, there seems to be a deeper blue, a richer shade take possession of the waves in the fall, or when its smoothness is rudely dispelled by the storms of winter and spring.
So much for the color!
Yet there are those who are devoted to Lake Tahoe who seldom speak of the coloring of its waters. Perhaps they are fascinated by its fishing. This has become as world-famed as its colors. Thousands, hundreds of thousands, of the most gamey and delicately-flavored trout are caught here annually, both by experts and amateurs. The Federal and State governments, and private individuals yearly stock the main Lake and the hundred and one smaller lakes of the region with the finest species of trout obtainable, and the results fully justify the labor and expense.
To the mountain-lover the Tahoe region is an earthly paradise. One summer I climbed over twenty peaks, each over nine thousand feet high, and all gave me glimpses of Tahoe. Some of them went up close to 11,000 feet.
Are you an admirer of Alpine, nay, High Sierran, trees? You will find all the well-known, and several rare and entirely new species in this region. This field alone could well occupy a student, or a mere amateur tree-lover a whole summer in rambling, climbing, collecting and studying.
And as for geology - the Grand Canyon of Arizona has afforded me nature reading material for nearly three decades and I am delighted by reading it yet. Still I am free to confess the uplift of these high-sweeping Sierras, upon whose lofty summits
The high-born, beautiful snow comes down, Silent and soft as the terrible feet Of Time on the mosses of ruins;
the great glacial cirques, with their stupendous precipices from which the vast ice-sheets started, which gouged, smoothed, planed and grooved millions of acres of solid granite into lake-beds, polished domes and canyon walls and carried along millions of tons of rock debris to make scores of lateral and terminal moraines; together with the evidences of uplift, subsidence and volcanic outpouring of diorite and other molten rocks, afford one as vast and enjoyable a field for contemplation as any ordinary man can find in the Grand Canyon.
But why compare them? There is no need to do so. Each is supreme in its own right; different yet compelling, unlike yet equally engaging.
Then there are the ineffable climate of summer, the sunrises, the sunsets, the Indians, the flowers, the sweet-singing birds, the rowing, in winter the snow-shoeing, the camping-out, and, alas! I must say it - the hunting.
Why man will hunt save for food is beyond me. I deem it that every living thing has as much right to its life as I have to mine, but I find I am in a large minority among a certain class that finds at Lake Tahoe its hunting Mecca. Deer abound, and grouse and quail are quite common, and in the summer of 1913 I knew of four bears being shot.
Is it necessary to present further claims for Lake Tahoe? Every new hour finds a new charm, every new day calls for the louder praise, every added visit only fastens the chains of allurement deeper. For instance, this is the day of athletic maids, as well as men. We find them everywhere. Very well! Lake Tahoe is the physical culturist's heaven.
In any one of its score of camps he may sleep out of doors, on the porch, out under the pines, by the side of the Lake or in his tent or cottage with open doors and windows. At sunrise, or later, in his bathing suit, or when away from too close neighbors, clothed, as dear old Walt Whitman puts it, "in the natural and religious idea of nakedness," the cold waters of the Lake invite him to a healthful and invigorating plunge, with a stimulating and vivifying swim. A swift rub down with a crash towel, a rapid donning of rude walking togs and off, instanter, for a mile climb up one of the trails, a scramble over a rocky way to some hidden Sierran lake, some sheltered tree nook, some elevated outlook point, and, after feasting the eyes on the glories of incomparable and soul-elevating scenes, he returns to camp, eats a hearty breakfast, with a clear conscience, a vigorous appetite aided by hunger sauce, guided by the normal instincts of taste, all of which have been toned up by the morning's exercise - what wonder that such an one radiates Life and Vim, Energy and Health, Joy and Content.
Do you know what the lure must be when a busy man, an active man, an alert man, a man saturated with the nervous spirit of American commercial life, sits down in one of the seats overlooking the Lake, or spreads out his full length upon the grass, or on the beds of Sierran moss, which make a deliciously restful cushion, and stays there! He does nothing; doesn't even look consciously at the blue waters of the Lake, on the ineffable blue of the sky, or the rich green of the trees or the glory of the flowers - he simply sits or sprawls or lies and, though the influence is different, the effect is the same as that expressed in the old hymn:
My soul would ever stay, In such a frame as this, And sit and sing itself away, To everlasting bliss.
There's the idea! Calm, rest, peace, bliss. Those are what you get at Lake Tahoe. And with them come renewed health, increased vigor, strengthened courage, new power to go forth and seize the problems of life, with a surer grasp, a more certain touch, a more clearly and definitely assured end.
There are some peculiarities of Lake Tahoe that should be noted, although they are of a very different character from the foolish and sensational statements that used to be made in the early days of its history among white men. A serious advertising folder years ago sagely informed the traveling public as follows: "A strange phenomenon in connection with the Truckee River is the fact that the Lake from which it flows (Tahoe) has no inlet, so far as any one knows, and the lake into which it flows (Pyramid Lake, Nevada), has no outlet."
How utterly absurd this is. Lake Tahoe has upward of a hundred feeders, among which may be named Glenbrook, the Upper Truckee, Fallen Leaf Creek, Eagle Creek, Meek's Creek, General Creek, McKinney Creek, Madden Creek, Blackwood Creek, and Ward Creek, all of these being constant streams, pouring many thousands of inches of water daily into the Lake even at the lowest flow, and in the snow-melting and rainy seasons sending down their floods in great abundance.
To many it is a singular fact that Lake Tahoe never freezes over in winter. This is owing to its great depth, possibly aided by the ruffling and consequent disturbance of its surface by the strong northeasterly winter winds. The vast body of water, with such tremendous depth, maintains too high a temperature to be affected by surface reductions in temperature. Experiments show that the temperature in summer on the surface is 68 degrees Fahr. At 100 feet 55 degrees; at 300 feet 46 degrees; at 1506 feet 39 degrees.
Twenty years ago the thermometer at Lake Tahoe registered 18 degrees F. below zero, and in 1910 it was 10 degrees F. below. Both these years Emerald Bay froze over. Perhaps the reason for this is found in the fact that the entrance to the bay is very shallow, and that this meager depth is subject to change in surface temperature, becoming warmer in summer and colder in winter. This narrow ridge once solidly frozen, the warmth of the larger body of water would have no effect upon the now-confined smaller body of Emerald Bay. Once a firm hold taken by the ice, it would slowly spread its fingers and aid in the reduction of the temperature beyond, first producing slush-ice, and then the more solid crystal ice, until the whole surface would be frozen solid.
An explanation of the non-freezing of the main Lake has been offered by several local "authorities" as owing to the presence of a number of hot springs either in the bed of the Lake or near enough to its shores materially to affect its temperature. But I know of few or no "facts" to justify such an explanation.
When I first visited Lake Tahoe over thirty years ago I was seriously and solemnly informed by several (who evidently believed their own assertions) that, owing to the great elevation of the Lake, the density of the water, etc., etc., it was impossible for any one to swim in Lake Tahoe. I was assured that several who had tried had had narrow escapes from drowning. While the utter absurdity of the statements was self-evident I decided I would give myself a practical demonstration. To be perfectly safe I purchased a clothes-line, then, hiring a row-boat, went as far away from shore as was desirable, undressed, tied one end of the rope around the seat, the other around my body, and - jumped in. I did not sink. Far from it. I was never more stimulated to swim in my life. My ten or fifteen feet dive took me into colder water than I had ever experienced before and I felt as if suddenly, and at one fell swoop, I were flayed alive. Gasping for breath I made for the boat, climbed in, and in the delicious glow that came with the reaction decided that it was quite as important to feel of the temperature of lake water before you leaped, as it was to render yourself safe from sinking by anchoring yourself to a clothesline.
But I would not have my reader assume from the recital of this experience that Lake Tahoe is always too cold for swimming. Such is not the case. Indeed in June, July, August and September the swimming is delightful to those who enjoy "the cool, silver shock of the plunge in a pool's living water," that Browning's Saul so vividly pictures for us. Hundreds of people - men, women and children - in these months indulge in the daily luxury, especially in the coves and beaches where the water is not too deep, and the sun's ardent rays woo them into comfortable warmth.
After a warm day's tramp or ride over the trails, too, there is nothing more delicious than a plunge into one of the lakes. A short, crisp swim, a vigorous rub down, and a resumption of the walk or ride and one feels fit enough to conquer a world.
It can be imagined, too, what a lively scene the Lake presents in the height of the season, when, from the scores of hotels, resorts, camps, private residences, fishermen's camps, etc.; fishing-boats, row-boats, launches, motor-boats, and yachts ply to and fro in every direction, unconsciously vying with each other to attract the eye of the onlooker. The pure blue of the Lake, with its emerald ring and varying shades of color, added to by the iridescent gleam that possesses the surface when it is slightly rippled by a gentle breeze, contrasting with the active, vivid, moving boats of differing sizes, splashed with every conceivable color by the hats and costumes of the occupants - all these conspire to demand the eye, to enchain the attention, to harmlessly hypnotize, as it were, those who sit on the shore and look.
And when is added to this the spontaneous shouts and shrieks of delight that the feminine "fishermen" give when they are successful and make a catch, the half-frenzied and altogether delighted announcements thereof, the whole-hearted or the half-jealous, half-envious return-congratulations, while now and then the large steamer, Tahoe, or an elegant private yacht, as the Tevis's Consuelo, crosses the scene, one may partially but never fully conceive the joy and radiant happiness, the satisfaction and content that Lake Tahoe inspires and produces.
Lake Tahoe covers about 190 square miles, and its watershed is about 500 square miles. The boundary line between Nevada and California strikes the Lake on the northern border at the 120th meridian, and a point at that spot is called the State Line Point. The latitude parallel of this northern entrance is 39 deg. 15". The boundary line goes due south until about 38 deg. 58" and then strikes off at an oblique angle to the southeast, making the southern line close to Lakeside Park, a few miles east of the 120th meridian.
‹ INTRODUCTION. up CHAPTER II. FREMONT AND THE DISCOVERY OF LAKE TAHOE ›
Adventures in the Unknown Interior of America
In the Heart of Africa
From Normandy to the Pyrénées
Château and Country Life in France
Tent Life in Siberia
Among the Tibetans
Canyons of the Colorado
In The Amazon Jungle
American Encyclopedia - Travel
A Voyage in the 'Sunbeam'
THE COLOSSEUM AND THE FORUM
Captain James Cook
THE DAWN OF A CENTURY OF DISCOVERY
CHAPTER II. Narrative of Captain Cook's first voyage round the world.
FRENCH NAVIGATORS, I
CHAPTER IV. Narrative of Captain Cook's second Voyage round the World.
Travels in Africa. Park, Denham, Clapperton, Lander, and Others
AFRICAN EXPLORERS
THE EXPLORATION AND COLONIZATION OF AFRICA, II
VOYAGES ROUND THE WORLD, AND POLAR EXPEDITIONS
Today's Books
The Roof of France - The Causses of the Lozère
A Narrative of Captivity in Abyssinia
V. CEREMONIES AND FESTIVALS
II. COUNTRY VISITS
JEAN DE BÉTHENCOURT, 1339-1425, I
I. CHATEAU LIFE
IV. WINTER AT THE CHATEAU
VII. A RACINE CELEBRATION
A GLIMPSE OF THE CAUSSES.
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How Grey Was My Valley // Mor Llwyd Oedd Fy Nghwm
English - £7.00Welsh - £7.00
This slim volume celebrates the post-war architecture of Wales. And, if you're not familiar with the subject, you're in for a real treat. We take a quick look at the most intriguing works by 'The Welsh Giants', 'The Public Servants' and the 'Imperial Interlopers'.
Overall its a fascinating story. At the time of writing, three of the most spectacular buildings we feature were awaiting or undergoing demolition.
Lets hope the world comes to its senses before too much more is lost.
Available in both Welsh and English language versions.
Words and Photos - Peter Halliday
Design - Lizzie Biggs
Welsh translation - Grace Page
£7 plus p&p


Visas: commonwealth countries are issued visas on arrival, other countries may need a visa.
Children aged under 18 must show an unabridged birth certificate and additional paperwork needed in some cases.
South Africa is notorious for crime and violence. Typically this does not usually effect tourists, but be mindful of it. Do not leave you belongings in plain view, or on your car seat etc.
Tipping is very common in South Africa. It is 10% + in restaurants and bars. You should also tip the parking guards in shopping malls or at restaurants. R5 is usually a great tip.
Don't walk around the major cities in safari gear - you will stand out like a sore thumb as a tourist. This also makes you a more easy victim for crime.
Ignore the scam artists at the traffic lights. They are usually trying to sell you something, and they can be relentless.
Expert advice on how to stay safe when traveling to South Africa. Check out these tips for safety in South Africa, including staying safe while driving in South Africa.
A review of my four-day Intrepid Travel Kruger Park Lodge Experience and on safari in the wonderful Kruger National Park region.
A review of Thornhill Safari Lodge in the Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa. Thornhill Safari Lodge's staff, services, rooms and activities review.
A review of the City Sightseeing Johannesburg-Soweto Hop on Hop off Bus Tour, experienced by a local!
Cook the National Dish of South Africa from our Bobotie Recipe. Experience South African food by cooking it yourself.
A how-to-guide to doing your own safari in Africa. Tips and tricks on how to have the best do-it-yourself safari adventure.
Find out where the best spots and the best driving routes are in the Pilanesberg National Park.
Where to eat in South Africa: the best fast and cheap food in South Africa from someone who knows! My guide to the best food spots in South Africa.


Online Auctions are unmistakably among the hottest e-Sourcing technologies on the Internet business today. But what exactly is an online auction anyway and what are its benefits? According to the Pocket Oxford Dictionary, fourth edition (1942), an auction is a "public sale in which articles are sold to the highest bidder." and if done on Internet it is online auction.
Online auctions create a competitive advantage because they make it relatively simple for Procurement managers to negotiate on all corporate purchases and create better deals.
The myth came into being because no one understood how to measure criteria other than price. Total cost auctions take price and no-price factors, such as delivery time or customer service, into account, and they allow a customer to weight each factor accordingly. This is only a myth because when someone with sourcing expertise takes a creative approach to defining or breaking down the item in question, that item or its components can generally be auctioned.
This is false since a level playing field simply doesn't exist. And, not all suppliers are alike. Face-to-face negotiations have long proven this fact. Procurement managers can now normalize for differences (e.g., customer service, warranty terms, delivery cost, etc.) using Web-based technology. in effect, these technologies measure total cost allow customers to compare apples-to-oranges.
Today, the majority of legitimate suppliers have access to computers. the myth that only internet-savvy suppliers can participate in an online auction is wrong. in order to participate in an Internet based online auction, the suppliers merely need to be able to log on to the Internet, log in to a web site, and log their bids. It's just very simple. Suppliers don't have to know how to navigate the World Wide Web or use any sophisticated search engines to participate.
For any online auction, competition is a must and you must create a competitive environment, no matter if the suppliers is 4 or 400. Internet auctions put the business "up for bid." Incumbents are wise to take notice. Once existing suppliers believe that the buyer really will change where he takes his business, a competitive environment is created. Thus concrete results for online auctions occur irrelevant to number of suppliers.
MYTH #5: Only products are auctioned?
Not true - in fact, services are also auctioned. Services such as Telemarketing services, Cellular phone services, Security services, and temporary labor services are all good examples. for example, a particular auction site held an auction for telemarketing services that resulted in an 18% cost reduction. the auction involved over 60 suppliers and more than 700 bids. the study shows that apart from products, services can also be auctioned.
Event online auctions are generally used for categories of goods and services that require a long-term contract (say one year). These will achieve better results if auctioned year (or less). for example, a buyer may auction off the purchase of 10,000 PCs over a two-year period.
It is important for all to expand their concept of what can be auctioned, as long as the value of each item is 'elastic' enough to preclude fixed pricing. Once they have done that, the possibilities are almost endless.